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Today there was a picnic for Father Herman and his staff. He runs an Integrated Community Development Program and his staffs primary work is creating and supporting self-help groups (SHG). The picnic was about an hour and a half drive away and a large portion of the roads were under construction (just as annoying no matter what country you are in, orange cones and all). Being driven in India has given me a new understanding of potholes, they are everywhere here. On the drive to the picnic Hannah and I watched Grays Anatomy on her iPod in German. I have been amazed at how much I am able to understand when people speak in another language. We were driving to DDC that morning to pick up Hannah and I thought the car was stopped, so I opened my door to get out. Father Herman said da, da, and I closed my door. He looked back at me and asked if I understood him. I said, you were telling me to wait right? He and the driver (Romeo) started laughing. Apparently da does mean wait. And I often find myself laughing at two people joking around in Bengali. I don't usually understand the words but I can guess at the meaning. When we arrived at the picnic, we unloaded the sweets and snacks and sat down on a tarp next to the lake. The park area was beautiful, although many of the staff were upset that we couldn't bring music. I guess there are migratory birds that were visiting the lake and the music disturbs there sensitive ears. I thought we had a great time regardless. We started with snacks, and then the staff conducted their staff meeting. There was a high school student at the picnic, whose parents were friends of Father Herman, and we walked around the lake with her during the meeting. The area was beautiful and Hannah and I had a nice time talking. I learned that in Germany when a boy graduates from highschool (which ends at grade 13) he has to go for one year of military training or one year of social work. Interesting, huh? As we sauntered back to the picnic we found that the meeting was over and it was time for our boat ride. The boat was not that rickety, although I was a little deterred when the boat rower had to scoop water out before we could get in. Once we were on the boat (no one fell into the water during this process!) the ride was really fun.
Transgression: I have a stable internet connection now and the Ethernet cord is located in the large meeting area where the Sisters work and where the immunization center is. Currently there is a little boy receiving immunizations and he is crying up a storm!
Back to the picnic. When the boating was over it was time for lunch. We ordered from a hotel and each little box had rice, curried vegetables, and mutton. It was probably the spiciest thing I have eaten and I enjoyed it! I am sure my lips were bright red and I know I made a mess of trying to eat rice with my hands, but I the enjoying part is the most important! After lunch we went to a local historical site, an burial site for some royalty or general with an underground tunnel to a palace that no longer existed. It was cool and we all took some pictures. Then we drove to a local fair. There were booths selling dishes, bengals, jewelry, clothing, bedsheets, towels, stuffed animals, and various food items. There were also a few fair rides. We went on two rides, one that spun around and one that swung back and forth. It was great fun, but Hannah and I both questioned the safety of the rides, but you only live once! On the way out Hannah and I got Henna on our hands. The henna was stamps, and the designs were really cool. The drive home was uneventful, besides the face that I had to pee almost uncontrollably! When we reached DDC, I was thrilled. I got to see Hannah's room and she seems very comfortable there. We had dinner with Sister Philo and Sister Sarita at DDC. The dinner there is very good! We had egg, three types of vegetable, chapatis, and grapefruit. Hannah stayed at DDC and Puthmai, Father Herman and I came back to SWI. I went to bed early and am slowly feeling better each day.

An interesting story from a few days back. We were driving home from the villages and there were village people dancing and blocking the street. Sister Mini told me they were tribal people, and they would block the street, dance and ask for money. It seemed pretty clever to me, and the dancing was cool. Thats all for now. Sending love.