From the Himalayas to the Sierra Madres: A Himalayan Village

To pick up from where I left off in Agra, we ended up having a more eventful Saturday night than what we had originally planned. In the hotel we were staying at, there was a large Muslim dance birthday party going on on the floor below us. We knew this because the music was very loud and we could hear it through the floor. One of the girls in the group we met up with on our trip to the Taj Mahal, Sasha, and I were going down to the front desk of the hotel to pick up a blanket, but we decided to peek our heads inside the party to see what exactly was going on. Immediately, we were spotted and pulled somewhat forcefully into the party (although I think we deep-down wanted to go in to experience a Muslim dance party). They took us straight to the bar. I’ve come to realize that everyone here associates white, American men with beer. I always hear, “Do you like beer? I can get you beer!” They don’t drink much at all here, but they are very interested in American culture and definitely get the picture that we drink more in America than in India. After watching them open up a new bottle of whiskey and Pepsi (don’t worry mom and dad, I made sure we weren’t getting drugged), we decided to have a couple drinks. You have to realize that while this was going on, we were in our pajamas and they were all dressed up in their formalwear. Also, it felt as though an entire Bollywood film crew was surrounding us catching every second of these random white people partying at their young child’s birthday party. It was quite the sight to see. We were dancing to the techno music with these Muslim men while the rest of the party watched almost dumbfounded, especially because there was a girl who was drinking and dancing with the men. It ended up being so much fun, but eventually we left to get our blanket.

The ride back from Agra to Dehradun was rough again but memorable. On the way back, out of boredom and incredulity, I took a series of pictures of babies riding on motorcycles out of the back window of the taxi. I think I should create a tumblr along the lines of “biker babies.” If anyone else has a better name, I’d love to hear it.

I have spent the last 3 days in the small Himalayan village of Patti, and it’s probably going to be my favorite location while living in India. It is a serene, quiet, simple village with very few people living here. There are not many large towns or cities in the mountains here like in Colorado, but hundreds upon thousands of very small villages scattered throughout the mountains. This makes it difficult to get medicine and medical care to people. The non-profit I am here with, Child Family Health International, built a clinic and supplies all medicines and care for free to those who seek medical attention. We have seen patients who have traveled up to 100 kilometers (about 60 miles) throughout the mountains just to see Dr. Paul (the Indian doctor we are here with). He’s been here at the clinic since its opening in 1999. Since then, the word has spread throughout this area that there is free medical care in Patti by a respected doctor, so the people have come. Every Tuesday and Thursday, Dr. Paul hikes to nearby villages to reach more people. These villages can be anywhere from a 45 minute hike to a 3-hour hike each way. We hiked on Tuesday to a nearby village that only took about an hour to get to. The kids were so cute, spying on us and sneaking up on us just to see the tall, white, blonde (in Callie’s case) American people. We played with them for a while and showed them some of our foreign toys like our iPhones, cameras, etc. They loved all of them. I know I’ve mentioned this before, but the hospitality is amazing. I think part of it is because we are with doctors most of the time, and doctors are some of the most respected people in the country. But mostly, this culture is very welcoming, which is so nice! It’s been fun exploring the nearby villages and the one we’re in. The people along with the mountains here are beautiful.

My average day here has been so much different than how it was in the city of Dehradun. First, we wake up at 4:45 or 5:45 depending on if we want to go on a morning run. Then, we have yoga from 6-7 AM, then quiet time (I usually go back to sleep) until 8, breakfast and tea from 8-8:45, clinic from 9 AM-1 PM, lunch from 1-1:30, rest from 1:30-4 PM, tea and biscuits right before clinic, clinic from 4-6 PM, yoga again from 6:30-7:30 PM, dinner from 8:15-8:45, then games, reading, etc., then sleep. I love this schedule because I feel like I’m getting in lots of physical activity while also getting time to rest and reflect. I’m also getting lots of clinical time in to see patients that are different from those in the city. This morning a woman came in with a very large abscess in her armpit, and we got to watch Dr. Paul surgically drain the abscess and remove the excess skin. It was very interesting.

I am getting more and more comfortable with taking people’s blood pressure and listening for certain red flags in the lungs with a stethoscope as the days go on. In fact, in the village we went to on Tuesday, I took the blood pressure of a 110-year old woman who had been lying in the same spot on a concrete floor for the past 10 years. Her blood pressure was healthier than the average patient we have seen here. Pretty amazing. Dr. Paul asks us to “check BP, check lungs” with almost every patient, as the majority of problems are related to these areas. I’ve heard from all three doctors I’ve worked with that if you can have a healthy blood pressure and healthy lungs, you eliminate so many of the problems that can arise as you get older. So, passing this information on, if there is anybody reading this with a high blood pressure, go to the doctor and ask him/her how to best manage it, it’ll add years to your life!

Right now I’m lying in bed during our rest time between clinical sessions glancing out the window at the mountains and rice paddies (much of the farming here is rice farming, everyone is preparing their fields for the monsoon. So when I am back here in 1 month, all of the fields will be flooded and the rice will be growing.) A day hasn’t gone by where I haven’t thought about how lucky I am to be here. Although I miss some very special people in my life, I know this experience is shaping me even more into the person I am supposed to be. I am learning a lot about others and myself and I know these lessons are invaluable. So, thank you to everyone who has helped me get to this point in my life, and to everyone who supports me today, I truly appreciate it. Finally, these past two weeks have made me think a lot about destiny and if it is real. I’m still not sure if it is, but what I have realized is that if there is something within yourself that is calling you or telling you to do something, if you listen to that voice, you will be happy. I know this is very simple and not unheard of, but I truly believe now that if you are doing what you love, everything else will fall into place. This can apply to one’s professional career, family life, or simply just an every day decision. Following your passion and caring for others really sums up life in my opinion (this probably sounds hilarious coming from a 20 year oldJ). Hopefully I can remember this for the rest of my life, and if not, send me the link to my own blog.

I will try to keep writing as often as possible. I am writing this on Wednesday, June 13^th but probably won’t get to post it until Saturday or Sunday when I will have access to wi-fi.

See you guys soon,

Clayton