A big fat Hindu Wedding

This post is a little overdue. I went to a Hindu wedding a couple weekends ago. The wedding was for the daughter of my host family's landlord (I think). The reason I mention it was Hindu as opposed to "Bengali" is because Hindu and Muslim weddings are quite different. Hindu weddings are more "moja" which means happy. Not to say that Muslim weddings are bad, but that's how Bengalis describe the difference. I must say this Hindu wedding made our tradition back home look like a funeral. I'm not even exaggerating. It's a little depressing.

Anyway, the night of the wedding I got ready at around 9 pm. I put on my panjabi (see previous Eid post) and headed to supper with my family. We ate (early) in a big tent. I went back home briefly and boudi put Piyash to bed. Then I went out with my host brother to the main event. The groom was sitting on the ground under a small tent with a couple priests. I think they were blessing/praying for him.

Did I mention he was wearing a huge hat?

There was a guy with a video camera and spotlight there and as soon as he saw me, he pointed the camera in my direction. So now there's about 15 seconds of footage of a bideshi looking like a deer in headlights on that couple's wedding tape. Anyway, my host brother hadn't eaten yet, so we went to another food tent. I didn't want to go because I had eaten and I knew if I sat down in the food tent I would get food. But there was nothing I could do, so I just rolled with it. You do that a lot in Bangladesh.

Well after my second supper (around 11 pm), we went back to the ceremony again. We left soon after to go to the place I ate my first supper. This is where the actual ceremony would take place. On the way we got some paan, which I tried for the first time. It consists of a betel leaf with areca nut inside. Didn't really like it very much. I suppose its an acquired taste.

We waited for a while then we heard the band coming in the distance. We walked to the entrance and saw the groom being carried on someones shoulder into the compound. The band was very loud but joyful. The ceremony continued under a similar little tent. At this place the bride was in a room with a bunch of other women (including my kaki-ma). At one point the bride and all the women started crying loudly. I don't know if they were genuinely sad or whether it was part of the ritual.

The bride, if you didn't guess already

I ended up leaving around 2 am. I didn't see the couple when they were actually married, but I was tired. Apparently the celebrations continued the next day. I'll try to upload a video I took. Pictures may say a thousand words, but words only tell half the story.

Garbage

One of the first things I noticed when I arrived in Bangladesh is all the people and all the garbage. People are everywhere and their waste is too. A foreigner may see this situation and think "Wow, this is gross. Why don't they dispose of garbage properly here?" I admit I used to feel that way. But where will it go? There's no garbage collection service here, but even if there was it would probably end up being dumped in a river (a lot of it already is) or in a landfill (land is scarce in Bangladesh). A couple days after moving in with my host family I blew my nose with a Bashundhara (Kleenex to you). I asked my boudi where I should dispose of my soiled tissue. She walked over to the window, opened it, and told me to throw it out. So I did, and I still do. I can't yet bring myself to throw plastic out the window but I do toss biodegradable stuff out.

So this made me think a bit. I am certain that the people of Canada produce much more waste than the people of Bangladesh even though we're only a fifth of their population. The problem we have is we don't see it. We toss it in the garbage can, the bag is taken out, given to a sweaty guy in a big truck and dumped somewhere far out of sight and mind. What if our garbage service was cancelled and everyone had to toss all their waste out their windows? If we had to live with our garbage on our lawns and streets, would we use less?

Harvest and Cricket

Its harvest time here so it feels right to have celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend. Slowly but surely the once lush, green rice paddies are turning brown and dry. Everyone gets in on the fun. I was biking through the village one day and I saw a group of kids playing in a big pile of straw much like Canadian kids would play in a big pile of leaves. A couple weeks ago I took this picture. There were probably 60 people working in this field at the same time. Many hands make light work I guess.

Cricket is a big deal here. Everyone loves it. I've been here 3 and a half months and I still haven't learned how to play, but it's on my to do list. On the weekend, any place where there is an open field you see people playing cricket. This morning I was on my bike and I saw 3 games in progress.

A few days ago I was biking back from AKB and I saw some people playing cricket in a recently harvested rice field. They were either quite good or no one had anything better to do because there was a pretty big crowd gathered. I was intrigued and so I decided to pull over and watch for a while. Well it seems like everyone else there thought the same thing about me and as soon as word spread that a bideshi was in attendance the game abruptly stopped so all the players could turn and stare at me. Pretty soon a crowd had gathered around me. I don't think there is any length of time that I could live here and not feel awkward in this situation. So I took some pictures answered a few questions and pedalled off.

So the moral of the story is this: I am more interesting than cricket.

Before the bideshi sighting

Ben's Excellent Adventure or Thanksgiving and Eid part 2

Well, yesterday was American Thanksgiving. Because the rest of the MCC team here are Americans, we had a little get together in Dhaka including real turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes etc. It really hit the spot, especially after my Excellent Adventure...

I got a pretty good start out of Bogra Thursday morning at 10:30. The 250 km trip is usually about 4.5 to 5 hours by bus. I wanted to come to Dhaka a bit early because I had some work to do at the office in the afternoon. I also wanted to give myself some extra time in case traffic was bad because Eid al-Adha is on Saturday. I assumed that most of the traffic would be coming out of Dhaka because everyone will be going to their home villages in the country. The going was good for the first 3 hours or so until we hit traffic about 50 km outside of Dhaka. Basically, it was stop and go for that final stretch. So I didn't make it before the office closed at 5:30, nor did I make it to the 7:00 meal. I finally arrived at 9:30 after 11 hours on the bus. There was still food for me and it was delicious especially because I had only eaten a packet of potato crackers and a soggy shingara (samosa) since breakfast at 8:00 am. I don't think I have been more thankful for a Thanksgiving meal.

I was blessed to have a good seat mate, Rashed, to talk to on my journey. He spoke good English so we could hold a meaningful conversation. He was a "pious" (his word) Muslim, wearing a prayer cap, beard and panjabi. He told me about Islam, Eid al-Adha, his job, ambitions and goals. The conversation was a bit one sided which was fine for me because I'm a better listener than talker. I think he might have been subtly trying to convert me, but I was just happy to learn about his religion. I can share with you about this Eid too, now from a primary source instead of good ol' wikipedia.

Eid al-Adha is the Festival of Sacrifice. This year it falls on Saturday. The festival commemorates the day God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son and Abraham's willingness to do so. So on Saturday cows and goats will be sacrificed to represent the ram God gave to Abraham to sacrifice instead. The practice is for Muslim families (that can afford an animal) to give one third of the meat to the poor, one third to neighbours and to keep one third for themselves. No poor person is to go without food for the 3 day celebration.

There you have it. My Thanksgiving story. I made a friend and had a good meal. Overall, I think it was a good day.

Chickens are dumb

Maybe you already knew this, but chickens really aren't intelligent animals. They may fool you; the way they strut around pecking stuff, or how you can enter a barn silently and they all immediately acknowledge your presence. I have stumbled across this nugget of information as I bike through the villages almost everyday. While on these bike rides, I encounter many animals: goats, cows, sheep, dogs, ducks, geese but chickens are the dumbest of them all. I can be biking along and I see a chicken on the side of the road walking the same direction as me. As soon as I get close, I put my hands on the brakes because I know what's coming. The stupid chicken is not going to keep walking, nor is it going to move further off the road. No, its going to wait till the last second then run right in front of my bike. Sometimes they get in front and just keep running like I'm chasing it! I fear one day I'll actually hit one and I'll feel really bad because chickens are valuable here. So to all you vegetarians who disapprove of the killing of chickens, I tell you this: those chickens are going to die anyway because they're really dumb.

I wonder what this chicken is thinking? Oh yeah, nothing.

Ekhon ami shusto

Now I'm healthy (ekhon ami shusto). I was fine by yesterday afternoon. I just thought I should let you know.

This morning I ate ruti (flat bread) and dal (curried lentils) for breakfast. My little host nephew Piyash was eating his dal from a little bowl. I said, "Do you like dal Piyash?" He just turned to me with a huge smile and a face covered in dal. He is the cutest little guy. Here's a picture of him with my hat (sans dal).

Ektu oshusto...

It seems about once a month I get ektu oshusto (a little sick). It doesn't involve a fever or vomiting, just some stomach pains and "loose movements". Right now is one of those times. Even though it is not a big problem, the last place I want to be is in Bangladesh. The little everyday annoyances get that much more frustrating. I suppose its just a psychological thing. Last night I went to bed happy and contented ready for a new day. This morning I woke up and went to the latrine twice within the hour. I was feeling better by the time I got to the office so I decided to bike out to the AKB to do some work. By the time I got there the bumpy roads had jostled my aching stomach around and I didn't feel well. I did a bit of work but not as much as I had planned. The bike ride back wasn't fun. My stomach was churning and I only seemed to see the worst side of Bangladesh: open sewers, garbage, big diesel trucks belching at me. So now I'm back at the office, hoping I will feel better soon. I think my Pepto will help.

Some things I'm doing...

I think I should say something about my job, since I left you hanging on my first post in June. My job description is becoming more clear as time moves on. I am a program assistant for REAP (Research Extension and Activities Partners) and that means I can do pretty much anything that tickles my fancy. REAP is an MCC program based in Bogra and currently it has projects on HIV/AIDS education and awareness, peace education, livestock research, agricultural research, and appropriate technology development. So far my work has mostly been with the last two things.

There are 5 bideshis (foreigners) in Bogra including me. Nate and Daniel are engineers for the appropriate technology program. Phil is a socio-economist and Jodi works with the livestock program. Nate, Daniel and Phil are currently living outside Bogra at the new model homestead called Adarsho Kamar Bari (AKB). Basically this is the place where the appropriate technology research happens. I've been doing some work out there with the "living machine". The living machine is basically a method of purifying wastewater by emulating a natural wetland ecosystem. The water passes through a series of aerobic and anaerobic tanks where a whole host of bacteria breakdown the solid waste. The final four tanks are all aerobic (oxygen requiring) and open air. In these, plants and fish can live and help to purify the water. We're still in the early stages, seeing if this will work. I still need to go out and do some tests on the water (pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrates etc.), but today I planted some tomatoes on styrofoam rafts in the water. Hopefully there's enough nitrate and micronutrients in the water for the plants to survive.

I'm also doing some work on an Analog Forestry Data

base. This is basically a lot of research and data inputing. It's far from complete, but you can see it here: mccb.org/analogforestry

I have a few other ideas for urban gardening that I'm planning, but you'll have to wait to hear about that because this post is already too long.

AKB House

Workshop

Living Machine (last 4 tanks)

My tomatoes

Just so you know I'm still completely normal.

Ben

Wisdom from Rock

Those of you who know me may be aware that I enjoy classic rock. Today I was traveling from Bogra to Dhaka and I was listening to Jimi Hendrix on my iPod. Some of the lyrics are trippy and weird, but some of them were really quite profound and seemed to apply to my life. So I thought I'd write a blog about it. I've heard from a bunch of people that they enjoy reading this blog and I kind of like updating it, so here we go.

"A rolling stone gathers no moss."

- Jimi Hendrix from "Highway Chile"

At SALT orientation, we were asked "why are you doing SALT?" and then the follow up, "why are you really, really doing SALT?". It was kind of hard for me to answer as there seemed to be a lot of reasons. However I think I realized that my main reason was because I wanted to experience something new and out of the ordinary. I've enjoyed the past two years at university and have made a bunch of friends that I now miss dearly, but I felt like the more comfortable I got, the more uncomfortable I became, if that makes any sense. I felt the need to do something different. Is this selfish? SALT stands for SERVING and LEARNING TOGETHER. I really truthfully am interested in serving and learning and I hope I am doing that (I already have learned a ton), but I am very thankful for a change of scenery. All that to say I think it's important to be a rolling stone sometimes because if enough moss gathers, you may become stuck. This quote also relates to my spiritual journey over the past few years. I've been trying my best to live an "examined life" of which a big part is my faith. I find it's easy to be bogged down in everything ordinary and everyday and when that happens, I seem to lose sight of what really matters. I feel the need to constantly restate to myself what I believe, and I find that it's always changing.

Well, I hope this rambling was somewhat coherent.

Ben

"Walk on brother, don't let no one stop you."

My Life Flows On

October is almost over, and the past month has seen many changes in my life. I've moved to a new town, started a new job, lived with a new family and set a new routine. Sometimes changes can be overwhelming. I haven't really felt that yet (maybe I'm not easily overwhelmed) but still it hasn't been easy. Before I left Akron, I wrote down one of my favourite hymns in my journal. There are a lot of great ones, but this one I am especially fond of, particularly when many changes are happening around me. I think nowadays hymns don't get the respect they deserve, especially in the younger generation (dang kids). I would take any hymn over contemporary worship music any day. This is a beautiful song. The lyrics are below. The tune is probably familiar to those of you who have spent a significant amount of time in a Mennonite church.

My life flows on in endless song,

Above Earth's lamentation

I catch the sweet, though far off hymn

That hails a new creation.

Refrain

No storm can shake my inmost calm,

While to that rock I'm clinging

Since Love is Lord of heav'n and Earth,

How can I keep from singing?

Through all the tumult and the strife,

I hear that music ringing

It finds an echo in my soul.

How can I keep from singing?

Refrain

What though my joys and comforts die?

The Lord my Saviour liveth

What though the darkness gather round?

Songs in the night he giveth

Refrain

The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,

A fountain ever springing

All things are mine since I am His!

How can I keep from singing?

My New Family

A few days ago I moved in with my new host family. As I mentioned before they are Hindu. The family consists of Swapan (pronounced: Show-pon), his wife Moli, son Piyash and Swapan's mother and father. There are two young men that live with them (though I don't think they're related). The first is named Pintu and he owns a small photo/cellphone top-up shop. I would say he's about 25 years old. The other is also named Swapan and he is a university student. My house is near a river on the outskirts of Bogra in a Hindu community.

It's easy to tell that family is very important in Bangladesh. It is common for parents to live with their sons when they get old. Every relation has a different name in Bangla. For example, there is a different word for your older brother's wife and your younger brother's wife. You don't call your father's older brother the same name as your father's younger brother. In Bangladesh you never call anyone older than you by their first name. I call Swapan Swapan-da where the da is for respect. I call his wife Boudi (older brother's wife). I call his father kaka (uncle) and his mother kaki-ma (auntie). My Bangla teacher gave me a list of all the names for family members and it is one and a half pages long. Hindus and Christians use the same titles but Muslims have an entirely different set. This means a lot of confusion for me.

A couple nights ago I went to kaki-ma's mother's (my didi) house for a birthday celebration. A little boy was turning one and I forget his relation to kaki-ma (maybe great-nephew?). It is a big family and I was introduced to a lot of people and I remember absolutely no names or anyone's title. I hope this doesn't come back to haunt me. Anyway, in Bengali fashion they fed me a lot of food. To start I had pouri (puffy flat bread), shobji torkari (vegetable curry) and dal (lentils). Then I had more. Then I had some mishti (very sweet things made from milk and a lot of sugar). I also had more of that. Then they fed me payes, which is a very sweet, milky rice pudding. Believe it or not I also had a second helping of that. To top it off I was given a Bengali version of Red Bull, called Royal Tiger. By the end of it I was pretty wired. All the food was very good though. I suppose I've been lucky so far. I seem to like everything I've eaten. Except burnt fish paste. That was gross.

I was asked dozens of times "where is your country?" and "are you married?" Standard questions for bideshis (foreigners). In the middle of all this, eating, trying to converse in Bangla between mouthfuls of food, I realized I can never fit in here. It isn't possible for me to be a Bangladeshi. Even if I lived my entire adult life here I would still be a bideshi. However, that doesn't mean I can't try.

Thanksgiving

Another Thanksgiving has passed and I think it is the first in my life that I have not had any kind of celebration. Needless to say, I kind of missed it. I suppose a common Thanksgiving tradition is to say some things you're thankful for, so here goes:

• the opportunity to live in Bangladesh this year
• a new host family (I have not yet moved in)
• an increasing knowledge of Bangla
• friends and family
• my first piece of mail (which I received Thanksgiving Day)
• my first piece of mail (feel free to take the hint)
  

The list could go on, but I think I'll stop it there.

I am still doing language study, now 4 days per week. I've also been getting some Bangla script lessons which is quite interesting. It's funny learning a language from the ground up. I suppose that's what it's like for children, stuttering along with a limited vocabulary. Learning to read again brings back a few distant memories of "sounding it out" and a sense of accomplishment when I can read and understand a big word. Today I read বাংলাদেশ (Bangladesh). Maybe soon I can start on some children's books!

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving.

Ben

Bogra

I have been living in Bogra for the past 4 days now. This is where I will be based for the rest of my term. I haven't been here long but I already prefer it here over Dhaka. It's cleaner, quieter and smaller: more like what I've grown up with. I have been living at the Bogra guesthouse with the three other Bogra MCC workers, Nate, Phil and Daniel. On Sunday I will move in with my new host family! I am looking forward to that but also a little nervous as well. I'm sure they'll be great. I don't know much about them except that they're Hindu which is pretty cool. My family in Dhaka was Christian so my entire family experience in Bangladesh will be with minority groups which is interesting.

So the Bogra office takes up the first two floors of an apartment building with the guesthouse taking the other two. The fifth floor goes out to the roof where there is a small building used for staff trainings. I have a desk on the second floor. It looks like this:
I've never had a desk at a place of employment before, so I feel pretty qualified now.

I suppose you're all wondering what my work is. That's a good question. I met with my boss Mohkles on my first day here and he said I will have quite a lot of freedom in my work. This can obviously be a good or bad thing depending on whether you are a good self directed worker. It looks like my work may be involving rooftop gardens/anything that interests me. Hopefully I'll update you later when I make a more clear plan.

A couple days ago I went out with Phil for my first Banladeshi haircut which turned out better than expected. The haircut cost less than 50 cents and even included an upper body massage. After cutting my hair the guy proceeded to massage my scalp which felt good. He than started rubbing my hair around which kind of hurt. Then was the shoulders and upper back. I wondered if I should ask him to stop because he obviously wasn't a professional and he was a bit aggressive. But I didn't mostly because I was curious how far he'd go. He massaged my back while I was sitting in the chair leaning forward which bucked me around a bit. Then he massaged my arms which involved a somewhat painful Indian Sunburn. He shook them around a bit and jerked them up to pop the socket. He also cracked my fingers for me. All in all it was the most interesting haircut I've ever had. You can judge for yourself on the quality.
Take care.

Ben

Good News

I figured I owed you another update, so here it is. I have confirmation that I will be heading to Bogra on the 4th. I am excited for that. They also might've found a host family for me too. Also, my work permit has come through and I've been told it is very likely that my visa will be extended too. If you're unaware, the visa I got before coming was only good for 3 months. Swapan in the Dhaka office has been working on getting me a one year visa so I don't have to leave the country every 3 months. Things seem to be falling more or less into place.

I also suppose to be fair, I also owe you a wikipedia account of Durga Puja. Last Monday I went to my Bangla teacher's house for lunch. Afterwards he took me to a Puja. Durga Puja is a Hindu festival named after the goddess Durga. Durga has ten arms and you might've seen pictures of her before. The festival also includes the gods Shiva, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati and Kartikeya. The Puja is a clay statue depicting all these gods and is usually set-up at the front of a large room or tent. After the 5 day festival the Puja is thrown in the nearest river. Apparently in Bangladesh Durga Puja is a big festival and often observed by people that aren't Hindu. I suppose it's kind of like Christmas in North America. The day I went was the last day of the festival, so everything was winding down, but I took some pictures anyway.

Have a good one.

Ben

Ramadan and Eid ul-Fitr

As most of you probably know, Bangladesh is a predominantly Muslim country with about 88% of Bangladeshis identifing themselves as Muslim. Bangladesh is though, a secular state and does not practice Islamic law (Shari'a) as part of its government and judicial system. Still, five times a day you will hear the call to prayers echoing throughout the streets of Dhaka. I really like the call to prayers. They can be annoying if you get woken up at 4:30 am, but you get used to it. I think Arabic is a very beautiful language especially when sung in a prayer.

The past month has been Ramadan, the 9th month of the Muslim calendar. I have done some researching and learning about Ramadan and the festival Eid ul-Fitr and I would like to share some with you. Naturally I used the most comprehensive research tool for a basic understanding of any topic under the sun: Wikipedia. One more benefit to not being in university this year.

Ramadan is a special month as it is a time of fasting. It is similar to Lent though much more intense and widely practiced. Everyday for one month Muslims around the world refrain from eating, smoking, unnecessary frivolities and even drinking water from sunrise to sundown. They are expected to give the extra money that they save on food to the poor. This month is supposed to be a time to purify oneself and become closer to God by getting rid of unwanted distractions. Ramadan is also the month where God revealed the first verses of the Qur'an to the prophet Muhammad. In Bangladesh I don't imagine many people refrain from drinking water because you would likely die especially if you do work outside.

Eid ul-Fitr (called Rojar Eid in Bangladesh) is a festival marking the end of Ramadan. This year Eid was celebrated on Monday the 21st and the two days following. Eid also marks the time when the angel Gabriel came from heaven to give white clothes to Muhammad's grandchildren. For Bangladeshis it is a family celebration. For the past week Dhaka has been unusually quiet as half the population has left for the villages. Many people will stay on vacation until next week because Durga Puja (a Hindu holiday) falls very close to Eid this year. So the usual traffic jams are no more for awhile just as I finished my daily commute across the city last week. Oh well...

So all that brings me to what I was planning on writing all along. On Monday night I was invited to an Eid meal at the home of Sagar (last name I don't know). Sagar works in the MCC Dhaka office. He lives on the top floor of an apartment building in Old Dhaka and therefore has a great view across the city from his terrace. He also has a very cute 8 month old son. For supper we ate special rice. It is smaller and has a more distinct flavour than the everyday stuff. On the rice we had chicken and beef curry with some kind of pickled mango on the side. Everything was very delicious and once again it was "suggested" by my host that I eat a lot. I was fit to burst after the first course but in a minor plot twist it was revealed that we still had dessert to tackle. We ate a special Eid dessert that is unique to south Asia. It is called shemai and consists of skinny egg noodles in a pan baked with raisins, milk and a whole lot of sugar. The end result is a brown product resembling a large birds nest. I quite enjoyed it. By the time we finished dessert I was really full and ready to fight anyone who said otherwise.

All in all, I had a good evening. A good chuck of Sagar's family was there: his wife and son, two aunts, one uncle, one young cousin, his mom and his grandmother. The aunt without the corresponding uncle is living in Regina, SK where the rest of her family currently is. She is visiting Bangladesh for a few weeks. As is custom in Bangladesh I wore a panjabi like I mentioned in my previous post. I also promised a picture, so here it is:

Also, some pictures from Sagar's terrace:

The buildings may appear to be touching, but actually there are very narrow roads between them. Eid Mubarak and Happy Durga Puja!

Ben

The Weekend

I had a good weekend. I didn't necessarily do a whole lot, but it was good. For those of you who may be reading this on Sunday morning in Canada, I am not losing it. The weekend in Bangladesh is Friday and Saturday so Sunday is a weekday.

On Friday evening I was asked to speak at my host family's church. The church is held in an apartment on the bottom floor of our building (NOT the aforementioned Genetic Rhyme as my misleading caption lead some people to believe). There are ~15 members. It was my first sermon and it was translated by my host brother Sagar. I kind of like being translated like that when I'm giving a speech/sermon because it gives me a good excuse to choose my words carefully. I say a sentence, it gets rendered into Bangla and in the meantime I can think of my next sentence without any awkward silences. So that was good.

I did a little music exchange with my host brothers. I got a USB thumb drive and put some of my English music on it to give to Sagar (pronounced Sha-gur) and Saikat (pronounced Shoi-kot). Michael Jackson for Sagar, Linkin Park for Saikat, two of my favourite Beatles albums (Abbey Road and Rubber Soul if you must know) and of course "War" by Edwin Starr. They returned the favour with some of their most loved Bangla artists. That was also good.

Last night (Saturday) they had a special meal for me as it was my last supper with them. We had egg soup to start followed by a heaping bowl of chicken biryani and cold Coke for dessert. My host mother Laizu told me straight up that she will know I like her special cooking if I eat a lot. So I obliged. It was my first taste of Coke in Bangladesh and wouldn't you know it tastes the same! That's one of the wonders about Coke: from a tiny village in Africa to a mega city in Asia and everywhere in between you're never far from a cold Coke. And it tastes (pretty much) the same anywhere you go. I'm sure some may be quick to inform me of the evils of giant multinational corporations such as Coca-Cola and their dubious business practices, but I don't care it's still pretty amazing to me. So I said goodbye this morning and said I would try to visit again sometime. All that was good too.

Now I'm at the MCC Guesthouse where I will live once again until I leave for Bogra in October. I have been invited to an Eid party tomorrow night and so today I bought a panjabi, traditional formal dress for men. I promise to upload some pictures when I have them.

Ben

Time flies

As of tomorrow I will have been in Bangladesh for one month. It doesn't feel like it's been that long. On Sunday I say goodbye to my host family for the past month. Originally the plan was for me to go up to Bogra next week, however that has changed slightly so instead I will move to Bogra during the first week of October. I will live at the MCC guesthouse in Dhaka for 2 weeks before I head north. I don't have a whole lot to report. I am trying my best to learn Bangla. I've been told by both my teachers that I am a fast learner, so that is encouraging when I still feel somewhat helpless in expressing myself. It's strange going from a country where I can perfectly explain any complex thought or opinion I might have, to a place where it takes concentration to say where I'm from, where I live or what I'm doing in Bangladesh. I did a rough estimate recently and my vocabulary seems to be around 300 words. It'll come.

My day to day life hasn't changed much since my earlier update My Commute. I did take a picture today that I hadn't before. Every morning I walk by freshly slaughtered cows and soon-to-be slaughtered cows on my way to the bus stop.
I apologize to the faint of heart. Lucky for you a rickshawalla walked in front of (most of) the cow being gutted just as I was taking the photo. Today must've been a special day because there were two cows already dead and an unprecedented five waiting in line. Usually there's only 3 or 4 total. Its funny how something so different than what I'm used to can become normal so fast. I don't bat an eye anymore when I see the butcher cutting up a cow in the mud on the side of the road. When you think about it, this is probably more sanitary than the industrial slaughterhouses in Canada. I would imagine when one man kills and cleans an animal by hand there is much less chance of contamination than a mechanized mass killing and cleaning operation. Anyway, enough of that topic.

One last story I want to share. Last night I was sitting up to supper with my family. My host dad Nekbar is a funny guy. He doesn't speak much English so the majority of our conversation is in Bangla. We were having hard-boiled eggs in a curry sauce. Pointing to an egg, he said, "Eta ki?" (what is this?). He likes to test my Bangla, so I replied "Ota dim." (that's an egg.) He said, "Nah, eta murgi har na." (No, it's boneless chicken.) I laughed for a while and it felt good.

Ben

My host family: Nekbar, Laizu and their son Sagar (two years younger than me). They have another son (Shiakat) who is my age and currently at university.

Septembers past

It is now September and everyone's going back to school, except me. It's a strange feeling. This is the first September in 15 years that I will not be heading off to any formal education. In a way it's a relief, to get away from school for awhile. But I find myself missing it. A few days ago I had a hankering for some organic chemistry. Yes the devil itself. I don't know what to make of that. Anyway, good luck to everyone who is heading off to or is already in school. Have a great year.

Ben

Foreign to Familiar

The title of this blog may remind fellow SALTers/MCC service workers of a nice little book we were asked to read before starting our assignment. This post has nothing to do with that book.

Last night I was in my room reading a book and listening to my iPod. My host brother Sagur comes by and asks if he can see my iPod. I said sure and I gave him a headphone and asked him to pick a song. He goes straight to the Michael Jackson. He seems to like MJ and "soft" music in general. So next I played him "Golden Slumbers" by the Beatles and I said that they're my favourite band. We go back and forth a bit, playing songs we like. I played some of UW's own Waterboys which he seemed to like a lot. The next song I played was "War" by Edwin Starr. I thought it would be quite different from anything he'd ever heard: some African-American funk/soul from the '70s. As soon as I played the song he burst out laughing. He said he recently saw the movie Rush Hour and so he pictures Jackie Chan singing along to this song in a funny Chinese accent. This caught me off guard: something I figured would be so foreign turned out to be very familiar to him

It's funny how things happen like that, when you least expect it. I apologize for those unfamiliar with "War" or Rush Hour. I hope I haven't wasted your time. Maybe this will help a bit.



Enjoy!

Ben

My Commute

This past week I have been attending Bangla language classes on the other side of Dhaka. I travel by city bus both directions with two rickshaw rides in the middle. The trip costs just over a dollar.

As you know from my last post, Dhaka is a vibrant city full of people. It is the most densely populated city in the world and I've heard estimates of the population as anywhere from 12 to 18 million. It's amazing how people can fit into an area a quarter the size of Toronto. So the pictures you see below are raw Dhaka, bursting with people. It's a small glimpse into everyday life here and of my commute to and from school.

My bus

Live chickens. This man was carrying about 40.

Apartment buildings are the way to go.

A logical place for an A&W.

Bus stand

Train tracks are pretty much a road

Pineapples!

"Yes, I live at apartment B6, Genetic Rhyme."

Janjot! (Traffic jam) A very common occurrence in these parts.

Bangladesh Air Force

This meat shop has a very distinct aroma.

My apartment building

The mosque that wakes me up far too early, especially now during Ramadan.

Well, that's it. I hope you have enjoyed the pictures. They took a long time to upload. Now I expect you all to be able to live vicariously through me.

Love,
Ben

Mailing Address

Just thought I'd let you know where to mail letters should you choose to write them.

Ben Reesor
MCC Bangladesh
G.P.O. Box 785
Dhaka 1000
BANGLADESH

This will be my mailing address for the whole year.

Ben

An Explosion of the Senses

That's the best way I can describe my thoughts every time I walk out the door in Bangladesh. Every sense is experiencing something new at exactly the same time. This picture captures only the sights of Dhaka and certainly does not do the full experience justice. There is a constant busyness. People are always bustling about and on the move. Today I took a walk out to Asad Gate which is about a 10 minute walk from where I'm staying. Even though I had been out that way a few days ago with Phil, everything seemed different and new today, almost unrecognizable.

I have had a fair bit of free time and I have spent a lot of it reading and studying Bangla. I finished A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. It was a very good book and I would recommend it to anyone. It is set in India mostly during the '70s during a time when the country was in a lot of turmoil. It is very sad but well written.

I do enjoy getting out and walking around Mohammadpur. Yesterday I decided to take a walk to the market. On my way there I was stopped by a man who greeted me like an old friend. He then proceeded to ask me if I could help him obtain a visa to Australia so he could visit his brother. I told him I was from Canada and had no experience in this matter. I did tell him he should talk to the Australian embassy. He asked me to write some talking points for him as to what he should say when he got there. I told him to explain why he wants to visit Australia and to give his brother's address. He said he does not know it and sounded to me from his explanation that his brother was an illegal immigrant. I highly doubt he will be granted a visa, but I was happy to help him.

Bangladesh is a very interesting place and I like it already.

Ben

P.S. I took this picture while exploring Gulshan 2 (a region of Dhaka) with Phil. This was in a grocery store and I thought it was kind of funny.

How many brands of "Corn Flakes" can you see?

Small town America to big city Asia

I'm in Bangladesh! I arrived safe and sound yesterday at 10:15 am local time after a grueling 34 hours spent in transit. Lets just say Dhaka is significantly different than Akron.

Boy howdy! It's a car!

Mohammadpur market

I don't have a great picture of traffic here yet, but it sure makes your commute more interesting. Yesterday I was given a tour of the Mohammadpur district of Dhaka by Phil, an MCC service worker that lives in Bogra where I will be in a month. I was feeling very tired by about 5:00 and Phil was kind enough to make me some extra strong coffee. That was able to keep me conscious until I went out for supper with Phil and Joyce, an MCC Dhaka worker living at the guesthouse. I had some traditional Bengali food which was very good. I am looking forward to eating it more (we'll see where I stand on that in a few months). We also rode by rickshaw, a very common mode of transportation here. I use "very" in the strongest sense of the word because I have not seen a stretch of road in this city yet without at least one rickshaw driving along. I have my first Bangla lesson tomorrow and I move in with my host family in a couple days. I look forward to learning some Bangla because then I'll feel at bit less helpless in navigating the city. I have already started learning a few words and phrases. A common greeting is asalaam aleykum, which is actually Arabic and means peace be with you. Another greeting used mostly by Christians and Hindus is namaskar which is often accompanied by a small bow with clasped hands. Well I can't think of much more to write about. It looks like I'll have fairly regular internet access in Dhaka, so hopefully I'll be able to update this blog when there's something interesting to write about.

Ben

Traveling

Traveling is fun and exciting, but also boring at times, like right now. I am currently sitting in Dubai International Airport in, you guessed it, Dubai. I have just entered hour 3 of a 7 hour layover, my last one before getting to Bangladesh. My first thoughts upon entering terminal 3 was how huge this place is. A quick google search confirmed my belief: Dubai's terminal 3 is the largest building in the world by floor space measuring at 16,100,000 square feet. I've spent most of my time wandering the concourse. It takes about 20 minutes to walk from one end to the other. I was also around in time for the evening call to prayers, which was a pleasant surprise. Here are some pictures:


Lamborghini Gallardo. This is what I use to transport my luggage around the airport.

An endless line of gates. I'm at 220.

The last half of orientation was good. We had some blunt but oddly comforting discussions. One session Eva said straight up that there will be a point in our term where we want nothing more than to come home. Usually that happens in the first 2 or 3 months. At first I got kind of nervous, but then I calmed myself. I have been preparing for this for half a year. I have thought of this before. I understand that it won't be easy, but that's why I'm doing it.

It was weird saying goodbye to the other SALTers. MCC tries really hard to get us connected to each other, and I did make some friends, but we were still only together for a week (I think Kim's analogy is a good way to describe it). Basically all you can say is, "Well, see you in a year! Good luck!", and then go your separate ways.

Ben

Akron

For the past day and a half I've been at orientation at the MCC headquarters in Akron, PA. It's been great to meet the SALTers, IVEPers and YAMEN!ers. I'm staying in Asia House, one of 4 continent themed guesthouses on the MCC campus. The first person I met in Asia House was an IVEPer from Cambodia named Pheakday Tim. Turns out he'll be living in Stouffville and working at Willowgrove Farm. He is eager to learn more about Stouffville and who his host family will be, so if anyone has more information on that, it would be appreciated. The MCC campus is very nice and is set up like a small village. I've put up some pictures. I hope you enjoy them.


Guestbooks are fun.

Ben

(Less than) 2 days...

It's hard to believe that I leave my home and native land on Friday. I will be traveling to Akron, Pennsylvania for a week long orientation with fellow SALTers, IVEPers and YAMEN!ers. I leave for Bangladesh the 15th. My flight path is as follows (in case you're curious): Philadelphia to New York, New York to Dubai and Dubai to Dhaka. I'll be in the air for about 20 hours and assuming all planes are on time, I will arrive in Bangladesh 28 hours after leaving Philadelphia. Bangladesh is 11 hours ahead of EST, so I will be arriving on August 17th at 9:40 am. I don't know if anyone reading this really cares much, but I'm just really excited so I like to talk about it. If you're in the Stouffville area and you haven't had a chance to say goodbye, there is an open invitation to stop by my house tomorrow night. There should be iced tea and lemonade (while supplies last). 

Ben

Fundraiser

Last Friday Addison, Kim and I had our fundraiser. We had good music, good food and a good time. Here are some pictures:

Thanks to all for coming!

My Blog

Welcome to my blog. As you can see this is my first post. A lot of people have been asking me if I'll keep a blog while I'm away in Bangladesh. I have consistently promised that I would and now I am carrying out that covenant.

In case you don't know, I am taking a year off school to participate in Mennonite Central Committee's Serving and Learning Together (SALT) program. This year there are 60 participants from Canada and the US that have been placed in jobs in over 30 countries around the world. SALT is a year long program, and jobs come from a wide range of fields including teaching, child care, health care and technology.

I will be spending the next year in Bogra, a town located in the north-west region of Bangladesh. I will be working for MCC with an appropriate technology program called REAP (I don't know what the acronym stands for). My job description:

The MCC Bangladesh REAP program is working with 18 partner organizations, mostly nongovernmental organizations, to improve the food security of the rural poor of Bangladesh. Most of the partners are located in the northwestern part of Bangladesh and are involved in micro credit. Through the partnerships, REAP helps build the capacities of these partner organizations, particularly in the area of agriculture (crop, vegetable, livestock and fish). A model farmstead is being built that will address many aspects of rural living, including gardening, food preservation, lighting, cooking, animal husbandry, etc. A new Appropriate Technology Center is also being developed to be attached to the farmstead. The SALTer will be charged with assisting with research, implementation, extension and training associated with bringing new ideas and old ideas to the Partners who in turn will extend it to farmers in the region. This person will work directly with REAP staff, Partners and the people. This first hand experience of working in the community provides the person in this position a unique opportunity to learn about the life of rural Bangladeshi people and the poor being served by MCC.

The description seems extensive, but I really don't know what to expect. Once I am in Bangladesh I will hopefully gain a better idea of what I'll be doing and I will be sure to post as I learn more.

It seems that time is flying by. I leave the country August 8th for a week of orientation in Akron, Pennsylvania. I leave the continent August 15th. Everything is happening fast. It seems like I still have lots of paperwork to do before I go. So many small little things nagging me. This past Tuesday, I got to meet the other SALTers from Ontario. We met at the MCC Ontario offices in Kitchener. It was really great to meet everyone. We will see each other again at orientation.

The SALTers and their countries are (from left to right): Kendra (South Africa), Kim (Bolivia), Iris (India), Katie (Chad), Simon (Lesotho), myself and Adrienne (Bolivia). Absent: Yolanda (Rwanda). Thanks to Kendra for the picture.

Well I have written a lot. More than I thought I would. Hope you have enjoyed it. One more thing. If you are interested in supporting me financially, I am having a joint fundraiser with Kim Walker at Willowgrove Farm in Markham. The event is on July 3rd at 7:00 pm. There will be sweet corn, music, drama and (weather permitting) outdoor games. If you are reading these words now, you are invited. Feel free to invite your friends, neighbours, local grocers, fellow inmates, whatever. We would love your support.