6.15.11. 1:26 AM. 15 Days Out.

It's after midnight, and it feels like it is at least 80 degrees in this room. I could convince myself that this could be seen as practice for the weather to come. I've heard a few things about the weather in the region I will be staying - my dad was the first one to point out to me that July is part of the monsoon season in India. I was also told that due to my being located in the foothills (of the Himalayas!) the heat will be milder than in the Plains regions below. The heat in Sacramento is dry. Some say that it is much worse than heat with  humidity. I, for one, have never experienced the wrath of a truly humid climate. And what wimpy humidity I have felt, I did not like. I am not one much for the whole sweaty, sticky feeling.

I've been enjoying one of my self-imposed adaptive-training routines: bucket bathing. I was told that showers would have to be three minutes max, and my hair, alone, can take five. So I felt that this option would be more practical. I don't know why, perhaps it is the novelty, but the ritual of bathing has become much more of a pleasant and calming experience for me than the regular tedious showers have been. I also feel less guilty about taking my time because I am not wasting nearly as much water as before. I am not quite sure, but i think the bucket holds between 1-2 gallons.
*Mental note: see average water consumption during shower*

I feel that this might become a new, permanent, thing for me.

6.14.11. 12:00 AM. 16 Days Out.

In response to my previously posted manifesto, I have decided to create a questionnaire that I will fill out before and during my trip. I will informally ask these same questions to my fellow participants, and perhaps then I will be able to roughly gauge whether my preconceptions were indeed misconceptions. I will post the questionnaire soon after I write it up.

6.13.11. 11:24 PM. 17 Days Out

It's been a few days since my last post. I had a few floating thoughts but nothing concrete. While speaking with my dentist today I questioned something about myself. Do I feel that I have an upper-hand in comparison to my fellow program participants when it comes to adapting to a foreign culture/environment? I mean, I know absolutely nothing about these people, other than they are all pre-med or med students. I don't know what they studied for their undergrads, or where they've traveled to before. I have never left the country, except for that one day in Mexico. And yet, I have this preconception that I would cope better with the culture shock than they would...I am a little bit startled from discovering this about myself. I have no foundation from which to base these pre-, and possibly mis-, conceptions about the other participants in comparison to myself. After all, what do I know about them? Nothing. And what do I know about myself? I tend to be shy in the beginning. I don't like being alone in unfamiliar places. I tend to get homesick after five days of being somewhere. I don't like situations I can't escape from. I don't sleep well in beds other than my own, or while traveling. I don't like sharing a room because I feel I need a place where I can retreat from people and just have me-time.

All of this has been true for me in the past and I have absolutely no doubt that I will encounter all of these while in India, and yet I am not afraid. My excitement and unease have only solidified my determination to take each of these situations and conquer them. I will face each one as it comes, every time it comes. I feel that if I were to accept my reality, instead of expecting things to be as they were (are) back home, I will have a smoother transition to the lifestyle I will be living during my stay. This idea of accepting my reality, being malleable to change, comforts me.

When in India, do as the Indians do.

I have also come to grips with the very real possibility that my mind will have to be that quiet place I can retreat to, if need be, and writing this journal/blog will be my me-time. And I'm okay with this.