USA Independence Day Celebration.

We had a lovely 4th of July celebration over here in Asia.
I hosted the party on the roof of my building, just in time for sunset. We thought maybe someone would start a fireworks show in light of the beautiful weather and great view, but alas, we only found stars once the sun went down. I did request that all attendees of the celebration dress in either red, white or blue and it was a truly patriotic sight, even though Americans were the minority. I was thankful for the participation.

I am also so thankful to live in a free country.

Rooftop party chatter.

Emily brought the best and most patriotic dessert. Berries are very hard to come by here so I was mighty excited to taste this traditional USA fare (jello is even on the bottom!).

Some snapshots of the patriotic dress.

The replacement for fireworks included the view of the lights from the city, and the stars from above.

Rajshahi.

What a place to see. This week was spent devleoping some Multilingual Education materials for the Kol and Koda ethnolinguistic groups, but it was also an opportunity for me to get out of Dhaka and see some other landscapes of Bangladesh. It was great to see this NGO in action as well as enjoy some countryside. Below are some photos from my week.

We arrived to have this statue of mangoes (pronounced "am" in Bangla) welcome us to the Rajshahi region. Later that week I was to buy six kilos of mangoes...

Some sweet and curious women I found working a little deeper inside the community. They were camera shy.

Some other women taking a break in their fields amidst that humid air. You simply cannot escape it, even if you leave Dhaka.

There are still many "jams" in Rajshahi, just more of the man-powered type than motorized.

Here are some shots of everyone hard at work, developing, critiquing, and celebrating the fact that Multilingual Education is being made possible for children of the Kol and Koda communities, by the Kol and Koda communities. No Coca-cola sponsorship out here.
It's truly inspiring.

Everyone who took part in some way this week.

On one of the final evenings, our team visited the Padma riverbank, one of the largest rivers in Bangladesh. Here, it is a place of leisure and labor, beauty and squalor all in one scene, as seems to be the way of Bangladesh.

The sunsets out this way were quiet and and also quite enjoyable.

Headed North.

So this past week I have been truly settling in only to get ready to leave again tomorrow morning for a field visit the northwest part of Bangladesh called Rajshahi. I will be gone for a week observing a teacher's workshop on bringing multilingual education programs into the area. I am looking forward to some time away from the smog of the city, but will miss the small routine I have already created here in Dhaka. Please pray for the people of Bangladesh this Sunday as they hold an organized rally against the current party in government. Don't worry, I'll be far out of dodge.

Above is a photo taken from my roof. It is nice to go up there and take in the view and hang your clothes. That was the first ona (scarf) I washed here. Laundry day brings a whole new meaning to the phrase in this country..oof! But the satisfaction of hanging your clean garments on the line and watching them dry is quite nice.

Also notice, if you can, the flags that are flying. Here you will find more Brazilian and Argentinian flags flapping than Bangladeshi flags. World Cup is serious stuff, and it might as well be only between those two teams. (Go USA!)

Update.

Wouldn't ya know it...

This morning on my way to the office, I spotted the young girl I talked about in my previous post now peering down at my building entrance, and smiling wide at me. I gave her a happy wave, and she returned one back with equal enthusiasm.

How good and pleasant it is
when brothers live together in unity!
Psalm 133:1

God is Good.

"Apni kemon achen?"

"Ami, bhalo achi."

"Hello, how are you?"

"I am fine."

These are the words I am using most these days, as they are of the few I know well in Bengali. I am settling in here in South Asia, slowly acclimating to the heat (wow, and I thought Georgia was humid...) and enjoying very much the new friends and the tasty mangoes.

Overall, things have continued to progress smoothly. I have been here twelve days now, and I am still enjoying the newness of it all. Everyone has been incredibly nice and supportive, always informing me and giving me tips on how to live and manage while I am here. Learning the language is still an absolute must, however, and I am very thankful for my language coach, Smitha. She is about my age and we have already formed a sweet friendship. Below, she shows an ABC book we found at the grocery store - with a UGA doll for the letter "D"! I thought it was a good sign.

I am sorry, I do not yet have a decent photo of me modeling my new outfits, but here are some of them hanging in my wardrobe. Managing all the bright fabric draped over me as I perspire in the humidity has been a bit of a challenge, but I am surely becoming more accustomed to the native dress and even excited to embrace this new style.

Since the city of Dhaka is so dense with people, commerce and rickshaws, I have noticed that children often deem their rooftops as their playgrounds. I love that a child will innately discover some place to make play. Here is a little girl I spotted from my bedroom window blending into her concrete park. Being building neighbors, perhaps I'll try to meet her with a wave next time, although, she seems so distant from me when I peer down. Being here less than two weeks, I have perceived already the tightness of the family unit and the sense of community, but not with those that are different from you - from what I can tell, not with those of a different ethnic or language group, and not with foreigners...
I am acclimating to the stares and trying to pick up quickly on the Bengali chatter at lunchtime.

Thank you for your emails and support as I transition here.
Every note and kind word is greatly appreciated.
More to come!

Arrived.

Greetings from Bangladesh!
I want to let you know that I am here, safe and sound, and enjoying the experience of everything being so new and SO different. I departed from JFK airport on Monday evening and arrived here in Dhaka early Wednesday morning.

I regret I did not get a chance to send out one last update before departing from the US, but things were very busy at the end there with many goodbyes and packing. My dear friends and sister threw me a going away party for which I am so appreciative and will post photos soon. The goodbyes were sad, but I was anxious to get here and finally see this country I have been preparing and praying for.

It was a long journey, but everything went smoothly and once I got settled, I met some of my team members and toured the office. On Wednesday evening I went to a coworker's flat and she made me a spaghetti dinner. She explained that I am bound to have plenty of rice and traditional food while I am here so not to worry about the lack of cultural immersion for my first meal. Thursday was SHOPPING day. Here, women do not wear any sort of modern dress without standing out and giving off the perception that they are a "wild girl," so one of the first orders of business was getting some clothes. It was quite nice, actually, finally having the excuse to shop!

Friday is our first day of the weekend here and also our Sunday so I went to Church with some new friends and met even more friends there. After that, I had my first introduction to Bengali with my teacher, a woman named Smita. Conquering even a small bit of this difficult language will certainly be one of my biggest challenges, but I am fortunate to have this wonderful instructor. Finally, we concluded the day with watching the opening ceremonies and first World Cup game at a cafe. What else?!

So far, I am easing into all the changes and making many acquaintances and friends quickly. I am looking forward to updating more as internet access becomes more readily available to me. Thank you for your support in getting me here and I ask for your continued prayers as I adjust to life in Dhaka.

For more information on Bangladesh, here is an interesting and interactive web site I found:
http://www.virtualbangladesh.com/

I am HERE.
Bangladesh.

Vaccinations..

and other preparation.

Going today to receive my second-to-last vaccination in a series for the Hepatitis B virus. This will be my fourth vaccine overall in preparation for this trip, and I still have one more to go. I am literally that baby in the image below (well, except I am not a baby..I am also not bald). I am relieved I do not mind shots! And these actually make me excited knowing that it is simply a part of the process of making myself ready for my time in Bangladesh.

Please pray that I continue to successfully prepare in all of the other necessary ways for this trip. I need the Lord's Peace and guidance in many of the last minute details that must get done, and I also want to also be able to enjoy these last days with dear family and friends. In addition, I want to be ready mentally and spiritually for this process. I have been so grateful to receive a tremendous amount of support from people of all walks of my life and feel blessed to have a team of encouragers behind me already. It is humbling and confirming in so many ways.

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
Ephesians 2:10