Another week...

Kolkata is such an interesting city. And just when you think you've seen everything, you pull up to a stoplight and a tiny, wizened old man tries to sell you a bunch of cauliflower. At 9:30 at night. There is so much going on here all the time. And I am still meeting new people- met one of Dave's former co-workers from IJM for dinner at her flat last week. Also met some Brits and a boy from Holland at the guesthouse and spent a rainy Sunday afternoon playing cards with them. I also met a new volunteer, from Montana- we went to the Victoria Memorial one day and it is actually a museum inside, which gave me a much better idea of the history of the city. (for instance, Lower Circular Road was once the outer edge of the city- it began as a ditch dug to defend the city against raids, then was paved and later renamed Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Rd- or AJC Bose for short!)

Last week I did finally get to meet with another woman about some different volunteer opportunities. I may be visiting some HIV patients at a hospice, as well as a few other projects in the works. And I might get an opportunity to make another video while I am here!

Vishal took us out for dinner (because two of the volunteers are leaving) at this great restaurant- it is in a hotel, but it's on the 9th floor, so you have a terrific view of the city. It's sort of an oasis- you don't even realize where you are, it's so far removed from the dinginess of the streets below. Here are some pictures to give you an idea:

New Market (opened in 1874!!! so that the British could have a separate marketplace) is one of the huge shopping sections in the area.

Sherry (my roommate) left on Saturday for London. No one has yet mentioned anything to me about moving upstairs, so for now I have my own room. It was a bit strange Saturday night- I realized that I was alone for the first time since my arrival here 2 months ago!

I've gotten really involved at the church here (I found out it was originally started by none other than William Carey!) and have been helping out at the church office. I also went to the youth meeting on Saturday (and they made a big fuss because it was my birthday- it was very sweet! They sang and had cake and everything) so I am getting to know some people as well. Everyone is so welcoming, it is great. And Sunday was their bi-lingual service, which was amazing. I think one of my favorite parts about travelling is to visit churches around the world and have the priveledge of listening to other believers praising God in their own language. It really broadens my perspective of God- He is so much bigger than our limitations. I took some video of them singing:

And speaking of my birthday, it was pretty good. It rained, so my plans of going to the botanical gardens got washed out, but that also meant that the weather was cooler, so it felt a bit more like October instead of August! Went out to dinner with some girlfriends, and my sister even made sure that I got flowers- from halfway around the world!

Diwali, the festival of lights, is tomorrow, so I'm sure that there will be more pictures and posts very soon. I hear there are lots of firecrackers, too....