Friday the 13th and the beginning of monsoon season

I don’t consider myself a superstitious person, but I had a strange feeling when I woke up on Friday that it was going to be an off day. After 2 weeks of being in India I finally experienced the infamous “Delhi Belly” (Babrala Belly I guess…). The combination of sleep deprivation, excitement, and well… eating everything in sight (the food is to die for), finally caught up with me. After our fieldwork on Friday I got sick for the first time in a very long time. I spent the rest of Friday hobbling from bed to bathroom and most of Saturday letting my body rest. After sleeping the weekend away, I woke up this morning feeling completely refreshed and entirely awake for the first time since I arrived.

Today we had a couple of errands to run in town. It’s Shameem’s birthday so we picked up some supplies for an impromptu party tonight. On the way back to the township we decided to stop by the Ganges. Our driver wanted to take a “holy bath” and Kartik said it was a nice day for a “stroll” along the river. As soon as we stepped out of the car, black clouds rolled in and it started pouring, and I mean POURING!! Raining cats and dogs. We huddled under the tents of the vendors trying to stay dry. We finally decided the rain was not going to let up and hurried back down the muddy hill to the car. The whole time I was thinking “don’t fall in the mud. Don’t fall in the mud”. And to everyone’s surprise (including my own) I didn’t. The dirt path however, was also flooded with water and garbage. As I was making my way through it, my sandal slid off and decided to float away without me. I can’t imagine how I must have looked - sopping wet, dancing around in the mud, chasing my runaway slipper. Miss everyone!

Happy Fathers day Daddio!

Love from Babrala