India: Day 15: Emerging from Sickness

After a whole day of Delhi Belly II, which followed the whole day of heat exhaustion, I finally ventured out to get some Internet and just be with the real world.

Before that happened Jennifer convinced me to see a doctor. Delhi Belly II was worse than the first one in that the symptoms were more serious and lasting, though I didn't feel nausea. The doctor came some three hours later, typical. He spoke English, but the "Indian English" that I still don't quite get and that often I needed Jennifer's translation. I don't like to seem uncomprehending, fearing that I would insult a doctor who is well-respected in Indian society. In the end he gave me a prescription which one of the workers in the hotel was sent to fill. The doctor seemed nice, didn't do more than what an American doctor would, but not less either. He scared me a little when he said that he would give me "injections" if I don't improve in a few days. I hate needles in general, and worse in India because I've heard that they recycle their needles!

It was strange to have a doctor see me. It seems both traditional and upper-class. In the old days the doctor came to you, on a call; and in the US, only the rich can afford to have a doctor come see you. All this for 400 rupees, or $8.00. The medicine was 73 ruppees, which was $1.40, probably a tenth of what it would cost in the US. To be fair, 73 rupees is about a daily earning of many people I see on the street. The man who went to get the prescription filled for me came back all sweating. When we were expecting change from him after handing him a 100-rupee bill, his face became sad and told us the pharmacy was far away, and his dripping sweat corroborated with his claim. Poor man; we let him keep the change.

How much is a dollar? That's 50 rupees....

After taking the medicine, I've decided that enough was enough and I had to go out. Twenty-four hours cooped up in this hotel was too much for me. Don't get me wrong; this is probably the best hotel we've stayed at in terms of price, location, and cleanliness. Yes, there are quirks like the single working light that turns off and then flickers whenever a surge in power happens. (And oh, here in Lucknow power goes out of the neighborhood at least once a day but hotels generally have an external generator.) The service is great; people actually come clean the place without us telling them, the food actually comes within 30 minutes, and yes, the food is great! Even Jennifer, the restaurant food hater, loves the food. The problem with most restaurant food here, and worse hotel food, is that it's really greasy, tasteless, and ingredients not too fresh. The best food is home-made food. Hopefully by tomorrow we will have an apartment and can hire a cook. Still, this hotel is great. Despite the lack of English skills here, it's friendly and cozy. Nevertheless, I didn't want to be cooped up here for much longer.

It was also my first time on foot since arriving in Lucknow. It's a much better experience than seeing things from inside a car or rickshaw. Things are more slow for me to observe. We were looking for fruits to buy. I was surprised to find lychees! And they are called lychees! I thought you only find that in China (I didn't even see them in Thailand). And they are the juiciest lychees! We also got mangos and coconuts. It was fun talking to the fruit-wallah and trying to understand the numbers. Learning them is hard, hearing them is even harder! And Hindi numbers don't make sense! No real patterns!

We also found a dingy dim little Internet cafe that let me plug in my laptop. For half an hour it was only 10 rupees! That's $0.20! At this fancy telecom store called Reliance it cost me 115 rupees for one hour! There are so many strata in Indian society. You can really spend very little or crazy amount even in the poor state capital of Lucknow. I am just happy that i feel more energetic, more hopeful about India. I hope from now on I can enjoy India more. I am up for the challenge of the different culture, the different foods, the different environment, but I realized I was unprepared for my own body, how it reacts to the heat, to the food, to the sanitary conditions. It's been a tough fight with my body, and in the end, I should have loved my body more, not fight it.