On the Bangladesh Express

Greetings folks,
From the other side of the world :-).  Marianella and I have just completed week #2 of our residence in Dhaka and our new venture has been a whirlwind of getting accustomed to our new jobs, new home and new country/culture.  We stumbled off the plane two Sunday mornings ago, relatively spry for two people who had just flown 29 hours (not counting the eleven hours we gained flying eastward during our travel).  Gathering together our thirteen bags at the airport, we were whisked through the streets of Dhaka by a couple of our new employers as we drank in the sights of our new city (more on that later).  Arriving to our new home, we were greeted at the door by our new bearer/cook (bearer's similar to a maid in our terms) who had prepared our home for arrival and a quick lunch of fried rice to satisfy our hunger pangs.  Shortly thereafter, we crashed-and crashed hard.  Sleep over the next few days came at odd hours while we would awake at 3 a.m. and discuss the colors we wanted our walls painted.  It is just in the last week that we have begun sleeping through the night, while also avoiding deep naps in the middle of the afternoon.

So, now that we are settled in a wee bit, what can we tell you?  Where to start?  Let's first start with our jobs; for those fuzzy on the details, we are working at the American International School of Dhaka (AISD) where I will be the lone high school counselor and Marianella will be teaching Spanish to students in grades 3-5 (with a bit of learning support for pre-K students also mixed in).  Frankly, we've both been astounded by the school thus far-from the administration to the teachers to the working staff, we have never experienced such positive overall energy at a school.  Granted it's early, but we've spoken to several people who have spent several years at the school who only remain living in Dhaka because of how great the school is.  It's certainly been a very energizing experience thus far.

As for Dhaka itself-it's really hard to describe.  The good news is, Marianella and I were bracing for much worse and we have had some good fortune on our side in that the apartment we are living is just one block away from the school, making it easy for us to walk to school and avoid the crippling traffic that some of our co-workers are enveloped by.  And as I have already alluded to, we have been taken care of wonderfully since we stepped off the plane into Dhaka.  Realizing that this is a tough place to live, the school personnel make a great effort to make this adjustment as soft as possible.

That being said, it's still jarring, starting with the humidity that grips us every time we step outside of the comfort of air conditioning.  We are smack dab in monsoon season, which keeps everything green and relatively clean, but the concept of a refreshing rain shower seemingly does not exist in this climate.  When we do step outside into this humidity, we are faced with people and more people.  Bangladesh is the eighth largest country in the world by population (152 million approx.), but its land mass is comparable to the state of Wisconsin.  About 11 million of those people share space with Marianella and I in Dhaka which causes me a bit of claustrophobia as I type the figures.  So, people are everywhere, as are rickshaws.  Did you know that Dhaka is the "rickshaw capital of the world"?  Trust me on this-I don't want to see the closest competitor.  Everywhere we go rickshaws abound, seemingly as many as there are people on the streets.  Between all the people and the rickshaws and the 3rd world nature of the country, you can probably piece together what traffic is like in Dhaka-at times, mind-numbingly static.  However, on the occasions we have sat in traffic, those many people have provided us with a fascinating tableau of people-watching.

And that is where we sit, roughly two weeks into life in Dhaka-fascinated by this exotic city that may never become a tourist destination, but that most certainly will never be boring.  During our first week orientation to the school, one day we were treated to a tour of Old Dhaka, which comprised a trip to the river to witness the traffic crossing from one side to the other and a visit to Hindi Street.  We were also quite fortunate to go out on a boat tour away from the city, chugging along on a slow boat towards China (perhaps), where we were able to drink in (figuratively, not literally-I've never been more frightened of drinking water that's not bottled) the beautiful countryside that lies just outside of the bustling city.  Below you will find pictures from these trips.  Marianella and I will be working to keep our lives fresh and interesting, so until you hear from us again, best wishes to you all and keep us posted on life on the other side of the world:
 Bangladesh's Parliament Building:


A sample of the craziness in Old Dhaka:
 

The river traffic from one side of of Dhaka to the other (on a light day): 


Check out this cargo ship; the boat is nearly submerged by water, due to the shipment of sand downriver.  Once they unload, the ship will again emerge fully perched atop the water:


A monkey perched above, watching the crowd on Hindu Street:


A father and daughter posing for us in the Hindu Street area:


A couple workers on a hauling ship enjoying the nice weather:


A fisherman bringing in his catch for the day (if you look closely):


Sundown on the river: