It is a dismal to wake up feeling as sick as you felt when you went to bed. Still NQR! Thankful we are not travelling today but a little frustrated not to be exploring. Another pleasant spring day outside but icy inside with all the marble tiling which is perfect for summer.
The kids are still battling trying to complete the compulsory Launch Pad project for their distance education as the internet speed is intermittent and never great. I really feel for them as they really want to submit their work and show that they are reliable. They have both always handed in work on time and want to give their new teachers a good first impression.
My biggest challenge is Luke who is full of excuses not to do his work. I thought the day was going to start well as he initiated a word search in the good old Woolworths Animal Album and we looked through a few other puzzles. But when I wanted to take charge, the resistance began. In my current state of health, I found it even harder to keep physically bringing him back to the table. He has learned so much on our journey that he would never learn in the confines of school walls BUT the basics of writing and spelling are really important. I want to video him so others can believe the spectacular struggle I have.
After he had finished the set work, I suggested we go to the lovely little park across the road with the animal album and have a look through that. We had a lovely time chatting and discussing and reading some of the jokes. That was about all the energy I had!
His shenanigans started up the moment we were inside again so it is hard to help the older kids because he leaps on them and bothers them. No icy pole or IPod for Luke today.
By mid-afternoon we were chomping at the bit to have some outdoor time and fresh air. Karl had noticed the Lotus Temple was quite close so all of us, except Tim, trekked down to the Metro for the quick trip.
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| The Lotus Temple |
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| Hand stand opportunnity |
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| Lotus Pool - one of 9 |
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| Surrounding community |
The Lotus Temple, completed in 1986, is a huge Baha'i Temple. It reminded me of the Sydney Opera House and is quite beautiful architecturally. It has 9 clean blue ponds around the structure. We saw a photograph of an aerial view of the lotus and ponds and it was amazing, probably more of a visual impact than from the ground. There were a surprising number of tourists there and the security check - in and shoe taking off routine are now familiar to us. And that was our tourist item of the day and enough for us all.
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| Dahlias and trees undressed for winter.in Lotus Temple grounds. |
We discovered our first supermarket in India near the Kalkaji Mandir Metro station. We could resist a peek! It was like a mini Costco with hardly any people and large aisles. The prices were good. I bought some halwa mix for dinner as I had so enjoyed it at Jaipur. It is a blend of ground legumes and nuts with a bit ghee and some spice and some sweetener of sorts. My tummy was feeling like "baby food"! We bought some other supplies and yet some more from our local street carts when we neared our apartment.
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| The first supermarket-like venue we have spotted in India! |
I was feeling so weak after being sick, that Annika and I decided today should be the day for a rickshaw ride. The rider said he knew where to drop us for 30 Rupee. Luke , Annika and I squeezed on the rickshaw which was more rickety than I'd imagined and went through every pothole but worst of all was the poor rider had to stand off his seat for nearly the entire ride. He dropped us off at a central area after haring down a one way street and we hopped out happy to walk the short distance home. I still have mixed feelings about riding in a rickshaw as you feel like you are making another human being work for you and it seems unfair. Yet, there are many riders who hang around eager for work and jostling for customers. It is their job and livelihood.
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| Rickshaw rider... |
Luke went to bed without a fuss tonight and that is worth praising and remarking and giving thanks for! I am trying to understand his resistance to comply which takes up so much time and energy. I think night time settling issues are partly due to anxiety and partly to habit and partly to sheer willfulness. But tonight was peaceful! Yeah!
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