On the plane back home

This is it. I’ve been here for 3 months and my program has come to an end. I haven’t written too many blogs recently because it hasn’t seemed like a lot of exciting events have occurred lately. I thought, that’s funny, has India suddenly stopped being as crazy as it was in the beginning of my program? The answer is definitely NO. After spending some time thinking of all that’s happened in the past few weeks, I can certainly say there is no lack of ridiculous stories occurring each and everyday. I guess it’s just that I’ve gotten so used to things here. What we call “chaos” back home is an everyday routine here. So here you are, my final weeks of my Indian adventure, one last compilation of American insanity and Indian real life.

I’ll start with my time in the clinic. The last five weeks have all been observing OBGYN and pediatrics. Basically, we show up at a new clinic each week and watch some OBGYN surgery, witness a birth or two, and occasionally sit in on the doctor’s outpatient visits. Each place was quite unique which allowed me to see a wide variety of medical care. I witnessed procedures all the way from the most up to date technology in robotic surgery to one doctor manually removing the placenta after birth, using no oxygen, no anesthesia, nothing but his hand, and 30 years of experience in hospitals that lack such vital supplies, to save this mother’s life. So many times I stood there with my mouth hanging wide open hidden behind my mask, watching some of the most incredible and horrifying stuff one could imagine. There are two types of hospitals here, private and government. Essentially, you get what can you pay for, and here you are born into a system that predetermines what you will be able to afford based on your class, or should I say caste. So those that can afford, go to private hospitals, while those that were not as fortunate in where they arrived on the social totem pole go to Government hospitals. It’s at these government run institutions that I saw medicine in a whole new light. Here, endless amounts of patients come in hope there will be enough doctors and medical supplies that day to make them better. Surgeries are as sterile as the funding allows them to be. Maybe it’s that they only get one sterile gown for the day, no matter the number of surgeries, maybe they have to wash and reuse their gloves. Half of medicine depends on supplies, and for this, millions of people here rely on the government to provide this for them. The other half of medicine lies in the hands of doctors and trained medical professionals. You need both parts to heal an injury, cure a disease, change someone’s life, or save it. Medicine here is not always pretty. In one hospital we visited, the only doctor there was faced with delivering six babies in one day on two labor beds. And when I say labor beds, I mean two metal tables three feet apart in a room the size of a small bedroom. These government patients don’t get the luxury of someone holding their hand while they get care, telling them what to expect, explaining to them their “options“. No, this is medicine limited in both people and supplies. And because of this, I was able to meet and shadow some truly astounding doctors. It takes a seriously strong and committed person to do what these doctors do, in a place where there is never enough to go around.

On a less serious note, there is my personal life. I basically go through each day waiting for something ridiculous to happen and low and behold, I am never disappointed. I don’t think I can possibly connect these outrageous stories in any kind of clever, witty way, so here they are, in blunt chronological order, the same way I lived them. I’ll begin back with my Thanksgiving. I went out to dinner with the three other girls in the program. I made one short-lived, yet diligent effort to explain what a turkey was and see if they had any. No luck there. So I ordered ONE whole chicken instead. There was a brief spout of confused ordering and some strange looks given on their part, but that seemed totally normal after being here for a couple months. Next thing I know, I’m given FOUR whole chickens! Happy …chicken day I guess. I’ve had many more interesting outings, most of which end in me saying “oh India“, in some kind of feeble attempt to make sense of the situation. I went to my first hard rock café in Pune. I watched an crazy old man do magic tricks in a park and somehow left my hand smelling like jasmine without ever touching me. I was slapped by a rickshaw driver after yelling at each other in our own languages for ten minutes. I ate lunch with a professional cricket player. And the craziest thing yet, I actually got behind the wheel and drove in the madness they called traffic. So while these are just the highlights of some of my days, let me remind that through all of this, people are still constantly yelling at us to buy their stuff, beggar women and children poke and grab at us all day, I am now crossing roads that are 7 lanes wide (not that people understand what the word lane refers to), so basically hundreds of rickshaws, motorbikes, buses and cars are pummeling toward you like a herd of wild animals. Another very exciting few days occurred while attending, our crazy driver, Dada’s wedding. We drove 6 hours with our directors, the Dabaks, to a rural town where Dada lived. Now the Dabaks are a whole story in themselves, from the highest caste, well educated, and genetically more capable ( as stated in their words) than the people of the rural villages, which are of the lowest castes. Just a little intro for what’s to come. While there, we stayed in a….better than average hotel as we were told. The first night I decided to stop drinking liquids so that I wouldn’t have to go into the bathroom, the bed sheets had large eerie stains, which I told myself to dismiss until I saw the box of condoms in the garbage can…vanilla flavor. Before bed, I attempted to stop a leak in the room by grabbing a bucket from the horrifying bathroom. Just then a huge cockroach came scurrying at my feet from under the bucket. The next day was the wedding though, and it was truly magnificent. There were so many traditions in the rural setting that most people never get a chance to see. We watched the bride and groom bathe each other first (with their clothes on of course), then the whole village and all people that came to watch followed the groom on horseback and danced down a long road to a temple where the horse bowed and blessings were given. Then there was the ceremony, where we were honored as special guests and given coconuts and flowers, which are traditional gifts in many of the villages I had visited. On our way home Mr. Dabak swerved off the road slightly to avoid hitting a car, but while doing so lightly struck a little girl walking home from school. In a natural response, he began ranting about how uneducated and stupid these rural people are. Just another day in the caste system.

My program ended in Pune and so I set off to Southern India with my mom. We went a lot of places and everyday was something extraordinary. Starting in Kochi, we drank special tea J and watched fishermen catch fresh seafood all day out of an impressive array of giant nets that hung in the bay. I got my first massage, which I guess was a little different than what they do in the US. I was spread out, bum naked on a metal table and got a serious rub down everywhere from head to toe. No further details necessary. We then went to Thekedy, home of the tiger reserve and spice capital of India. We rode an elephant on the first day, then went out at 5am the next day on a jeep safari, in search of wild tigers and elephants. Next stop was Allepey. Here we spent a day cruising Kerala’s most beautiful backwaters in a house boat made of wicker and bamboo, then lounged by a pool made to look like you’re swimming in the lake that surrounds the hotel. While taking our final ride in a rickshaw, the driver was going a little faster than the little vehicle could handle and the engine caught fire. So many good times on the auto rickshaws. Our last stop was Goa, the most stunning and popular getaway in all of India. Here I swam in the Indian Ocean and enjoyed my last day on a secluded tropical beach in India’s paradise.

Pune and Mumbai

I made it to Pune! The journey here was full of memorable moments including falling down the Delhi train station stairs. Yes, I just happen to slip and fall down the stairs of one of the biggest, most crowded, dirtiest railway stations in India... with about 50kg of luggage attached to all sides of me. Oh the joy of having 20 men grabbing at me and my luggage to “help” me up continues to linger in one’s mind. Everything went smoothly after that though, even the plane ride on Spice Jet airlines (such a secure sounding name isn’t it?). I really like Pune. It’s a big city, but still pretty easy to get around. I live in a guest house with two rooms and an outdoor kitchen area. It’s really cozy... wow it’s amazing how much my mentality about this place had changed. In reality, I’m sleeping on a two inch thick mattress, still using a bucket to shower, eating food from a fridge that doesn’t run, and yesterday I spent ten minutes attempting to scoot a 4 inch long cockroach out of my room. I know this may sound pretty rough to people back home, but here it’s nothing. I’ve seen slums where houses are made of sticks and mud, where families eat, sleep and defecate in one room the size of our king size beds. Hundreds of these homes crammed together like people in a rock concert. Streams of mud, feces and garbage run between a two foot wide pathway and the endless line of huts that make up this area called the slums. I’ve seen enough to know that where I am staying is truly a blessing.
The clinic rotations so far have been spectacular. I’ve seen vaginal births, c-sections, tubule ligations, and so much more. Yesterday I held the a speculum (tool that keeps some body cavity open) and assisted the doctor while she sutured after a birth (looking so official in my cap, mask and white coat I might add). I also gave my first injection, which might have gone better had the patient not seen my shaking hands right before penetrating her skin. Needless to say, I’m getting more medical experience here than I could have ever dreamed of in the US.
Outside the clinic life has been great also. I’ve spent two weekends in Mumbai, which might be my favorite city I’ve been to... ever. I rode the local trains, literally crammed elbow to elbow with people, by day and at night we hit the disco techs. The club we went to clearly had never heard of something called maximum capacity and the only way to shut it down was for the Indian police to show up. We then hopped into a taxi, in which the driver was even more intoxicated than us and were whisked away to the flat which lay on the 12th floor overlooking the streets of Mumbai. Riding the local trains there are just as crazy. The train stops for about 5 seconds and people elbow, shove, grab, whatever it takes to make it on and off at your stop. I went to the endless markets where things are so cheap you feel like you’re stealing. I had tea in the Taj Hotel, the place where the 26/11 attacks took place last year and one of the most astounding hotels in the world. The second weekend I attended a wedding that rivaled that of royalty. The setting, the dress, and the food were all so indescribably incredible. It was like a fairytale in so many aspects and nothing I could have ever imagined beforehand. I find my self saying more and more that I could just stay here in India, simply forget to catch my plane back home. Not realistic I know but with only two weeks left in the program I plan to make the absolute most of my time here.

Mussoorie and the train the Delhi

This past week has been full of ups and downs, ending with a shocking tragedy. We went up to the mountain town of Mussoorie. It rests at 7,000 ft high in the Himalayas. Just when I thought I was no longer phased by the driving around here, I am taken up this road of terror in yet another rickety SUV by a wannabe NASCAR driver! We passed cars, trucks, and buses on blind corners, in the dark, with a mile long drop right next to us. We made it though, and it was well worth a little dribble in the underpants. As a popular tourist place, the town was absolutely beautiful overlooking Dehra Dun and engulfed by an endless array of mountains. Although gorgeous in scenery, it was very cold compared to the rest of India. And since heating isn’t real practical there, I stayed in long johns, scrubs and a winter jacket the whole time (yes sleeping too). We stayed and did rotations in the hospital. The clinical experience was definitely the best so far. I observed 3 surgeries and one birth. One of the surgeries, lasting 4 hours, was a total reconstruction of a man’s elbow. I made it through the cutting, the peeling away of muscle, the breaking of the bone, and even through the drilling part. It was when I saw the man’s paining face, while the doctor was stabbing around his neck with a needle trying to find the nerve that goes to the arm, that things started going hazy and I felt the knees go weak. Luckily this birth went a lot better than the last one. I guess by a woman’s third child, it’s kind of like a slip n slide down there and the baby just plops out without a lot of complications. Sorry for any image you may have experienced right there. Point of this though is that I’m learning a lot about medicine and it’s really incredible that I am able to see all that I have so far. The town of Mussoorie was basically one road that wound its way up the mountain lined with shops, hotels, and restaurants, crammed with people and festivities. It was a lovely place to end my Northern Indian experience with. Things took a drastic turn, though, today on the train back to Delhi. Only 30 minutes outside of Delhi I woke up to the train stopped and a bunch of commotion. Someone told me our train hit and killed 5 men that were working on the tracks. When I looked out the door, it was like a scene from CSI. Bodies were strewn beside the railway. One man lay dead right outside my window and remained there until we pulled away nearly 30 minutes later. I was expecting a lot coming to a new country, but what happened today is almost too disturbing for words. In an Indian family, the man works and the wife stays at home with the children. Not only did five men lose their lives today, but five women probably lost their husbands, kids lost their fathers, and families lost their only supply of income. How are they going to recover I wonder? Where do they go now? While I was only effected for 30 minutes, the events of today will forever alter the lives of these women and children. God give them strength. I am now in Pune, ready to see what the next five weeks will bring me.

An Indian Wedding

This last weekend, the five of us rented a hotel in Patiela to attend a wedding. Weddings here last for days and we were invited to the last two days which include a night of dancing on each side of the family and then the ceremony the next night. Saturday night we celebrated with the bride’s side of the family at a beautiful home lit up with bright lights, colorful saris, dazzling jewelry and some of the best food I’ve had here so far. So while everyone back at home was out celebrating Halloween, I danced the night away to Punjab music while enjoying endless Indian food, oh and a full open bar J The next night was the actual ceremony and it was hands down the most spectacular display I’ve seen since being here. You’ll have to check out the pictures because it’s way too much to explain in writing. Family flew in from all over the world and the guest list was probably around 500. The catering tables literally lined the entire perimeter of the huge courtyard while tons of servers meandered throughout the party with endless amounts of appetizers and drinks. There is a gathering/celebration when the groom arrives and then the bride and groom sit and take pictures with anyone who wants them for 3 hours! I was dragged onto the dance floor by some of the party goers and had one of the most insane experiences of my life. A huge group of men and women started dancing in a circle around me and suddenly the men started throwing money up in the air above me. It was literally reigning money on me for a good 5 minutes! I thought this was kind of hookerish, but I was informed later it was normal and for fun. Ask me about it when I get home, it was straight up the craziest thing ever. The actual ceremony didn’t start until 1:00am and we left around 3. Check out the pics on my picassa page.

The Taj and Chandigarh

This week started off with a spectacular viewing of the Taj Mahal. It was everything I was expecting and more. By more I mean the journey to the Taj was something in itself. The plan was to take an 8 hour taxi ride overnight on Friday, visit Agra, then take another one back Saturday night. The plan was to get plenty of rest in our air conditioned, SUV cab. The plan was far from what happened! The ‘8’ hour journey turned into 12 hours after the driver got lost several times. It didn’t help that he spoke no English and we had no idea how far we were, not that the driver seemed to know either. And as for the sleeping part, imagine trying to rest your head against a window while off-roading…for 12 hours. Between speed bumps, giant pot holes, dirt caked roads and the fact that every driver here is gas and brake happy, the thought of sleep slowly slipped away as I popped around in the cab like a popcorn kernel. Although we were tired and beaten up from the long night, the sight of the Taj Mahal seemed to brighten everything up instantly. It truly is an astounding piece of work. With thousands of tourists around though, it’s sometimes hard to really enjoy even the most spectacular places. While in Agra, we were ‘blessed’ with the craziest rickshaw driver we’ve had yet. His name was Vikki which he decided was best to say while holding up a peace sign as a V. He wore tight white pants, a button down shirt that could have used a few mores buttons up top, and had a wanna be Italian fro. After spending a full day with Vikki, it was time for a long night in the cab again. We got back to Dehra Dun and a few hours later we boarded a bus to Chandigarh, the only planned city in India, which took another 5 hours. Bouncing around while attempting to sleep was getting to be normal by then. And if that wasn’t enough, apparently the men on the bus hadn’t seen too many white girls, so I got the pleasure of being stared at for 5 hours while looking like a bobble head doll. I wish I could say things got better since starting a new rotation, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. We stayed in a homestay, but it was more like a hostel/orphanage. Girls would stay there and rent beds. There were 10 girls sleeping in one room and apparently respect for others sleep wasn’t part of their routine. The clinic aspect was interesting as well. The focus was public health, so we would listen to a presentation on a project this non-governmental organization was doing and then go visit the sight. We saw a lot between visiting below poverty level slums to talking with female sex workers. At least the host family was especially friendly. It got a little weird though when they had me stay after the others to give me a special gift. I'm guessing I was the blonde daughter they always wanted lol, or maybe it was because the host dad walked in on me in the shower, awkward. Anyway, I definitely wasn't sad about leaving this odd little situation. Although the week hadn’t gone quite as expected, I was excited to head off to an Indian wedding all weekend.

Happy Diwali!

Well I made it through the weekend. So much has happened in the past week. We celebrated Diwali Friday and Saturday night. Just a reminder, Diwali is the biggest festival of the year in India celebrating the Goddess of wealth. Friday night we were invited to a place called Dun club. It’s for the elite of society to come together and celebrate, eat delicious food, and watch incredible firework displays. It was quite the change from what I see in the city. The women were in beautiful saris with gold jewelry hanging off every part of them. Some had their hair down and some even showed parts of their legs! Just for the record, I haven’t seen knee caps since I got here. Needless to say, everyone here is very conservative. The following night was the big celebration. Me and the four other students stayed at the homestay to enjoy the festivities from the rooftop. The family’s son is our age and had about 15 of guy his friends over. We all ate, drank, and danced the night away while fireworks exploded all around us. The amount of fire crackers that go off on Diwali is about 10 times as many as our 4th of July. The sky is literally lit up with explosions until dawn. With that though came a downpour of ash so thick you can only make out the outlines of people in some of the pictures. I’m not complaining though, Diwali will probably one of the greatest experiences I’ll have here.
Monday we started a new clinical rotation. We go to an OBGYN doctor in the morning and a cardiologist in the evening. The first day of clinic started very exciting. A woman came in with a spontaneous abortion, and I watched as the doctor vacuumed out the premature fetus. I know it sounds intense, but that is nothing compared to what I saw the next day. Later that day we caught an auto rickshaw to our next clinic. On the way there, the driver side swiped a bus. On the way home, he stopped for food (let me remind you this is like a taxi you hire to drive you somewhere, not to stop randomly at his convenience!) . As the three of us are crammed in the back, we notice the rickshaw starts slowly scooting towards the oncoming traffic and our driver is no where in sight,. We laugh with each jolt forward because when you spend two weeks riding around in a rickety piece of metal with three wheels and no traffic laws, you eventually just close your eyes and laugh at each “should have been accident”. Tuesday was just as crazy. I saw my first live birth! The baby being delivered was incredible, but things kind of went downhill after that. The doctor used a suction to pop the baby out, so the actual birthing only took like 10 seconds. The aftermath was more dramatic though. The mother had post partum hemorrhaging, which means she doesn’t stop bleeding. The uterus wasn’t contracting like it’s supposed to and on top of that, she had a LOT of tearing, probably from the baby coming out so fast. So I then watched her being drugged and sewed up for almost 30 minutes. That’s when things started going hazy. Luckily I made it to a chair right before the bright light took over, and then managed my way to the toilet seconds before my breakfast made a second appearance. But don’t worry everyone, both the mother and I are doing fine now. Later that day we went to our second clinic. This time we took a vickram, the cheaper more crowded version of a rickshaw. Halfway there we were pulled over by the police and our driver was arrested. Someone told us later the it was because he had too many people in the vehicle. I guess 12 people crammed into a vehicle the size of a smart car isn’t allowed, the maximum is 10! And here I was beginning to think there were no rules around here. All the women here have intense nose jewelry and lots of gold earrings filling their ears. Today I went to the plastic surgeon to get my nose pierced, to further immerse myself in the culture you know :). He told me about an American woman coming to get surgery done. I guess it’s only $1,700 for breast implants and equally as cheap for other cosmetic surgeries. Hey maybe I’ll come home with more baggage than I thought lol just kidding mom and dad. Well that sums up the week.
I’ve finally uploaded pictures! They’re on picasa so go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/nicolefoti1/NicoleInIndiaFavorites?feat=directlink#
Next stop is Agra, home of the Taj mahal!

Than Gaon

So I just got back from Than Gaon, a very rural place in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains. I could probably write forever about how beautiful it was, but basically, think about the most incredible picture of the himalayas you've ever seen and multiply that by at least 10, that's how amazing it is. I think I finally understand the meaning of having your breath being taken away. The road up to the town was something in itself. It was basically offroading on rocky terrane in a rickety, windowless SUV. Talk about parts of the body All over the place. A massive cliff was a mere 2 feet away as well, as we attempted to chug up the mountian, similar to a sketchy rollarcoaster climbing up it's first big incline. Anyway, we get there and like I said it's absolutely incredible. We got to our room which was a little stone hut with four beds surrounded by mosquito nets. We played volleyball (surrounded by the Himalayas, I'll be saying that a lot btw) and the guys were better than those I play with at home (Greg and Mike!). We walk into our room later that night to find a HUGE spider on the wall! Biggest thing I'd ever seen, well until a couple days later. The clinic there is a small building that provides free service to people in surrounding villages. We observe the doctor and we actually help out quite a bit. I've learned how to check the heart for abnormalities, the lungs, and blood pressure. The next day we hiked to a nearby village, Batoli. It was a two hour hike each way in the mountians. We basically went from one peak to another, crossing a small river below, and running into herders, cattle, and sheep on the slim, steep, rugged path. We sat up a make shift clinic in a courtyard and people came to see the doctor that comes once a month. We then hiked back in time for yoga. We did yoga twice a day... surrounded by the himalayan mountians :) It was quite the experience! Especially practicing neti. This is where you pour salt water in one nostril and it comes out the other. All I can say about that is... horrifying. There is a free elementary school next to our hut as well. The children are all in little uniforms and when we come out in the morning, we are greeted by a symphony of "Good morning maam". Today they celebrated Diwali at school. Diwali is an indian holiday celebrated by days of fireworks, sweets, and festivities. The actual Diwali is on Sunday, but tomorrow will be the big celebration. Let's hope I make it through to tell you all about it's craziness. There have been tons of warnings about the danger of fire crackers and the big mobs of poeple. It's time to get crazy, Indian style!