Homing, homlitude, homeliness

I’m sitting in front of an A/C (air conditioning) unit—they call it an air cooler here. Unlike the A/C units in Singapore and the US, this unit is not fitted into the wall; it looks like a portable sound system, a rectangular box on wheels made of steel. There are slits on one side of it to let the cool air out. A fan inside the box blows out air that is cooled by water that sits inside the box. A very interesting contraption.

I am sitting in front of the air cooler because I need to cool down quickly after my shower; I am wearing a t-shirt and some three-quarter pants but I’d like to put on a kupta as soon as possible because I look more presentable that way. I thought I’d be able to put on the kupta right after my shower but the humidity pwned me and I took out my trusty white cotton MGS PE t-shirt.

My introduction to my host family was rather anticlimactic. Ten of us interns met our host families today and the emotions ran heavy and long. For a while, it seemed like each of us would leave one by one, and as we watched each host family walk up to the hotel lobby, we would wonder whose it was. Smita ended up driving me and Mary Pat to our respective host families; my host father was at work and couldn’t pick me up. I didn’t know that, though, and as I entered the house I pictured both host parents sitting on a sofa waiting for me to touch their feet and greet them. We would then sit down to eat the snacks I’d brought and chat about what I was doing in Jodhpur.

What ended up happening was quite different. My host mother greeted me while I was frantically trying to figure out if I should leave my shoes outside the door or inside the house. I ended up moving them outside while Smita introduced me to her. I handed her my box of sweets and she thanked me and put it aside. She then began to show me my room and the rest of the house. I channelled my best demure Asian persona, nodding and smiling politely, asking few questions. She didn’t attempt to make much conversation and seemed rather shy. My feet were hurting from the long day and I wanted to rest. So after the mini-tour of her home, she left me in my room and I began to make it my new home.

(3 June, 8pm)