After a very long two days of flying, I finally made it back to beautiful Heidelberg. It didn’t hit me until we were touching down in Frankfurt that I had left India. Suddenly the past four months felt like a dream and I immediately starting crying. Back in India, I kept waiting for the tears to come as I was saying goodbye to my friends in Pune, but we ended up more joking around and laughing. I was almost upset with myself because I wanted to let my friends know how much they meant to me. I guess, I knew it wouldn’t be the last time I see most of them, but my arrival in Frankfurt did signify the end of an incredible phase of my life. Next time I see them we will all likely be different – married, different jobs, more travel experience… 

I went to India alone, not knowing what to expect. I didn’t really like Pune the first couple weeks and had one of the worst cases of the flu in my life. My family and fiancé, Alex, felt so far away and I didn’t know how to handle India. I also didn’t know what exactly was happening with my career or if I even wanted to stay in my field. There was a lot of uncertainty in my life and I questioned whether I had made the right choice in coming to India. After recovering though I finally made it to a capoeira class where I met the wonderful and amazing Bond, Manoj, Sagar, and Sachin. I came home that night and told Alex that I would be ok – I had found my crowd, (and chiko
  chocolate milkshakes). That first night with Capoeira Pune I felt like I immediately fit in and that I had known these gentlemen for much longer than a day. Ana, who was out of town at a meditation retreat, returned the next week and I felt the same way about her. She was far different than the other expats I had met in Pune. She was learning Hindi, had an appreciation for both the good and bad about India, tried her best to assimilate into India culture and make Indian friends, and adopted I think what are the best aspects of Indian culture and capoeira: share what you have with your friends and family and don’t expect anything back, always challenge beliefs and actions you don’t agree with, and be open to new experiences. Over time I met other people new and old to the Capoeira Pune circle who became my travel buddies, my partners in crime, and ultimately long-term friends. As an army brat, I’ve moved around my entire life and I think it’s incredibly rare to meet someone that you feel a strong connection with. But here in Pune, I felt that way with this entire group of people. 

I learned some invaluable lessons from this group. For one, I learned how rigid I had let my life become living in Washington DC. I had become very dependent on scheduling – spontaneous planning and meeting of friends was difficult because I was so tied to my work, running, and capoeira schedule. I also realized how possessive I was of my time and things. I think this is pretty typical of Americans – we strongly believe in our right to
what’s ours and don’t like to share. If you give something you expect something back in return. This mentality just doesn’t work in India. People grow up sharing everything they have with their friends and family: food, toys,
whatever. The sense of family is also stronger, which I’m sure can be annoying in many ways because not only is your nuclear family in your business, but so is your extended family. Friends and family are also incredibly good at keeping track of each other, which can seem nosy sometimes. Why do you need to know where I’m going?? But in a country where anything can happen, it’s important to have tabs on the people you love. My second trip out to Kumbharwadi I asked my colleagues what the word was for thank you. They scrunched their faces a bit and looked at each other and said there are a few words but we really don’t say that here. Why I asked! Because it’s expected that you do right by each other and open doors, share your food, offer your jacket or scarf, take someone home or to the airport. While there are certainly many frustrating things about living in  India, I think this lesson makes up for a lot. I decided at that point to let myself go a little and try to be more spontaneous and open about sharing and never regretted it. It’s ok to depend on your friends and because one day they’ll need to depend on you. One thing we sorely lack in America is this sense of community. We don’t take good enough care of each other. But what could possibly be more important in life than your relationships with friends and family? 

On my last night in Pune, I went to capoeira class with a very heavy weight in my heart. This would be the last class and juice night with my friends (after every capoeira class our entire groups meets for juice and milkshaeks at a local restaurant). These were friends who had taken care of me –made sure I always had a safe ride home, made sure I got the gifts I needed for my family and enjoyed the best foods from Marahashtra, made sure I always had someone to depend on and to laugh with. As Ana and I pulled up to class, there were Manoj and Sagar (who had come back early from their vacation for the event) and all my other friends. It was the biggest class we had had in awhile b/c so many people were out on vacation or at friends’ weddings. Luckily, most of them were able to make it that night and I got to play in the roda with them one last time. At the juice place, they surprised with a few gifts and a beautiful card. And even though my flight was at 5:30 AM, my closest friends even got their butts out of bed at 2:30 AM to take me to the airport. We hopped on their motorbikes and someone brought my very heavy, gift-laden suitcases, to the airport. And yes it did feel like that scene in Harry Potter where they were moving Harry to Ron’s late at night for safety. I will never forget this kind of kindness and generosity. I'll miss riding around on two-wheelers through the city, meeting up for capoeira or crossfit practices in the park and having Sima bite my hair, watching Rocky Horror Picture Show on Shreyank's floor, slumber parties at Ana's, amazing discussions about reservations and Indian culture over coffee and beer, train rides through India with "samosasamosasamosabiryanibuyranibiryani", monkeys stealing bananas, Shakespeare in Hindi, filming Succuri's documentary, learning all the choice Hindi words to say to my Indian friends back home, and so so many other things. So thanks so much to Ana, Sachin, Manoj, Sagar, Gayatri, Arjun, Succuri, Shantanu R., Vipin, Minto, Shreyank, Sarah, Bond, Shantanu P., Bhargav, Vineet, Ritesh, Ishaan, Virendra, and Aritra!! 

See you in the roda, chutiyas!!! (Shutup Ana!!!!)

I’m wrapping up my work here in the WOTR office in Pune –which I haven’t described adequately enough in my blog. The WOTR Pune office is the main headquarters. WOTR actually has lots of small field offices all over India including Sangamner and Hyderabad. There are about 30 people in the Pune office and we’re located on a very busy street (Satara Rd) with lots of honking and unfortunately little variety of restaurants and shopping. This is a developing area of Pune located on the outskirts. The nice thing about the office is the beautiful patio, which the Executive Director, Marcella D’Souza, maintains. We all eat lunch and have tea out here amongst the potted plants and blackbirds.

It’s a very quiet work environment. There are only a few offices so the rest of us sit in a communal area. No eating or drinking inside (except water), very minimal conversation outside of the 2 conference rooms, and web
browsing is very controlled. Most of the staff speak some English but mostly they speak in Hindi or Marathi (local language of Maharashtra). It’s actually a pretty depressing work environment because it feels very lonely here! 

There are a few staff members I’ve connected with and traveled with that I will miss and plan to stay in touch with. It’s been great exchanging cultural experiences with them and hearing about their work and the challenges they face in working with villages. WOTR’s website really doesn’t do it justice with all the innovative work they’re doing. The organization has truly pioneered the concept of watershed development in India. The government frequently turns to them for advice on how best to work with watersheds in arid and semi-arid regions of India. I’ve already described their work on watershed development – now WOTR is focusing on helping villages to manage near-term climate change risks (namely, drought and temperature and precipitation fluctuations). They are developing some very innovative land treatments and technologies (like solar parabolic cookers and hot water challahs), and some great software to track their efforts and weather patterns. People at WOTR work here because they care about these issues. Some people have been educated abroad and could make a much better salary but they choose to work with rural villages for a fraction of the salary.

Overall, the experience has been incredibly good for me. It’s provided invaluable insight into the institution of the Indian village, the challenges of doing small-scale development, and Indian work and village culture. Here are some of the cultural lessons I’ve learned:
·        
1. To work with villages here you have to understand the cultural and religious sensitivities – and these vary by village, state, and region. WOTR is very good at framing its messages in ways that respect the villagers lifestyle and religion, which can be tricky when you’re talking about things like female empowerment. WOTR will actually frame its messages using stories from the Hindu relgion to connect with the villagers. They also use meditation as a way to help villagers visualize the future they want.

2. It's vey important to build good  work relationships. Don’t expect fast responses to your emails. It might take
meeting someone in person a few times before they even register your emails on their agenda. Once you’re in though – it gets much better. 
        
3. Eat with your coworkers! You’ll get much better food that way. It’s pretty typical here to get tiffin service (homemade Indian food delivery). For 25 Rs I get 4 chapati and a vegetable dish which is always delicious. My coworkers often bring food from home so at lunch, everyone passes around their food and you get to taste  everything! If you eat alone you’re stuck with your one vegetable dish. Also- only eat with your right hand! (the other hand might have poo on it or even if it doesn’t, it’s disrespectful to eat with your left hand).
      
4. Don’t be a showoff. This is especially true if you’re coming from a developed country. I tried to correct a coworkers paper which had horrible grammar and structure. After I showed the bleeding draft back to her I basically didn’t hear from her again. It’s important to keep in mind too that Indians are learning British English.
 ·        
5. Adjust to a new work week – most people work 6 day workweeks and sometimes even longer days. I was
lucky in that I only committed to a 5 day workweek. But here, people take more frequent breaks. Tea in the morning, mid-afternoon, and late afternoon, plus a 30 min lunch break. 

6. If you go on vacation, you're basically expected to bring back gifts for your coworkers and friends. Food is a pretty typical gift.

Today I wrapped up one of my big tasks: completing a cost-benefit analysis of a watershed development project in the Kumbharwadi watershed that includes climate change adaptation treatments. It had a good reception and I’ll be evaluating more villages in the future! It’s made me realize that while I like doing this kind of work, I really want to work more directly with people on policy. That’s where the action is and for India, where the greatest challenge lies.

I recently paid a couple visit to Mumbai to check out the capoeira scene and see more of the infamous home of Bollywood. The people I met there and the work they’re doing reinforced my belief not only in the power of capoeira to build a sense of community and self-confidence, but in the importance of giving back. 

After the three hour train ride from Pune, I met up with Succuri (Sunil) and Chico (Shantanu) to help with a 3 day capoeira workshop for youth members of a Catholic parish. These two teach capoeira to a variety of groups but their passion lies in the work they do for underprivileged children in the city. After the workshop, over beer at their post-workout hangout, The Yacht (dive Indian restaurant with lots of cold Kingfisher beer), they filled me in on some of the work they’re doing. Succuri teaches capoeira at a local orphanage and assists Chico with a project that local Capoeiristas have started in the Bainganwadi slum in Shivaji Nagar, Mumbai. Despite having a secure job and international work experience, Shantanu quit his office job to start “Familia de Ouro” in the Bainganwadi slum. Chico and his fellow capoeiristas dedicate a good deal of their time to not only teaching weekly capoeira classes to a group of about 20 kids, but also to conducting vocational training, arts
and crafts, and teaching English (despite being taught English in their schools, many children that live in slums in India can barely speak, read, or comprehend English - meaning they will never catch up or have the same opportunities as their peers living outside the slums).  

The slums of Mumbai are notorious for poor water quality and sanitation, insufficient water supply, malnutrition, poverty, and crime. Recently, it was discovered that Bainganwadi was receiving only half of its allotted water supply due to government neglect and improper implementation of water supply plans. For these areas, it’s not uncommon that infrastructure upgrades and water supply lines are installed piece-meal and only during election season– after the election is over, the work stops. For the 500,000 residents of Shivaji Nagar, they have been promised a supply of regular water supply for two decades – but today residents still struggle to meet daily water needs and many resort to using sewage water.  As a result, slum residents suffer from tuberculosis, leprosy, cholera, etc…Many children can’t go to school because of water insecurity. Bainganwadi also holds the largest landfill in the city – many residents earn or supplement their income by
digging through the landfill for recycling and food. 

Succuri took me to Bainganwadi that Sunday – we joined a group of about 10 kids that day who were eager to learn capoeira. In capoeira, students are given a nickname or “apelito” based on their personality or the way they move in the game: Pimenta (hot pepper) was named for her temper; Raposa or “fox” was named for her slyness. As Succuri helped the kids with backflips (something I’ll probably never be able to do), I marveled not only at how great he was teaching these kids, but how happy they were in that moment and so eager to
learn. Capoeira and these amazing mentors are developing these kids into role models for their community. Simply having someone you know you can rely on is a big deal – but now these kids are developing faith in their talents and in each other. All this I could see from one visit. It’s enough to make you quit your job and move to Bombay…

Check out this other article written on the group: http://www.awolau.org/2012/03/08/dancing-across-cultures-youth-in-india-learn-brazilian-capoeira/.

Living in India is like navigating a massive obstacle course: it’s sometimes fun, sometimes extremely frustrating, and overall, rewarding. It’s difficult to find places to go running here if you are anti-treadmill like me, due to traffic and pollution. So I usually start my mornings off with a jog in my neighborhood, Koregaon Park. I start early and run up and down a set of parallel streets labeled Lanes 1 through 6 which contain the nicer housing societies and the Osho Ashram (and hence less traffic). Pune isn’t exactly hilly, but potholes, stray dogs, overhanging trees, and two-wheelers keep my run interesting. Lane 4 is most precarious – mostly due to the dog I’ve named “Rubby” for his persistent attempts to hump my leg as I run by (to the amusement of the two guards outside one of the housing societies). 

Another obstacle: transportation. My mode of choice is rickshaw, usually driven by surly, mustached, spitting drivers. To avoid going crazy I’ve created a game called “Can you avoid getting ripped off?!” I’m so pleased with myself when I get them to use the meters instead of trying to quote me a fixed price with the, what I call, “white person’s tax.” Some drivers will try to charge you a “return” fee since they had to go out of their way to drop you off (whaaa??? Isn’t that your job?!). Some pretend to not have change (actually, no one ever seems to have change here in Pune…). Some drivers pretend they didn’t know their meter wasn’t working. Then of course there’s the traffic obstacle. Lane dividers and stoplights often do not exist or stopped having relevance a long time ago. Cars, motorbikes (or “two-wheelers”), bicycles, rickshaws, buses, and pedestrians all compete on
the road for space. Yet, it all seems to work somehow in this game of chicken where whoever makes the first move gets to go first. I’ve taken up the football block stance – choosing to point right at the driver so he knows I mean business. Additionally, all this traffic and the lack of enforced vehicle emissions regulations leads to a severe air quality problem –this is the most difficult obstacle for me to deal with. Women here are usually seen with scarves wrapped around their heads and faces to protect their lungs and hair. Hair fall is a big problem here – I’m not sure exactly why (is it the water, the air pollution, bad nutrition, all of the above?) but I’m experiencing it here too and am not a fan. I’ve also taken to wearing a scarf over my face and hair when
commuting to work. 

Finally, the other biggest obstacle is just trying to get information from people. Sometimes it’s like pulling teeth. I don’t know if it’s the language issue or what but it’s hard to get a complete story from someone or all the details you need. For example, if you want to catch a train, someone might tell you the name of the train station but they might not tell you there are multiple train stations in the city…I’ve gotten over trying to be polite and am now very forceful in making sure all of my questions are answered. I think for the most part, things are just done a certain way here and people don’t feel a need to provide you excess information. This is a problem of course
for foreigners who don’t know traditionally how day-to-day business is handled. 

After spending a couple consecutive weeks in Pune, all of this was starting to drive me mad. So what’s a girl to do?? Go the beach! This past weekend I drove to Anjarle beach with some friends. Anjarle lies on the Konkan
coast, a largely undeveloped region with pristine beaches. October through December is the perfect time to go because the weather has cooled down a little and the water is still warm for swimming. For some reason this area is not a huge tourist attraction which is nice for those of us who travel there. It’s about a 6 hour drive from Pune along a largely pothole-ridden road that leaves you feeling like your guts have been massaged and reordered in your body. The views however are beautiful. The road takes you past Mulshi lake – one of the
most popular areas for camping and picnicking near Pune. It’s formed in the catchment of the Mulshi dam and is huge. We left around 4 AM and arrived at Anjarle around 11. There’s really only one place to stay there, the Ketki Beach Resort, but it’s right on the beach, is surrounded by coconut plantations, and has a decent restaurant. The beds are extremely hard. I’ve learned that it’s necessary to bring your own sheet and pillow anywhere you travel here if you’re on a budget. They have a couple hammocks outside which are great for napping with the sound of the waves in the background. We spent our first afternoon swimming and eating. We drove to Dapoli for dinner and had a very nice non-veg meal at a hotel (best options for eating in this area). We finished off our day by playing cards and a new game Gayatri taught me called“Chapati”. One person places their hand down and the next person slaps it as hard as they can – everyone takes a turn and if you say
“ouch” or cry you’re out. Best. Game. Ever. The next morning we filled by running, playing capoeira, swimming, and eating. It was incredibly nice to get away from honking and air pollution of Pune, but now…back to the obstacle course.

After a three hour bus ride from Pune, my colleague, Arjuna, and I arrived at the Darewadi Training Center around 7:30 PM on Wednesday, September 19th. Darewadi is a village in the rain shadow region of Maharashtra and was one of the first watershed revitalization projects of the Watershed Organization Trust (WOTR). After the growing success of WOTR’s work, the organization eventually established the Darewadi Training Center to educate others about their methodology for participatory watershed management in drought stricken agrarian areas. The training center serves a model of sustainable development as it’s powered mostly by solar energy and is strictly vegetarian. Luckily, the dinner bell greeted us as we arrived – hot roti, rice, dal, vegetables, and a mango-custardy dessert which was incredible. 

On the way from the bus stop to the training center, our WOTR driver informed us that the area had received barely any rainfall this year. Typically, annual rainfall in the area is roughly 420 mm, the vast majority of which is received during the monsoon season between June and September. This year, the area has only seen 290 mm and there’s only one week in September left.  As most, if not all, villagers here make their living from agriculture, the drought is sure to have large impacts including a drop in crop yields and income. Our driver told us his family had to send one of his two sons to Pune to look for work. Luckily, his son was able to find a position with a company. Others would not be so lucky considering many do not speak English and do not have a college degree. 

On Thursday, we visited two villages near Darewadi: Wankute and Kumbharwadi. These villages lie in the rain shadow or dry region of the famous Western Ghats – a mountain range in western India rich in biodiversity and also named a UNESCO World Heritage site.  This area has always been drought prone but years of heavy deforestation, acute dry spells, and unsustainable agricultural practices have led to severe soil nutrient depletion and soil erosion. As a result, villagers could only cultivate a single crop for about 4-6 months – usually pearl millet or pulses – and were forced to find work as farm laborers or in sugarcane factories for the remaining 6-8 months of the year. Additionally, women were forced to walk hours to find suitable drinking water supplies and firewood. This instability also took its toll on children who, besides missing their parents, often could not attend school because they needed to help out at home. 

It was hard for me to picture this when we arrived because today, both villages are incredibly green with tree-covered hillsides and acres of healthy-looking crops. WOTR has developed an innovative concept for working with villages that they call participatory watershed management. WOTR trains villagers in green infrastructure or landscape engineering treatments (e.g., farm bunds, dams, wells, and hillside terracing) and sustainable agricultural practices. Their process is completely dependent on the villagers who must volunteer their time and labor to install landscape treatments. They also have to keep livestock from grazing on certain forested areas as forests help reduce soil erosion and maintain groundwater supplies. This self-help component of WOTR’s work has been critical to their success. WOTR pays the farmers for their labor and, as a result, the farmers have the capacity to continue these efforts after WOTR leaves and make any needed repairs to natural and man-made watershed  infrastructure. As the villagers were in need of employment, they faced no opportunity cost for their labor. WOTR also helps villagers navigate complex government subsidy programs for agriculture and watershed revitalization, which can help cover costs for farm equipment and drinking water. 

The result: Farmers now grow both summer and winter crops and many have expanded their operations to grow cash crops such as pomegranate and tomato. In meetings with farmer groups, villagers proudly state how their children now have enough stability to attend school and stay in school, even through college. Women are more active in the community – they are earning their own income through livestock operations and have created 25 all-female “self-help” groups which serve as micro-lenders in the community. Marginalized tribal communities which reside the soil-poor hillsides are also seeing benefits including more opportunities to work as farm laborers.

After answering many of our questions, the conversation turned to more important topics highlighting challenges the village is now facing. Some of the farmers had heard about a new government program paying farmers to create large farm ponds to trap rainwater. Our guide, Prashant, a civil engineer for WOTR, warned the farmers that these were meant for certain agro-climatic zones and not their area. Government programs often promote one-size-fits-all solutions. Another issue is that farmers are eager to switch over more of their land to growing cash crops, specifically pomegranate. WOTR colleagues reminded the farmers that if everyone starts trying to sell the same crop the market will flood and the crop price will drop. Clearly, education is a huge part of working with these villagers who despite seeing the importance of watershed management and environmental conservation are still eager to increase their income. 

To address some of the risks of climate change, specifically drought and weather fluctuations, WOTR employs a multi-barrier approach to water quantity provision with a new focus on climate change adaptation. In addition to their landscape treatments, sustainable agriculture work, and education efforts, WOTR now works with villages to promote water budgeting techniques and technologies (e.g., drip irrigation), agro meteorology installations to track weather patterns, and solar energy devices for cooking and lighting. These measures serve to secure water quantity in drought-prone areas and reduce the risk of using a green infrastructure approach to rural development. Additionally, this approach has multiple ancillary benefits such as improvements in biodiversity and habitat, carbon sequestration, improved air and water quality, and reduced soil erosion. 

Third week in Pune: 
I visited India last December for a friend’s wedding and spent three weeks traveling in Delhi, Agra, Goa, and Kerala. It was an amazing, awe-inspiring trip that was a huge reason why I wanted to move here. Living in Pune so far has given me a heightened appreciation for Indian culture. Every day I see something new that makes me break out in a big smile or cover my mouth in shock. For example, the other day I was leaving my flat when I found my way blocked by a herd of ox on my street. There’s a nice patch of green right at the entrance to my society and someone had taken their herd there to graze. Hey, why not? I’ve seen a dog scratching its back on the road…right in the middle of a busy intersection. Today I read a submission for a sex column in the Times of India where multiple male readers posed strange questions about masturbation. Mind you, this followed an article about the injustice of being forced to marry your rapist. Clearly, sexuality is an interesting topic here in India. It’s something that is repressed and at the same time constantly in your face. 

While I have yet to explore much beyond Pune, this week I really enjoyed getting to know my new friends here and eating more incredible Indian food. At Capoeira Pune we had a wonderful guest instructor from Mumbai, Succuri. He’s been training for five years and has an amazing game and an intuitive sense for teaching. Both Capoeira Pune and Capoeira Cordao de Ouro in Mumbai reach out to kids in the local slums and orphanages to teach them capoeira and its lessons in balance, perseverance, and hard work. I can’t wait to visit the group in Mumbai and see them in action. We said goodbye to one capoeirista, Bond, who left for South Africa. This was the first time I have been out for a drink in Pune. We went to a bar called Toons that was filled with male college students cheering for the India cricket team. After a glass of Kingfisher we played some music and headed home. One thing I really enjoy about India is that alcohol doesn’t have to be present at social gatherings –in fact, the pressure is reversed. In DC drinking is a huge part of the culture. Every bar has a happy hour and you don’t join a dinner party without bringing a bottle of wine. I definitely do miss my red wine but I like how I feel without alcohol and I’m inspired to start finding activities back home for my friends and I that don’t involve booze. I also enjoyed my first Hindi film at an Indian theater this week, Barfi. Film tickets are only about $3 (150 Rs) which is incredible. They have assigned seats which has its pluses (can show up just before the film starts) and minuses (bright flashlights showing people to their seats who show up late).  The movie was great – highly recommend it if you can find it.
 
This week sees the start of the Ganesh Chaturthi Festival in Pune. This is a 10 day festival honoring the birth of the beloved Hindu god, Lord Ganesha.  It starts today, September 19th and has been celebrated in Pune since the 17thcentury. The brief history of Ganesha is that he is the son of Lord Shiva and Parvati.  Parvati asked Ganesha to guard her while she took a bath. Shiva, who had been away, turned that day and asked to enter the house, but because the father and son didn’t recognize each other, Ganesha refused to let him in. Shiva became enraged and chopped off Ganesh’s head. When Parvati saw what happened she ordered Shiva to find a new head for  their son and the first animal they came across was an elephant – which is why Ganesh has the body of a man and the head of an elephant. I’ve learned that Lord Ganesha is an especially important god for Maharashtra. Right now, all over the city, people are setting up huge, elaborate statues of Ganesh in specially-made structures or mandapas. On Anant Chaturdashi, the 11th day, the statues of Ganesh are taken through the streets in a procession to immerse him in the river. The procession includes huge crowds of dancing, singing people. I’m excited to see how people in Pune celebrate. Pictures to come.

Just starting my second week in Pune and I finally feel like I’m finding my groove here. As an army brat, I’m used to moving around and know that the first few weeks are rough as your struggle to find friends, adjust to a new culture, and discover a new routine. India, of
course, presents new challenges including language difficulties, high pollution,  poor sidewalks and roads, and lots of honking. It didn’t help that during my  first week here I came down with a horrible flu and lost my appetite (especially for Indian food) and most of my strength.  My lungs are still struggling to adjust to the high levels of pollution, mostly from vehicle emissions. No wonder everyone spits so much here! I also couldn’t help feeling that many of my freedoms had been stripped away – it’s no longer easy just to step outside my front door and walk to the organic market or run to Rock Creek Parkway and take my dog for a run. My gluten-free diet began to seem silly to wish for here. 

The best way to avoid the moving blues is to keep  yourself busy and explore. First of course: food. While bigger chain grocery stores are beginning to become popular in India, most shopping is done at little stores filled with soda, chips, and candies. If you look closer though, you can find some multi-grain bread, eggs, milk, fruit juice, pasta and pasta sauce, peanut butter, etc… For $4 bucks here I can get an entire loaf of bread, half a dozen eggs, shampoo, and some chocolate. Not bad! There are also tons of fruit and vegetable stands in the area. For next to nothing I can get the ingredients for a delicious banana, kiwi, papaya salad. This I can definitely get used to.  Maintaining a healthy diet is starting to seem possible. Eating out is also incredibly cheap – most of my coworkers order food every day (called a tiffen service which equates to home-cooked Indian food). But lunch costs less than $0.50 so no wonder! There are also a lot of little international markets that sell a lot of European goods including Mueslix and beans. These run a bit more expensive but when you’re really craving a black bean omelette – it’ll do the trick. 

Beyond exploring the food scene, I’ve been exploring my fitness options. Of course, there are plenty of yoga studios around Pune. And when in Rome….My new roommate, Max, introduced me to a studio down the street called Total Yoga. With 3 classes a week (vinyasa, hatha, and power) for less than $25 a month, and a cool, young, fit, Indian instructor – I think I can get into yoga. She also tries to keep the class interesting by offering meditation and nettie pot sessions! 

My best discovery so far is that there is capoeira in Pune that practices twice a week! The group is led by a young American woman who’s been playing for about 8 years. They also have guest instructors from Mumbai, where there’s a much bigger capoeira scene including huge weekend rodas. What I love about capoeira is that it’s an instant community no matter where you go. After my first grueling class, I went out with my classmates to get some food and chat and had an amazing time. 

I’m finally expanding my exploration radius as well beyond Koregaon Park. Pune is slowly opening itself up to me and I’m realizing how lucky I am to be here. The city has an incredibly rich history which you can discover in the most random places. Today I met up with a friend of a friend from DC, Swapnil, who has lived in Pune for the past six years. Our first stop was the Pataleshvara Cave Temple next door to the Jangali Maharaj (Jungle King) temple in the Shivaji Nagar neighborhood. Pataleshvara was built around the 8thcentury and includes a shrine for Lord Shiva. What I learned today: at every temple for Lord Shiva, there is generally a bull (the Nandi bull) that waits outside (his ride of choice). The Nandi bull is supposed to bring luck to the temple and its visitors. Every time I visit a temple I’m inspired to learn more about the Hindu faith. It’s incredibly rich and complicated though so I doubt I’ll be proficient by the time I leave here. Afterwards, we decided to grab some food – Swapnil first took me to the Good Luck café – a favorite haunt for college students. So much so that we actually couldn’t get in! Will have to go back though – the bun muska bread and tea are famous and look incredible. Instead we checked out another local favorite, Vaishali restaurant. Vaishali is known for its South Indian food including masala dosa. Dosa is a fermented crepe or pancake made generally from rice and lentils. Masala dosas are filled with delicious cooked potatoe, onions, and spices. It was also served with coconut chutney and one other delicious sauce (still trying to learn all the names!). I also got my new favorite drink – an Indian milkshake. Milkshakes in India are generally made with milk, ice, fresh fruit juice, and sugar. Chikoo and chikoo-chocolate are currently my favorites. Chikoo (or chikku) is also known as sapodilla or sapotaand has a sweet, pearlike taste. 

Our final stop was Pune University which I’ve been very eager to see. Sunday is a great day to visit because it’s so quiet on campus. The area is incredibly green and lush, and will make for a great running spot on the weekends. There’s also a lovely little café which serves tea, coffee, and snacks – perfect for sitting and reading or chatting. 

That’s it for now! Looking forward to exploring more this week and getting to know my coworkers better.

Took a direct flight from Frankfurt to Pune and arrived at 4 AM this morning. I'm staying at the Hotel Executive Residency, which was recommended by a colleague. Nice place - hot water, helpful staff, decent beds, AC, and wi-fi. There's a travel agency across the street where I was able to book my train ticket to Mumbai (note - morning train fills up fast. Book at least a few days in advance).

I can see the Osho Ashram from my window - and have seen lots of its residents walking around (all wearing eggplant colored, floor-length shirts).

Meeting my real estate agent in an hour to check out apartments.