Well I'm in the far south today about a mile inland from the Bay of Bengal. We flew down on the MAF float plane this morning. What struck me as we flew over the Bangladeshi countryside is not just how flat it is but even though its not the rainy season just how wet everything is.
But this is what makes MAF unique in Bangladesh is the ability to use that network of waterways to help those who would otherwise be completely isolated. And landing on the water was so smooth!
From the plane we were taken a short distance along the river by a very rickety boat [not sure what was holding the boat together?!] to the jetty and then by motorbike to the first project.
I feel that I'm fast becoming an experienced motorbike rider [but only side-saddle though!]
In fact that was very much the pattern of today visiting one project after another by motorbike. The idea was to show us just how hard it is to travel overland. It worked! The 'roads are pot-holed dirt tracks and in one place the road disappeared so we had to carry the bikes across the gap!
By the end of today I was hot, tired, dirty, and had the obligatory headache! So just in case anyone was in any doubt, MAF is much quicker and less tiring and stressful - definately a 'must' way to travel for our partners.
But today has been amazing. There's so much going on all around all the time, that its very difficult to take in and describe - all the different sights and sounds, the bright colours - oh and smells too, a heady mixture of rotting rubbish and smoke from fires and cooking!
The poverty is extreme - think I only saw one properly constructed home in the whole day. The 'houses' were mainly tin shacks with blue and white plastic sheeting for windows.
I've seen and experienced a whole raft of emotions today - but much of it laughter. From the joy of those waiting on the river bank to see the MAF plane land, to school children who'd prepared a special song for us - I've seen so many smiling faces today - its truely humbling.
Friday 18 November 2011
Friday is the equivalent of our Sunday in Bangladesh. So, this morning I went to church with Chad and Cyndi Tilley. The service is held at the American club - which sounds very grand, but essentially the clubs are a haven for expat staff living and working in Bangladesh. Its such a harsh country to be working in and there is nowhere for children to play outside in Dhaka as everyone lives in apartment blocks with no gardens. The clubs offer a little respite from every day life and provide somewhere safe for children to run around outside and burn off their excess energy.
Having spent the morning in the American club, any doubts I had about the realities of life for Bangladeshi's were brought swiftly down to earth this afternoon. I was taken on a tour of Dhaka to see the contrasts - but on a motorbike! And for those of you who may have thought I wasn't adventurous - let me dispel that myth now - as not only was I riding a motorbike (as a passenger), but side-saddle too (its the lady-like way to ride a motorbike)!
In all seriousness its a good way to see 'life' more closely! We rode through a 'settlement'. Falling down shacks, rotting rubbish, children sifting through piles of rubbish, small children collecting tin cans, mums and their tiny babies sitting on slatted boards which run across drainage ditches (at least I think its a drainage ditch - but it could very well have been something else!). Everything's so dirty and smelly, and the air is just thick with pollution.
Five minutes down the road and we rode straight into the garment workers rally - they're on strike at the moment over their working conditions. There was a big rally in Dhaka today and people were parading down the street with banners - much as they do in the UK, except it was a peaceful rally!!
Another five minutes down the road and we rode past the Bangladeshi premier's residence. The white stone wall, perfectly manicured green lawn, lead up to a magnificent building which you could just about make out in the distance. But even in the shadow of such buildings, there were make-shift tin shacks and I saw several people carrying handfuls of dead chickens!
It just brought home again the difference between the have's and have-not's. But I remember so well that the one thing I took home from my last trip was how those with so very little were so happy - its the one thing that stopped me from crying. And I will take the same sentiment away with me this time too - people smiling - greeting me with happy faces. Happy to try and share their limited knowledge of English, putting to shame my complete ignorance of Bangle!
As I reflect on today, I just need to go and check on my new found friend the gecko - who seems to be frequenting my bathroom!! It was a bit of a shock to find this creature in there just now, but as I gather they eat mosquito's I'm quite happy - and if it could tackle the cockroaches too then I'd be very pleased!!
Having spent the morning in the American club, any doubts I had about the realities of life for Bangladeshi's were brought swiftly down to earth this afternoon. I was taken on a tour of Dhaka to see the contrasts - but on a motorbike! And for those of you who may have thought I wasn't adventurous - let me dispel that myth now - as not only was I riding a motorbike (as a passenger), but side-saddle too (its the lady-like way to ride a motorbike)!
In all seriousness its a good way to see 'life' more closely! We rode through a 'settlement'. Falling down shacks, rotting rubbish, children sifting through piles of rubbish, small children collecting tin cans, mums and their tiny babies sitting on slatted boards which run across drainage ditches (at least I think its a drainage ditch - but it could very well have been something else!). Everything's so dirty and smelly, and the air is just thick with pollution.
Five minutes down the road and we rode straight into the garment workers rally - they're on strike at the moment over their working conditions. There was a big rally in Dhaka today and people were parading down the street with banners - much as they do in the UK, except it was a peaceful rally!!
Another five minutes down the road and we rode past the Bangladeshi premier's residence. The white stone wall, perfectly manicured green lawn, lead up to a magnificent building which you could just about make out in the distance. But even in the shadow of such buildings, there were make-shift tin shacks and I saw several people carrying handfuls of dead chickens!
It just brought home again the difference between the have's and have-not's. But I remember so well that the one thing I took home from my last trip was how those with so very little were so happy - its the one thing that stopped me from crying. And I will take the same sentiment away with me this time too - people smiling - greeting me with happy faces. Happy to try and share their limited knowledge of English, putting to shame my complete ignorance of Bangle!
As I reflect on today, I just need to go and check on my new found friend the gecko - who seems to be frequenting my bathroom!! It was a bit of a shock to find this creature in there just now, but as I gather they eat mosquito's I'm quite happy - and if it could tackle the cockroaches too then I'd be very pleased!!
Thursday 17 November 2011
This is definitely the country of very stark contrasts. Walking home last night I walked down a road half of which was completely adorned in beautiful gold lights. The lights were strung across the road forming a very long canopy, and then from top to bottom of a six storey apartment block - it was absolutely stunning. Gold coloured drapes, with gorgeous bouquets of white flowers, had been fitted to the entrance gate to the apartment block. It was utterly stunning. At first I though Christmas had come somewhat early, until I found out that this was a wedding!
This was clearly the wedding of people who had money - from the number of expensive, unbattered (very unusual here) cars parked outside, the guests in their beautiful wedding finery, and, of course, the number of lights adorning the road and building. The electricity bill alone must cost a small fortune!
Contrast this with the rick-shaw drivers, with their battered rick-shaws, which have seen better days and their ragged dirty clothing, and warn faces which tell their own story of poverty and hardship. I know many come from the slums of Dhaka where they live in a cramped one-roomed tin shack, no running water, where raw sewage runs openly straight in front of the doorways of the shacks, where the stench is truly appalling, where disease is rife, and where child mortality is high and life expectancy low.
Makes you think...
This was clearly the wedding of people who had money - from the number of expensive, unbattered (very unusual here) cars parked outside, the guests in their beautiful wedding finery, and, of course, the number of lights adorning the road and building. The electricity bill alone must cost a small fortune!
Contrast this with the rick-shaw drivers, with their battered rick-shaws, which have seen better days and their ragged dirty clothing, and warn faces which tell their own story of poverty and hardship. I know many come from the slums of Dhaka where they live in a cramped one-roomed tin shack, no running water, where raw sewage runs openly straight in front of the doorways of the shacks, where the stench is truly appalling, where disease is rife, and where child mortality is high and life expectancy low.
Makes you think...
Wednesday 16 November 2011
Today I visited the MAF hangar, which is on the edge of Dhaka International airport. On the way to the hangar, we got stuck in a traffic jam - the level crossing barriers were down, and we were waiting for the train to pass through.
Interestingly, the railway line is completely open and anyone can just walk across it - the only place where there is a barrier is across the road which crosses the line. Health and safety issues are definitely not a priority here!
As we were waiting for the train to pass through, I watched the throngs of people milling about - some selling their meagre wares on the pavements, others just seemingly wandering about aimlessly. Amongst these, I spotted a small girl maybe aged about 3 or 4 and a boy, who I suspect was her brother, maybe aged about 6 or 7. They seemed to be on their own. The children were shabbily dressed, with no shoes, but the little girl stood out in particular in her bright pink (but dirty) outfit and her shaven head. Seeing girls with their heads shaven is not an uncommon site in Bangladesh - I understand it has something to do with head lice! These two children were standing on their own, side by side, on the edge of the railway line amongst the piles of rotting rubbish, but with their arms around each other - it just felt so poignant.
The train slowly rolled out of the station - the seemingly endless line of carriages were literally full to capacity, with people standing inside and in the open doorways, hanging out of the side. There were people on the top of every single carriage, either sitting or even lying down, together with their piles of belongings in big what sacks. There were even some people sitting on the tiny ledges on the side of the engine!
Once we eventually crossed the railway line, I suddenly became very aware of the air pollution, even though I was inside a car with the windows closed. The fumes from the traffic were clearly visible outside and it is not unusual to see people wearing masks over their noses and mouths.
On the entrance road to the hangar there were some people repairing the road. All building and road work is very labour intensive and is done by both men and women. I saw one lady carrying what looked like a very large container of cement on her head. She had wrapped a piece of cloth around the top of her head, which gave her a sort of level ‘platform’ on which to place the container.
There has been some building since I last visited the MAF hangar - with 3 new hangars being built adjacent to MAF. These hangars are owned by private individuals/businesses, and in one of them they were even repairing some Bangladeshi army aircraft. Despite the fact that the airfield is secure ie there are security guards at all the entrances to the airport and you need special permission from the Bangladeshi authorities to go to the hangar (which I had!), it did strike me as odd that at an international airport, you could have army aircraft being openly repaired, soldiers wandering about, Bangladeshi airforce planes taking off regularly from the same airstrip, international flights coming and going regularly, and people wandering about the airfield shooting birds! I might add that the birds are a nuisance in this instance - I saw hundreds upon hundreds of birds, which, of course, are a very real danger to aircraft. But where else in the world would this happen...?
We've lost the electricity several times in Dhaka today - so I'm posting this now just in case we lose it again!!
- Carolyn
Interestingly, the railway line is completely open and anyone can just walk across it - the only place where there is a barrier is across the road which crosses the line. Health and safety issues are definitely not a priority here!
As we were waiting for the train to pass through, I watched the throngs of people milling about - some selling their meagre wares on the pavements, others just seemingly wandering about aimlessly. Amongst these, I spotted a small girl maybe aged about 3 or 4 and a boy, who I suspect was her brother, maybe aged about 6 or 7. They seemed to be on their own. The children were shabbily dressed, with no shoes, but the little girl stood out in particular in her bright pink (but dirty) outfit and her shaven head. Seeing girls with their heads shaven is not an uncommon site in Bangladesh - I understand it has something to do with head lice! These two children were standing on their own, side by side, on the edge of the railway line amongst the piles of rotting rubbish, but with their arms around each other - it just felt so poignant.
The train slowly rolled out of the station - the seemingly endless line of carriages were literally full to capacity, with people standing inside and in the open doorways, hanging out of the side. There were people on the top of every single carriage, either sitting or even lying down, together with their piles of belongings in big what sacks. There were even some people sitting on the tiny ledges on the side of the engine!
Once we eventually crossed the railway line, I suddenly became very aware of the air pollution, even though I was inside a car with the windows closed. The fumes from the traffic were clearly visible outside and it is not unusual to see people wearing masks over their noses and mouths.
On the entrance road to the hangar there were some people repairing the road. All building and road work is very labour intensive and is done by both men and women. I saw one lady carrying what looked like a very large container of cement on her head. She had wrapped a piece of cloth around the top of her head, which gave her a sort of level ‘platform’ on which to place the container.
There has been some building since I last visited the MAF hangar - with 3 new hangars being built adjacent to MAF. These hangars are owned by private individuals/businesses, and in one of them they were even repairing some Bangladeshi army aircraft. Despite the fact that the airfield is secure ie there are security guards at all the entrances to the airport and you need special permission from the Bangladeshi authorities to go to the hangar (which I had!), it did strike me as odd that at an international airport, you could have army aircraft being openly repaired, soldiers wandering about, Bangladeshi airforce planes taking off regularly from the same airstrip, international flights coming and going regularly, and people wandering about the airfield shooting birds! I might add that the birds are a nuisance in this instance - I saw hundreds upon hundreds of birds, which, of course, are a very real danger to aircraft. But where else in the world would this happen...?
We've lost the electricity several times in Dhaka today - so I'm posting this now just in case we lose it again!!
- Carolyn
Tuesday 15 November 2011
Today I'm based in the MAF office in Dhaka working on a couple of projects and gathering information. We had a meeting this morning which went very well - it was good to be able to share information and ideas face-to-face and understand more fully the work of the MAF programme.
Working in the this particular area of Dhaka does cushion you a little from the difficulties, poverty and challenges facing the majority of those living in Bangladesh.
And so, at lunchtime, it was somewhat of a reality check to take a ride in a rick-shaw - its quite an apt name as they look very rickety, although in reality they're very robust to survive the huge potholes! They're quite an experience in their own right - the seats are very narrow and I held on tight as I kept thinking I was going to fall out every time we hit a pot hole!
Within a couple of minutes we're in a different district and the relatively clean streets turn to pavements covered with piles of rubble and rotting rubbish. There's young children in dirty clothing and no shoes standing on street corners - just inches away from the traffic.
There are many half-finished building projects - grey concrete buildings which are several storeys high, but the buildings have no sides - no protection from the elements ie they're just empty shells with no running water, sanitation etc. But, people are living in them, they have made them 'home'.
So many people have so little, and as I buy my sandwich for lunch (something I take for granted), I can't help but feel so guilty as I wonder how many of the people I've passed today will be able to have a proper meal today, let alone lunch?
Working in the this particular area of Dhaka does cushion you a little from the difficulties, poverty and challenges facing the majority of those living in Bangladesh.
And so, at lunchtime, it was somewhat of a reality check to take a ride in a rick-shaw - its quite an apt name as they look very rickety, although in reality they're very robust to survive the huge potholes! They're quite an experience in their own right - the seats are very narrow and I held on tight as I kept thinking I was going to fall out every time we hit a pot hole!
Within a couple of minutes we're in a different district and the relatively clean streets turn to pavements covered with piles of rubble and rotting rubbish. There's young children in dirty clothing and no shoes standing on street corners - just inches away from the traffic.
There are many half-finished building projects - grey concrete buildings which are several storeys high, but the buildings have no sides - no protection from the elements ie they're just empty shells with no running water, sanitation etc. But, people are living in them, they have made them 'home'.
So many people have so little, and as I buy my sandwich for lunch (something I take for granted), I can't help but feel so guilty as I wonder how many of the people I've passed today will be able to have a proper meal today, let alone lunch?
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