All well, but very hot!

We have all managed, so far, to avoid any tummy bugs, thank you Lord. The temperatures have been in the mid 30s most days. Here in Jaipur we are experiencing the highest temperatures - today was supposed to reach 38 C. I (Peter) seem to be able to still function, slowly, however Ryan especially finds it very difficult. Our first few days in Singapore and Dhaka he found it difficult to breathe, due to the heat and humidity. Air conditioning is a wonderful thing. I am sitting at the table typing this, just with a fan, but the rest are in the AC bedrooms.

Toured Amber palace this morning. Hired a tour guide to show us around. He was excellent. The palace is extensive, each Raj extending the palace with their own rooms for wives, servants and themselves. You pay 900 Rs to take an elephant (10 minutes) to the top, the same way the Raj would enter his palace. The Amber fort stands above the palace, built in the 16th century. Each Raj had his own architecture designers and combined different effects. One wanted to seek harmony between the Muslim and Hindu, so included both cultures in his designs.

I then got dropped off at Jantar Mantar, an astronomical feast. One Raj was very interested in the planets and stars and built a number of astronomical devices from marble and the local pink sandstone. These devices have been restored to their original glory, the most impressive being the largest sundial in the world. It is accurate to 2 seconds. The pointer stands 27 metres high.

I have tried to put photos but have had difficulties, will try again, as we have hundreds!

Peter

On to India

Departing from Dhaka and leaving Carol and Rachael behind, we are now flying to Delhi, a 2.5 hour journey. Here are some impressions and experiences we had in Bangladesh.
Transport is chaotic, to say the least, but somehow it works, most of the time. Best not to travel anywhere in Dhaka between 9 am and 5 pm as you will most likely move 2-3 km per hour. Early morning, before 7, the traffic flows easily, no worse than Auckland, and perhaps a little better. 15 million people have to get around somehow, so the transportation is wide and varied and few road laws are followed. Riding a rickshaw or bicycle the wrong way down a four lane road is common. Lights at intersections mean nothing. Red means slow down a bit, green means the same. The best way to drive seems to be use your horn lots and don't look as if you are looking because any accident will be your fault if you could have avoided it. If there is a slight gap, go for it. The most interesting vehicles are the rickshaws in their various forms. We even came across some electric rickshaws and it would be great to see more of these used. Rickshaws may be piled high with goods and a passenger, or they might have a family of four. We could only manage to get two of us on, or one with a suitcase. Big Westerners. Sometimes you feel like swapping places with the cyclist to give him a break. Flat bed rickshaws, some with bamboo frames, are used to transport goods and sometimes people.
The next step up is the auto rickshaw, a three wheeled vehicle, many of which run on CNG. In Chandpur there were even a number of electric ones. They consist of a cab at the back for the family, motorbike handle at the front, windscreen and soft top. Dhaka ones have a cage to keep people in. No seatbelts.
In one part of Dhaka there are horse drawn carriages, elaborately decorated. The poor little horses have to work hard in smog filled, noisy and crowded streets.
Then of course there are cars, taxis and trucks. The buses must be seen to be believed. All of the older buses look as if they have been in a battle with the Hulk. Sides battered, no door. It was not uncommon to see people, often children, sitting on top of the bus.
Intersections are something else. A roundabout was usually the location of some elaborate sculpture or fountain. One in particular caught our eye. It was a rooster made completely of cogs and chains painted gold.

Arrived in Chandpur

Hi all, we are now in Chandpur, a day earlier than expected due to a change in plans. Our time so far in Bangladesh has been interesting to say the least. The traffic in Dhaka has to be seen to be believed. There are all manner of modes of transport from the rickshaw to large buses and everything in between, including auto rickshaws, mostly green covered three wheeled cars with motorbike fronts and cages around the outside. They all vie for the same space on the road, sometimes going the opposite way to the rest of the traffic, not following any road rules except keep left, unless there is something in front of you. It has not been uncommon to have two auto rickshaws approaching each other with a vehicle passing one of them down the middle on roads no wider than the mountain road. This can be a little nerve racking, but our drivers have been fantastic so far.

Our time in Brahmanbaria was a delight. The boys in the hostel, of which there are 50, were wonderful, friendly and polite. We had the day with them after arriving at 9am. The mission compound contains the hostel, a school where 2000 students attend in two shifts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. There is also a church and a maternity hospital. We saw 5 new-borns, 3 of which were healthy and 2 in incubators, quite sick. They were still very small compared to western newborns. The boys performed for us and we reciprocated with a couple of items of our own, followed by handing out balloons to them all. They loved the balloons and spent the rest of the afternoon hitting them around, making them squeal and eventually popping them. Better than lollies.

Singapore - day 1

We made it safely to Singapore with no dramas. No queues anywhere, yet. Now for the blond moments, dramas and toilet ratings.
Blond moment number one: Rachael trapped in the subway automated exit gate. Her card just needed to be slapped onto the reader, she was being too gentle. After several failed attempts, while the rest of us cheered her on from the other side, she flicked her hair at the attendant who gratefully assisted. The gate opened and she sprinted through, cheering all the way.
 to be continued...

Why are we going?

This Sunday we will be in Bangladesh, meeting with Tapon Tripura, one of our sponsored children. So why are we going you might ask. About five years ago, we began talking about taking our children to a developing country. Our main reasons were to expose them (and us) to a world we know little about, to realise how privileged we are in New Zealand and to gain a respect for those in full time missionary work in cultures completely different to their own. Now seems like an opportune time for our children. The practical things have fallen into place easily, although it has been time consuming! Often we hear people say how quickly time passes. Before we realise it, time has slipped away and we miss those precious opportunities to do something wild and different, something that challenges our thinking about the world. As Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65 BC – 8 BC) said in a poem, Carpe Diem - seize the day (or pluck the day when it is ripe). Make the most of the opportunities afforded you today.