Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Happy happy new year!
It didn't turn out being that bad at all. I went for a so called chinese dinner that at least had the ambience of a chinese restaurant though the food was not. We went the wrong way on the rickshaw, which I decided was "hung dai one" a big lucky detour!
Also I did get some Lai Zi. It is good to have a sister posted in Hong Kong so married family members do not forget you exist, hooray for lai zi and being unwed to get and not to give!
Ok, wishing everyone a prosperous year of the dog and here are my favourite greetings:
Man Zi Yue Yi (ten thousand things as you wish)
Chut Yup Ping On (Peace in and out!)
Lung Ma Jing Sun (Awake like a dragon or a horse!)
Ching Chun Shearn Jue (Young forever!)
and above all SUN TAI KIN HONG, to good health!

I want my new year

Colon apostrophe open bracket.
Most depressing new year ever.
no red pockets. no lin go. no chuen hub. no tuen lin fan. no family. no flower market. not even a decent bite of chinese food or any chinese person in sight. This is the first time that I won't have a new year AT ALL, not even a mediocre dinner in Kam Fung Restaurant in China town. I hate india. India ate my new year.

Paradise

On Sunday, sick of Bombay crowds and polluted air, we decided to head out of town and spend the day at the beach. Three hours southeast of Bombay, near the city of Alibag, there is a beautiful and clean beach on the Arabian sea called Kashid, still relatively unknown to tourists and attract very limited locals.
However we decided to further explore and look for an alternative beach featured in a guide book as being "isolated". (you may be wondering why, but privacy and silence is priceless in India!!) We followed a winding muddy path and just as we turned one corner, we saw an amazing, stretch of beach, completely empty!!! So we spent the day in the sun, reading and listening to the sea. What a fabulous getaway from Mumbai streets...

All the things I don't know.

True to my word, since the new year, I have been trying to educate myself on news from around the world. Aside from following the upcoming election, there are a few headlines that caught my eye. Now for those who are super aware of international affairs, pardon my ignorance. Having been an average apathetic Suburbanite for most my life, I would say I have no clue of what's going on aside from the high profiled conflicts happening in the middle east. What shocks me is the limited amount of coverage, especially in mainstream Canadian new source (namely CBC) regarding the very significant political developments in South America, and the ever deteriorating conditions in Africa. For example Chile has recently elected its first female president, which must be some sign of movement towards gender equality. But then again, India's female prime minister has hardly made an impact of women's rights here. Anyway, I'm not saying i'm enlightened. But it seems important to at least be aware. For example, why are Canadians leaning right towards American policies, rather than joining a more socialist view of Latin Americans?
This post is simply about not being completely apathetic anymore. Logging on to BBC 30 minutes a day is only the beginning. Here's a shout out to my friend Mike who is monitoring the elections in Haiti, without whom I wouldn't even know that there is an election going on in Haiti.

Local Income Generation Project

I don't know why it took me so long to get around to this, but I should have made this post long ago. As you all should know, I am working on income generation projects for women in marginalized communities of Mumbai. Please take some time to check out this website:
www.bamboobychaitanya.org
This type of program is being implemented in many communities to foster women empowerment and provide equitable livelihood options for the rural and urban poor in developing countries.

Also, I was joking with Kitty about putting up a post entitled: "Thirty something single men: free spirit or selfish commitment phobe?" currently we have a sample size of one.. Can there be a more clear indication of one who watches too much SATC??!!

NGO's obviously don't have the same level of resources as a private company or even a governmental department. I have to supply my own pens, which often disappear if unattended. But just now i walked around the office searching for a paper clip, and finally settled for picking one up off the floor, staining the paper with rust. I think that is a new low.

Email Virus

This morning I got a rather strange email from my friend Stacie, which of course turns out to be some sort of virus. I didn't open the attachment but somehow it was still activated. Sent out a warning to everyone in my address book, don't open anything with an attachment! However, I think I have infected the entire bombay expats yahoo group - everyone hates me.

That said, the virus doesn't seem to be do much except send out random emails with attachment, most of them easily identifiable. I don't really know anything about viruses - What should I do? (please post comments)

to health and happiness for all

This has been a week of "very very much" news. Good news, shocking news, as well as some terrible news. The good news is that I have been accepted into Law School at U of T and Ottawa. The shocking news is that my friend Mohsin got engaged in Zambia. And the bad news is hearing about a sever illness of a dear friend.
It can be difficult to be always up to speed with everyone who matters, especially if they are all spread out around the world - but I will try harder this year to be in touch. Please give me a shout with news of any sort. Running into our old aerobics teacher is a topic worthy of a full page email!!
Wednesday was a bank holiday and I went on the Hooray-I-Got-Into-Law-School shopping spree, in replacement of the Hooray-I-Finished-My-Midterms shopping-spree at Cours Mont Royal. Shopping is hard work here, but Naomi, Shirin and I, we got some awesome bargaining skills!!
oooh I went to watch Wedding Crashers this weekend (just released here) it was so hilarious! Kitty were you the one who said you didn't like it? how could you not???

its RUFF! being a dog.

The following blog is dated about a week ago. Due to technical difficulties, it only got posted now.

Bienvenu a 2006. The Year of the Dog. That’s the third lap for us 1982 babies. Oi.
However, I consider the time between January 1st and Chinese New Year (which is January 29th this year) to be a buffer grace period, when I can slowly make the transition from 2005 to 2006. After all, free money is a much better way to begin a year than being hungover. (Just one of the many ways that Chinese culture is superior ;-)) Well that’s just my opinion.

New Year Resolutions:
Raising my awareness on current events and international news
Making an effort to visit friends and family (in different parts of the world)
Getting back into drawing and painting

Well the list could potentially go on, but I won’t kid myself with eating healthier or exercising regularly because it just ain’t going to happen. I can also add to the list get a real job but the thought of that is just too depressing right now, so let’s just not think about it and pretend I can play all day all year round.

Christmas Weekend

The Western practice of Christmas and commercialism have left Bombay relatively unharmed. For now. Aside from big shopping malls and five star hotels, (and the occasional kid selling Santa hats on street corners), one can hardly notice the holiday season at all. What I am missing are Christmas decorations, Christmas carols and the trees lit up along McGill College…
Despite the lack of Christmas spirit and public holidays here in Mumbai, I am feeling sooo loved by the various acts of kindness from friends and family around the world. Thanks for taking the time to send an email or post a greeting card. =D




When I got home on the 23rd, I found a care package from my sister filled with all sorts of goodies. (see photo) included was a cd with videos of my babies doing cute things…. On the following Monday, I received my second surprise, a dvd that Justin put together with clips of my friends wishing me a merry Christmas from all around. It was fantastic - *big hug*
As for my holiday festivities, on the 24th, Mickey and I went for a nice dinner and had drinks with some friends. On Christmas day we went to brunch at the Taj Land’s End Hotel which was fancy. It’s nice to be extravagant sometimes. =D I had a quiet dinner with the Indian lady I live with and went to my friend's Xmas party.

Something worse than Spinsterhood

We attended an exhibition last week, which involved a long haul from Dadar to Dombivli, a 45 minute train journey. Dadar is quite possibly the most insane train station on the entire planet. We waited on the platform in the ladies compartment area. As the train pulled in, I felt like I was on a roller coaster, waiting for the big drop. Sure enough, the next thing i knew, i was pulled back away from the train by a strong current of women in sarees. It wasn't even that the train was that crowded when we finally got on, its just another example of the Indian's general disregard for order. Being pushed back denied me a seat for the journey, but i was happy when a lady came by with a tub of warm samosas for 5 rupees each. My new plan is to do all my souvenir / gift shopping on the train, which would mean that all of you will be getting either a handkercheif, a hindi alphabet book, a pack of bindis, some q-tips or some banana chips.


Spending the day with the women turned out to be a fruitful cultural exchange, the main topic of discussion being that of arranged marriages. For them, arranged marriage is an unavoidable reality they were born into. Perhaps they have accepted it as their fate, but they surely don't have to like it. They told me about family duty, dowry, caste and social pressures. It was fascinating to hear about it, but sad to know that I have a freedom that they or even their daughters will never have.
My friend says that this is all going to change as women become more economically independent. New call center jobs have enabled alot of women to save up enough for their own dowries. He says that this new power will completely turn India upside down. I wonder....