Sunday Aug. 13- The Rain Doesn’t stop
anyone
I think the reality of my situation hit
me last night. My only contact with
family and friends will be on facetime and skype that is hit and miss at
best. One moment I can be having a great
call from my kids and then the next time all I get is delayed garble (it is
funny, however, to see someone’s face frozen in time in the most unflattering
pose!) . This has been especially hard
when it comes to talking with Sandra- both of us are not use to either of the
mediums so when things do not go right, we do not know how to fix the problem.
Not talking to someone weekly who you have spent your whole life talking to at
least biweekly is difficult. I am writing about what’s happening to me, but am
afraid I ma missing out on her important moments. Going two years like this one
would miss out on many important moments. I am determined to master technology;
this is unacceptable.
So, I wake up on Sunday morning with
swollen eyes (add that to my ever swollen feet and it is not a pretty
picture). My roommate and another
teacher are going to Bogyoke Market (Bojo) market- so I tag
along; nothing like shopping to make the soul at peace! As I enter the market my eyes are bombarded
with new images. Art stands, antique shops,
material shops, gem shops (you know Myanmar has sapphire, ruby and jade mines,
right?); row after row of wares for sale- so many decisions. I buy art. The
need to fix up the antiseptic house is urgent. Once it feels like home, perhaps
it will be home.
After shopping we go to a Thai place to
eat and have the street peddlers trying to sell us postcards the whole meal (I
make the mistake of buying some from one guy and then this other guy is mad at
me because he asked me first and was “waiting for me to finish.” After ten
minutes of sad eyes, I have to get forceful and tell him to go away. As I leave
I apologize to another patron for perhaps ruining his lunch and say I have
learned an important lesson today about ignoring the high-pressure street
salesmen. He nods in agreement. It starts to rain- but we head out to the plant
market anyway.
Oh the plants! We walk around in the
mud with three what had to be teenagers following behind with umbrellas to
protect us from the rain. I am so not
use to being “served”; I am uncomfortable with this (the woman who cleans my
office asks permission to come in, bows as she passes me and treats me like I
am above her- so not my style). We decide on about 35 plants (some in clay
pots- some to plant in ground) for our front beds (all are established full
blown mature plants- we spend $190.00!- so cheap- free delivery). We buy three orchids ($3.00) to hang on our
jail-like gate- they will be a nice greeting every morning. It was a good day.
Monday, Aug 12th “Three
inches makes a huge difference!”
Second week of school- Let the Routine Begin
I have always been a morning
exerciser. So today I join three other
woman and to walk around a near-by stadium.
It was a nice way to start the day in most places I have lived, but in
this situation I found myself drained ALL DAY (I know I was drained because
every inch of my clothing had sweat dripping from it- I know- too much
information and i never regained my energy). I think I will have to get my system use to this high humidity
before I can make this part of my day-to-day life. I guess I will hit the pool until then.
Have we talked about the stairs yet?
Each morning I walk up four flights of stairs to get to my 8th grade
English class. This does not sound like
a problem, but when the stairs are three inches taller (sorry those of you who
thought we were going to be talking about sex) than the average stair- it makes
a huge difference! Needless to say, I start each morning in front of the air
conditioner waiting to cool down- which is a little embarrassing considering
all the kids are already there ready to learn (yes, I start class ten minutes
early so I can read a novel out loud to them and they all show up!!!) But I digress- So, I have tall stairs in my
house, most of the people I go visit are on the fourth floor of their apartment
building, and I walk these everyday- do I get to count that as exercise??? I think so.
Tuesday, Aug. 13th Girls' Night Out
I imagine “girls' night out” can take on
several scenarios here in Myanmar much like other places; tonight it is an
elegant evening- not a “party on Garth” night. I sign up for a wine pairing
meal, dress up and am driven via staff driver, not taxi, to a fancy hotel. We hobnob with the well to do (one man was a
sports agent who represented tennis greats like Agassi) from the business
sector as appetizers are being passed and drink sparkling wine and then are seated
for our five-course meal (oops- sorry, I placed my own napkin on my lap). Yummo.
The New Zealand company from Sileni Estates sponsored the evening so the wine
was flowing. Wine tip- Run out and get a bottle of Silini Pinot Noir- it will
be worth the effort. It was a great evening of sharing stories and listening- I
am becoming a good listener. Our only dilemma was do we go salsa dancing or
home to our beds? This early into my adventure- I chose bed. Maybe next time I
will be more adventurous.
Wednesday, Aug. 14th “ Here
comes the rain, dadadadada..Here comes the rain and it’s all right.”
I know I will get tired of it, but when
you are coming off of a three-year drought in Texas- the rain sounds heavenly.
It has been a mild monsoon season (I have been told); I have found the rain
quite pleasant. I imagine my attitude will change when I am walking through a
foot of it to get to work, but until that happens, I will enjoy the pitter-patter
of the drops on my roof.
First faculty meeting- in the teacher
lounge. The secondary faculty fits in the teachers’ lounge, so we meet around
the table and discuss needs and routines (my teacher friends will understand the uniqueness of such a small staff) The principal announces that the
owner will be bringing some high ranking person for an assembly- rumors have it
that it will be Aung San Suu Kyi (of course I get tingles and start to tear
up).
After school, I go to a fellow
teacher’s apartment to meet the seamstress who will be making my traditional
Myanmar outfit to wear on a special holiday coming up. This should be
interesting. She will charge me $5.00 to
make what is basically a wrap around skirt called a longy- hell, at these
prices I am going to buy a bunch of material and have her copy some of my
favorite shirts.
Thursday, Aug 15th The good
with the bad
Great day at school! I have finally gotten into my rhythm,
remembered my gifts and am clicking with the students as well as my curriculum.
That’s the good. I get home and am
excited that our maid is making us pizza tonight, until I see that her idea of
pizza and my idea of pizza are two totally different ideas. I like a veggie
pizza as much as the next person, but give me a break- the red sauce was sweet,
and it was topped with carrots, mini corn, cauliflower and no cheese. She has not yet to master the crust. Bless her heart- she tried but I do not see homemade pizza
in my future (which is probably a good thing). So my roommate and I (from here
on out I will call her Jody- which by the way is her name) decide to go for our
first Myanmar mani/pedi and a bite to eat. This was the wrong time of the day
to be traveling by taxi. We were literally stopped in traffic for 20 minutes-
the driver actually turned his car off). All the waiting paid off- I have never
had an hour and a half pedicure. My toes are the cleanest they have ever been.
Can you say, “Yes, I would love for lime juice to be freshly squeezed on each
and every toe?” All I can say is it was
amazing… and only $22- which I am sure is high for this area but I do not want
to risk unsanitized equipment so I will pay that rather than go to a cheaper
place).
I ended the wonderful evening booking
an October vacation to Nepal. More about this later- I am soooooooo excited.
Friday, Aug. 16th Dinner
with the general
At school we have a social
committee. They plan events like
traveling happy hours, Saturday runs, and cultural events and of course- meals
out. Tonight it was dinner at The House of Memories- an establishment that has
converted the office of General Aung San into a restaurant. It was beautiful and was surrounded with
pictures and memorabilia from his time as the leader of Myanmar. The food was also excellent.
Reflections so far:
1.
Things I miss:
a. Being able to pick up the phone and make a call. Our phone
doesn’t work so I can’t even make local calls.
I thought I had my problem fixed by getting a Skype phone number with a
512 area code. It went great the first night- I talked to three or four people
but now the volume doesn’t work and I can’t figure out how to fix the
problem. I guess I will have to walk up
four flights of stairs and find a young person who can help me.
b. Television- I have probably watched a total of two hours of TV
since I have arrived. I guess I will become a fan of Dexter since it is the
only thing I can find and this was not even very satisfying considering I have
to wear my glasses to see the screen ( I guess what I really miss is my 55’
big screen TV!)
c.
Manageable hair- I spent big money
getting a Brazilian blow out before I came, to make my hair more manageable-
wrong- nothing will help; Not even the 50 pounds of product I brought. Oh, how
I envy those with straight hair.
d. Driving- and the freedom of it. Taxis are everywhere so
getting where one wants to get is not really a problem, but how does one tell a
taxi driver, “I just want to go out and explore?” Sometimes I do not want a plan; I just want a
visual cornucopia and you can’t plan that.
e. Drinking from the tap.
I have never been a bottled water person. I think I am dehydrated because I do not
always have a drinking bottle with me; I leave them everywhere. This will be a
problem I must solve.
f.
And of course family and friends. Facebook is a lifesaver but also a reminder
of what I am missing.
2.
Things I see:
a. The letters of the Myanmar alphabet are so artistic- each
round stroke is a piece of art. If I
were ever to get a tattoo- I would use this lettering (no worries- no tattoos
in my future)
b. Bikes everywhere- each morning as I sit on my porch I watch
countless people getting a start to their day.
Some are being pumped on the back of a bike, sitting “side saddle”; some
are on the side of a bike in a basket being taxied, and others are pumping
themselves up and down to their destination. All seem to have a peace about
them. None seem to be in a hurry, but
rather content with life.
c.
People carrying things on their head- I
guess there is a local market around the corner from me (I have yet to go
there), so I see people carrying huge bowls of greens on their heads. I see others balancing umbrellas, sacks and
sometimes children. I will never tire of this local color.
d. Smiles- so many smiles that just light up the place.
e. Our across the street neighbor bathing outside. She has a system and has her system down pat.
She is covered with a towel and gently soaks a sponge and bathes herself. There is no worry involved; it is just she
and the water.
3.
Things I hear-
a. I am surprised at the number of people who just walk through
the street and sing. For those of you
who know me well, you know this is one of my habits- at any moment, at anytime,
I can just start singing. I remember when I was a young girl, I would go to the
grocery store with my mom and I would sing as we were walking form the parking
lot to the store doors. My logic was
that even famous people had to eat so one day an agent could be shopping, hear me
and the rest would be history. That habit
has not been lost (but I have come to the realization that I will never be a
singing star).
b. Children playing- The joy of hearing children at play is
universal. Each Saturday as I am
drinking my coffee outside, I hear the local children at the local school
across from my house (yes- the government schools have school on Saturday). So
cute. I also get to walk through a group of boys each day, playing soccer in
the streets and get to hear their competitive and boisterous smack talk. I have joined them a few times and much to
their surprise, I can still kick a soccer ball.
c.
My neighbors. I do not think our bathroom windows have full
panels so I can hear the sounds of their day-to-day life. This morning they
must be having a family meal with many because the conversations are loud and
continuous; I wish I knew the language.
Each morning I hear the families getting ready for their day. I do not
know if we will ever be neighborly because of the language barrier, but it is
enjoyable to be part of their world.
d. The monastery- The sounds that come from the monetary are numerous.
Chanting at times, and at other times, recorded music systematically is played and I have
been told a loud bell is rung at about 3:30 am (although my ability to sleep
through anything prevents me from hearing this sound). Now these sounds are new
and unique; I have also been told in February I will want to climb a tree and cut
the wires that pump what will be a week of continuous song. We will see.
That's all for now. I will trek to the school and grade papers.
Bogyoke Market
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