Its all go!
SO my genius plan backfired. I headed of to the airport, not in the best state, to find out my plane was delayed by 3 hours. So I had plenty of time to do nothing in the airport. The delay meant I arrived to Mumbai at midnight so there was no public transport back. This in turn meant I had to pay a lot for a taxi back to Pune as I didn’t want to wait 4 hours. Though the drive was taking my life in my hands. The original driver was drunk so he got changed, then the other driver was literally falling asleep at the wheel, how we made it back alive is beyond me!
Since ive been back in Pune things have not stopped. The Wednesday night I slept. Thursday I was out with Ankur, Friday Chabad (I delivered Shlomi’s parcel from Israel) at Chabad I met a south African, Guy, who is here for a month on work. He had been here 2 weeks and so far had not seen any of the highlights of Pune. So we arranged to get together sometime. Saturday I went out with Tanmay for cake. Then Sunday I met up with Ewa, who I met through couch surfing. She made me pasta for lunch and I bought the wine. We also invited Guy as he stays round the corner. After lunch I went with guy to the cinema to see 27 dresses (not the best film ever) and then for dinner via MG road. Guy introduced to this place, e street, that is fitted out like an underground station and has the most amazing menu with every kind of food you can dream of!!
Monday during the day I had a meeting with the head of the emergency department at one of the large hospitals. We had borrowed a manaquin from them for some training and now they were running a course on extracting ppl from vehicles they wondered if we had any expertise. SO I met with them and explained my only experiences were from Israel and getting ppl out of cars. We decided I should attend and put across any ideas I had at the time. That evening I went out with a friend I met in Cochin who was passing through Pune. We had a Paddies day drink and dinner over in Koregon Park, it was very civilised, shame about the mozzies! On Tuesday we met up again at e-street and invited Guy as he was excited about Tuna pizza. It was a long nite, kat and I sat there for quite a while!! So Wednesday I decided enough was enough and had a nite in. It was much needed and the early nite helped me to feel a bit better, I had been very run down.
Thursday note was Purim and as I had a meeting scheduled for Saturday (a public holiday) and I had to work Sunday I decided to take half of Thursday and all of Friday off. In the morning we had a meeting with ‘the admiral’ who runs the RLSS in India and I had met in Bangalore. We were looking for some local water rescue trainers. Anyway after the meeting I went to the Hospital to see Dr. Rajans to talk about the training on Sunday. It was an intresting program though im not convinced of its value. Anyway after a nap I headed off to Chabad for Purim.
It was a really nice atmosphere, there were mainly Israelis and not many others. Some dressed up but most didn’t. After the mgeilah there was lots of dancing. One guy there, Yaniv, had got someone to wrap him up in newspaper, but he had a nice camera so I played with that while he danced. After the main celebration, I decided to join Yaniv for a party, I thought id make the most of some time off work. So we went on his Enfield to this random Iranin dance party. The place was really nice and while looking around we stumbled on a private party, a stag do, and got invited to join along with the free drinks!! It was a lot of fun and later I found out the whole place was closed down by the police cos of fights. We left at just the right time! Usually when I go out someone know where were going, be it the auto driver or the friend im with. With Yaniv I had to direct him, which presented a few challenges. Yaniv got locked out of his place as we were so late so I offered one of my 3 spare beds. While coming back we got lost a few time, but eventually made it and crashed out for the night.
Friday I was heading back to Koregon park to meet a frind. Yaniv was going back there too, he was due to get a train to Dehli but he was trying to see if he could get some photography work for Holi the next day and so hang around. So after having breakfast he went off while I went to meet Jwala. She is an ex-Oshoite, from when Osho was still there. She is American and comes to Chabad for the atmosphere. SHes fun to be around, though her health is only so-so. We bothe went to Chabad for the second megillah reading and then shabbos. There I wet up with Shlomi as usual and I met Yonat. She is half Israeli half American and is in Pune for the next month to study Indian classical singing, while her boyfriend learns tabla in Mumbai. A group of us went from Chabad fro coffee and had a really chilled night. Yonat and I decided to go to the Holi party Yaniv was being the photographer at (cos we got a discount).
First thing Saturday I had a meeting with one of the Red Cross guys, it was a bit pointless really but I was bound to attend. After the meeting I headed off to Koregon Park to meet Yonat and find the party. For Holi friends put coloured powder on each other. The big places organise a party with dance music and sprinklers so you dance under the water. It is a day time festival and goes on for a while. People walk around multi coloured! Anyway me and Yonat arrived and there were a few people there, but we hadnt bought any powder and there wasn’t any near by! So we kept going up to people and taking theres. Eventually we got under the sprinklers and started dancing. It was a great party. By the time we left there were thousands of people there and we had completely changed colour!! We met Yaniv for lunch then I headed home to try to wash. An hour under the shower and I still had purple spots on my face and most of my skin was pink! There was not much I could do.
Early Sunday I got up and attempted to get the last of the colour off, no joy I was still pink with purple spots and red hair! I had wanted to look professional as the course was being attended by doctors and ex military personnel but I was pink, and there was nothing I could do! The course was a mixture of things part of it was no getting people out of vehicles and the tools that can be used. I helped the SAR guy from the fire service demonstrate getting a casualty out of a car using a backboard and then we both over acted while they tried, it was a lot of fun!! After that I helped demonstrate water rescue, which I was desperate to do as I hoped the water would help get some of the purple off!! At the end of the day I was tired and treated my self to a nice dinner.
Monday I didn’t have much work to do. There are only bits and pieces here and there until contracts get confirmed. In the evening Yaniv had invited me to see the pictures he had taken with the guy who was paying him. The event organisers had some left over wine form some event so we got very drunk and had pizza. Unfortunately now im exhausted and from tomorrow I have a training course, urgh. SO this evening Sameer arrives from Gujurat along with a paramedic friend of his. From tomorrow all the doctors were working with are attending a 2 day training course on perfecting their skills and tidying up their presentations and demonstrations. So I know there will be a lot of drinking and food!! Then on the 30th im off to Pondicherry for a shelter training, then I have a bamboo training, then a first aid and water rescue training which im supervising as its being conducted in Marati then a week before Pesach and my birthday. Its all go!!