Time to Eat!

Our colleagues and fellows across the country are posting on our Facebook site. . . How is the weather? How is your school? What are you doing/ seeing/ eating?

For us, it’s been a lifeline.

Our internet at the first hotel in

Nilambur was not working at all for the first day. That, combined with rock-hard beds and limited interaction with others (I think we were the only guests and it was too quiet) prompted us to move to a different hotel. The new one was better in the sense that the beds were more comfortable and there seemed to be more people around, but the wifi only worked sporadically, and only in the lobby.

We are so grateful for our connections with friends, family, and colleagues!

Another small concern we had (and had heard from others) was, what to buy and how to pack a lunch. What about dinner? At home, it’s so easy. . .just make a quick sandwich or stop at a restaurant. When you can’t find the words to describe “plastic wrap” for a sandwich (nor can you find a way to purchase the bread and cheese to make one!), things can get complicated. We learned how to politely ask for water in Malayalam and the restaurant at the hotel always had plenty on hand. Lunch and dinner, though, that was another thing.

On the first morning of school, I ordered bread (called “bread toast” by our waiter in the hotel’s restaurant) and an omelet (which was basically flat eggs, more like a fritter). Perfect! After eating a slice of bread and half of my omelet, I then put the other half of the omelet between two slices of bread toast and tiptoed to the counter, where I carefully tore off a piece of plastic wrap. Proud of the little sandwich I’d made, I slipped it into my bag and went off to school.

Turns out, I never needed to worry!

Students, parents and teachers took care of lunch and dinner every day we were there! Riyas’ family had a wonderful dinner for us on Sunday night and Ruxana (a teacher at GGVHSS) invited us to her home on Monday night. We had dinner in a wonderful restaurant on Wednesday, when we visited the Arabian Sea. Everything was so wonderful! Healthy and smart use of local ingredients. I learned so much about recipes, new fruits, different combinations of flavors and the generosity of strangers who are now dear friends!