Chandigarh: Day 2

Dr. J sent a car for me! A car! It was like a miracle. I had gotten to the botany department very early, and made friends with the security guard and janitor, and sat and learned how to count to fifteen, finally. I mean, in Hindi, obviously. But by 10, as I was writing a note to Dr. J that I’d be late to the appointment because I hadn’t realized when “office hours” started, she called to say she’d sent the car my way. So I hied myself back to the hostel and waited.

And it was awesome! Pure white, outside and in, with white curtains that kept it cool. Even white curtains covering the whole back window (another traffic observation is back windows are completely unnecessary here, as the term “cut someone off” would have no meaning whatsoever, given the driving habits).

Dr. J was amazingly helpful, giving me several reports, in hardcopy, that were chock full of information I could use. About the state of the environment in Punjab. I was there a few hours, and while I didn’t do an interview, I think I got the most information in a two hour stint a I have from anyone so far. She then sent me back in the car as well. I didn’t know if I should tip the driver. I hate how sometimes tipping is offensive, and sometimes not tipping is offensive. Not just in India, where I don’t know the cultural rules, but in the U.S. too. I hate having to tip in person. Andy and I have discussed this.

But anyway, he dropped me off at the botany lab, where I met a student in the computer lab, who was doing her PhD with the hydrologist I was set to meet later that afternoon. So I went in and got an early meeting with her. She agreed to be filmed, and we did a very short interview, though I’m concerned about the file because of my computer not working. I can’t get it onto my jump drive either, probably because of the computers here in the lab.

Then I went over to speak with someone in the geology department. His office was filled with rocks, on shelves. To my untrained eye, they all looked exactly the same, but you wouldn’t put hundreds of the same rock on a shelf, would you? Anyway, he’s more of a surface water expert while Dr. Rishi is more of a groundwater expert (hence her short, though helpful, interview). We made an appointment to meet tomorrow. He was late for lunch.

After lunch, I spent hours writing and sending letters of request for data. I’m always shocked at how long that process takes. Writing, reading, attaching all the pertinent documents, not to mention that I’m still often having to track down the contact information for whomever I’m writing to. I know I’ve written many of these requests already, but have received no response. Without my “planner” from my computer, I’m kind of lost a to what I already have and haven’t done.

Now it’s almost 6, and I’ve been in the computer lab almost 4 hours, doing almost all work stuff, despite my 14 personal emails (several just short one, worried about the bombing).

I’ll have lots of time tonight to peruse those reports. Or maybe not peruse, since peruse actually mean to go through with a fine-tooth comb, and they are rather long and detailed reports. But you know what I mean—the colloquial “peruse.”

After all my letter-writing today, I’m tempted to sign off…

Sincerely,
Sarah C Dickerson