Saturday Morning Ruminations

After last week's post a dear friend called me to assuage some of the loneliness I was feeling.  It was a real treat to know that someone cared enough to spend a few hours on the phone with me.  It helped tremendously.  J.T., I am in your debt.  While we we talking the night away I recalled some stories about my time thus far that I have not included in the blog.  Here they are:

Water:
Upon moving into the house 2 weeks ago I had a check list of items provided to me by my relocation company. There was no water in the master bathroom and no hot water in the kitchen.  Furthermore, the water filtration system for drinking water in the kitchen was ancient, dirty and had parts broken.  I figured that I would try to fix the master bathroom water first.  I surmised that there was a valve closed somewhere about the house.  I could not find it.  I did, however, find a valve in the downstairs shower.  I turned it on and then turned on the shower.  Water came out.  It seemed logical that the valve in the shower turned on the water in that bathroom.  Right?  Not so fast...

A while later I walked upstairs and heard water rushing.  I ran from room to room and nothing.  I made it to the patio and it got louder.  It seemed to be coming from the top of the roof.  There happened to be a bamboo ladder on the patio so I climbed up to investigate.  To my surprise there was a solar hot water heater there with water gushing out!  I called Srini, the maintenance man for my villa and explained.  He said he'd be there in an hour.  Meanwhile, water was rushing down the house and soaking the side yard which really isn't much of an issue.

Surprisingly, the hot water now worked in the kitchen.  I was perplexed.  Srini arrived and climbed up on the roof.  He then went to the downstairs bathroom and shut the valve on the shower wall.  That stopped the water cascading off the roof and down the side of the house.  Srini promptly left.  Later that day I turned the hot water valve on in the kitchen and nothing happened.  The it dawned on me; the valve on the shower wall in the bathroom provides water to the solar hot water heater on the roof and feeds the kitchen.  Wouldn't it have been nice if Srini had explained this?  This, it turns out, is a very Indian trait.  The full consequences of an action are never fully revealed even when pressured to explain them.   This happens at work all the time.

I called Srini back to the house this past Monday.  I demanded hot water in the kitchen and a new water filtration system.  He seemed incredulous as to why I would want hot water in the kitchen.  He then proceeded to turn on the broken water filter unit and proved that it worked.  I then asked about how to replace the filters cartridges and he replied that he replaced them when the previous tenants left.  I told him that I did not believe him.

Hot water is normally delivered by what are called geysers.  Geysers are small hot water heaters installed in every kitchen and bathroom.  It's quite efficient; they can be turned on 15 minutes before hot water is needed and turned off immediately afterward.  It save a good deal of electricity.  To my surprise, Srini convinced the landlord to install a new reverse osmosis + UV water filtration system and a geyser in my kitchen.  The filter is in and works just fine.  The geyser is attached to the outside wall but needs an electrical connection.  So far, they have beaten my expectations.

Internet:
Internet is expensive and unreliable in India.  However, I discovered why my internet cuts out on me when it rains:

This is the cat5 cable that runs from my router to the mux about 50 meters away in a neighbor's yard.  I called the internet guy who assured me that he will replace the cable.  He claims the crew that cut away most of the trees and plants before painting the house did it.  Makes sense.

I ride in a mini van, even though I swore I never would:

This is a Toyota Innova.  It is about 3/4 the size of a Siena and has regular doors, not sliders.
Here is the Innova in action the other day on the way to work:

If it looks to you as though I am on a 1 lane dirt road in bidirectional gridlocked traffic, you are correct.  Welcome to India!

Domestic Help:
My driver, Praveen, is a nice young guy who speaks good English and grew up in Bangalore.  On the first day we met he asked if I needed a maid.  He knew someone that cooked & cleaned and he would introduce me to her.  The next morning my doorbell rang and there was Praveen.  Standing next to him was this beautiful South Indian girl.  She was stunning!  I immediately said, no.  Sorry, I do not need anyone until July after my family arrives.  As understanding as Nancy is, suspicion would have certainly been aroused (bad choice of word?) if I had been living alone for 6 weeks with a beautiful 18 year old maid.  Nan's is an understanding lady, but...

Later that day Praveen asked me why I did not like the maid.  I reiterated that I do not need anyone until July.  Then Praveen told me that she is his fiancée and that they will be married in October.  I felt awkward and awful.  The truth is simply this: I do not need a maid.  Then he told me that she works for someone in the very first apartment complex that I visited.  The one that was a true slum.  I felt even worse.  Still, the answer was no.

Here are a few more photos:

Huge Snail on a bamboo tree in my yard.

Patio After

Squirrel in my tree.