Vali Village.

I spent the last few days in a small village outside of Udaipur. I was there to observe the herbal medicine garden and pharmacy and take notes on what I saw. These past few days have been really crazy, and I don't think I have ever been so grateful for a warm bucket bath and constant electricity.

I got to the village early on the 3rd. It was a challenge in itself just getting there. I thought a man from my N.G.O. was going to drive me all the way to the village, I wish I could have seen my face when he stopped the car outside of a crazy bus station on the outskirts of Udaipur. I hopped on a bus where I shared a seat with probably 30 different people from here to Vali. The bus looked like an antique and I couldn't believe it was actually still running. When I got there I was greeted by some Jagrun employees who showed me around the village. After my orrientation I was told I was off to see the herbal garden and was to go with a nice man who worked at Jagrun. He took me to his motorcycle and very casually told me to hold on tight. He drove me down windy-unpaved roads until we got to the garden. While I was there I got a tour of the plants and found out what they are used for. I spent a while watching patients come in and get treated for various heal problems, and pretended to know a lot more Hindi then I actually did. I stayed there for 3 days observing the in's and out's of the hospital.

When I wasn't at the garden I was at the N.G.O. headquarters practicing Hindi with anyone who walked in. I have never been in a situation where I was actually surprised to hear English, but after these past few days I can't tell you how relieving it is to hear some familiar languages. The other night I was sitting in the common room at the N.G.O. when a man came in to talk to some of the employees. Someone told him I was from the United States and we started talking about what makes India different. He asked me to draw a map for him and while we were creating a world map he coudln't understand that the world was round. Since I have been here I have had a lot of amazing conversations, but that moment when I saw how amazed he was by what I was telling him was something I'll never forget. It was wild.

On Sunday I hopped back on the bus to Udaipur and have been back at Jagrun since. I am so happy to be sleeping in a bed again! After 2 weeks I'll be back in Vali to do more research but for now I'm learning to appreciate all aspects of being back in a city. Tomorrow is the begining of my Divali break. Divali is the biggest holiday here in India so I have quite a few days off to travel around. I cannot wait for these upcoming days. Tomorrow night I'll take a train out of Udaipur and head to Gujurat where I'm on a mission to see the ocean. I'll spend Divalli there with my roommate Amy Kae, and our friends Brady and Lindsay. After the ocean we are off to Gandhi's biggest ashram, and then back to Jaipur for a mid-internship seminar. After being in Jaipur for a few days I'm off to Varanasi to weigh the pro's and con's of bathing in the Ganges. My boss' sister is getting married and she invited me to go to her wedding. I am getting fitted for a sari in Jaipur and cannot wait to see what a real wedding looks like. The ceremony is in Allalabad. After Varanasi I have 4 days off and am crossing my fingers to get into Nepal. I'll be with Amy Kae and my other roommate Erica. We are all checking the internet now and trying to plan out these next couple of days. I'll be back in Udaipur again on the 22nd or so. Man, working at an N.G.O. here really is tough work......

Other then that not too much is new here. Yesterday I somehow got myself roped into going to a convent with a woman named Sister Harsha. They told me that if I wanted to become a teacher at their school I was most welcome. Today I'm doing a little research on the internet and packing up my things for my big travel plans. I've been reading a lot of books, playing a lot of guitar, and have even been able to hike a nearby mountain to Jagrun. I am still very happy here and love being in Udaipur. It's such a nice city and it's small enough to actually make some friends in the city. Last night I helped cook for my co-workers and tried my best to make round chipaties. I am so happy I finally feel more settled here in India and am really starting to coast through this all. I love having a routine and the days are all starting to really blend together. I have gotten used to a lot of the things that shocked me at first and feel like I'm getting used to the lifestyle of the people here. I'm drinking tea like a madwoman, trying my best to learn about all of the different festivals, and challenging myself to spend at least a half hour practicing Hindi everyday.

Ok, I should get going. I hope that you are all doing well and enjoying the chilly weather of Minnesota. My coworkers think I'm crazy for wearing a t-shirt in this 75-80 degree "winter" season. I miss you all and think of you often. It's crazy to think that I'll be home in about a month and a half. Ok, talk to you all soon. Bye!