New York: Unsuccessful in finding an airport lounge to park my ass for the night I got shooed off to terminal 4 (the only 24 hour terminal at JFK) to wait for my early London flight the next day. There was a small cluster of us shivering and passing the night on uncomfortable benches. But I must admit the most hardcore person there was this 78 year old Jamaican Grandmother that somehow was abandoned by her family. Poor woman finally got picked up by her confused and agitated son at 4:00a.m. Too bad, I actually enjoyed her company and a piece of her cinnamon breadstick. In comparison, British airways as quite comfortable and my cute Brit flight attendant sweetly asked me to move into another empty row because the woman I was sitting next to recently had surgery and wanted her own row. He snuck champagne and chocolates to compensate. I’ll take the perks while I can get them.
London… baby: Being in London is much more like being in Tokyo rather than NYC. It might be the familiar smell of designer leather, cigarette smoke, drunkenness from the pubs, and the right amount of superficiality in the air… and I love it. I had to admit that I’m a city girl at heart. On Monday I reviewed my project and started consulting with my main boss at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. For those who don’t know, I got this obsession for eyes and I am doing an evaluative study on several methods of identifying pediatric blindness. While in London, I stayed with a friend who goes to the LSE, which means I got a lovely one hour walk between her flat and the office. To name a few of the great things during my commute, I would walk the cobble stone path past the Borough Market for fresh coffee, Globe theater, Tate modern before crossing the Temps river, through Russell Square, and finally past the British museum before getting to work. Despite seeing all the sites every day I didn’t actually go inside any of them. It was weird to think that just a week before Pam was probably wandering around the British museum and I wish I could have joined her. I did, however, hear a talk by Peter Piot, the UN AIDS executive director, on the past, current, and future problems of AIDS. Mmm…epid geek?! 
The people at LSHTM are wonderfully nice and were willing to help me out in any way. Andrew, the deafness expert, just retired from the WHO and would brew an excellent cup of tea for us. Unfortunately, it seems like the Brits have an unusual appreciation for instant coffee as well. This apparently makes me a coffee snob and I am sent away to the Italian coffee shop a few blocks away for molto bueno caffe e panini.
On a sunny day, I even was able to drag my friend to Broadway in Soho for a drink at the John Snow pub to celebrate cholera. My image of epidemiological scholars having intellectual conversations over the most current public health issues while sipping ale was quickly extinguished as I looked around the bar and saw mainly dodgy type men getting drunk. It seemed a small metaphor of public health: forgotten, underfunded, and grungy.
Dubai: After a somewhat successful week in London I was off to Bangladesh. The folks at LSHTM were kind enough to arrange my flight with Emirates. True to rumor, United Emirates flight attendants were hot (and very international) and the free things were nice. Oh by the way, the movie Dan in Real Life was cute and Juno was annoying. For any of those who have a long stay in Dubai airport but don’t have the money to leave and explore, I recommend the lounge by K32. For a small fee you can have a quiet place to use the internet, get some drinks and food. Dubai airport was where I started getting my first introduction into a Muslim country. There were things that I am clearly not accustomed to and have trouble not staring at. For example, a man going through security had his wife in a beautiful kameez on her knees unlacing, taking off, putting back on and relacing his shoes. On all official documents I had to fill in father/husband’s name underneath my name, and it felt strange to not be recognized as an individual woman. Not a big deal, but it’s the small things.
Dhaka: A curly haired, short Bangladeshi man, in a pressed suit greeted me at the airport. This was Sight Savers Bangladesh representative Dr. Wahulid who would assist my ride to my hotel. When they opened up the back of the van to dump in my suitcase, I noticed a large gas cylinder tank. Dr. Wahulid explained that many cars in Bangladesh don’t have the gas tanks under the car but rather in the trunk. Although I’m sure it makes no difference, I was a little uneasy that as we were weaving past large busses, trucks, rickshaws, and bikes with a massive tank of gas right behind my head. I arrived safely at the hotel, had my lunch, and went to visit the office. I was surprised that the office was functioning on Sunday but the other thing about a Muslim country is that Fridays are holy days and so my work week is from Sunday to Thursday. I met with Dr. Alamgir who is the project head in Bangladesh and we sat down to discuss my project. He was a little intimidating but I was relived that he took my project seriously unlike when I started my project in India.
I haven’t had much chance to explore my surroundings other than to the office and back to my hotel. The weather is hot and humid during the day, and it often pours and is windy at night so it’s just as well that I haven’t figured out where to explore just yet. Well, it’s 4:00 in the morning and I am jetlagged. I can hear the adhan (call to prayer) from the mosque across the lake and I often forget how tranquil and soothing it can be. Awaiting another day for work, more to come.
London… baby: Being in London is much more like being in Tokyo rather than NYC. It might be the familiar smell of designer leather, cigarette smoke, drunkenness from the pubs, and the right amount of superficiality in the air… and I love it. I had to admit that I’m a city girl at heart. On Monday I reviewed my project and started consulting with my main boss at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. For those who don’t know, I got this obsession for eyes and I am doing an evaluative study on several methods of identifying pediatric blindness. While in London, I stayed with a friend who goes to the LSE, which means I got a lovely one hour walk between her flat and the office. To name a few of the great things during my commute, I would walk the cobble stone path past the Borough Market for fresh coffee, Globe theater, Tate modern before crossing the Temps river, through Russell Square, and finally past the British museum before getting to work. Despite seeing all the sites every day I didn’t actually go inside any of them. It was weird to think that just a week before Pam was probably wandering around the British museum and I wish I could have joined her. I did, however, hear a talk by Peter Piot, the UN AIDS executive director, on the past, current, and future problems of AIDS. Mmm…epid geek?! 
The people at LSHTM are wonderfully nice and were willing to help me out in any way. Andrew, the deafness expert, just retired from the WHO and would brew an excellent cup of tea for us. Unfortunately, it seems like the Brits have an unusual appreciation for instant coffee as well. This apparently makes me a coffee snob and I am sent away to the Italian coffee shop a few blocks away for molto bueno caffe e panini.
On a sunny day, I even was able to drag my friend to Broadway in Soho for a drink at the John Snow pub to celebrate cholera. My image of epidemiological scholars having intellectual conversations over the most current public health issues while sipping ale was quickly extinguished as I looked around the bar and saw mainly dodgy type men getting drunk. It seemed a small metaphor of public health: forgotten, underfunded, and grungy.
Dubai: After a somewhat successful week in London I was off to Bangladesh. The folks at LSHTM were kind enough to arrange my flight with Emirates. True to rumor, United Emirates flight attendants were hot (and very international) and the free things were nice. Oh by the way, the movie Dan in Real Life was cute and Juno was annoying. For any of those who have a long stay in Dubai airport but don’t have the money to leave and explore, I recommend the lounge by K32. For a small fee you can have a quiet place to use the internet, get some drinks and food. Dubai airport was where I started getting my first introduction into a Muslim country. There were things that I am clearly not accustomed to and have trouble not staring at. For example, a man going through security had his wife in a beautiful kameez on her knees unlacing, taking off, putting back on and relacing his shoes. On all official documents I had to fill in father/husband’s name underneath my name, and it felt strange to not be recognized as an individual woman. Not a big deal, but it’s the small things.
Dhaka: A curly haired, short Bangladeshi man, in a pressed suit greeted me at the airport. This was Sight Savers Bangladesh representative Dr. Wahulid who would assist my ride to my hotel. When they opened up the back of the van to dump in my suitcase, I noticed a large gas cylinder tank. Dr. Wahulid explained that many cars in Bangladesh don’t have the gas tanks under the car but rather in the trunk. Although I’m sure it makes no difference, I was a little uneasy that as we were weaving past large busses, trucks, rickshaws, and bikes with a massive tank of gas right behind my head. I arrived safely at the hotel, had my lunch, and went to visit the office. I was surprised that the office was functioning on Sunday but the other thing about a Muslim country is that Fridays are holy days and so my work week is from Sunday to Thursday. I met with Dr. Alamgir who is the project head in Bangladesh and we sat down to discuss my project. He was a little intimidating but I was relived that he took my project seriously unlike when I started my project in India.
I haven’t had much chance to explore my surroundings other than to the office and back to my hotel. The weather is hot and humid during the day, and it often pours and is windy at night so it’s just as well that I haven’t figured out where to explore just yet. Well, it’s 4:00 in the morning and I am jetlagged. I can hear the adhan (call to prayer) from the mosque across the lake and I often forget how tranquil and soothing it can be. Awaiting another day for work, more to come.
1 comment:
i love it...you are a wonderful writer! keep the post coming!
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