He was also supposed to bring a bar so we could hang our clothes. He brought hangers the other day but didn't understand we had nowhere to hang the hangers until I took him into both bedrooms and physically tried to hang the hangers in thin air. "Oh, yes, yes, the bar. No problem, I bring you one tomorrow." Now it's Thursday and still no bar.
I think our next hurdle will be getting water delivery. George's colleague who was here about 3 months ago said that she had a Poland Springs type water cooler. So when I asked Krishn about water delivery, not surprisingly, I got a, "yes, yes, ma'am. No problem. I bring you water." So then I tried to explain about a cooler, to which Krishn pointed to the refrigerator. As if we were playing a game of charades, I tried to act out a water cooler. I took a bottle of water and flipped it upside down and motioned like I was pulling something underneath to get it out. He smiled politely and reiterated, "no problem."
Since I had already called Chandan, I left he and his friend here to clean the couch. To some, this may seem like a bold move. But, we can lock each room individually and everything we have of value was in the back room so I locked it. And I figured if there was a problem, we could always call the women who helped us find the place and the landlord as we had his name and number. Not to worry, everything was as I left it, including a marginally cleaner couch. I took the Lysol to it and NOW it is clean.
We're certainly getting more and more comfortable everyday. We're almost living like real Indians. Big news from the shopping trip...we have shower curtains! In both bathrooms! I took a picture for you.
The other bathroom has an ugly mint green curtain but it was the best I could do. We also reached another milestone - our first load of laundry. It actually smells and looks clean. It is, of course, a mini-laundry machine and only uses cold water but it works like a champ. It's the kind with the window in the front so you can see what's going on inside. Sure enough, after I switched on the power, the water started flowing and then the suds filled the window. As it was draining, I was in the other room trying to clean out and line our drawers so we could finally start to unpack. When all of the sudden, I heard what sounded like a jet engine - only, we are close enough to the airport that I know what a real jet engine sounds like and this was different. It sounded more violent and kept getting louder. So I come out to the kitchen and the laundry was on the spin cycle but has just turned to the "intense spin" cycle. Now it really sounds like it's going to take off. But it doesn't and our clothes come out smelling fresh and only a little damp. I suppose the "intense spin" is necessary when you don't use a dryer. It was rainy yesterday so I think they actually got more damp being outside.
What's that saying about airing your laundry? But here it is on our drying rack this morning.That little rope straight ahead is a pulley so you can raise and lower the line. We lowered it when we went to bed for fear some of our skivvy's might end up on our neighbor's door step.
It is actually a VERY common sight. This is looking out across the way.When George came in, the second load was on the regular spin cycle. Oh, the look of panic when he walked in, "what's that noise?" I told him (or rather, yelled) "just wait for the intense spin cycle." Intense indeed. Today our clothes are clean and crispy. And only about 5 more mini-loads to go.
We also had our first "take-out" experience last night. George found our new best friend, the Hungry Bangalore. You can order dinner online, pick what time you want it delivered and dinner is served. They tend to eat on the later side here. Most restaurants don't seem to get busy until 9pm. The earliest we could get it delivered was 7:45. So the plan was, they would call when they got to the gate and George would go meet them. We get the call close to 8 and George runs down and is gone maybe 2 minutes when the doorbell rings. "Yes, hello ma'am. You order food." So I try to explain that George went to meet him at the gate with the money but I'll call him and he'll be right up. I thought all he got was that I did order food but did not have any money. Ever so quickly, I ring his mobile and am puzzled for just a second when I hear the ring in surround-sound. His phone is on the table in the house. The delivery person seems to be losing patience. "This is your food?" Now, I'm out in the hallway asking him how much it is to see if by some chance I have enough on me when I hear George from outside, "I'll be right there." We are on the second floor but there is a rotunda in the middle of the building, so from the hallway you can hear everything on every floor. The door outside was open so George heard us. We pay and get out our paper plates. (We're still not sure if washing our dishes with tap water is ok, but I can't imagine restaurants use purified water - chances are it's fine...but a chance we haven't taken yet. We open up the big bag only to find smaller bags. Instead of containers, they use those mini-size trash bags - even for sauces. A delicious array of Chinese, vegetarian meals in trash bags all for about $5. The food, by the way, has been excellent. I have never had so many options before.
One last experience to discuss before I sign off. I went to the gym yesterday in our apartment complex for the first time. The building itself is nice. There are four floors - with squash courts, a room for aerobics (but I don't know when that's offered) and then the gym. There are about 7 treadmills (circa 1990), a machine that looks like a bo-flex, and an elliptical machine. There are only women there and I am the only white women in shorts. But in the presence of only other women, I've decided this is ok. About a half hour into my run the machine abruptly stops. You'd be surprised how quickly they can come to a stop. The power has gone out. It starts up again in thirty seconds but you have to reprogram the machine. The power goes out often but only for a a minute at a time. Charming Bengaluru. It's really only an inconvenience when you are on a treadmill or trying to download something online - you lose your connection and have to start over.
I'm headed off to a "welcome tea" hosted by the Overseas Women's Club. This should be interesting...
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