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I am finally in Nowgong which is where I'll be working and living. I've been quite up and down these past few days and I was definitely right in thinking this isn't going to be a walk in the park but I'm sure once I get my feet on the ground I'll feel better! I think my feeling a little upset was due mainly to being stuck in my room with nothing to do so I am very excited to start work (I was never one to sit around!). I've already got a few people that I need to prove myself to, which is fair enough really, so I will be continuing to work hard on my Hindi and will work very hard at my job to show that I deserve the position!
Arriving in Delhi was great. I stayed with a friend's sister-in-law (Didi) and her family who were all so lovely. They took me for dinner that evening in a mall which contrasted quite starkly with what I presumed to be slum type dwellings that I saw driving from the airport. I hope that now I have a friend for life as Didi has been very kind. I've rang her with my new number and she said I can visit her whenver I like. In the morning Didi's husband came with me to the train station to make sure I got on the right train etc, for which I will be forever grateful as Indian train stations are not easily understandable to a naïve little English girl such as myself.
I then got off in Jhansi and was picked up by two staff members of Haritika, the organisation that I am working for. The car journey to Nowgong was pretty drawn out with stop offs on the way to run errands. We finally reached the town around 2pm and went straight to the office, only 5 minutes from my house, as there was no key to the house. Here I met Avani Ji (my new boss), who is so kind, and a few other colleagues who seem pleasant.
Later that evening I got to see my new home, which is certainly better than I was expecting. I have a flushing western toilet and a shower which is much more than I had in the Nepali orphanage. My room isn't quite ready yet as there is no fan or light so I am staying in another girl's room whilst she is away. Altogether, there are 5 girls staying in the house, and I am the only one with my own room. The house is quite large though and the two girls that I've met so far are very friendly and caring. They aren't from around here so they understand that I am missing my family and friends. They asked if I missed my sister earlier and I shed a little tear so they hugged me and said that they are my sisters now. I've come to realise that this is quite typical behaviour - friendliness is certainly in abundance in a way that it is not in London.
I had dinner with Avani Ji and a few colleagues that evening, and ate the food even though I wasn't very hungry - its so hot!
All-in-all, my first few days have been ok but I'm feeling more homesick than I expected, most likely because there is no-one that speaks English very well, other than a man from another organisation who has come to visit Haritika. However, I'm reluctant to talk to him too much because he's from Orrissa (a long way away) and will be leaving soon so I don't want to get too reliant on his language abilities. Still, its been nice to have someone who can coherently explain things to me for the first few days.
One of the staff members, Rahees, seems to have been charged with looking after me for a while and he is helping me with my Hindi and took me to the town today to pick up a few things to help me settle in - hangers for my clothes, a lock for my door, string for my Salwaar Kameezs etc. He's kind and his English is not great so I'm really having to try with Hindi!
Definitely the hardest thing to cope with is feeling isolated as I have no-one to talk easily and at length to but thankfully I've got the internet in my room and so am able to communicate with you lot.I think once my job has started though, and I'm kept more busy, I'll feel a lot better.
I am happy with the lack of toilet paper (bring on the left hand wash Nepali style!), the curried vegetables and daal at 9am for breakfast, the heat, the bugs, the not knowing what to do (I still haven't figured out what to do with my rubbish etc), being stared at, and everything else that comes with being perhaps one of the first westerners that people have seen, but the isolation is the toughie. Still, it just means that I'm more motivated to learn Hindi so I'm sure its ok.
Having said all that, I had dinner in a temple today which was more amazing to me than everyone else who treated it as a somewhat everyday affair. I didn't really know what to do or how to act because my friends and colleagues said a quick prayer and were blessed by the man whom I assume was the priest. I just followed suit and did what I was told (this tactic seems to be getting me quite far) so I don't think I offended anyone - what an anthropologist hey! The surrounding area was beautiful (its just the end of the rainy season now so everything is green) and I tried to take as many photos as I could - especially for you Rach.
I'll sign off here and start to do some work I think. I knew this was gonna be a challenge and hard work. I've felt at points that its going to be too much in these past few days but I know those moments are only moments of weakness and I'm confident in my ability to hack through.
The man who can speak good English advised that I take my time, listen and learn and watch in order to figure my way around.Good advice I think, words that I'll be sticking to!
Thanks so much for all your messages, they've really pulled me through the tougher parts. Please keep them coming! Also, I have my Indian number now: (0091) 9179811099 and it only costs around 6p to text home so that's just one more form of communication. There is an access number you can call so that you get cheap numbers to India, I'll look it up and let you all know what it is.
Hope to hear from you soon xx
PS. Photos will be appearing on Facebook soon!
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