These are our antics.

Matt, Larissa, Justin, Anna, Judy, Nate + I - finally some kiwi's to relate to!

Kate look! Exciting to pull this screen out of the archives here at FS, when I know who it was for!

Trying to sort out trains to Puri for Easter (unfortunately, we now have to ditch that idea for now, due to trains being fully booked...).

The boys rescuing the last roll of toilet paper from the back of the cupboard at the flat - desperate times call for desperate measures!

Yummy Amul milk + Taj Mahal tea.

I love these letter boxes.

Just another hot, unchanging day.

Kfc at Mani Square mall after church on Sunday - pretty average to be honest. But then again, I have never been the biggest fan. Epic Virgin Mojito drink though.

This Auto driver was so frustrating. He kept stopping way too frequently, and waited each time to see if anyone needed a ride. They didn't.

Just an average day in Kolkata.

These are some of the belongings of street-vendors/street people.

I think it would be awesome to be able to carry something like that on my head.

On the day when the women weren't at work, I felt it was a good time to break out more Western clothing! Although walking to-and-from work needed the shawl...

Started soaking some dried beans! They soaked for a good 24 hours.... 

And ended up looking like someone took a dump in a bowl. You know you were thinking it! But seriously, I nursed these beans for a day, boiled them twice, and cooked them. But they were still hard!!!! Just not fair.
Hint - when making chilli, add cocoa powder  + cinnamon... it is so good!

My stash of muesli and masala tea. Yum yum yum.

A statue at Victoria Memorial half completed in charcoal...

...and a while later, finished!

Cute. Erika left us a message before she went to a different part of West Bengal.

My snack at work - dried cornflakes!

AND FINALLY.... here it is! The porcelain squatter that we have in our flat! I know that a lot of you have been wondering whether there is just a hole in the floor, or if we were to accidentally step into it, would we stand in poo? But no. It is basically a western toilet, just set into the floor... but you don't sit down...
To be honest, I have almost fallen over on a couple of occasions, mostly in the middle of the night when I am half asleep. Too much information? Nah, you all know you are curious. And jealous of my muscular legs.

This skirt makes me feel tonnes better in the heat.

One of the funniest (but potentially dangerous) events occurred yesterday... when Anna and I left the flat in the morning, Judy said she would be a bit late, so we left without her. Only we were so in the habit of padlocking our door, we accidentally locked her in!... It wasn't until we came home at lunch that we realised what had happened, as we had assumed she still was not feeling too well and had decided not to come in. She had tried to call me, but my phone was on silent, so she ended up trying to put a dvd on to keep herself occupied, but didn't know how to work it!! Poor thing. She was in hysterics laughing when we got home - she had been so excited to tell us what had happened!

Sigh.

The weather has increased again this week, up at 38 degrees, but there are supposed to be thunderstorms this weekend which I am super excited for!

Despite the heat, Anna, Judy and I cranked out the Bollywood Dance workout dvd (haha!!), and had a great time giving our stomach muscles a decent work out from laughing so much.

Our flat is still deciding our plans for easter weekend, we were going to go to Puri to swim at the beach, but all of the trains are booked! So we might head to a resort here in Kolkata with a pool, and nice gardens. Not too sure yet.

Anna and I are trying to also decide on our destination for our visa run in August (which is unfortunately also the middle of monsoon), and our two main options are Nepal or Bhutan. Nepal sounds awesome, but photos of Bhutan are just breathtaking! Only catch is that you have to pay US$200 a day for a tour package, so right now this option is off limits to us... so it looks like Nepal will be our destination, but I am going to keep investigating!

One of the boys purchased a grill today, and cannot stop thinking about cranking it out and testing it! The flat has also bought a share in a wheel of real cheese! It is currently being bathed, looked after, and aged by one of our friends. Hopefully by the start of next week we will be able to have it as a treat.

Well, that is pretty much all I have to say today, except I want to say Happy Birthday to Joseph (my brother) for the Sunday just been, and also to Larissa K, who turns 21 today! (Thursday). Sorry I can't be there for either of you! Much love to you both.

Love.

x

Gabes' final night...

This was hilarious when Nate bought Judy her coffee in this cup... you should have seen her face.

And again, Gabs makes the most amazing apple pie, and Nate gets the credit for the epic pastry triangles on top.

I am so guttered that I have only been able to know this girl for under two weeks, and she is already leaving! I cannot wait until she comes back later in the year.

Waiting for our egg-rolls and more guests to arrive... too hot to do much more.

Look at what I found in my room....!!! Indian music hits, and Bollywood dance workout. Can things get any better??

Scribblings from my first Bangla lesson!

Gotta love a self-portrait. Just so you know where I am am when I am writing to you, or emailing etc. I think most of my friends back home would think/expect me to be in a full sari, with Indian music playing, and typing away. (Well, it is half true... I am listening to the music CD I found....)

This fan is both a blessing, and a sleep-aid. It makes a rhythmic noise while it spins, which helps to get me to sleep.

One of my walls.

The tiny window in an alcove above my head. I love the pebble design on it.

Above my head.

I had thee biggest chocolate craving in the world. And then I found someone selling Cadbury Silk. And then I didn't crave it so much anymore.

I took this photo of myself, as I feel so separated from the life I had back in NZ. When I looked at it, it helped me to remember who I am, and to bring everything back to reality. It is easy to feel like I am living in a dream here; sometimes bad, sometimes good, but disconnected from time.

Namashkar!

Many firsts have happened this week.

I saw a man peeing on the side of the road right next to me for the first time.

I saw two grown men holding hands out of friendship for the first time.

I tried my first egg-roll (where have they been all my life?!).

I went to my first Bangla lesson.

There have been a few other things too. This week started off pretty down, because I was ill with a really bad migraine, a stiff neck, sore stomach, and aching eyes. I an better now, and we have been busy at work! I am now becoming a bit more independent in my work, giving Nate a bit of a chance to not stress so much, but I am still learning - which is a good thing! I love learning, but knowing that I understand what is being said, and that I enjoy it.

The ladies here at FS are just so lovely. They have the largest smiles, and they talk to us in Bangla, and either laugh or get frustrated when we can't figure out what they are saying. One of them, A, calls me 'Aana-di', because 'Alanna' is a bit hard for them to pronounce, and 'di' as a sign of respect. I love it.

Love you all.

x