March 12.
David got up early and spent the morning with Ramesh having tea. I am wearing one of my Indian dresses that go with skinny pants.
We spend the day at Ramesh' house and family.
Various relatives come in and out of the house and lunch and dinner was served. David and I and Ramesh and Varshaben and the older men ate first, served by the younger women. I think they ate after us. there is a woman who washes the dishes. Darshan and Sejal mostly do the cooking.
Rashul, Krut and another young boy performed their bollywood dance routine that they performed at a wedding, maybe Ankita and Sagar's.
One of the young girls did a dance. She had on a pretty pink chiffon dress with a pink hair clip. Tirth taught me how to play four pictures one word and got me hooked on this ap. we also looked at pictures of our trip and our family. This is a very nice, loving family. Ramesh is the head of the family. He is responsibe for taking care of everyone.
Ramesh's daughter and her husband were killed in a car crash in November on the road to Rajkot. they left two daughters. One is living with her grangparents in Rajkot and wants to be a pilot even though her name means "ship". Her older sister is in boarding school and will go to live in Australia after graduation.
One of the many relatives sat with me and dictated this relationship list which I know is incomplete
Ramesh's younger brother Harshad bhai, is married to Geeta ben, Sagar is their son. Harshad is also Ramesh's partner. He lives in Vadodara.
Ankita and Sagar, just got married
Harshad bhai and Geeta ben daughter are Sneha, husband Kalpesh,
they have two daughters Kavya and Vinisha. Sagar is Sneha's brother
Pravin bhai, late. Sudha ben, his wife and Sejal's father in law, son is Nirav and Dayal, daughter
Sejal and Nirav, doctor, hospital in padra. We later visited his hospital/office. General practice. Nirav is Pravin's son, Ramesh's late younger brother.
and Krut, son, 8 yrs, and Mahir, daughter, 5
Payal ben cousin sister and Paresh bhai , one son Tirth, here, tall nice young man, 13. As soon as cousin sisters were mentioned I got confused. Everyone is basically a brother or sister, son or daughter, or grandchild no matter if Uncle or Aunt
Kanti bhai, late brother of Ramesh, not in touch with them. In Mumbai.
Rajkot, Ramesh bhai's two sisters
Ushaben and Manju
Ushaben's husband is late:
Chandu bhai
son is Rajesh and his wife Keta and one son Kunal 16 yrs.
Manju ben, sister of Ramesh bhai. Husband is doctor Dhiru bhai.
son Snehal, MBA, daughter Shraddha, a doctor pathology
March 13, Friday:
Varshanben and Viral Patel
Rameshbhai and David
Rameshbhai and Davidbhai relaxing in their lungis
David and I and Ramesh walked to where David lived in Padra in the Peace Corps. Someone was living there now. It had four rooms and a back courtyard. there are apartments all around where before their were fields. We went to the govt office where he reported for work. There was a list of the supervisors and the dates they served, on the wall. we visited with the woman who holds that office now. then we went to see where Rusi and Chandrabala worked. Then we visited a store to have two Indian shirts made for David out of khadi. David had on this 48 year old khadi shirt. This shirt was made by the father of the present tailor. He has already passed the business on to his own son.
Then we went to a jeweler who is a good friend of Rameshbhai.
Darshan and Sejal and I went to the bazaar. Darshan wanted to buy a costume for Rushil for his primary graduation ceremony on March 18. He will go to 1st grade in April.
Padra is known for shoes and gold jewelry. We shopped for shoes. I liked a pair of black slippas with rhinestone decorations. Darshan bought them for me. Next we looked at watches. Next we looked at jewelry. All Indian women like gold jewelry. A salesman patiently showed us bangles, rings and earrings. They are sold by weight of gold.
We came back and talked about our family and their family and traveling. then we went to our hotel at the BAP temple and had dinner. I washed my hair while they all had icecream.
BAPS temple from the BAPS hotel.
I got several more mosquito bites, even though we used the plug in mosquito repellant disperser and I eventually got dressed and put on the airconditioner to blow air. I am miserable. I told David I needed to stay in a hotel with screens to keep out the mosquitos. Ramesh feels like he needs to pay for this so it will be difficult to give them money, but I guess Varshan may accept it. Our room at the BAP costs $30 per night. Ramesh has to stay with us or we can't stay there.
Malaria is endemic in India. I have over 10 mosquito bites, so I hope none of them are carrying malaria. We are both taking malarone. I seem to be very sensitive to Indian mosquitos. I have red swollen welts and they itch like hell. For some reason they do not use mosquito nets here like Africa.
At breakfast we met a couple from London who are visiting and stay at BAP. Rashul goes to the BAPschool in Vadodara.
March 14, Saturday, we got up early and met our driver at Ramesh's and drove to Rajkot. It took us 6 hours. The roads are being constructed and there are lots of diversions. However we finally got onto a national highway that is divided and it is pretty good. There is a toll to use this road. there were many trucks, carrying chaff, straw, cotton, cotton seed, burlap bags, and one truck of hay that I don't know how they piled it so high without toppling over. The trucks will say Honk Please. I am itching the whole ride.
In Rajkot we visit Ramesh's relatives. They are doctors and speak English. One man is friendly and speaks English. He is a retired emergency physician. His specialty is curing snake bite, esp. cobra. Every one of his patients survived. We watched some of the India vs. Zimbabwe cricket match. India won again. they served us a delicious lunch. They were worried about what to serve us. I enjoyed everything. Many of the things you cannot make in the US. We do not have the ingredients, like millet flour or mustard seed oil.
Then we went to Ramesh's older sister's son's house to take a nap before we drove to Shree Jalaram temple in Virpur, near Gomdal, S of Rajkot. The temple is a pilgrimage site. We took off our shoes, as usual, and filed into a small area with a figure, and a casting in marble of two feet. We touched the feet, which were wet. Then we looked into another window where there were some other figures. Then we saw an old grinding mill which used bullocks that is on display. Ramesh said they feed anyone who wants to eat here. Ramesh said that whatever your wish is, you will have it granted if you pray here. He came here to pray for us to be able to have children, and we did!
There was a large bazarre that was clean and nice with many different things to sell. David bought a figure of Shree Jalaram. I wanted to buy a toy for Rushil but they said it was all low quality, made in China; things that would break right away.
After the temple, we drove to Darshan's parent's house. They deal in sari's which were shelved in a room where we were served tea and some snacks. I could not eat the snacks. but she makes the best chai tea, just like Darshan. Her parents live with his Father who is 90. He came to say hello. I realized that if you have only girls, you do not have a son and his wife to live with you. The wife will help you at home. In fact, it looks to me like Darshan does most of the cooking, although Varsha did our wash once. She is also in charge of the money. They all get along well.
Varsha's mother with Ramesh.
After this home, we drove aways and went to see Ramesh's sisters homes and family. We also went to see Varsha's Mother who must have been 80.
Then we visited some other relatives and took pictures everywhere. One of the young girls served us and she is getting married May 1. She showed us her engagement photo. There were also several grandchildren at various homes. We visited in all five homes as well as the home where we are staying the night. This is at Ramesh's sister's home who lives with her son and wife. He is an engineer and she is an Aruvedic doctor with her practice just down the street.
This home is very modern. There is a large courtyard with a swing where we put our shoes, as usual. The ground floor has two bedrooms and baths. We are staying in one. The next level also has two bedrooms the living room and kitchen and dining area.
the homes we have visited are sparse in furnishings. Just the essentials. The floors are stone or marble. Bare feet only. Things must be tucked away in cupboards. Most homes have a fan. Some have AC. Ramesh has AC and fans.
The living room can be actually also the bedroom and you sit on the beds and maybe a plastic stacking chair is brought in. there is usually a TV. If there is anything on the walls it will be a family photo or a religious calendar or a religious god picture.
The kitchen has a primus stove with two burners. One house also had a microwave oven. There will be a small refrigerator. There is a storeroom filled with metal canisters of the various grains, rice, and other dry ingredients, maybe some potatoes or carrots or bananas as well. Thalis, cups and saucers are in another cupboard. Chai is served in small china cups with saucers. Water and food is served in stainless steel cups and bowls and plates. There is no napkin. You wash your hands first and there is a towel behind your seat. After dinner you also wash your hands.
The bathroom is interesting. The one we have in Rajkot is a very nice house, Ramesh said would cost $500,000. The price of things is openly discussed. There is a western style toilet, a small sink, one towel rack up high. the whole room is tiled and there is a drain in the corner. there is a plastic bucket and a plastic cup to match. You can take a bath traditional style by filling the bucket and pouring the water over you. You can also use a shower head using separate handles. This house has solar hot water! the BAPS hotel had a small electric tank you turned on when in use. There is also a hand shower faucet next to the toilet which is used to wipe. I cannot figure out how to do this without a towel, which isn't provided, so I just take my own tissue and another plastic bag to put it in after. At Ramesh's house, you put on simple slippas that are kept outside the door of the bathroom that you wear so your feet don't get wet when you are in there because it gets all wet when you pour water around.
The toilet situation in general is that for public washrooms, most all the stalls will be squat toilets. Sometimes there will be one western toilet. The train had one out of four. The western toilets usually had paper unless they were out, which is often. Or there will be an attendant who will hand you tissue as you go in, and the same type tissue to wipe your hands with after washing. They would like to be paid as well. Each toilet has a faucet or sprayer, a cup, and bucket or something. It seems like to flush a squat toilet you just pour some water down it.
During our tour of India, we would sometimes see men relieving themselves along the side of the road, usually facing a wall, but not always. We would also see people in a field or on the bank of a river squatting down staring ahead, in the mornings.
All in all, I am used to this wash room situation now. I just have to be prepared. David commented that it would take a forest a day to supply all of India with toilet paper.
The beds are single platforms with about a 4 inch thick mattress covered with a light cotton sheet. Somtimes it is a king size bed platform as well. The cotton sheet is like the one we bought in Jaipur in terms of weight and material. There is a small pillow covered in the same fabric. At the end of the bed is a heavier cotton throw folded. It is adequate for a cover at night, just right for the climate as long as you don't have mosquitos around. The bed is hard, but I have had no trouble sleeping on it. Ramesh takes a nap after lunch for one hour, so we have gone to a room to be quiet as well. I was just going to read, but found myself napping. David and I enjoy this little rest and may incorporate it into our routine. Right after our rest, we are served tea again and sweets. Ramesh has been refusing sweets, and just revealed that he has a big sore on his ankle that has had trouble healing. In that vein, Varshan has a low burp that is almost continual. I guess I do too. But it seems like many of the cousins of Viral are medical doctors, so all is well.
Except for mosquito bites, we both have been just fine with the food. Our stomachs have had no problem. We do not eat anything fresh, only cooked. I eat the yoghurt stuff, but not the buttermilk, although it is probably just fine. In the kitchen there is an osmosis filter for the water. The water is kept in an earthen pot with a spiggot which keeps it cool. Everyone has provided us with bottled water, however. I think it is special for us. We are getting really skilled at brushing teeth with bottled water. Chandrabala told Ramesh when we talked before we left Hawaii, that he had to provide bottled water and that we should take a pepto bismol before a meal, which we did occasionally. Anything unusual I declined to be safe. I didn't want a stomach upset to spoil any minute of this time.
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