Today's class was pretty interesting, as we learned about oral health issues plaguing the area. Basically, I learned that the dentist to population served ratio here is upwards of 1:200,000. Clearly this paucity of dental health providers has far-reaching health implications... We also received our first "skills lab," in which we were trained to distinguish between normal and abnormal oral health. Unfortunately, my partner for the day, Nancy, had to put up with my mean case of the giggles in order to practice her oral health examination skills.
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| Practicing the art of masking during class. (Thanks to Ramesh for the pic.) |
Tonight, some of us students were lucky enough to visit the Big Temple here in Thanjavur, with a guided tour set up by Ravi (our co-instructor). It was absolutely incredible. Not only did we get to enjoy the amazing architecture (which apparently took only 6 years to build), but we all got to go "behind the scenes" to be blessed by priests and even an elephant. In addition to being marked with red and white powders, we also received jasmine flowers. Interestingly, the priests put these flowers around the necks of the men in our group, but not the women, as presenting women with such flowers around the neck is a part of a marriage ceremony here in India. Just a fun fact for you all! :) The whole tour was such a beautiful and incredible experience.
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| I think the weirdest part of this experience was feeling her exhale on my head. That, and the ol' slobber on my scalp after the blessing. Delicious. |
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| Me and the roomie (Megan). Not the most flattering picture, but what do you expect when a boy takes it?!? Plus, it's the only proof I have of our "blessings." |
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| The Big Temple |
And, as always, our group became a tourist attraction, with people posing in front of us for pictures and even asking us to take their pictures for our own cameras. Though some of that is still a bit strange, I definitely appreciate all of the young children, especially the little girls, who get so excited to welcome us to their country and inquire about our names. It's just too cute!
Well folks, that's all for tonight. I should head to bed, as tomorrow is a full day of GI-focused class, sari fitting, and Megan's birthday celebrations!
Until later,
e
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