New Home, Market Adventure, & Shanti Dan

Hello All! As I wrote before, I'm back to life in the city. The one differance is that my friend Grace and I have moved to a new hotel. I'm now staying at the Afridi International Guesthouse which is a hotel intended for longterm volunteers. Our room is really amazing because it has really high ceilings with four gigantic windows that allow great airflow ( a must in this climate!). It is still a simple room with chipping pink walls and a couple of dusty desks, but the natural light and high ceilings make it feel like heaven. Grace has hung some paper lanterns that she got in Nepal and of course they are mixed in with our clotheslines which are consistently adorned with drying laundry. In the evening, we light candles that we purchased at the market and enjoy the cool breezes as we read, write, stretch, and listen to the sounds of the city as it begins to slow its frantic pace. I try to get to bed somewhat early because every morning I'm awoken to the sound of the Muslim call to prayer that resonates throughout the city at 4:30 AM!
The other perk about our new hotel, is that it has a kitchen! By a kitchen, I mean a small fridge and two burners with a few random pots and cooking utensils. However simple, I was ecstatic about the idea of cooking and set off for New Market. I weaved my way through the maze of the market and came away with items such as curry, almonds, darjeeling tea, whole wheat pasta (a miracle to find!), lentils, garbanzo beans, bell peppers, zucchini, garlic, ginger, carrots, onions, potatoes, apples, bananas, etc.! My cooking extravaganza starts tonight and I'm really excited about using the curry....it smells AMAZING! Along the way, I stopped and chatted with many of the shop owners. One man was telling me that this market has been in existance for 100 years. He said that his shop began with his grandfather and has been passed from generation to generation ever since. His son will take over the shop after him. He was very friendly and told me all about the upcoming festivals, the pace of life in India, and the people he's met over the years. When I told him I was from the United States, he questioned me saying, "Both your father and mother were born there?" When I said "yes", he explained that he was really surprised that I was from the U.S. because to him I looked Swedish! What???!! As funny as that sounds, this sort of thing happens to me all the time here. Just the other day, a doctor I met from Japan asked me where I was from and she was shocked to hear that I was from the U.S. She said that she assumed I was from France or Spain! :)
On another note, returning to work with the women at Shanti Dan has been incredible. My first day back after my trip to Nepal, many of the women that I've been building relationships with came up to me with huge smiles and warm greetings. Veronica, a beautiful old woman who I've spent much time sitting with, took my head in her hands and kissed both of my cheeks and forehead. She also sang a beautiful song in Hindi to me. Louise, a sweet and genuine woman just a few years older than I, said, "Rachel, you're back!" and insisted that I sit with her while she filled me in on the past week's events. We've been teaching each other songs and dancing when a catchy tune comes on the radio. One of the women's favorite Hindi songs has the booming chorus, "I am a disco dancer!" It's really hilarious! To be honest, though, it's a blast to dance to! :) Needless to say, I'm loving the work I'm doing here and will be sad when I have to say goodbye to these precious women. I don't have to think about that quite yet, though. Right now, I'm trying to focus on soaking up as much of Kolkata as possible until my journey takes me elsewhere....