I am now offically registered as a volunteer at Prem Dam. Went there today, going there tomorrow. On friday Katie, Alicia, Meghan, Jamie and I get to check out a more rural area (around Raiganj) with a Father Puthumai. Should be gone about a week, and I might be incommunicado. So, on my first day volunteering a Prem Dam, the auto rickshaw ride cost 8 rupees a head, was terrifying, and a motorcycle hit us at low speed (the operators of both vehicles were fairly friendly about the incident, seeing as there was no damage or injuries). Today, I went back [View Full Entry]

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Haha just making sure you guys are paying attention. [View Full Entry]

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Today I was walking around Sudder St. to try a find a plce for Katie and Alicia, who were to come into the city tonight, to stay. As I was heading into Hotel Maria to use its 15 rupee an hour computers, I saw Katie! As it turns out one of their flights was cancelled, so they got an earlier one. They seemed happy to see me. I've been showing them around town, making me feel very important and saavy. About 8% of the locals here have brown (sometimes quite dark brown) skin and bright orange or red hair. Reminds me [View Full Entry]

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I met my other roomie. His name is Miguel, from Barcelona. He is very friendly, and his english is a bit better than my spanish, so it works out well for both of us a practicar los idiomas . Today we went down the block to the Mother House, got the free for volunteers of breakfast of plantains, biscuits and chai. Hopped on a bus to Prem Dam. The buses in Kolkata are suprisingly nice, and they only cost 4 rupees. Most of the work at Prem Dam was physical- washing clothes, washing dishes, hauling buckets of water to help clean [View Full Entry]

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The local man who spoke English the best here asked me where I was from. I told him, and he talked about how "the streets here are alive with electricity, you feel a high just walking around". "All people are the same, there is the good the bad. All of us are good and bad. Then there is the good, the bad, and the ugly." True enough on both counts. He then asked me what I was looking for. "Jesus? You looking for Jesus? Some people say that I am bad but we are all a little bad" I told him [View Full Entry]

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It's amazing how much about 16 hours of sleep and a decent meal can improve one's state of mind. Gonna keep this entry short because time is $- especially when I am paying 20 rupees an hour to stay in contact with y'all. I got up around 7, had a great meal at Fresh and Juicy for 54 rupees, and did some wandering. I am a bit afraid of getting lost, seeing how all the streets look the same and it's very hard to find addresses and street sings. Off of Sudder st, I rarely get a second glance from other [View Full Entry]

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Ate all three meals at the fresh and juicy for a combined cost of about 170 rupees. I noticed that the workers there were giving alms to beggars. This, plus friendly service, good value, and authentic cuisine has earned my business. I wished some Americans (and one Canadian) a happy 4th of July. Unfortunately, no Brits as of yet. Wandered around the neighborhood I am in. I am starting to become more familiar with my surroundings. Success! Without once glancing on my map, I was able to find the Mother House. The residents of the street that leads me there seems [View Full Entry]

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I arrived here at about 1 AM last night, and decided to spend the wee hours in the airport terminal. All the officials were very friendly (some weren't at first, but were tickled once I called them "Saab"). I got about an hour of sleep on top of the two or so on the plane. First thing I noticed outside was the heat and humidity. Then the creepy looking crows. Seriously, the curious should look into that, they are like crows but partially blonde on the head and with sinister looking beaks. The taxi ride was one of the most terrifying [View Full Entry]

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I just spent 200 bhat (about 6 bucks) for 40 minutes of internet time, so you folks better be enriched. Even before we came up to the terminal, there is a sense of this place being a mini- UN. There were airplanes outside from El Al, Turkish Airways, British Airways, Oman Airways, Indian Airlines and many others I couldin't see. There are signs everywhere of "Long live the King" and celebrations of Thailand's Buddhist heritage. The airport I get to spend about 7 hours in was built in 2006 and it very futuristic. There are multiple shops and currency exchanges everywhere [View Full Entry]

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A few reasons why Taiwan is the best country ever (even though it dosen't officially exist) They fed me TWICE on their flight. They have very attractive and kind stewardesses. They have FREE INTERNET in their airport. Strangers come up to you and tell you in broken english that they like your "mustachae" (beard) and America. As anyone who has been my roomie knows, I love crazy Asian TV. ALL THEY HAVE is crazy Asian tv. They have touch screen computers with on-demand content in their ECONOMY CLASS SECTION. Even though the food was fine, they have a message displayed on [View Full Entry]

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