Settling In
Time seems to come to a standstill in this place, or perhaps it’s me, unconsciously trying to shut out the noisy traffic and never ending sounding of horns in the busy streets. I walked to town, checked out the bank, mobile plans, found out that the price of apples increases with proximity to town, bought an adapter, a pair of slippers, some bread and peanut butter. I lost count of the number of times I crossed the same street. It felt like ages that I have spent in town but when I decided to head back for dinner, I realized it has only been less than 2 hours…
I had fallen in love with the tea served at the tea & coffee board. Heavenly is the fragrance of the tea coupled with the richness of the milk. I have not tasted tea as lovely as this and all for only 4.50 rupees… I stopped at the tea & coffee board again on my way back. I had tea and an egg puff this time. Another satisfying treat.
I realized that I can cope with harsh living conditions much better than technical glitches. Spent the whole afternoon trying to set up internet connections on my laptop. It worked for a couple of minutes and then the connection was lost, despite excellent Wi-Fi signal. Frustrated, tired and drained, I decided I will try again another time, only to come back to my room to find out that the slow cooker wasn’t heating up at all. I had used that power point with my kettle and it boils my water well. So why isn’t it heating up my slow cooker? Sigh… Dinner will be late…
A refreshing cold shower always helps at such times. At least I got that sorted out. The shower head comes with 3 taps. I had the wrong combination the day before and I had to make do with pails on the first day.
Dinner is porridge with baby anchovies, I got to add less water and more baby anchovies next time. Yes, I got my slow cooker working! Haha.. I did nothing, just tried my luck and plug it to another power point and it works!
It’s now raining heavily outside. That should keep the mozzies away for tonight. Someone told me that there are no mosquitoes in Bangalore because it’s at 2000m above sea level. The ones here are at least 3 times the size of those back home. The bites counter has been ticking away...
Sunday, September 7, 2008
First Days in Bangalore: 05-Sep-08
My New Home
Home is room number 39 at the guest house in the Indian Institute of Science. Quiet little place hidden away at one end of the institute, surrounded by greenery and serenaded by the songs of the birds. A single bed, a wardrobe and a writing desk furnished the room, which comes with an attached bathroom with hot shower. A 6-panel window looks out into a forested area. There is even a television and an air-conditioning unit!
So here I am, alone in my room with little Gumby by the side, sitting at the corner of my bed, penning this journal entry. Everything seems so surreal…
First Impressions
I was greeted by the spanking new and spacious Bangalore International Airport on arrival. Navigating it was easy and coming out of the airport, a row of men in white holding placards were looking earnestly at each and every arriving passenger. It was not til the end of the row that I found Kumar, holding a sign, on it written, “Dr Kee Leng”.
It was a cool and breezy day. Pockets of blue sky peeped through the thick clouds, paving way for the warm sun rays. Kumar signaled me to wait at the pick-up point while he gets the car. A friendly young lad 22 years of age with a sweet and shy smile, he has been assigned by the travel agency where he had worked for 2 years, to fetch me to the institute. “No problem, Ma’am”, those were his favorite words.
The car ride to the institute was smooth, no massive jams or free-roaming cows crossing the streets as what others had pre-empted me, though the traffic is heavy and horns blasted into the dusty air intermittently. I noticed our car is short of the left wing mirror. Kumar skillfully steered our little car through the trucks, cars, autos and two-wheelers coming from all directions, and before long, we turned right to a sign with blue words on a white background “Indian Institute of Science”.
MBU Family
MBU stands for Molecular Biophysics Unit. That’s where I’ll be working for the many weeks to come. Professor Raghavan brought me on a quick tour to the laboratory and introduced me to the members of the research group, made up mostly of ladies. The open air laboratory has a nostalgic feel to it, especially the wooden benches and drawers. Overflowing shelves, notices on the walls yellow with age, there is an orderliness in the disarray of things and activities, as I quietly observed the folks get about with their work.
Likhesh, an integrated PhD student, took time to show me around the campus and the various facilities available. The institute, also known as the Tata Institute, has a rustic environment and a 100-year old building which housed the administration. We stopped by the Tata Book House to get a copy of the city map and he treated me to tea at the tea & coffee board. Afternoon snack and tea is an important part of the life in the institute, I learnt.
The MBU is a homely and closely knit family. There was a welcome party for the fresh PhD students, post-doctorate fellows and research project assistants that evening. I was promptly invited on the spot. At the party, tribute was first paid to all the professors followed by a formal introduction of all the new members of the family. I was also introduced as a “freshie”.
The highlight of the program was a musical-skit which drew lots of laughter from the highly entertained crowd. The evening of poetry, song and dance ended with the crowning of Mr and Miss Freshie, followed by a sumptuous buffet dinner.
A New Beginning
It has been a long but pleasant day for me. Tired and exhausted from the day’s travels and happenings, while enriched by the sights and sounds of this new place.
This is the beginning of my 6-month stay in Bangalore.
Home is room number 39 at the guest house in the Indian Institute of Science. Quiet little place hidden away at one end of the institute, surrounded by greenery and serenaded by the songs of the birds. A single bed, a wardrobe and a writing desk furnished the room, which comes with an attached bathroom with hot shower. A 6-panel window looks out into a forested area. There is even a television and an air-conditioning unit!
So here I am, alone in my room with little Gumby by the side, sitting at the corner of my bed, penning this journal entry. Everything seems so surreal…
First Impressions
I was greeted by the spanking new and spacious Bangalore International Airport on arrival. Navigating it was easy and coming out of the airport, a row of men in white holding placards were looking earnestly at each and every arriving passenger. It was not til the end of the row that I found Kumar, holding a sign, on it written, “Dr Kee Leng”.
It was a cool and breezy day. Pockets of blue sky peeped through the thick clouds, paving way for the warm sun rays. Kumar signaled me to wait at the pick-up point while he gets the car. A friendly young lad 22 years of age with a sweet and shy smile, he has been assigned by the travel agency where he had worked for 2 years, to fetch me to the institute. “No problem, Ma’am”, those were his favorite words.
The car ride to the institute was smooth, no massive jams or free-roaming cows crossing the streets as what others had pre-empted me, though the traffic is heavy and horns blasted into the dusty air intermittently. I noticed our car is short of the left wing mirror. Kumar skillfully steered our little car through the trucks, cars, autos and two-wheelers coming from all directions, and before long, we turned right to a sign with blue words on a white background “Indian Institute of Science”.
MBU Family
MBU stands for Molecular Biophysics Unit. That’s where I’ll be working for the many weeks to come. Professor Raghavan brought me on a quick tour to the laboratory and introduced me to the members of the research group, made up mostly of ladies. The open air laboratory has a nostalgic feel to it, especially the wooden benches and drawers. Overflowing shelves, notices on the walls yellow with age, there is an orderliness in the disarray of things and activities, as I quietly observed the folks get about with their work.
Likhesh, an integrated PhD student, took time to show me around the campus and the various facilities available. The institute, also known as the Tata Institute, has a rustic environment and a 100-year old building which housed the administration. We stopped by the Tata Book House to get a copy of the city map and he treated me to tea at the tea & coffee board. Afternoon snack and tea is an important part of the life in the institute, I learnt.
The MBU is a homely and closely knit family. There was a welcome party for the fresh PhD students, post-doctorate fellows and research project assistants that evening. I was promptly invited on the spot. At the party, tribute was first paid to all the professors followed by a formal introduction of all the new members of the family. I was also introduced as a “freshie”.
The highlight of the program was a musical-skit which drew lots of laughter from the highly entertained crowd. The evening of poetry, song and dance ended with the crowning of Mr and Miss Freshie, followed by a sumptuous buffet dinner.
A New Beginning
It has been a long but pleasant day for me. Tired and exhausted from the day’s travels and happenings, while enriched by the sights and sounds of this new place.
This is the beginning of my 6-month stay in Bangalore.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
First Aid
4 hours apart, 2 first aid cases, 1 first aider.
it was a friday evening and it was to be an eventful one. there was my company's first ice skating event earlier in the evening, and there was the 55km overnight training later in the night. in both events, i had the opportunity to apply my first aid knowledge.
at the fuji ice palace at jurong entertainment centre, most colleagues were holding on precariously to the handrails as they moved slowly along the rink. instruction classes were provided to teach colleagues basic moves such as balancing, recovery after a fall, walk on ice, glide, swivel and stop. slowly, more colleagues gained confidence and started to venture out into the centre of rink, practising their newly acquired moves.
suddenly, there was a commotion and colleague SM was lying face down on the ice, one hand holding against his back. it was apparent that Sm had a fall. someone said he sprained his back. there were many people surrounding him - instructors and colleagues, but after a while, it seems that nothing is being done. SM was conscious and he appeared to be trying to tell those around him something, his hands pointing here and there.
having trained in first aid, i thought perhaps i could be of help so i moved over and assessed the situation. so it turned out that SM was trying to give instructions to those around him. "i'm trained in first aid", SM told those around. "get something to support my leg", he said.
colleagues brought him jackets to place under his leg for insulation from the ice and he took it off. "that won't work", he said. a few others got some plastic sheets and that was wrong too. he wanted something "hard". so someone brought in a big piece of wooden plank. that got rejected as well. he refused to be moved into a more comfortable position too. what is happening? what does he wants?
my mind was taking in all these observations and analyzing the situation at the fastest speed possible. his posture, he wants support for his leg, something hard... i asked SM, "where are you in pain?" SM did not reply me, but someone nearby remarked, "i think his leg is broken, look at the funny angle..."
that is it! suddenly, i got the whole picture. he wanted a splint for his leg! silly me, i should have thought of that earlier.
immediately, i looked around to see what could be used to improvise a splint. nothing much in sight that's useful. i got the staff to look for some cardboard boxes and strings. he came back with shortly after with a cardboard box. he couldn't find any strings so he got some cellophane tape instead. another staff suggested, "can we use the laces from the skates?" brilliant idea.
without any delay, AT, MS, VC and myself, with the help of the staff, created a splint for SM and immobilized his leg. only then, SM cooperated with us to move him to a more comfortable position while waiting for the civil defence guys to fetch him to hospital.
*phew* we all heaved a sign of relief.
"someone who is first aid trained, is a difficult casualty", i thought...
--------------------------------------
barely 4 hours later, another first aid case occurred. this time, the casualty is the first aider.
less than 2 hours into our 55km overnight run, i accidentally double tripped over uneven surface on the pavement and landed flat on the ground about a metre ahead.
as i slowly sat up, a concerned IN rushed over to check on my injuries. still recovering from shock, my immediate reaction was "don't touch me!" poor gal, she must have got a shock as well. i apologized to her after that, glad that she was very understanding and accepted my apologies.
status check:
right shoulder - slight abrasion with blood oozing
right wrist and fingers - cuts
right palm - cuts with blood oozing
right thigh - light cuts over the length of thigh
left knee - abrasion and cuts with bleeding at two areas
face - OK!!
i moved myself to somewhere there is light. good thing i packed my first aid kit for the run. never expected i'll need to use it though.
as i dressed my wounds, the rest looked on. SW poured water onto my bleeding knee, AL took out a dressing and SL opened it up. CS suggested i should tape the dressing... i wanted to use my own dressing, another remarked it wouldn't hold... finally, when i heard the advice, "listen to her, she's trained in first aid.", i replied, "i'm trained in first aid too.."
oops.. guessed trained first aiders are indeed difficult casualties! :P
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