Blog

The biggest surprise of my time in India has been how smoothly the fieldwork has gone (at least, schedule-wise). I started the trip mildly stressed that the four and a half months was irresponsibly short and would not allow for any free time or any delayed meetings. Instead, I basically have needed none of the … Continue reading Indelhible Memories from the North

To celebrate the end of the most grueling portion of my data collection in India (the community-based fieldwork), I stopped for a couple of days in Kerala to fulfill a promise to myself that I wouldn’t leave India again without seeing the backwaters in Kerala. I exchanged the dusty roads and blistering sun of Tamil … Continue reading Over the Munnar about Kerala

Sometimes it seems as though everything in India becomes ancient the moment it steps into the sun. Worn, leathery skin ages women decades beyond their years. Paved roads take unbearable beatings daily and look more like people drive sledgehammers instead of autos and motorbikes. I’m always astounded by the number of abandoned skeletons of apartment … Continue reading Insane-itation

After my Sri Lankan spring break, I slowly made my way back down the east coast of Tamil Nadu for a series of meetings and follow up interviews with NGOs that implemented the projects I’ve been studying over the past several weeks. I first stopped for a night in Mahabalipuram, a quiet town off the … Continue reading Watch out for the second mongoose.

Basically all of the pictures in this blog post are taken by my sister, Grace, unless they're cows or selftakes. #neverselfie Highlights of the week include: eating mutton only to realize halfway through that it smelled exactly like stagnating drainage water, eating a sweet only to realize that its taste reminded me of the lemur … Continue reading We all concurry, go to Sri Lanka in a hurry.

Two weeks ago, our work moved farther south. My intern calls me "his guide", which really is a complete joke because he does all of the phone calls and arranging site visits and figuring out local buses and I'm just along for the ride. Anyway, this week, we switched roles and he became the guide, … Continue reading Haven’t you missed the cows in India???

My intern has gotten to know me well, after spending time with me constantly for the past two-plus months. He now just orders an endless stream of fish for me at meals without even asking. He expresses deep concern when we sit down to a meal and find out they only serve veg options. I … Continue reading Not Just Brains & Prawn.

I took a mini-vacation over a long weekend to meet my Eawag friends in Hyderabad, the city in Telangana where my friend Rohit went to college. I’ve been hearing about this city ever since I met Rohit, so expectations were high, but his perfectly planned weekend exceeded everything I had hoped for. We all arrived … Continue reading Hyderabadi Biriyani Tour 2017: World Famous Clocks, Camels, and Food.

I was woken up this week with a notice on my phone from my weather app: “clouds are clearing today in Bangalore, Allie. Enjoy the sunshine!” Google clearly has not collected enough metadata on me to know that sunshine and my skin aren’t friendly. When I spent a day as a tourist in Mysore, people … Continue reading If you need to reach me, I’m at the beach.