Dhaka: Flat B-3

It's been too long since I've written. I guess I haven't quite known how to condense this experience into digestible information, and I've been intimidated about this whole notion of a blog. So for the sole purpose of keeping everyone in the loop, I write to give you a snapshot of my life here.

I've been here in Dhaka for two weeks now. On paper, everything is settled and routine. I live in an amazing apartment:

This is a shot of the living room and the main balcony. It also includes a kitchen, dining room, 3 bedroom and 3 bathrooms. In addition we have wireless and even laundry service! The best part is our daily home cooked Bengali lunch, which is prepared by Saramjohn, an amazing chef who adorns our table with curries, dal, and pulao. Every day is a feast! This high class living was not the way I expected to be living in a country like Bangladesh. The great accommodations have been a nice way to transition into life here. It provides a welcome haven from the dirty, crowded, and judging streets. On the other, it creates a false sense of reality that sends me into a mild culture chock every time I step out my door.

I've also started my Bengali Language Class. I'm in class from 9am-1pm every day and then spend at least a few additional hours studying on my own time. I'm really impressed by how much I am already learning. In one week I've started reading and writing in Bangla script and I've relearned my basic conversational Bangla. It's pretty impressive how fast they move here. It also helps that I have a strong incentive to learn the language. Bangla is very essential here in Dhaka. It's nearly impossible to get around without it. When I lived in Kolkata, many people spoke English. Indians from other states and ex pats alike use it get around. Here, English is really only spoken by the upper class but for merchants, richshaw wallas and most people I interact with in a day, Bangla is their main language of discourse.

Another incentive to learn Bangla is the freedom it will give me. Bangladesh is by far the most conservative country I've lived in. It doesn't smell, look, or feel all that different from Kolkata, but the expectations about women and the crime rate are different here. Muggings dramatically increase at night fall (around 6pm) which confines me to the house unless I have a friend with a car for transport. The modesty and protectiveness of women is palpable. It would be very rude of me to leave the house in any shirt shorter than a tunic, long pants and usually a scarf (called an orna) so I generally stick to salwaar kameez, which has meant I have needed an entire new wardrobe!

 Here is my roommate, Olinda, and I in full salwaar kameez 

(we don't usually wear the scarf over our heads, that was for purely practical protection from a rainy day). 

The Embassy has encouraged all of us, but especially women, to not go outside alone, but I'm getting increasingly fed up with trying to stick to this rule.For now though, it's easiest to stay close to Olinda who speaks proficient Bangla. Knowing the language will really impact my freedom of mobility here which is already limited by night fall and my womanhood.

Additionally, every day invariably exposes a new example of gender discrimination, from authority figures being scared to reprimand the boys as much as the girls, to having to deal with incessant protectionism lectures, to discovering the curtain rod in our dining room is installed for separating the sexes within the home. While it's frustrating for me as a western woman, I also understand that I am still far from understanding this culture and I'm navigating a line in my thoughts between frustration and judgment. 

So while everything is in order on paper, I'm still finding myself adjusting. I get frustrated, and claustrophobic from my lack of independence and some days I'm just plain old homesick, mostly for Shire Village - which I recognize I would miss no matter where I was in the world. These first 2 weeks have come with challenges I didn't expect: navigating new relationships with the 6 other American Fulbrighters I live with, terrible and persistent traffic jams, the struggle of purchasing a new wardrobe and getting used to new clothes, and its been lacking of many of the usual challenges people expect you to encounter when you move to the third world: poverty, and poor living conditions. But it's only the first 2 weeks of 52 and I'm mostly just excited to see what happens next!

I've also finally sufficiently explored mailing options and have discovered the following:
Letters, things under 2lbs:
Laule'a Gorden-Kuehn, Fulbright
U.S. Embassy Dhaka
6120 Dhaka PL
Department of State
Washington D.C. 20521-6120
(only needs enough postage to get to this address)

Over 2lbs: must be sent through FedEx
Laule'a Gorden-Kuehn
66 Park Road, Flat B-3
Baridhara Dhaka 1212

It's also fairly easy for me to send mail. If you give me your address, I promise to write!

If you prefer to skype:
laulea.gk
I'm usually able to talk between 8am and 12pm(EST) or between 9:30pm-11pm(EST). Give me a date and time and I can be probably be there.