Wednesday I was coming home from Adnan’s house at night, and I ran into the kids who watched us playing soccer a few weeks ago. They remembered me! I now know where they live, on the street next to the park, and am going to give them one of the pictures I took. I finally found a taxi to take me home. The driver was very friendly, and we attempted to talk for the half hour we were stuck in traffic. He told me all about his family, and how he didn’t want to have kids until he could afford them. I thought this was a revolutionary idea here, and I was very impressed. When he dropped me off, he wouldn’t let me pay but I threw the money in the door as I closed it. These people, giving so much even when they have so little to give!
Thursday afternoon I walked home along the railroad tracks, which is a popular route to travel. I took some pictures there, of the shacks right next to the tracks and the friendly people that live there. I was caught up meeting people when one man pointed down the tracks and said “car” and I realized that a train was coming. The trains are topped with young boys standing up, dancing, looking as if they are on a thrill ride. It seems seriously dangerous, I wonder how often people fall off or are hit. I met a nice old man who insisted on walking me to the end of the tracks to make sure I made it, and bought me some tea at a little stall and would not let me pay. Thursday night I moved out of my home due to a fight with my host mother. Luckily I had a friend over at the time and she said I could stay with her in the hotel for a few nights. But it was dark and I was upset, so we walked about 3 houses down the street where another intern who is Bangladeshi lives. He and his family were so hospitable to us, they insisted we stay for dinner and then stay the night, and then I think they would have tried to have us stay forever if we hadn’t left. Turns out his dad teaches at SIT in Vermont! Sarajane and I then went to a BRAC staff member’s home for a 2 year old’s birthday party, where we met about 30 relatives, every one invited us to their homes. People here really are very friendly and hospitable. They insisted we eat mango and jackfruit, and kept brining it out until even I had to forcefully refuse, which is rare. Lunch was chicken biriyani, which is rice and chicken and egg, again giving us serving after serving. We ate with the men on someone’s bed. It was interesting to finally see how the middle class here lives. That evening we went to a concert and dinner at a local club, with a band that did mostly US rock hits. I felt conflicted spending even $15 doing this, when it is more than many people here make in a week. This could easily be expanded to many peoples’ lives, should we feel bad spending money on any luxuries when people all over the world are barely getting by? Is that any way to go about living? I feel better when I think that I am here trying to help, to make some difference. I think there should be a balance of self-indulgence and attempting to make the world a better place.
Saturday Sarajane and Jean and Jahanara, another intern and I went to Old Dhaka, went to an old fort, a Hindu temple, and a Sikh temple. The fort was a hangout for couples who sit in the shade and chat. Holding hands is about as far as anyone goes in public, anything more than that is considered scandalous. We also visited a narrow but crowded street , Shankharia street, that is known for its jewelry makers, gravestone makers, and hat makers. Incense was burning along the street, laundry was waving in the breeze just above our heads, and the bells of the rickshaws were ringing in our ears. The next street over was a combination of womens’ religious garment shops and clock shops. It was strange traveling with Jahanara’ driver, because while we ate, walked around, he was always waiting for us. I don’t think I could ever feel comfortable having someone wait for me like that all of the time, although I’m sure he doesn’t mind, he is probably paid well.
In the evening, I went to a film about garment workers here- it was actually quite positive, portraying the garment factories as a way for young women to escape the patriarchy of the villages and to become independent and self sufficient in the city. The women interviewed seemed very happy, but still they were making $30-50 dollars a month. I lived right next to some garment factories, I’d love to go into one but I am sure it is difficult to do, especially for a foreigner.
So I have figured out a way to deal with beggars- most of them if you just talk to them will stop asking for money and want to talk. Of course I know about 3 sentences, but it is usually enough to distract them. I think they are unused to people paying attention to them as people at all.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Slum, wedding, embassy
Wow- two weeks in Bangladesh already! On Monday I stopped wanting to come home so badly- I’m not sure why, but now I feel much better. I have made some good friends here so far, and I’m actually moving in with one. Mostly it is because it is cheaper with him. Did I mention that I am living with my boss? That makes for a strange situation.
I have also become slightly disillusioned with the internship program here. I can’t quite figure out why they have interns, because it doesn’t seem like they care much about our research. Adnan and I are trying to work around official people as much as possible. We’ve really just been doing our own thing- he is really good as just dropping names and talking his way into things, so on Monday we went to visit a mother and neonatal health program in a slum- we went to see a birthing hut, and watched a health volunteer do a check up. We talked for hours to these people. It is much more interesting to see what actually goes on in the field than hear about it from headquarters. We’ll also go to a TB, cancer, and leprosy hospital tomorrow. We’re going to try and finish our project early and spend the rest of the time perhaps traveling or doing some more learning around here.
The other night we went to a wedding. Adnan’s cousin gave me a pretty salwar and kamiz to wear- I wanted to wear a sari but his mom said I’d need an hour lesson or it may fall off. Weddings here are very different than in the US- there are many days of pre-parties, usually separate for the bride and groom, but this one was combined. The bride was dressed up so beautifully- look at my pictures. She sat in front of a wall of flowers. Then all the relatives and friends brought gifts and laid them at the couples’ feet, and rubbed tumeric on their faces to make them glow. This was followed by a delicious dinner and then a live band. I think a lot of people were wondering who the white people were- “I’m pretty sure we’re not related to them?” But nobody asked.
Today I went to the American embassy to meet a woman who is a connection of a connection. The embassy is extremely well guarded, it took me a while to get through security. It is also the nicest building I have been into in Dhaka so far, although she said compared to all the other embassies it is quite terrible. She doesn’t really like it here, thinks there is nothing to do- they can’t take public transportation anywhere. This is a hardship post for foreign service workers, meaning they get more money and don’t have to stay as long. But other people I met seemed to really love it. She showed me around and told me what everyone does, which I already knew thanks to Jeff Lunstead’s class. They invited me to join the American Club here in Dhaka, where I think only Americans can go, to swim, to eat, do “American things”. I think hanging out there too much may detract from my Bangladesh experience, but I would like to take a swim and maybe go for the 4th of July celebration. Well that is about it for now, I hope everyone is doing well!
I have also become slightly disillusioned with the internship program here. I can’t quite figure out why they have interns, because it doesn’t seem like they care much about our research. Adnan and I are trying to work around official people as much as possible. We’ve really just been doing our own thing- he is really good as just dropping names and talking his way into things, so on Monday we went to visit a mother and neonatal health program in a slum- we went to see a birthing hut, and watched a health volunteer do a check up. We talked for hours to these people. It is much more interesting to see what actually goes on in the field than hear about it from headquarters. We’ll also go to a TB, cancer, and leprosy hospital tomorrow. We’re going to try and finish our project early and spend the rest of the time perhaps traveling or doing some more learning around here.
The other night we went to a wedding. Adnan’s cousin gave me a pretty salwar and kamiz to wear- I wanted to wear a sari but his mom said I’d need an hour lesson or it may fall off. Weddings here are very different than in the US- there are many days of pre-parties, usually separate for the bride and groom, but this one was combined. The bride was dressed up so beautifully- look at my pictures. She sat in front of a wall of flowers. Then all the relatives and friends brought gifts and laid them at the couples’ feet, and rubbed tumeric on their faces to make them glow. This was followed by a delicious dinner and then a live band. I think a lot of people were wondering who the white people were- “I’m pretty sure we’re not related to them?” But nobody asked.
Today I went to the American embassy to meet a woman who is a connection of a connection. The embassy is extremely well guarded, it took me a while to get through security. It is also the nicest building I have been into in Dhaka so far, although she said compared to all the other embassies it is quite terrible. She doesn’t really like it here, thinks there is nothing to do- they can’t take public transportation anywhere. This is a hardship post for foreign service workers, meaning they get more money and don’t have to stay as long. But other people I met seemed to really love it. She showed me around and told me what everyone does, which I already knew thanks to Jeff Lunstead’s class. They invited me to join the American Club here in Dhaka, where I think only Americans can go, to swim, to eat, do “American things”. I think hanging out there too much may detract from my Bangladesh experience, but I would like to take a swim and maybe go for the 4th of July celebration. Well that is about it for now, I hope everyone is doing well!
Saturday, June 21, 2008
June 22
I finally figured out what my research will be on. I will be comparing the health volunteers’ work in the rural areas to their work in the slums. I believe that in the slums they are having less success, and maybe we will be able to pinpoint why this is and give BRAC some advice on how the slum health program can be improved. I’m not sure if I mentioned this before, but what a health volunteer does is go to 15-20 households per day, make sure everyone is healthy, try and identify TB patients or pregnant women, and then give advice on other health issues. They are in charge of about 300 households total. On Thursday some of the interns went to a village about 2 hours outside of Dhaka. This was just to get a general overview of what BRAC does, which we have been reading about, but had not actually seen. First we went to a microfinance meeting, where women paid back their loans and they discussed any problems that anyone had. One woman then showed us the cow she purchased with her loan, which produces milk she can sell for a profit. We also went to a BRAC school, met all of the children, and they sang and danced for us. This was followed by a health meeting, where a health worker taught a class, a different subject each week- this week was hand washing. It is amazing how such simple information like this can make a difference in peoples’ lives. All of these visits involved trekking through muddy villages along winding roads and being followed by dozens of village children, who have probably never seen white people. We then went to one of BRAC’s clothing production facilities (they have some moneymaking enterprises whose profits go directly back into the system, so they are becoming less and less donor reliant), and watched women and men making hundreds of clothing items that will be sold in the city. Then we went to a sanitary napkin production facility. I have mixed feelings about this, because I certainly wouldn’t enjoy spending all day sitting, sewing on sequences or rolling up pads in hot conditions. However, it is providing people with income- perhaps what they would be doing instead is less pleasant- I feel the same way about all the maids here, I can’t figure out if they are grateful for the opportunity to earn money and be clothed and fed, or have no other options and resent being ordered around. I’ll have to explore this more.
Today I bought a Bangla book, so now I think learning will be easier. It seems that there are only 2 or 3 English/Bangla books in existence, it was difficult to find. This is strange considering Bangla is the 5th or 6th most widely spoken languages in the world. I sometimes wonder why schools offer languages like German and Italian when there are other languages that are more popular. Another interesting thing I have noticed is that there are some words that are surprisingly similar to Italian and other romance languages- this is because they originally come from the same roots, are Indo-European languages, and I have heard that this early language was Sanskrit, but my book says it is not but is not very clear. It doesn’t help too much, but every now and then I find commonalities.
I’ve been having moral dilemmas with the beggars, especially those who come to the car windows, and there is nowhere to go to get away, you either have to look away or just watch them plead. It would be so easy for me to give them all a few cents worth in taka, which would probably make a difference in their day, but in the long run this would be solving nothing. I haven’t figured out what these people would be doing if they were not begging- do they truly have no other way to make money and would die of starvation if nobody helped them? Many are cripples and can’t work- do they bring back the money they receive to their families who are completely fine? I’ve decided not to give any money away until I can figure out how I feel and what the actual issues are.
Ok here is a link to some of my pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/alyssa.panning/Bangladesh
I'll keep adding more
Today I bought a Bangla book, so now I think learning will be easier. It seems that there are only 2 or 3 English/Bangla books in existence, it was difficult to find. This is strange considering Bangla is the 5th or 6th most widely spoken languages in the world. I sometimes wonder why schools offer languages like German and Italian when there are other languages that are more popular. Another interesting thing I have noticed is that there are some words that are surprisingly similar to Italian and other romance languages- this is because they originally come from the same roots, are Indo-European languages, and I have heard that this early language was Sanskrit, but my book says it is not but is not very clear. It doesn’t help too much, but every now and then I find commonalities.
I’ve been having moral dilemmas with the beggars, especially those who come to the car windows, and there is nowhere to go to get away, you either have to look away or just watch them plead. It would be so easy for me to give them all a few cents worth in taka, which would probably make a difference in their day, but in the long run this would be solving nothing. I haven’t figured out what these people would be doing if they were not begging- do they truly have no other way to make money and would die of starvation if nobody helped them? Many are cripples and can’t work- do they bring back the money they receive to their families who are completely fine? I’ve decided not to give any money away until I can figure out how I feel and what the actual issues are.
Ok here is a link to some of my pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/alyssa.panning/Bangladesh
I'll keep adding more
Monday, June 16, 2008
The slums
Yesterday after work I went with my friend Adnan to the slum near BRAC center. Just a 3 minute walk, visible from the entire building, is a slum called Korail that is home to 30000 people. There are at least 4 slums here in Dhaka, probably many more. BRAC works in the slums, but really does very little compared to its programs in the villages. This is probably because people move around a lot between the slums and the land is actually government loaned, so it is very difficult to build facilities and infrastructure there. It seems strange that there are beggars right next to the BRAC building.
We took a 'boat' ride, a little raft that people squat on, rowed usually by an old man, across a small lake. This lake is bright green, and is extremely polluted, it is the place where people bathe, wash their clothes, and where all their used water and excrement goes. Immediately upon arriving in the slum, we were surrounded by curious children and adults. They all wanted to shake my hand and all said 'hello, how are you?' and 'my name is?' asking what my name was. They were crazy about the camera- and everyone wanted their picture taken and then wanted to look at it. The homes are made out of tin, with bamboo roofs. The streets are narrow and dirt. I thought that the slums were only homes, but they are completely self sustaining communities with pharmacies, clothing stores, food shops. Apparently the people steal electricity from the public power system. Perhaps this is why the power goes out all the time in Dhaka. Everyone in the slum was very friendly and very hospitable. Some children led us to their homes, where we were greeted by parents or grandparents, who were very proud to show us their one room. Luckily Adnan speaks the language, so he talked to these women. One very cute girl took us to her home, where her grandma offered us tea, and spoke about Rita and how she is so smart and loves school and really has high ambitions. We sort of just wandered for a few hours, passed a school and BRAC health center (also made out of tin), saw people chopping wood, passed a graveyard, people cooking their afternoon meals, and many children using condoms as balloons. Adnan and I were curious what the sexual education was like- we saw that condoms were being sold in the slums. Once we put together a project, we can ask people these questions in a more systematic way.
I then went with Adnan on a rickshaw to his house, where I met all of his family members, and then to another relatives' house, where I met even more. Bangladesh is a little like Italy, in that people know their entire extended family and they all live near each other.
I have gotten used to the staring, I know that it is usually just out of curiosity and not meant in a predatory way.
I really enjoyed myself in the slum- I'd love to print out my pictures and bring them to all the kids. I'll try and figure out how to put some of them up on here as well.
P.S. I made a change to my address
We took a 'boat' ride, a little raft that people squat on, rowed usually by an old man, across a small lake. This lake is bright green, and is extremely polluted, it is the place where people bathe, wash their clothes, and where all their used water and excrement goes. Immediately upon arriving in the slum, we were surrounded by curious children and adults. They all wanted to shake my hand and all said 'hello, how are you?' and 'my name is?' asking what my name was. They were crazy about the camera- and everyone wanted their picture taken and then wanted to look at it. The homes are made out of tin, with bamboo roofs. The streets are narrow and dirt. I thought that the slums were only homes, but they are completely self sustaining communities with pharmacies, clothing stores, food shops. Apparently the people steal electricity from the public power system. Perhaps this is why the power goes out all the time in Dhaka. Everyone in the slum was very friendly and very hospitable. Some children led us to their homes, where we were greeted by parents or grandparents, who were very proud to show us their one room. Luckily Adnan speaks the language, so he talked to these women. One very cute girl took us to her home, where her grandma offered us tea, and spoke about Rita and how she is so smart and loves school and really has high ambitions. We sort of just wandered for a few hours, passed a school and BRAC health center (also made out of tin), saw people chopping wood, passed a graveyard, people cooking their afternoon meals, and many children using condoms as balloons. Adnan and I were curious what the sexual education was like- we saw that condoms were being sold in the slums. Once we put together a project, we can ask people these questions in a more systematic way.
I then went with Adnan on a rickshaw to his house, where I met all of his family members, and then to another relatives' house, where I met even more. Bangladesh is a little like Italy, in that people know their entire extended family and they all live near each other.
I have gotten used to the staring, I know that it is usually just out of curiosity and not meant in a predatory way.
I really enjoyed myself in the slum- I'd love to print out my pictures and bring them to all the kids. I'll try and figure out how to put some of them up on here as well.
P.S. I made a change to my address
Sunday, June 15, 2008
My first 5 days in Bangladesh
I am living with a family, a mom and a dad and 3 grown sisters. The mother, Nimla Musa, owns a clothing botique. There are 2 maids in the house and lots of other servants that I'm not quite sure what they do. On the roof, about 30 tailors work and live, making clothing for the boutique. I live downstairs, in a room without air conditioning. I turn on the fan at night and sleep with nothing over me, which I have never done before. It is so hot here, I just sweat all day long. It is fascinating for me that hundreds of millions of people all over the world live in heat like this. I think I would start hiking towards the himalayas if I lived here.
The food has been great- yesterday I think I ate 5 mangos. Every day we have rice, with Dahl- which is a soupy thing made from lentils, and usually chicken curry, some other vegetable curry, and my favorite so far is what I think is sauteed cucumbers with onions and eggs. We also eat jackfruit, which is supposedly the national fruit. It has a very unique taste, which I can't describe. I'd recommend trying it.
Yesterday I went to the children’s hospital, which was very interesting. There were many people waiting outside, and then we got inside, and there was a large room with about 30 beds in it- often the entire family sharing a bed. The hospital didn’t seem very clean or new at all, but for Bangladesh supposedly this hospital is really high tech and famous. I am just amazed that people from the rural areas can get here in the first place- apparently their communities help support them to come, but I am sure there are millions of people that still never get here at all. Then in the afternoon i hung out with the maids. It is amazing how much you can do with people that don’t speak the same language. One of them, Parvin, snuck out with me and we had a nice walk around the block. I don’t understand why they are not supposed to go out- Mrs. Musa says they are too clever. It seems a little like slavery, but I suppose they could quit if they wanted. But I have a feeling that this life is much better than the life they would have in the villages, as divorcees. Apparently their husbands divorced them because they were too poor. I can't figure out why they married in the first place. They taught me some phrases that they thought were hilarious, but which apparently meant “very painful” and “my life is horrible”.
The day before, I went to a market, and there were so many people! The market seemed to go on forever, and there seemed to be everything there, especially clothing and fabric. I bought another pair of Bangla clothing- called salwar and kamiz. This is a long shirt/dress, down to the knees, with baggy pants and a scarf. We also went to a park to play soccer, and the park was full of cows and sheep and puddles of their feces and urine, but we played anyways. Soon some Bengalis joined in, and then a huge crowd of probably 50 people gathered. I guess a bunch of white people playing in a park attracts a lot of attention in this country. The city is so interesting- many very strong smells everywhere, smells of curry, fruits, feces. There are also so many people in every direction, every hour of the day. The city just continues in all directions, and from the top of the 19th floor of the BRAC building you can't even see the end. The city seems to be very poorly planned, with no downtown. There are some train tracks near my house that people use as highways. People here are dressed so colorfully- versus the west, everyone can get away with bright oranges and greens.
I walked to work by myself this morning. There are some big roads I have to cross, and people drive so crazily. There are lanes, but nobody seems to pay attention to them, and people honk constantly. Anyways, crossing these roads is scary, so I just try and walk right next to other women. I walk by vegetable stalls, men with a bathroom scale wanting money to weigh people, people selling perfume, bamboo covered clothing stalls.
I am learning a few phrases in Bangla, very slowly. It seems like a difficult language. BRAC is such an amazing program, I encourage you all to look it up. They are helping about 100 million people right now, and have really improved so many lives. However, most of their work is in the small villages and it is strange to still see all the slums and the beggars here in Dhaka, with this huge NGO right next door. Although things here seem to be very disorganized, I think that is just the way that things work here. I am excited to get started with my health project. I am still trying to figure out what exactly I'll be doing. I'll let you know. This afternoon I think I may go to the slums. Feel free to write if you want.
It is Alyssa Panning- Intern
19th Floor
BRAC Center
75 Mohakhali, Dhaka 1212
Bangladesh.
The food has been great- yesterday I think I ate 5 mangos. Every day we have rice, with Dahl- which is a soupy thing made from lentils, and usually chicken curry, some other vegetable curry, and my favorite so far is what I think is sauteed cucumbers with onions and eggs. We also eat jackfruit, which is supposedly the national fruit. It has a very unique taste, which I can't describe. I'd recommend trying it.
Yesterday I went to the children’s hospital, which was very interesting. There were many people waiting outside, and then we got inside, and there was a large room with about 30 beds in it- often the entire family sharing a bed. The hospital didn’t seem very clean or new at all, but for Bangladesh supposedly this hospital is really high tech and famous. I am just amazed that people from the rural areas can get here in the first place- apparently their communities help support them to come, but I am sure there are millions of people that still never get here at all. Then in the afternoon i hung out with the maids. It is amazing how much you can do with people that don’t speak the same language. One of them, Parvin, snuck out with me and we had a nice walk around the block. I don’t understand why they are not supposed to go out- Mrs. Musa says they are too clever. It seems a little like slavery, but I suppose they could quit if they wanted. But I have a feeling that this life is much better than the life they would have in the villages, as divorcees. Apparently their husbands divorced them because they were too poor. I can't figure out why they married in the first place. They taught me some phrases that they thought were hilarious, but which apparently meant “very painful” and “my life is horrible”.
The day before, I went to a market, and there were so many people! The market seemed to go on forever, and there seemed to be everything there, especially clothing and fabric. I bought another pair of Bangla clothing- called salwar and kamiz. This is a long shirt/dress, down to the knees, with baggy pants and a scarf. We also went to a park to play soccer, and the park was full of cows and sheep and puddles of their feces and urine, but we played anyways. Soon some Bengalis joined in, and then a huge crowd of probably 50 people gathered. I guess a bunch of white people playing in a park attracts a lot of attention in this country. The city is so interesting- many very strong smells everywhere, smells of curry, fruits, feces. There are also so many people in every direction, every hour of the day. The city just continues in all directions, and from the top of the 19th floor of the BRAC building you can't even see the end. The city seems to be very poorly planned, with no downtown. There are some train tracks near my house that people use as highways. People here are dressed so colorfully- versus the west, everyone can get away with bright oranges and greens.
I walked to work by myself this morning. There are some big roads I have to cross, and people drive so crazily. There are lanes, but nobody seems to pay attention to them, and people honk constantly. Anyways, crossing these roads is scary, so I just try and walk right next to other women. I walk by vegetable stalls, men with a bathroom scale wanting money to weigh people, people selling perfume, bamboo covered clothing stalls.
I am learning a few phrases in Bangla, very slowly. It seems like a difficult language. BRAC is such an amazing program, I encourage you all to look it up. They are helping about 100 million people right now, and have really improved so many lives. However, most of their work is in the small villages and it is strange to still see all the slums and the beggars here in Dhaka, with this huge NGO right next door. Although things here seem to be very disorganized, I think that is just the way that things work here. I am excited to get started with my health project. I am still trying to figure out what exactly I'll be doing. I'll let you know. This afternoon I think I may go to the slums. Feel free to write if you want.
It is Alyssa Panning- Intern
19th Floor
BRAC Center
75 Mohakhali, Dhaka 1212
Bangladesh.
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