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