Hello Readers!

One of those sunrises I'm talking about

Welcome to my blog! Before we get too deep into this reader-writer relationship I’d like to share a couple of things. First of all, you should know a bit about me. And I guess it’s impossible for me to know too much about you, so that makes things easier for you. I am a Masters student at the University of Guelph in Environmental Engineering and am in Bangladesh to work with a university here (the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology) and an NGO (Society for People’s Actions in Change and Equity) on small scale water supply systems in the Manikganj district (and perhaps another – we will see!). This is my first time outside of Canada and I am trying to soak in all of the culture and learning experiences that I am exposed to. I am 6 ft tall, brown hair, brown eyes, enjoy camping, potlucks, learning, racquet sports, dance parties, and am getting into sunrises. It’s actually not that hard here as the sun now rises at 7am ish. That, my friends, is enough about me. Perhaps too much. I won’t tell you the bad things.

So where were we. Ahh yes. Well actually I have a confession to make. I have had 5 weeks of experiences and learning that I haven’t shared with you. Well we might as well be honest from the get go. But I can make it up to you. I have sent out a couple of group e-mails to family and friends, so I’ll tell you what: I’ll post these to bring you up to speed on what’s been going on here. Sound good? I hope so. The first one was written after 2 weeks here and is as follows:

Well I survived my trans-Atlantic flight without getting the swine flu, and even saw the palm tree islands descending into Dubai! The
landing in Dhaka was quite exciting, too, as we descended through the clouds and the vast floodplain that is Bangladesh opened up. It truly is a country that is mostly water!

CNG (compressed natural gas) mini-taxis

You are probably all wondering if Dhaka is more like Toronto or Halifax. The best way to describe Dhaka, I think, is a mixture of the traffic in Toronto’s downtown o n a Friday afternoon, with the activity of Antigonish at Highland games time, and perhaps a little bit of the run-down infrastructure of some East Coast towns thrown in there (though it is really impossible to compare on any of these points). I think each time I cross the street in Dhaka it brings me a little closer to God. I look forward to J-walking in Antigonish just for the sake of it at Christmas time! Seriously, though, Dhaka is a bustling city of 10 million plus, and there are things here that I am appalled at and things that I am quite impressed with. For instance, I am appalled at the pollution from the vehicles, and the fact that the CNG motorized mini-taxis sometimes blow up when fueling up (the passengers get out and leave the drivers to take that risk).

Have you ever seen so many rickshaws?

There is a completely different perception of risk here – one I think we can learn from in many ways. I am quite impressed at how hard-working everyone seems to be, and the resourcefulness of the people. Taxi-drivers fix their own cars. Rickshaw drivers ride one-speed bikes with people in the back around the city all day.  Everyone has a place and something to do. Working 12 hours a day, 7 days a week seems to be common, at least at my inn.

The reason I am in Dhaka is to set up my field research which should start in a week if all goes according to plan. I have had the good fortune of meeting a small NGO called SPACE (www.space-ecosan.org) which works to provide safe drinking water through arsenic-iron removal plants and rainwater harvesting systems. They also promote composting toilets (they don’t flood when it rains, and can provide useful fertilizer for agriculture), organic agriculture, and waste management (composting I think). Their integrated approach to improve livelihoods is focused on rural people, and is quite grassroots I understand. They think that by helping rural people improve their lives, these people will be less likely to contribute to the problems of congestion and lack of services in Dhaka. I tend to agree with all of these ideas. I am quite lucky, as well, because they will be doing some installations of arsenic-iron removal plants and composting toilets while I am here! I hope to help with some of this as I complete my field research studying their arsenic-iron removal plants. I feel that with a small NGO my research has more of a chance of being useful to them and their future installations of drinking water systems.

Village Courtyard

I also had a chance to visit some villages just outside of Dhaka. These villages were most interesting to visit, to start to put a context to where I will be working and where the NGOs I hear about work. I look forward to learning much much more from these villagers as my research gets underway. I have learned a lot already from the Bangladeshi’s I have met, and am sure that these entire 3 months will be full of learning from these people! I have been most impressed at how friendly and welcoming they are.  Many feel it is their responsibility to ensure my well-being; perhaps this is a common attitude in other parts of the world, but I know I have a long ways to go to cultivate such an attitude!

My cultural highlight thus far has certainly been crashing a wedding party! Last Tuesday night there was this “club” music coming from down the hall. The music, though quite club-ish, seemed more tasteful than that I have heard at say, the Palace in Halifax (I have been there – twice I am afraid to say), or Trappers in Guelph (I’ve only been there once – I learned!). Perhaps it’s because I couldn’t understand what they were saying. Naturally, I went to investigate this strange (yet familiar) music down the hall. I suspect you all would have done the same. Before I could adequately assess the situation, I was dragged into the middle of it all, sat down, given a plate of food like you wouldn’t believe (perhaps you would now that I tell you, but I couldn’t believe it then), given some yellow paste to put on my face, dragged up to take photographs with the bride, and dragged on the dance floor; what a hoot! They sure know how to have a good time at wedding parties here! The dance floor was a happening place, and I was thankful this family seemed to want me to be a part of their celebration. It was a healthy dose of fun and a reminder to enjoy my experience, rather than spend it all doing research! I hope to combine both!

Last night we had a Thanksgiving dinner at the Canadian High Commission and I couldn’t believe the spread, including sweet potato
fries, turkey, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. It was a good dose of home, though I actually quite enjoy the Bangladeshi curries I’ve been eating. I met a fellow young Canadian new to Dhaka so hope to explore the city some with him, and connect with some other contacts some friends from Guelph have given me as well.

I must sign off here, as I have written half a novel.So enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend with your families! I am thankful that I have been given this opportunity to learn in this country, and that I have such wonderful family and friends. And that we have internet. And ice cream. And many more things of course.

Save some room for the pumpkin pie!

Ryan

Category: Bangladesh, Category, Country, On location // 1 Comment »