Finding Harmony in Chaos

The last 48 hours in Pune have been some of the most eventful and enthralling of our lives! It is hard to even start this entry, so we decided we would make a top 10 CBID-India-Jhpiego list of moments to summarize our immersion thus far.

10) Nightlife
We wanted to experience the night life of India so, after some debate, we headed to the loudest sounding place we could find, which happened to be a rooftop patio bar/club called WTF! on Saturday night. Unfortunately for us, the closing time was 11:30 and we were not allowed in. We did split a total of two delicious beers, from a new company called Indus Pride (same makers as Miller).

9) Cricket, soccer and basketball
Yesterday, when we walked through the town we took a detour through the campus of Ferguson College, a well-known college in Pune. There, we watched local youth playing low quality basketball, medium quality soccer and high quality cricket. The campus was very nice and its dirt-laden fields were quite charming in their own way.

8) Hike on ARAI Hill
Tonight, our awesome host Pushkar took us hiking on a small hill in the middle of Pune. Even though it was in the middle of the city, we would never have found it had it not been for our host's experience. We saw some cricket being played, some Hindu worship sites and even had a beautiful view of the city. It is also great to talk to Pushkar, who has an extremely interesting background and is very knowledgeable about all aspects of design.

 


7) Running of the Buffaloes
The group had our first experience with buffalos during the hike today. As we parked our car, we saw the glorious, horned animals running around. It didn't seem as if their herder had any control over them whatsoever. Josh was acting brave for the photo, but he was scared.

6) Jhpiego-Laerdal connection
One reason for our awesome experience in India thus far is the guidance we have received from Jhpiego and Laerdal. Dr. Rashmi, who works for Jhpiego, has been instrumental in setting up our hospital visits and introducing us to the right people. Pushkar, a Laerdal fellow, has an excellent understanding of our project and has all been helping translate our questions every step of the way. Not to mention he is an excellent tour guide and no one knows more about Pune than he does.

5) Celebrity Moment

The three of us felt famous when a couple stopped us on our walk and asked to take several pictures with us. Kevin wanted one of his own and we have displayed it below. Later on the same walk when we entered a park, we were followed by a group of 5 kids led by a young fellow wearing vibrant blue pants named Arif. While he was the only one of the group that had the courage to talk to us, we really enjoyed the attention.




4) Crazy Driving
As we have said many times, words cannot describe how crazy the driving here is. So here are a few video clips to put it into perspective.

3) Bargaining
The team also had our first ever experience with bargaining over the last few days. Josh spearheaded the process by bargaining for two handmade wooden heads of gods. While he managed to drop the price down from 450 rupees for one to 600 for two, it is pretty likely he still got fleeced. Then again, a $10 American for nice crafts is not a bad deal. Ashley and Kevin made more purchases of their own for  very modest prices, but still tried to bargain for the sake of it. It must be said that bargaining is an art form that can be very rewarding to practice.

Josh's wooden heads.

2) An excellent visit to Pune District Hospital
The team had a highly enlightening visit to Aundh District Hospital in Pune on Saturday. There, through our connections, we were able to meet with the civil surgeon for the whole city of Pune. While it took a while for him to warm up to us, the interview techniques we have developed eventually allowed us to glean some very useful information from him. We also met two gynecologists who were very knowledgeable about ANC screening and diagnosis in general as well as the whole process. We were also able to get a glimpse of the process that takes place at the district hospital and Ashley even had the opportunity to see a complete examination of a pregnant mother. Then, we followed one of the hospital administrators into the rooms containing the hospital diagnostic equipment. This equipment included a complete blood analyzer (cell counter), a machine to test for HIV and the Sahli's test, which is used for anemia screening. Finally, we had a tour of the maternity wards with one of the gynecologists. It was an excellent experience and hopefully the level of pertinent information we received was a sign of things to come for the rest of the visit.

HIV testing equipment

Aundh Hospital, Pune, India

Sahli's Test for Anemia

1) Culinary Experience
The team could probably go on for hours about how much we have enjoyed the food we have had in India so far. To add to this, it is quite miraculous that none of us have gotten sick. The hotel breakfast has been excellent, with a wide variety of juices and rice-based Indian cuisine. Pushkar has taken us to some excellent restaurants, including a South Indian one where Kevin and Josh got the 5 course platter depicted below. At a cost of $1.50, we could probably say that it was a good bargain. We also went to a street restaurant owned by a locally famous chef and tried a wide variety of food including the delicious and spicy panipuri for 30 cents. It was an incredible meal. At lunch today, each of us enjoyed a ginger kiwi lassi, which did not disappoint!

Your local KFC

Tomorrow, we are planning to visit a sub-district hospital and we will potentially be seeing a Bollywood movie at night. We can't wait for either!