i'm so sari... it's been a while

Okay, so long time without internet, and it seems like so much has happened! In the interest of time (because time is rupees, my friends) and also in the interest of no one dying from boredom, I present to you the high- and low-lights of the past 2 weeks or so, which were spent mostly in Guntur. (Rural area. Cobras? Yes. Cobras.)

I got rancidly ill. So my "Puke-Free Since '93" streak has officially been broken. Having not vommed in well over a decade, my puke muscle has now been well-exercised, and more than made up for lost time, I feel. I have no idea what I ate, but it's a good thing I was with 7 nurses, a toilet and a bucket, because man it was rough. I spent a few days in a sauna-like room (temperatures were about 45 during the day, with frequent power outages = no fan) being the sickest I have ever been in my life, filling my time with such activities as:

• Watching the entire series of Planet Earth, graciously loaned on the laptop to me by Kat. I was pretty sure I wanted to marry Kat.
• Sobbing deliriously to Corey "Please don't let me die here". I have no memory of this.
• Rehearsing in my head how I would find supplies and start my own IV
• Calling my parents. Secretly hoped that they would have sent a special and magical jet to take me back to Toronto in less than an hour. Instead, they told me to drink fluids. Helpful!

Anyway, all dramatics aside, me and Guntur were not off to a good start, but things picked up after I had the energy to walk more than 4 feet without passing out.

I saw the sea before I died. It was flippin' hot there. Like, for real. So when we had the weekend off, Sarah, Corey and I headed to the Bay of Bengal for a little relaxation, which was awesome. We swam, we ate delicious chappati, we scandalized, we had a beach bonfire with randoms we met, and generally had a lovely time.

I got grateful. We got to spend another week experiencing some of the health care centres there, and were specifically involved with centres that offer HIV testing and counselling. It was a real eye-opener, and it was amazing to see all the good things that are being done by nurses. Somewhat disturbing was the tubal ligation surgery we were able to observe: local anesthetic only, reused equipment, shoes off in the OR. We put them back on quickly to avoid stepping on the discarded sharps on the ground...

I got sari'd up. Just before leaving Guntur, we were really lucky to be able to attend a wedding! We further scandalized the area by finding the only tailor in town who would measure our lady parts for the little shirt part to wear underneath. But it all worked out, and everyone loved that we were wearing them... me, not so much. Somehow it's just not super comfy to wear 6 metres of couch fabric that binds your legs together, particularly when it's 40 degrees (plus humidity). But it was great to experience it, and we looked "suuuperrrr"!

I got spoiled. So after another 5 hour train ride, we're now we're back in Hyderabad, where we spent a couple of nights at a hotel!! With air-conditioning!! And a shower!! AND A POOL! We also may or may not have seen Harry Potter. On the IMAX. It was disorienting... I felt like there was really no need to shower, what with not having sweated out 3 litres/hour, and it was downright chilly in the air-conditioning. I was justifying my choice to Corey, telling her a shower would just be too cold, when she was just like "Yeah, but you could just take a warm shower then." I was actually confused for a good 4 seconds before I remembered that showers could be warm.

Whew. So that's it.We've just got a few more health centre visits, and then a quick weekend trip to Goa (!!), our final presentation, and then I'm home. Can't believe it. See you all soon!

Shout-outs:

The RC. You are forever my rainbow connection. Miss you and your lady muchly. Will call when I get home! We can trade travel stories. Somehow I feel you were not as hot as I, what with the icebergs and such. Here people wear balaclavas if it's under 27.

Emers. Going to your homeland soon! Miss you, and hope you are having a great summer! Please say hi to everyone for me... sucks that I'm missing out on Christie girls reunions... Also, do you want me to smuggle a monkey home for you? Don't think I won't.