Mosquitoes

Well, it didn't take long for me to be bitten by a foreign mosquito. During the first power outage (their voltage is really low, and I think having 3 A/Cs running in the house was too much to handle), I went outside while the caretaker was mending the fuse. I was only outside for 3mins, and I was bitten like anything.

Also, been reading the news here every morning, and there's soo many controversies, definitely do not run out of stories. They've got an outbreak of chikungunya in my state of Kerala. Kochi is a city of where I'm working. Apparently 7 districts are affected, and this disease is spread by mosquitoes. So, I'm carrying my trusty 'TROPICAL' aerogard with me when I'm out in the bushes.

I'm a sucker for those mosquitoes!

Chikungunya is a viral disease that renders you immobile as it attacks your limbs and which makes you bed-ridden. It also gives you a nasty fever, as well as terrible headaches. Apparently, people do die from this, so I'm on the lookout for mosquitoes, just to run away from them, or kill them first before getting to me.

Something funny happened today, well funny, up to a point. I had paid my auto, a return fare, so he wouldn't have to keep giving me change for 100rupees, travelling each way. So, I said, ezhivethur trip...a return trip. He had trouble understanding me, so I resorted to the whole pointing thing. Ashwin tells me later, he has to know that you're speaking malayalam (the Kerala state language), so obviously he is not expecting a chinese to speak it. I had asked Rajesh how to say it, since he is a Kerala native, and he also said the pronunciation was difficult, so perhaps, I was saying it alll wrong.

Anyways, my auto driver got my message, no dramas, the message was understood. Okay! So end of business arrives, I expect my usual auto to be waiting there as he's usually there when I leave the office at 6:30pm on the dot. I think he gets there a bit earlier, cause I see him joking around with the security guards at the gate.

So, I get to the gate, and lo and behold, he's not there!!! I'm thinking straight away, he ran off with my extra 35 rupees!! How dare he! But I wait for him, hoping he will show and prove me wrong. And luckily Rajesh was coming back to the office on his bike, and he sees me standing all by my lonesome (with ppl still staring at me, a lady on the back of a moving bus was staring, so I fully smiled at her, and she waved, so I waved back....strange), and Rajesh said he'd call the guy up. Later on, I find out my usual auto had been in an accident! Ooh, poor guy! So, another auto was provided, checked with Rajesh first before hopping on, as he was pointing at me frantically, didn't want to get on the wrong auto, and get kidnapped. In the end, I didn't pay the guy, so really, my guy was being honest. :) I hope he's okay!

Tomorrow, I'll be heading to Munnar, apparently a must see, beautiful place. It's quite a drive from here, so it'll be an early wakeup and a late return. Looks like I'll be resting most of Sunday, but we'll see if we can fit in a movie, Pirates of the Carribbean. I don't think it'll cost $14, like it does back home.

On the way to work...

I travel on an 'auto' known as a motorised rickshaw. It's the cheapest form of travel, and I had questioned why it's called an 'auto', since all vehicles are automobiles. The conclusion was because there's alot of them so they can reserve the word auto. The cost of travel to work is 35rupees one way, door-to-door, which is just over $1. Wow, bargain!

(I have, since, found out that the real name is 'automatic rickshaws' so that's why they're called autos)


On the way, I pass quite a few things. An outdoor seafood stall (don't know how the fish stay fresh in this heat), alot of ppl, walking, or waiting to catch the bus (which are always chockas full). On the roads, the traffic isn't as bad since we're on the outskirts of the main city, so it's not standstill traffic. Well, if there is traffic, my auto decides to just dodge everything just to keep moving. And there are no footpaths for people to walk on, so, besides other vehicles, you need to dodge ppl. The one rule when crossing the road, do not run, and keep walking, never stop, they will avoid you.

Here are a few things I see on the way to work....

Up close and personal with a truck's behind, or facing a "red-killer" on the roads. Apparently the "red-killers" do not brake.

A roadside hut, used for selling things. Indian female students (hope they didn't think I was a stalker), and there's quite alot of land not being utilised, all dirt.


Here's the road-side fish-market (ewwww!), and a land-fill. Everytime I go past these places, I hold my breath

Food glorious food...

Here's a quick run down on what I'm eating, cooked by my personal chef, who is quite sleazy.

I love my westernised breakfasts, so I request westernised breakfast. No way am I eating curry for breakfast, erk! It's soo heavy!

These are the yummy hot breakfasts that I absolutely love to eat. Yes, as you can see, soo unhealthy, especially the toasted cheese!

They actually have cereal! I was amazed! And coffee! I can sort of keep my morning routine of coffee, once a day. I think it's instant, though, so I haven't had a good coffee for a while now.

After a week of eating all these hot food in the morning, I think I've gained a few kilos, I feel like a porker. How can I tell? My jeans are a bit tighter. So, I think I should keep my diet in check and go for light breakfasts this following week. I'd want to run on the touch footy paddock, rather than rolling around it.

My lunch and dinner consists of curries and some chinese dishes, such as stir-fry egg noodles and fried rice, which is a nice change. Curries, no matter how different you cook them, with different spices, it's still curry, and heavy, and cluggy. But since I'm trying to blend with the culture, I try to have curry at least once a day. They all eat it 3 times a day, 7 days a week! Amazing! And if you're looking for a spoon while eating outside, good luck. As you know they eat with their right hand. And ONLY their right hand. Imagine, trying to rip a piece of chappathi (like a roti) with one hand, it's technique! I should film one of my teammates eating, it's quite fascinating, there's a whole art to it.

Chicken curry with rice and pappadums (left), and a cheese omelette with egg curry and rice and pappadums (right)

Coconut rice & different chicken curry (top-left), stir-fry egg noodle (top-right), and beef fry (beef curry)

First look....

You may be wondering why I've named my blog sharzya? Well, I figured alot of indian girls' name end in 'a', so I thought I'd give myself an indian name, just to keep with the theme of this blog. You would have noticed that it's a brown coloured template. ;)

I decided to start a blog detailing my adventures in India. Since this is the first time I'm travelling alone, in a foreign, male-dominant country, with no friends, and you're practically an alien since EVERYONE stares at you, it helps to make the time past quickly while hiding out in my room, as well as, wanting to share all my experiences with everyone.

I'm staying in a very nice house, that's quite big, and about 5mins drive away from the office building. My workplace is on the outskirts of the main city in Kochi, which may be a good thing, considering the traffic I saw while on a city trip to the police commissioner on my first day at work.

Outdoor view of the house

Front lawn

Road leading down to the house

My room is HUGE, it's on the upstairs level, known as the luxury room! I have a personal A/C (they like their shortened words) in my room, definitely can't live without it, and it's the biggest in the house. My room is in pristine condition, and I have a daily cleaner, Mon-Sat, not a speck of dirt anywhere.