Dreaming in Dhaka

August 22, 2010

Dear ones,

I am fascinated by so much in Bangladesh that it is sometimes overwhelming.  It was amazing to me how quickly I started dreaming about the people here and even their speech.  I thought the stuff of dreams happened over years of time, but I guess not.  The rhythm and sounds of so many languages just drift through my head all the time.  Bangla is the language spoken here.  People greet you with words that mean, "Peace be with you."  I have found that something like a salute makes people respond with a warm smile and a kind of glow that I have never seen before.

I am going to send a picture that shows the construction workers that labor daily right outside my office window at home.  First, load upon load of concrete is carried in baskets on the heads of young men as they walk up stairs balancing their loads and finally dump the wet, heavy contents onto the "floor" of the level of the apartment they are building.  The picture shows the way heavy loads are carried by foot on the ground.  They do all this in the blasting heat and humidity that make me whine.

I love you all and miss home,
Karen