India

Feb 15.

My classes were cancelled Monday so I decided to join Heather in Munirkia. Munirkia, like PappanKalan was a resettlement colony, but this place was more in the city. It wasn’t a Muslim community like PappanKalan, but like all places in India religion was definitely a big deal. As we walked in through the trash filled entrance, which was on the side of the highway, my memories came swarming back.  This was the first slum I ever visited here in India and it forever changed my journey and life. I knew that in just a few seconds I would be with the children who I saw playing in the crematorium six weeks before.

As I walked into the classroom I saw the children eyes widen as they zoomed in on this tall strange new man. They sat down and were very well behaved. Heather passed out an activity she planned for them and they all did it without a fuss.

“Oh my gosh!” she said to me, “can you come everyday? They are never this good.”

As much as I would like to take credit for being an awesome authority or teacher I know I can’t. The fact is Indian children always are on their best behavior around new faces. It is when they get comfortable with you that the problems really start.

I might have not come at the best day seeing that they had a test, but then again it might have been the best day for that same reason. After the children finished their test and brought them up to Heather or I to check them they were allowed to have recess for the rest of the day. This meant that I too would have recess till it was time to go.

I ran outside and was quickly offered a seat by one of the teachers. I said no because I wanted to play with the children and then I was off. I tried to be silly and play with the children so they knew I was only there to have fun. As soon as some of the children started feeling comfortable I was lifting them up and doing their secret handshakes with them. I was having a blast and their laughter seemed to show their enjoyment as well. They taught me a game that involved the months and days of the weeks and I taught them slaps. Before I knew it I had three children on my lap and group all around me. They played a game that was like pick up sticks as the teacher pointed out things about the children. “Those two are sisters.” she would say.

When noon came around and Heather informed it was time to go I got my stuff and said goodbye to this lovely school. All the children scurried out in an effort to get home all except for one. By the gate of the school was one little girl waiting for us. As we reached the gate Neetu held both her arms out grabbing Heathers’ right and my left hands. Together we all three walked to the exit making jokes and laughing about the great day.

* * *

I never really realize how disconnected I would become from American here in India until I actually got here. I can read anything about Angelina’s boyfriend or Beyonce’s weight loss in the magazines, but other then that I hear nothing. I wonder how much is broadcasted in the States about the terrorist threats in Delhi or anything going on here for that matter. I also wonder what is going on back home.

I imagine Health Care is still an issue seeing that I’ve gotten questions about comparisons between the two systems, now that I’ve officially experienced both. Well let me start off by sharing my experience.

I arrived in the busy hospital at about one P.M. and went to the desk to ask for the doctor I was recommended. Unfortunately he was not in, but they offered me the names of other doctors in his field that I could see immediately. I took the second recommended doctor and was taken instantly into the room where he was texting on his cell phone. He looked at me noticing my presence then looked back down at his phone, waiting for a message. I sat down as he began to compose his reply text. When he was finally done with this conversation he decided to do his job. He then set me up with a blood test, handed me tons of medicine, and told me to come back in two days to collect my results. Like I was told I called two days later and he was not in, but he would be the next day. So I waited a day and headed back to the hospital. There I was given my blood test results in an envelope and told to come back another day to go over them with the doctor, for he was once again, not in. Frustrated, but feeling better I set up an appointment for Saturday. When Saturday arrived I got a phone call saying the doctor would not be in, surprise. This meant that Monday would have to be the day. The doctor told me I could come anytime between two and four and he would help me with what I needed. I found myself again in a rut Monday as I sat at the hospital listening to them telling me, “Sorry sir, the doctor is out today.” By this point I was just shocked and was about to just give up when they told me there was another doctor I could see.

“Hello Jake! How are you?” This new doctor exclaimed in a more comfortable manner.

“Very good sir” I replied in an excited tone. I was so happy to finally be back in a doctor’s room so I could get this issue out of the way. To be with a doctor who seemed to care was another major plus.

He went over my symptoms and their severity then told me it would all be okay. I was so happy to here I was done with all this. He gave me two prescriptions and told me I could each spicy food again. For a person in India who loves India food it’s impossible to avoid spicy food. I thanked him a final time and got my prescriptions from the front desk.

Now, I could easy knock off Indian Health Care and blame them for my experience, but the truth is I’m healthy and they took care of me. Not once did I have to whip out my insurance card or even say the country I came from (besides by another patient who was just curious). I simply walked in and walked out (maybe a few more times then necessary). True my doctor was awful, but the hospital was nice, the nurses were kind, the second doctor was great, and most of all the prices were cheap. Both the visits only ended up costing 500 rupees, which is about ten dollars and the seven prescriptions totaled only about twenty dollars.

I don’t know that much about universal Health care, but this is what is could look like. I haven’t had the time to fully research how it is working for all of India’s 1.7 billion people, but it worked for me. Then again I don’t know what it’s like to be a foreigner and need Health assistance in America, but I imagine it being a lot harder then it was here. Obviously, I have no room to discuss American politics or even compare them to Indian politics, but after seeing all these people in need, help for all doesn’t sound that bad. Then again that’s another issue, where are people still in need here? How efficient is it? It seems that a lot of the people who need medical help are in need more because of cultural reasons rather then health Care issues, so it is really tough to say. In a country where the weak and handicap are simply discarded it is very hard to clump them into the system.

Believe it or not, this wasn’t my only first in India. Yesterday was also a first for me, my first Indian cheeseburger! Heather and I were feeling a bit American food homesick so we searched for a place that might serve us a little western cuisine. We came across two locations- Ruby Tuesday and Hardrock Café. Both were located in a area called Saket, which was basically three massive western style malls right next to each other. We explored a bit but quickly become overwhelmed with the similarities. “I didn’t come to India to shop in an American mall!” we both said as we left the stores and searched for food. The Hardrock Café was the first place we came across and we decided to dig in.

Those burgers could have been the worst ever, but we couldn’t tell. We were too excited about the meal and just the sounds of American music. It was very nice, but as soon we finished we were ready to return to India. Well, not quite, first, we had to make a stop by Italy for some Gelato ice cream. We definitely were in heaven as we dug into our desert.

We then quickly shifted back into our cheap Indian mode as we begun fighting for a cheap ride home. It very convenient when it’s a popular place, because that means there will be a lot of rides home and when the heard starts you way all you have to do is shout your location and you price. Pretty soon the rickshaw drivers will be fighting over who has the cheapest ride and most of the times your price is met.

As we hopped into the back and started to inhale the endless amounts of pollution I looked towards Heather and we smiled. With our full stomachs and sweet teeth satisfied, not even the most polluted, bumpiest ride home could bring us down.