Monday Dental Adventures

Monday afternoon I again had a dental appointment to get started on my two new crowns. It took me about an hour to walk from the school to the Oral Health Resort (I love that name!). I picked up a few more guavas and some nimbu (small limes) on the way. The nimbu were to use with the papaya I got on Sunday; a bit of the juice squeezed over it enhances the taste. I will stew the guavas this evening. I know they are ripe, as I could smell them sitting on the counter this morning.

Of course I was dreading the appointment, but it went well. I needed a double dose of novocaine, which often happens for me. My nerves there must be very sensitive! I have a temporary double crown for the next week. Since the two teeth are next to each other, it makes sense that he would use a one-piece temporary. When I came out there were about ten people in the waiting room (and it was 5:30 pm). Some of them appeared to be Tibetans; there is a large Tibetan community in Mussoorie.

Needless to say, I didn't want much to eat, so I had papaya for supper while Dan had leftover soup and a sandwich. Early to bed and now it's Tuesday morning and I am back at work!

Saturday Socializing

After a slightly shortened day at work on Friday, with several people out for the long weekend, I was looking forward to a fairly quiet weekend. Dan got back from Delhi about 6:00 with his new dental bridge installed. It looks good and he says it feels good. And the cost was maybe 1/4 of what our US dentist had estimated. He wanted to attend a sitar recital at the Hanifl Centre, so had a quick bite to eat and took off.

Saturday morning Dan headed off for Second Jabarkhet for chai, then up to Sisters' Bazaar to see Momo. As he's done before, Momo loaned him a motorcycle to use while we are here. Dan enjoys riding it much more than the scooter, which is good for quick trips to town to pick up supplies. It needed gas, so he went down to Kincraig, the nearest petrol pump. There were many cars lined up waiting. This holiday weekend brought huge numbers of tourists to Mussoorie. We heard that all the hotels were full--and there are many, many of them!

About 4:00 our friends Anju and Sandeep from Delhi came to our apartment for tea and drinks. We hadn't been able to get together during our brief time in Delhi. We had a good time visiting.

We had a dinner invitation to the home of a former student, Arjun. The last time we visited him, he was living in the former Whispering Pine Lodge, just below the Hanifl Centre. He said he would send a car for us to the school gate where another family would also be waiting. We thought it was odd, as we could have easily walked, but we appeared at the gate at the proper time. To our surprise, once we were loaded into the car, the driver headed back toward Mussoorie. It turned out that Arjun and his family are now living far above and beyond Library Bazaar. It was a very long trip! We headed first down to the "New" Road, the Mussoorie Bypass, via the road past Fern Oaks. Then all the way down to Kincraig and up toward Library. There was a lot of traffic and we ended up sitting in Gandhi Chowk (center of Library Bazaar) for nearly a half hour. Eventually we were able to continue off to the left (the direction of Everest House). After some distance and two three-point turn switchbacks, we arrived at their very nice house. The Doon view would have been lovely if the clouds had lifted. The Raju family was with us; father David is Ambar's physics teacher and the mother is a substitute, the two daughters are about 4 and 6. We had a wonderful visit and meal with Arjun, Bhavna, and their son Ambar. The last time I saw Ambar he was a child; he is now a nearly grown young man!

Father and son

After we had eaten, their lovely dog Beethoven was allowed into the living room. He is a very nice, gentle dog. He became very attached to Dan, who enjoyed petting his soft, fluffy fur. For some reason, the dog liked licking Dan's feet! The younger daughter, Zinya, was frightened at first, but eventually enjoyed petting him too.

Zinya, Dan, Beethoven, Bhavna

Appetizer:  papri chat

Rice, naan, salad, chicken, prawn curry

Mustard greens, alu gobi (potatoes and cauliflower)

Below is a scene of Gandhi Chowk from the car window. I'm afraid whoever ordered Domino's Pizza didn't get it very hot.

We didn't leave for home until well after 11:00 (those who know me know how late that is!). The drive was much, much better. For one thing, we were able to drive right through on the Mall Road and through Kulri and Landour Bazaars. At nearly midnight, the shops and restaurants in Library were open and busy. As we got into Kulri, there were fewer people, but still a good number. By the time we got to Landour, there were only a few people on the streets and we met one car and a couple of motorcycles. It is clear that we are on the non-tourist end of the town, which is fine with us! It was good to get home and fall into bed. The Raju family live at Oakville, so they still had a good drive in their small car.

Holiday

Today, October 2, is Gandhi's Birthday. And tomorrow is Dussehra, a Hindu festival. School is closed today, but not tomorrow. Dan is in Delhi having some dental work done. I am enjoying a day at home just being quiet (and some knitting, of course...)

Yesterday our office had visitors at coffee time. On Wednesdays we invite other departments to join us. There seemed to be a lot of confusion with the holiday coming up. Several people did come, but I'm not sure which department was the actual invited one!

Snacks included homemade tapioca pakoras (never saw them before, but they were good), cheese biscuits and cinnamon bows from the school kitchen. Immu brought in some flowers from home to decorate.

Casey used to work in this office and has come back for a few months to help with some web work. His family joined him for coffee break -- Christina, Dechen, and 7-month-old Nellie. Dechen was born here and the last time I saw her she was just a baby. She doesn't like to have her picture taken. Nellie was friendly to everyone.

Nellie and Monica

Nellie and Lalitha

The men of Woodstock hold a fund-raiser called Movember (part of a worldwide movement). They all get shaved on October 1 and have a contest for the best moustache/beard at the end of November. The funds this year are going to buy sewing machines for women in a village that was badly damaged in last year's floods and that the school has adopted.

My boss, Marcus, just after his shave, getting a bit of a head massage.

During the shaving, a group of lower school kids were painting projects in the Quad.

I left work early, as I had a dental appointment in town. I have had several crowns done here and am fortunate that Dr. Thakral had time to work me into his schedule. It took me a good hour to walk all the way to the top of Kulri Hill where the Oral Health Resort is located. I had a couple of brief stops on the way to pick up a few things. After he checked me over and took the impressions, I headed home. I again opted to take a taxi from Picture Palace. One of these times I'll make it both ways! And I'll be back on Monday for the fun part (the drilling). Just kidding.

Party and Walk

I think I've mentioned before that our social life here is much more active than at home! We had another party on Sunday evening, this time at the home of Kutty and Lalitha. Lalitha works in my office and most of the attendees were our other office mates.

Admiring one of Kutty's dogs

View toward the dining area

Women on couch

A few shots from my Monday walk out Tehri Road below. The first is a dahlia, one of many. Most are too far up the khud to show on my camera. They come in many colors, lots of bright red.

A dying tree above the road.

We used to call these peacock orchids, but when I googled them, the picture was very different. They are common during the monsoon. This one has seen better days.

Two years ago, this couple, Ramkesh and Sumitra, did some work for us. Their brother Naveen was the cook for our friends Neva and Ian. I see them on the road most days when I walk before lunch. They live at Jabarkhet.

This tree is doomed. The hillside is very washed out under its roots.

Saturday in the Bazaar

On Saturday we walked into the bazaar for lunch. This was my first major walk, but we went fairly slowly and stopped often.

As we approached the school gate, we looked down and noticed that the traffic was backed up behind a large machine. There were two buses and multiple cars and motorcycles. Fortunately for them, the large machine pulled over and stopped just below the gate. It was some kind of a crane. One of the men standing around told us it was for the composting machine that the school had recently purchases. It was sitting in a large truck on the other side of the road. The plan was for the crane to lift the very heavy composter and lower it to the level area below the road. I wish we'd had time to stay and watch; it was all finished by the time we returned. I'm glad to know the school is doing this; it will be good for the environment and for the Turner Organic Garden, where I presume a lot of it will end up.

Composter sitting in large truck

On the side of the road just beyond the hospital there are a lot of temporary shelters. Some of the people there are the ragpickers who sort through piles of garbage. But some are metalworkers, like this man below. He is making tin chulas, a small charcoal stove. This design has a platform in front of the fire area.

This child was emulating his father. He had a small piece of tin and was pounding on it to flatten it.

The next man is below. When he saw I wanted to photograph him, he quickly tweaked his mustache to look better. But I like this one better because it shows the red chills drying in the sun behind him.

Just before Mullingar Hill we saw many pieces of bedding airing in the sunlight. At the end of the monsoon, everyone is grateful for any small amount of sun, even if it peeks in and out through the day.

I've photographed this apartment block many times. The building on the left is new, still being finished. It was being worked on when we were here last, two years ago. Everyone has laundry hanging out to catch the sun, making a very colorful scene.

This shop in Landour was started in the 1950s but has a completely new form. The entrance is up a few steps and the door is inside. Quite revolutionary in Landour Bazaar!

Just to keep things in perspective, this shop has been the same since before we first came here in 1968. We used to buy our light bulbs here.

One of the stops we made was at a photographer's studio across from the Clock Tower (even though it's been torn down for a few years, it is the landmark by which we place things). Yes, the shop is as narrow as it looks -- maybe 8 feet wide. We went into the back room (one more behind the curtain) where we posed for passport-sized pictures. We have some travel coming up that will require multiple visas and therefore photos. 

I love the way the vegetable and fruit vendors display their wares. Some of them carry both fruits and veggies, but some specialize in one or the other. This one had very large pumpkin/squashes.

The same vendor had even more, including these wavy ones.

This was the fruit stall from where I got some guavas, oranges, and McIntosh apples. I stewed the guavas with some cinnamon. I love them, but Dan doesn't even like the smell, even less the taste. Oh, well, I will just have to enjoy them myself.

As we walked by this clothing shop, Dan wondered if the mannequin's names were Mr. and Mrs. Skinny!

A fancy-looking new cafe on the hill down toward Picture Palace.

Pulling rebar for use in a new pushta (I think)

This bright risei was on a vehicle along with a mattress, right in front of one of the decorative sculptures built into a pushta.

At Picture Palace there was quite a traffic jam because of this bus. As you can see, everyone just pulls into whatever space is available, trying to get through. Eventually someone backs up or removes a scooter that was blocking the way and it all sorts out. But no road rage!

We went up the Kulri Hill the back way to avoid some of the traffic. First stop was Broadway Optical, where I got new glasses two years ago. The frames had broken but the lenses were still good. My optician in Goshen said there was no way to reuse the lenses. But here it is different. I picked out a pair of inexpensive frames and he said he would just make the wire that goes around the lens a bit bigger so it would fit. Come back in half an hour. So we went to Le Chef, a restaurant across the street. We'd never been there before. We had a veg thali for two, which included rice, dal, paneer makhani, a paper, two tandoori roti, and a small dish of mixed vegetables, not shown here. All for Rs. 250, about $4.20. It was delicious.

As usual, we were offered saunf after eating (along with toothpicks. Saunf is usually fennel seeds (anise flavor) and sugar. Notice the size of the sugar crystals -- it is clearly not adulterated.

We saw Surat Singh in a shop near the hospital. He worked in the Woodstock High School area for many years and seemed happy that we recognized him. he wanted to check the photo after I took it to be sure it was flattering. 

After lunch, we walked back down Kulri Hill and headed over to the taxi stand. I took a taxi back to the school gate with my fruit. By next weekend I hope I can walk both ways, which is about a 4-mile round trip.

Miscellany

It's Saturday morning here and I realize it's been a few days since I've posted anything. Thursday evening we went out for supper. Several people had mentioned that a new Chinese restaurant just below the hospital had good momos (Tibetan dumplings). So we decided to try it. We weren't in the mood for momos, so we decided to try some of their Chinese food. Not such a good idea... We had "Americal Chopsy" (American chop suey, supposedly) and some chili potatoes. The former turned out to be very thick, gelatinous and dark red. It may have had some vegetables in it. We managed to eat a bit with some rice. The chili potatoes were edible, just not as good as some we've had. (French fries in a bit of hot sauce) I had forgotten to bring my phone, so no pictures, sorry. We enjoyed looking at the menu while waiting for our food. We didn't have dessert, but thought the Banan Filter might be interesting -- I think it is a banana fritter.

In several spots along Tehri Road, benches have been installed for us to rest and enjoy the view. In this photo you can see the sun is shining brightly, but there is cloud obscuring all the view.

Cozy Corner, just below Woodstock Villa, is a favorite student hangout. For such a small place, they have quite an extensive menu of snacks. Unfortunately, the mirror here that helps oncoming traffic see around the corner has been broken and/or removed. These mirrors are extremely helpful to drivers and even to walkers.

The pushta (retaining wall) above the main gate of the school has lovely gardens. These bright red flowers certainly cheer up the hillside.

After supper on Thursday we stopped at the subzi wallah and picked up a few vegetables. My Friday night supper was a sort of frittata. I took two potatoes, two carrots and a long parsnip to start with. The carrots were covered with mud but they cleaned up all right. I cut them all into small pieces and boiled them for about 15 minutes or a bit longer. Then I sautéed chopped onion and garlic in some butter, added half the cooked veggies and cooked them all for a while in a small frying pan. I chopped up some cheese (no grater) and mixed it with three eggs. I then poured it all over the veggies and put on the lid. It turned out really good! Dan went down to the dining room to get some salt in a cup, as we didn't have any and this dish definitely needed some. It was a nice change from our usual soup. And half the veggies are left for another day.

Wednesday

On Wednesday I walked the opposite direction from the school. There is a new security system at the back gate, which is supposed to be locked at all times. In truth, the gate is often propped open and I've gotten through multiple times except on return Sunday afternoon. We have a key card, but I didn't have it with me. So I went out the front gate.

Security has been increased all around the school. Yesterday we had a lock-down drill. In these times we cannot know when an attack could happen anywhere in the world. There was a threat (never acted upon) against the school a few years ago. The front gate has a new entry building, and it's not as easy for unknown persons to just walk onto campus.

The old gate is a few yards further in, past Jacob's Ladder (stairs up to the flagpole area).

The post-monsoon view is shown below. Blue sky peeking out near the top, clouds and mist shrouding the hills and valley below.

Here is another landslide at the side of the road. The top area on the left is dangerous; the washout went underneath. I'm always amazed at how these can be prepared, as there is no ledge below to stand on or attach a wall to.

Before the hospital, a house called Springview is below the road on an outside curve. Through the years it has been a missionary's home and a school. Reverend Dass, the longtime chaplain of the Woodstock Hindustani Church, lived here for many of the recent years. He just passed away this week. Several people from our office attended the service.

At afternoon tea time, a treat was delivered. There is a new Dunkin Donuts store in Dehra Dun, in a new shopping mall. Another office has arranged to have donuts delivered weekly and I think our office is joining in. Just like home! (Except I very rarely have a donut in Indiana!)

We headed to Upper Woodstock, a home above the school, for supper with Naz and Vanu, the family of Darab, who has lived with us for the past year while he is in school. We had a great visit. Their next-door neighbor stopped in for a quick visit with her daughter Caroline. There has been a huge baby boom since we were last here two years ago. I can think of at least 5 or 6 new additions just off the top of my head! I'm looking forward to meeting more of them.

Our weather has continued to be nice. But last evening, as I was waiting in our apartment to leave for Upper Woodstock, it was thundering a lot. It began to sprinkle but I left anyway. Soon after I arrived, it began to really pour. Dan was already there, having come from some recital auditions. Fortunately it had stopped well before we left to go home. But we returned on the Zig-zag path, not the long stairway I had gone up.