Finally!

Finally, someone from outside my "med" world has visited me in Brisbane! My very good friend, Stephanie, came for a week and we had a blast! I've know Stephanie ever since I got back from doing an exchange at the University of Malta. We bonded over quite quickly and it seems as if we have been friends for ages.

S0, Stephanie came to Brisbane to start off her one month sojourn of Australia. Even though my midyear exam is only a few weeks away, I thought that I 'needed' another mini holiday in order to give the appropriate attention to Steph and also to recharge myself.

We did a number of things in the shortwhile that she was here. The first day she arrived, both her and I went to Mount Coot-tha (which in one of the Aboriginal languages means "place of honey"), which the highest point in Brisbane and you can see over the city and, if you are lucky, the islands off the coast.

The next day, we went to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, which is one of the few places left in Australia that you can actually hold a koala. However you have to pay to get your photo taken with it and the time that it takes for one of the handlers to place the koala in your hand and then position it so that its face is facing the camera. CLICK. Koala goes back to the handler. Apparently, they don't like to be handled. Go figure.

And they are very cute. We saw so many of them - bachelors, breeding females, year olds, and those that were suited for retirement.
















We also saw other Australian animals such as kangaroos, wallabies and, our favourite, the southern hairy-nosed wombat.

































Steph and I also took a trip down to Byron Bay, which is considered of on the quintessential beaches in Australia. Not only that but it is the most easterly point on the Australian mainland. We stayed in one of the many backpacker's hostels and had a great time! We both concluded that Byron Bay was the Australian equivalent of Banff, Canada. It seemed like a hippy-esque/new age sort of place with a huge kick of surfing subculture. There were tourists everywhere; I reckon that if I were living there, I would get sick of things real fast.

My friend Lou gave us some great suggestions for eating and hiking down there. We went hiking in Broken Head Nature Reserve, which was absolutely breathtaking! Here's what I mean:





This is White's Beach. Steph and I climbed down some pretty steep terrain in the hopes of making it there. Alas, there was a large chasm between the rocks separating this beach and Craig's Beach, which was were we ended up.


























































This was taken at Craig's Beach. Here's a photo of our shadows. And in the sand I wrote, "Steph & Veevek, Broken Head '06"

















This is Mile Beach, and if you can imagine that White Beach is really really far down. Follow the beach towards to the back of the photo. Where the land stops, White Beach is right behind that point.












This is the most easterly point on mainland Australia.











The next morning, Steph and I got up at 5:30am (and it was cold as!) to go down to the beach and watch the sun rise. It was absolutely fantastic! Not only that, but we were able to see dolphins as well. It ws the perfect wasy to finish off the trip. We stayed in Byron till about noonish and headed back up to Brisbane via the Gold Coast. Spending good quality time with friends on the beach is a great thing!


I just hope that from seeing this, some other friends, hint hint, will want to come down. :)

Some more photos from New York

So, I've been collating photos from friends who have captured photos that I wished that I had taken. Here you go:

This is a photo in the main foyer of the UN, once you've cleared security and gone inside the building. These stairs lead up to the General Assembly Main Hall. Apparently, this art work is something that will be put around the around. Meaning that this is the very beginning of the design and this design will travel (on rocks, bridges, and other things) around the world and it will be as if there is a ring of this art work all around the world. I don't remember who the artist is, if anyone out there does, then please let me know!











This is the symbol that has come to represent the UN. Its backdrop is a massive golden slanted wall. This massive symbol 'hangs' above the main podium, where the Secretary-General and the President of the General Assembly sit. I remember when I saw this hall for the very first time in 1999, it literally blew my breath away. To make that trip even more memorable, Kofi Annan was the keynote speaker! I still remember meeting his wife, Nane Anna. Absolutely wonderful woman.





Okay, I know what you are thinking...yes, it looks dirty, but we were just trying to cool each other. Still, it's pretty hot! :)










This photo was taken at a restaurant called Swing 46 and you ask what I am wearing. Well, this was Monday night and it was the 3rd day where I didn't have any new clothes because American Airlines was too busy trying to worry about illegal immigrants than making sure that my luggage would get to its intended destination. Hence, I wore a sweater that belonged to Erin. It had a fuzzy orange neck piece. It was definitely a conversation piece.




And here I am pretending to be Irish. That neck piece was just so versatile! Yes, at this point jet lag had definitely set in and I was just being dazed and confused.
















Yes, my toe nails are painted...you've got a problem with that? Every time I go New York, Christine, myself and Peter (and whomever we've convinced to come with us) have gone to Bloomie's to get pedicures, sans colour for Peter and I. This time, Jill and I went to treat ourselves as the conference can get quite hectic and all. So, we found a place near the hotel and decided to get pedicures. Normally, I've never worn nail polish when I get pedicures done but I thought that this is my last time that I would be getting one in NYC for a very long time. So, I chose this colour and guess what the name of the colour was? UN BLUE!

I will try and add more photos from that trip as I get more. It seems that I've been updating this blog more and more. Perhaps it's because of my innate ability to procrastinate from doing some serious revising for my midyear exam. :) Speaking of which, pathophysiology of pulmonary disease is calling me.

Bronchoalveolar carcinoma and sunset drinks

This past weekend was a very unique combination of relaxation and studying. Lou, Leanne, Anna, and I went to up Noosa (Sunshine Beach, actually), which is on the Sunshine Coast, for the long weekend. The purpose of the trip was to partake in a study boot camp. There are 40 days left until our mid year examination (which is going to be held on Tuesday at 5:45pm; not very happy about the time). So, we thought that by getting away and focusing only on the study, we would jump start the brain and get the juices flowing for the weeks to come. The girls went up on the Friday night and I came up on Saturday afternoon, as I went to a friend's engagement party on Saturday arvo.

I drove up in Lou's car and arrived later in the evening to the beach house that we were staying at. It was awesome! It sense the ocean right next to you, to hear the waves crashing down and to be kissed by the salty mist coming from the water. I came just in time when the girls had finished dinner, which meant that there was an open bottle of red wine nearby. I had a couple of glasses and started the night of study, which was only for a couple of hours before watching some Sex and the City dvds (what do you expect?! you go away with some gals for the weekend and they want to do that sort of thing...as long as I get my work done and have a great time, I'm up for anything!).

The next morning, I saw the view from the balcony for the first time and it looked like this -

We had brekky and dived into the books. It was a great getaway. My mobile phone had very limited service and I forgot to bring my battery charger for my laptop, which meant that I did my studying the old fashion way - by way of pen and paper.

Sometimes it just feels as if you are accomplishing much more by that method as opposed to typing your notes out. After a full day's worth of studying (and grazing on snacks and other food stuff), we had sunset drinks in the spa on the roof, which overlooks the ocean. It was fantastic! Also, the rest of red wine that was brought up was finished. I tell you red wine and I are good friends. :)

The following morning, Lou, Leanne and I went up to Noosaheads for a swim (I didn't go for a swim instead I walked around the beach and soaked up some much needed sun) and then went for an awesome brekky. It was a bit surreal because we had to walked through a bit of the national park in order to get to the beach we went to. We headed back to the house and studied until lunch time. We ate lunch on the roof and saw dolphins frolicking in the ocean It was blissful. After lunch, we studied until 5:30pm and then headed home.

The weekend was restful and yet probably one of the most productive ones that I've had all year. I reckon that this was the jumpstart that my brain needed to get in 'exam' mode. To make things a bit tricky, one of my very good friends from Canada is coming next week. I'm hoping to get as much work done so that I can spend some quality time with her. We shall see how things go over the next few days.

Does violence breed violence?

Today was a really strange day.

Today was the first time I went back to PBL since coming back from holidays. It seemed that even though I missed more lectures and the actual PBL than my fellow colleagues, I was pretty much on the ball (if only I had more days like that!), apart from getting all the pathophysiological mechanisms down, which I'm hoping that by the end of the weekend I will have.

After PBL was finished, I walked down towards the bus stop in front of the Princess Alexandra Hospital. At the bus stop, this woman, who was quite dishevelled, smoking and seemed to have been drinking, asked me whether I could give her two dollars for the bus. I asked he what bus she was getting on and it turned out that her and I were catching the same bus. I told her that I wouldn't mind paying for her fare into the city. She refused and she wanted the cash. I told her again that I will pay for her fare once we got on the bus. I had my left hand outstretched, which is also the hand that I wear this multi-ringed thumb ring. She snatched and pulled off the ring and put it on. I was quite shocked and asked her to give it back. She said that it was hers and started shouting at me. I asked her again in a firm voice to give it back and she started swearing at me and saying that it was her ring. Mind you were there were a number of other people at the bus station that just stood there. I grabbed her hand and tried to pry my ring off of her finger. I realised at that point that she had a cigarette in the other hand. The thought of her burning me with her cigarette crossed my mind. At this point, the bus that I needed to catch already came and left. She started to walk off in the opposite direction of traffic. I grabbed her hand harder this time, and forced my ring off of her finger whilst she was cussed me out. I put my ring on my finger and started walking in the other direction. SMACK! This lady had all of a sudden smack me across my face, so hard in fact that I almost lost my balance and my sunnies flew off my face! I was shocked! I couldn't believe that someone would have resorted to violence over something like that; then again, to be under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs could have easily put someone in that mindset. After that moment, I walked away thinking that should I have retaliated in some way. No. Violence should not breed violence. It should stop at the very first instance; in fact, there should be none at all. I walked and sat at the bus stop. Meanwhile, the people that were around me were avoiding me. Finally a couple of people came up and asked whether I knew her. It seemed as if they were looking at me as if I were a trouble maker as well. The couple had asked me again whether I knew her and I told them no. They also asked whether I was coming from the hospital. I told them yes and that I was a medical student, in the hopes of clearing up any misconceptions they had about me. And apparently they did, because they were quite surprised, "OH! You are a medical student. I'm very sorry that that had to happen to you. You can never trust those sort of people." I felt dejected, I felt as if all the work done in the fight against stereotyping and prejudice went down the drain. I felt powerless because no matter what I could have said, it would have been all in vain. Do I want sympathy from people when they hear about things like this? No. Do I hope that these sort of things make people question their interactions with other? Yes. You know what...fuck it. I'm too tired to be thinking about this at the moment. Not only that but I'm sick and tired of knowing that the difference one person tries to make ends up being a drop in the ocean. I know that I won't stop doing what I do...but at times it's hard to keep it up.

A whirlwind of thoughts

Wow…it has been too long. I don’t have the words to express how sorry I am for all of you that read this blog to keep up with my so-called life.

Since the last entry, a few things have materialised that I thought that I should metion. Firstly, 2nd year medical school is a bitch. Yes. Done and done. As I said last year, learning medicine is like learning how to drink water from a fire hydrant. The volume of information that MBBS II students need to know is insurmountable. I’ve been doing the bare minimum – knowing what the basic pathophysiological mechanisms for the cases that we have had thus far. However, unlike some of close friends, I’m having some issues with knowing the bare minimum. I reckon that that amount of knowledge will be enough to pass the year; but more importantly, do I want to know enough to pass? Currently, a dichotomy has surfaced, and that is either to play the School of Medicine’s game of knowing the answers for the exams versus knowing and synthesising information for the sake of your future patient’s health. In reality, it should be the latter; however, in practice (at least at this stage of the year), it is the former. How does one make that transition from learning the basic stuff to learning things that will actually saves someone’s life. I’ve been told my a number of the upper years that the fine details will be learnt during the clerkship years (MBBS III and IV) and that at the moment, knowing Kumar & Clark’s Clinical Medicine (one of the best clinical medicine books around) and the basic pathology from Robbins (one of the best pathology books that medical students have access to) is key for making sure that you can go onto 3rd year. It feels as if I’m in first year all over again in that I’m getting a bit worried about whether I will know enough to pass the midyear and (more importantly) the finals.

Also, I recently came back from an NMUN conference in New York. I’ve been going back to this conference for a number of years now, and this time was the last one. I had a hellish time getting there (plane was on the tarmac for 3 hours, luggage was lost for 4 days, had some visa issues with respect to getting back to Australia, to name a few) and back. However, spending time with those that I love was priceless. It was a bit of a swan’s song really. I know that the majority of people that I have become friends with from the conference, I will ‘never’ see again. However, there are a select few (and you know who you are) that our paths are destined to cross again. Here are some photos from the trip (for those of you that are in the photo and you don’t want to be…then let me know I can take the photo down):


This is a photo of me wearing an ECOSOCool shirt that Christine bought for the department. A friend of mine has it and hopefully it is making its way back to my closet. :) And I'm a bit scared to see the resemblance I've to my older brother in this photo. That reminds me, I've to call QANTAS to get my glasses back.









Peter is one of my closest friends, and I met him at the 2003 conference. We got along like houses on fire. In the summer of 2003, I went to Germany and celebrated my birthday in Cologne (where he was living at the time) and Christine flew out to be with us as well. That trip was chock full of memories. Ahh... Now, Peter lives in Berlin and has recenlty finished his PhD in law. Yeah, he's one of those. :) However, I still don't know what happened to him on the Monday morning...









Amierah and I met in 1999 and we have been great friends ever since. Even though we live an ocean apart (and sometimes the ocean changes as she will often tell me "Hi, I'm in Egypt!"). She is extremely honest (which is a rare quality for people to have) and truly genuine. Amierah, I wish you all the best of luck for SG for NMUN 2007!








This is Jill. She is originally from Georgia, USA and now is living in Luxembourg. Jill is a lawyer and is very interested in the non-profit sector. She is consultant for Human Rights Watch and is working for the European Court of Justice and will soon be moving back to New York to work for quite a prestigous law firm. She was my cuddle buddy for the week. :) Lordy...I'm sooooo drunk!




This is a photo of me, Colleen, Rabia, and Sara. Each of us born in a different country (and having different passports) but bonded by 1-2-3 STRIKE-A-POSE! My pose is one that I used in an Indian folk dance that I was in a few years ago. [For those that are curious: Veevek - Canada, Colleen - USA, Rabia - UK, and Sara - Iran] Seriously though, all of us are intelligent (apart from when we get together). Colleen is doing her PhD in international relations, Rabia is a doing a MA in international economics and Sara just got accepted to do her MA in international security and disarmament and political economy.

No trip to New York could ever be complete without seeing my best friend, Christine, again. Seeing her makes my reality a better place. She has started her PhD programme in economics at the Univeristy of California, Los Angeles (she's the smart one). This was our last conference together; even though we won't be seeing each other next year around this time, I know that she is one of the few people that will be in my life irrespective of where we are. Heck, she's going to be the future godmother of my kids (hmm...perhaps I should talk to my spouse about this one. Better yet, perhaps I should get myself a girlfriend before that even happens...argh...too many things to do!).







This is a photo of Andres, myself and Peter (the location...I don't remember). I had to put this photo in because many of the NMUN girls have told me that this photo is "hot". I don't know why...but I'm just doing them a service. :) Andres recently moved to Quito, Ecuador (he used to live in Germany for the past 12 years). He goes by the name of Dr. G, as he recently got his PhD with his thesis being on corruption in Latin America. So, in about two years time...this photo will have Dr. G, Dr. T and Dr. G. :)




Rabia and I met in 2004 and ever since we've been laughing it up over things such as music, pop culture, fashion, politics, food and of course, South Asian folk dance. She had sent me a little sound byte (Itsy Bitsy Spider) by the Wolvesbrothers. When her and I got to NYC, we choreographed a little dance to the song and promised ourselves that we would perform this dance in the middle of Time Square. One day, we did a little practice run outside the lobby of the hotel and one of the hotel staff told us that if we put a hat on the ground beside us, the we would probably get some money! HAHAHAHA. On our last day in NYC, around 1pm, Rabia and I danced to the song in the middle of Time Square, not bearning any attention to the heaps of tourists walking around, the Naked Cowboy, and vehicles filled with people looking and taking photos.

Okay...enough of the walking down memory lane...back to reality, back to life...

Now that I’m back in Brisbane, I know that I need to crank up the volume in terms of sitting my ass down and revising for the midyear exam. Also, I need to get enough work done so that when my friend Stephanie (from Toronto) comes down to visit in May, I can devote some of my time to her and be a good host.

So, what's next on the V-man's agenda? Well, for the next 6 weeks I've gotta bustamove and get enough stuff into my head to pass my midyear exam. Apart from that, I'm going to be buying my ticket to Europe this week! My brother is getting married in August in Sweden (as his fiancee, who is the bestest future sister-in-law in the world, is from there). There is also going to be an Indian reception, which will be held a week later in Leicester, UK, as the majority of my dad's side of the family lives Europe-side. So, booking this ticket, who would have thought that flying into London Heathrow would be more expensive than, let's say, flying to Paris. So, what does Veevek do? He is going to be flying into Paris! This will be awesome, as I've never been and I have a few friends that are living there. Also, my friend Paramjot from Brisbane will be coming with me. After the wedding stuff is over, Paramjot and I are heading over to Helsinki (if you haven't seen the show "Little Britain" you are missing out) for the World Congress of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War. YAYAYAYAYAYA...another trip! I can't wait. :)

But before I can get all happy about that, I need to get through the next 6 weeks. Alright, enough bitching about what is to come. I reckon that I should just get to it. On that note, I should revise last year's stuff on cystic fibrosis, as Leanne and I are tutoring that subject to our group of first year medical students that we tutor every Monday arvo. I've some news about the tutoring programme but I want to make sure that some key elements are in place before telling the world about it. Yes, I'm being cruel and making you all wait. Suck it up, buttercup.

Crazy Currylingus...

Alright, Currylingus is my cousin (our respective mothers are sisters) and she has got to be one of the coolest people I know (and believe-you-me, I know a lot of people). She's ultra hip, modern, classy, has a fantastic wit, and a charm that puts most people to shame! (You can thank me later, Currylingus). I've always thought of her as my younger sister; in fact, she is born 1 year minus 2 days later than I. We are both bonafide leos........grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. :)

She dropped a tag on me, which essentially means that I have to do this. :)

4 Jobs: (most recent)
1. Researcher for one of my most favourite economic professors at University of Calgary. In fact, he is one of my mentors. I helped him to do some research on a paper that he was writing.

2. As a consultant for Health Canada, I had to create a complete document on all Canadian activity that was going on at the 2004 International AIDS Conference in Bankok, Thailand. I was also in charge of putting together cross-cultural awareness information along with information that Canadian delegates would need regarding the city, Thai culture and norms, and the logistics of the conference.

3. HIV/AIDS Lecturer (Kibera's Women's Help Group) - while working on my internship, I was also given some work in Kibera (Africa's largest slum) and discuss issues regarding HIV/AIDS and its effect on one's livelihood and outlook.

4. HIV/AIDS Programme Officer in Kenya - this was through a Canadian government internship. It was absolutely amazing; mainly did work in the field of home-based care and stigma & discrimination.

4 Movies (off the top of my head)

-Indiana Jones & Raiders of the Lost Ark (saw it last night with Liam)
-Usual Suspects (a classic & favourite film of mine)
-Syriana (saw it last night! pretty good)
-Black Stallion Returns (hey...don't knock it!)

4 Places I’ve Lived:

-Brisbane, Australia
-Nairobi, Kenya,
-Lija, Malta
-Calgary, Canada

4 TV Shows:

-House
-PrisonBreak
-Amazing Race
-Grey's Anatomy (hmm...if it were to return at some point)

4 Vacations (the most recent ones):

Calgary, Canada
Porbandar & Ahmedabad India
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Colombo, Sri Lanka

4 Foods:

-Pad Thai (can always tell judge a Thai restaurant by their Pad Thai)
-dhokla (had some last night...but mum's are better!)
-spinach and ricotta lasagne
-dolmades (I am sucker for antipasto)

4 Places I’d Rather Be:

-Macchu Pichu
-Great Barrier Reef
-Crestanello (the best Italian cafe I have been to anywhere - it's right across the street from the New York Public Library...I can't wait to taste you again in a few weeks!)
-At the gym (but alas anaemias and multiple myelomas are shouting at me!)

4 Sites:

www.bbc.co.uk
www.desiwear.com
http://www.world66.com/myworld66
www.kumarandclark.com (yes...I'm being a nerd)


4 Bloggers with some meme-ingful work ahead:

Anita - you know that you are dying to do something like this...c'mon futafut!
Sheebykins - I want to hear about your HSMUN weekend!
Christine - yes, I know you are busy but consider this exercise a part of your commitment to your blog :)
Robo - yes...you have been chosen...


Okay...enough of the 'tagged' stuff. I do want to update this thing with regards to what happened this weekend and how life is going in general. The upcoming week is a hectic one and I do hope to provide myself with some therapy by typing away on this thing.

First week almost over already?!

The first week of MBBS II has finished and it seems that my brain can't get into it! Fortunately (maybe unfortunately as well), many of my friends and classmates are facing this as well.

Academically, this past week has been a bit of a blunder because the gap between Year I and Year II seems to be quite large and this year the School of Medicine has decided to change a number of things (surprise, surprise). The week runs from Tuesday to Monday (no uni on Saturday or Sunday) as opposed to last year, in which the week ran from Monday to Friday. I have PBL on Tuesday morning from 8 to 11, and then I have my clinical coaching sessions at Redland Hospital, which is at least 30 km outside of Brisbane. I'm not too happy about my placement (I'm not the only one, the 8 other members of my PBL are also stationed there). It takes almost 2 hours to get there from my house and more than 2.5 hours to get back to my house. I'll keep you posted on how that turns out, as I've emailed the Head of Year II and hoping that there will be some resolution to this issue. Wednesday and Thursday, we have lectures from 8 till whenever (normally never lasting more than 4.5 hours, at least that is according to the Master Timetable that we were given). Friday, there is usually a Clinical Large Group lecture from 8 to 9:30 and then I've a 2-hour PBL session from 9:30 to 11:30. Then I have two 1.5 hours pathology and anatomy practicals each week. PBL and clinical coaching are the only two things that we HAVE to go to; all other schedule lectures/clinical large groups/clinical reasoning lectures are optional. Also, this year will be about pathology. Year I is a year to learn about what's normal (with some level of pathology) and how that relates to the different body systems. In Year II, we learn about why things fuck up and how to fix it. The SOM has designed the year so that we have maximum time for self-directed learning and opportunities for clinical practice, as this year is considered to be the "systematic preparation for practice".

Okay, that was boring...on to the fun stuff. We had orientation on January 20th and apart from the administrative stuff (congratulations on passing first year, this year will be harder, blah blah blah, ra ra ra), it was so good to see people again! I knew that I missed my friends but once I saw them, I didn't realise how much I've missed them. Many hugs and kisses were flying about. I was able to meet new people (well, people that I didn't know last year), which is great because one of things that we were told to do by the Head of School of Medicine was to network and develop professional relationships with our peers. Good God! If that's the case, then I might as well just stop now because I don't think that my brain can handle the multiple number of Robs, Daves, Matts, Claires, Kims and the like. Friday night was great as I hung out with Leanne, Claire, Annabelle and Brownlie. We all talked about our electives, drank some good Australian alcohol and headed down to Ludo, a bar along Caxton Street. This bar is owned by a second year medical student in my year. Drinks were free until 7pm; needless to say, the four of us (and the other med students that were there) made sure that we got our free monies worth of drinks. :) After that, I met up with Param, her friend from Vancouver, Marlo and Melissa at Caxton Hotel for some more drinks and a little hip shakin' on the dance floor, until Annabelle's brother dropped me home (so nice that your friend's younger siblings can be the responsible ones and take your older siblings and their friends home). Saturday night was another long night as many of the Canadian students went out to a very posh vodka bar in West End called the Lychee Lounge. After having our tummies filled with many good things, we headed down to into the City and went dancing at a nightclub. We left when the bar closed (around 3:00am) and then I headed home, where I stayed up for a few more hours before going to bed.

The Sunday was a day of preparations for our (Dave, Suz and Veevek) housewarming. We spent a bit of money on getting the food prepared. Originally, we were only going to invite a small number of people but then that got out of hand; I reckon that at least a 100 invites went out. Fortunately, we didn't have that many people attend. The most number of people we had was 43, which was great! Lots of great food, drinks and conversations were had by all. The best part was is that Dave, Suz and I have set the standard for the higher quality of parties that can be done by 2nd year medical students. Most house parties are just sorry excuses to drink excessively and be surrounded by abrasive people. Here are a couple photos:




















The socialising aspect of the first week back was probably the biggest factor that made getting back into the academic side of things very difficult. But who is to blame us? Wednesday evening was the eve before Australia Day (akin to Canada Day or 4th of July for the Americans), so Annabelle and I went over to Claire's house to make sangria and get things ready for the party. The next morning, we were up and ready to go! Australia Day!! It was fun! I remember las t year, Cam and I didn't know anyone yet so we stayed at home watched tennis and cricket and enjoyed a couple of beers. This year, I had Australian flag tattooed on my cheek, partook in singing the Australian national anthem ("Advance Australia Fair"), even though it was grotesquely out of tune. Here are some photos:













(The brown stuff on Claire's toast is vegemite! mmm..mmm...good)

The next day was the first med keg of the year! Last year, it was a horrible display of how much I drank. This year was a whole other story! It was fun and not as packed as last year. I checked out the new talent that the MBBS I cohort brough...and I was quite impressed. I met a number of first year students and re-connected with some people in my year (oddly enough, that the re-connection happens in the presence of alcohol). I left at a decent time, only to come home to drink some ginger beer and then some vodka with Liam (Dave's friend from Canberra). Fun times were had all round!

The Saturday after the keg was a great day! Dave, Liam and I went to Burleigh Beach (which is along the Gold Coast) and I ended up getting a sunburn on the left side of my face...it's quite gross considering that it's starting to peel. That evening, I stayed on the couch watching Jurassic Park III, while the others went to see Brokeback Mountain (I had already seen it with a friend in Calgary). I was supposed to go out with my friend Leanne but that fell through. That being said, every cloud has a silver lining, in the sense that I needed an alcohol-free night. :) We have been taught that you should have at least two alcohol-free days a week. So far, so good!

It is now Thursday night, and I've just finished the week's work (this week's case is on eczema). I'll go over it in greater detail this weekend. I'm glad that my brain has been jumpstarted into it. I'm excited about this new year!

A dedication to some special people...

Well, the first week of uni has gone by without much incident (academically speaking I mean). But before I go into what has happened in Brisbane since my arrival, I wanted to touch upon some people that made my time in Calgary just a bit sweeter.

Coming back to Calgary always fills me with a mixed bag of emotions. Apart from the friends and family that are there, the city is only a shell that has been filled with the majority of my life's experiences. However, in the moment, the city does not hold that for me. As for some of the friends that I have, are still stuck inside a time-warp that exerts itself on some of the inhabitants of Calgary.

For the most part, majority of my friends do not fit that category. They are forward thinkers and willing to accept the uncertainty that the future holds, especially with regards to the dynamics of relationships (especially those people that have had to put up with uprooting and relocation every few years). This blog is a dedication to those people...


This is Trish. We met in a genetics lab that we had together. We sat beside each other and bitched about the 12 hour reporting we had to do with our fruit flies (I tell you, every time I see a fruit fly, I have chills running down my spine), amongst other things. We had many of the same classes together - organic chemistry, botany, genetics and biology. She recently finished her undergraduate degree in biological sciences and now wants to pursue what has been her dream of music (before it was medicine but her vocal talents would be wasted!). Trish has the voice of an angel (akin to Charlotte Church). She is one of those people that has grace, in the sense that she always has the disposition to be generous and helpful, and that she doesn't discriminate against anyone when it comes to that. Everytime I come back to Calgary (and if she is there as well), we have afternoons filled with chai and random snacks, and conversations that would include and involve everything from small talk to politics to medical science, and the like. She knows that she means the world to me - and now I can let you all know that as well. :)

The next group of people, I met through the University of Calgary International Student Centre (ISC). Vivian, Trinda, Ced and Brenda. Vivian, Trinda, Brenda and I used to all be volunteers and/or student staff together. It was great to be involved with an organisation that really did promote internationalisation of one's university education. Ced has come over from France and is a very good friend of Trinda's. Oddly enough, I dated Ced's cousin when she came to Calgary from France to do a semester abroad. Even though they are all at different places in their lives, they know what it feels like when your experiences are incongruent to others. They understand that the people that you care about will have lives that will progress at different rates. Vivian did an exchange to Ireland, and then a work term in France; Trinda taught English in France, and Brenda (who is of Gautemalan decent) works with Shell Oil, with most of her clients being from America.

Here is Anita. Anita and I got to know each other from the University of Calgary Amnesty International Association. We were co-executive directors at one point. She is Fijian of Indian ancestry. Unlike the many other Indian-esque people that I know, she is not doing business, engineering, law or medicine. No, she doesn't own a 7-11 or other convenient store, nor does she work at a liquor/Indian spice/Indian clothing and jewellery store. She is a graduate student in political science and will, hopefully, be going into a doctoral programme in political science as well. She is extremely cultured, can carry on a great conversation (in all the different fields...but you get her started on human rights and security issues...you're done!), and is a great soundboard for ideas and thoughts that you might be having. This photo was taken a few days before I left Calgary at a place called Cafe Mediterranean. It's one of the few places in Calgary that you can smoke a sheesha (no, that has nothing to do with marijuana or opium or anything other narcotic). She is thinking of coming down to Australia to visit Ruth and myself; so much fun is to be had!

Christine and Steve...what to say about these two? Well, I met Steve on this trip back to Calgary, as Christine and Steve started dating when I was in Australia. Christine and I met in 1999 as we were both going on exchange. She went to Mexico and I went to Malta. Upon our return, we both volunteered for the ISC. In fact, I had a little crush on Christine at that time. I told her about it and she turned me down as she already had a boyfriend. Even though she went on to complete a degree in international relations (and subsequently a Master's degree in global development in Latin America from University Collge of London in the UK), we are still able to about development, politics, health, economics and also the more small talk stuff of fashion, travel (which is very important to us both) and those sort of things. Even though she is working in Calgary in the area of international education at one of the polytechnic institutions, she desires go beyond her box and do something that she is passionate about, which is development. She's definitely a keeper!

Bijal - someone that I have known for many years but in a variety of ways. Bijal and I are members of the Gujarati community in Calgary. Our parents having set roots in Calgary and made family friends amongst those that shared the Gujarati culture, language and values. In the beginning, we knew each other as "so and so child". Then as we grew older we were involved in dances and saw each other at jamvanus (the Gujarati word for dinners), cultural and religious events. And for those people that know me, I've not been a mainstream member of the Gujarati community in Calgary because I never felt as if I belonged to the social/age group that I was supposedly a part of. The other kids that were in it had a very different idea of what was fun and cool. Also, I despise to the two-faced nature of many of them. Bijal is one of the few that isn't like that. What you see is what you get. Like Anita, she too is not doing medicine, engineering, business nor does she own the aforementioned service stores. She is doing a degree in French, with a minor in English. CRAZY! I love it! She does want to go on and complete a law degree. Unlike most people that I know within the community, Bijal is extremely well-spoken and can carry out a conversation on any topic. She is very rational (which I've realised that many people aren't) and when she speaks of an idea or thought process, it is clear and extremely articulate. At the same time, she can be ridiculously silly (but in a good way) and has an endearing childlike quality about her when it comes to having a good time. She is the real deal. As with the others, she too sees relationships as being dynamic and fluid.

Now, there are a number of people that I didn't take photos with but there are a couple that I need to mention. One is my dear friend Monica. Monica and I met in an organic chemistry lab (what's with me and meeting friends in a laboratory). She was doing the science then medicine route. However, after some soul searching, she finished up with a joint degree in economics and English. We had a couple economics classes together. She was in Fiji and New Zealand working for Commonwealth Learning, which provides internships to youth. These internships are partnered with the Canadian International Development Agency, Foreign Affairs Canada, and International Trade Canada. She is now at Queen's University in Canada doing a Master's in Public Administration and a law degree. Her and I met for coffee at what is probably the best cafe I've been to in Calgary. It's called Cafe Beano - for those of you in Calgary that are reading this. It's off of 17th Ave on the left hand side before getting to the lights at Mount Royal Village.
We talked about the issues that we both face when coming back home and how we don't really know where we are going to end up after we finish our respective degrees. Issues such as the transient status of relationships, the concept and ideals of home and what we can and cannot tolerate from our families. Like myself, she too will be heading back to Calgary every Christmas, so it will be nice to see someone, so to speak, that is cut from the same fabric.

And then there is Tim. A friend of mine from university - we took a course of infectious disease together. He works at a hospital in Calgary as an orderly and is hoping to get into the fast-track post-graduate nursing programme at the University of Calgary. There aren't many people that I would call "safe" and "solid". Tim is the epitome of how safe and solid a friend can be. He too has a horrible travel bug and his experiences in Africa (he travelled to Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya and Malawi) only fuelled his desires to see and do more than what is offered at home. Even though he has bought himself a condo in the city, it doesn't stop him from dreaming about what lies ahead.

All in all, being in touch with people that have shared common experiences and have common future visions of where they see themselves in all spheres of their lives is a very reaffirming feeling to have. And even though I've only been living in Australia for one year and have become close friends with some absolutely amazing people...I only hope that I can only manage my spheres a bit better.

Hello from Hong Kong!

I'm in Hong Kong International Airport waiting to board on my flight to Brisbane (which is in an hour). I must say that flying over the Pacific Ocean sucks as! The flying time from Vancouver to Hong Kong was 14h45mins. There were several screaming rats...I mean...children. However, there was one baby sitting in front of me that was quiet the entire time, near the end of the flight I helped the parents play with their son as they were getting very tired (I know, I like to help wherever I can).

And for future references, Cathay Pacific is a so-so airline. As far as the Asian airlines are considered, nothing tops Singapore Airlines. Nothing.

Okay, in the 5 minutes that I've been on this thing, a massive queue has developed. 10 more hours and I'll be in Brisbane!

Until then, keep fit and have fun!

Happy New Year's!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve last written. I do warn you that this is a long post, complete with photos.

Alright, so many people want me to post more about my experiences in India – that’s fair, as I don’t want to disappoint some of my readers. So here goes.

After leaving Delhi, I realised that I left a bit of my heart there. It was a place that nurtured the human spirit from within; it was a place that enabled me to see horrible things become beautiful and beautiful things becoming ugly; it made me realised that I do not only want to become a doctor, but to become a ‘healer’ in every sense of the word. It was a place that I know that I will go back to time and time again both in the physical and spiritual sense. I know that I am soliloquising about all the good things, but there were moments of sheer frustration and random chaos that gave Delhi its indelible charm.

I went to my cousin’s wedding and my dad’s cousin wedding (in the case that some of you are confused, these were two completely separate weddings) in Porbandar, Gujarat.


This is a photo of Kirti Mandir, which is a place of honour in Porbandar, as it is where Mahatma Gandhi was born.














This is the fruit and vegetable market near my family's home. I would go and buy the vegetables needs for that day's meals. They would always give you free coriander, chilli and bay leaves. (Only if they could do that at the markets in Brisbane).









And if all else fails with medical school (which is highly unlikely), I can always fall back on becoming a rickshawala! Driving a rickshaw is absolutely fantastic! It's an experience that I think most people should try at least once in their life.

Okay, back to it...I met up with mum and my Ashakaki (kaki = aunt [your dad’s brother’s wife, that word is different to the word used to call your mum’s brother’s wife]) in the plane in Mumbai heading to Porbandar. Porbandar is a coastal city that starts to reek of dried fish in the late afternoon, while the city experiences its daily siesta. It’s a place of very fond memories with family. The celebrations around the two weddings were absolutely fantastic! I met up with my friend Rakhee (she is originally from Calgary but had been teaching English in Japan for the past year, and is now somewhere in London, UK at the moment) who was undertaking English tuitions every afternoon for boys and girls. At the sanji (in Gujarati, means ‘evening’), we got dressed up in our finery and danced the night away! Many people came up to both of us and asked whether we were professional dancers hired by the family. HAHAHAHA. Rakhee and I couldn’t stop blushing and laughing. We thought that it would be prudent to start such a company where we can rent out people to dance at functions like this. The name of such company would be “Garba GoGo Dancers”. There was a sanji also for the other wedding and, once again, we got the same compliments and people asked the same questions. Also, some people were asking about whether Rakhee and I are getting married or thinking of getting married. Hmmm…I guess when you have reached mid-20s anything, one’s family start to get a bit agitated that they are not yet married. Unfortunately, I was sick of the day of the weddings (they were both held on the same day), I was unable to get out of bed and had quite a high fever. Fortunately that only lasted a day.

After the wedding celebrations were over, I was able to relax with my mum and members of her family. We all went out to Majivana (my mum’s grandfather’s village) for the day and we did some pujas and had lunch out there. It’s always nice to see whether your family can trace its roots to. Also, it is refreshing to know that in some cultures that these sorts of activities are highly valued.

I left Porbandar and headed up to Gujarat’s main city (not the capital, but it really is in every sense of the word), Ahmedabad. I have cousins that live there and I always like going there as it is usually very different from the lifestyle in Porbandar. It is more cosmopolitan, there are many more things to do and the hustle & bustle of the city just energises you. Even though my time here was limited, I was able to spend time with my two nieces and nephew.

As for the remainder of my elective at St Stephen’s hospital, I became more and more attached to the Community Outreach Centre. I did take a few days off to experience the General Surgery department, which was absolutely wicked! I didn’t think that I would like surgery but I did. I was able to watch a lobectomy, a couple of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and removal of benign lumps from breast tissue. I was able to also see a woman, who had a full mastectomy, with necrotising tissue and a deep hole in her chest cavity, a young girl whose face was burnt off with acid, several abscesses and cysts to last me quite some time and an inguinal hernia repair. The remainder of the time at Community, as in my previous post, was incredible. I made friends in a place where people don’t necessarily trust those that come and go; I made connections with children that were more cynical than people I know (ahem…you know who you are!) I was able to move about more in the community and be welcomed into the homes of people that frequented the clinics and utilised the services that the community centre provided them with. I was given a glimpse of hope in the midst of utter destitution and poverty. That sliver of hope was more powerful than anything that I could feel…I still get chills down my spine thinking of about it.
The little girl in the pink jumper is Anjali. She is the one that called me 'papa' after I knew her for one week. I still won't forget how every time I would come into the children's area, she would stop whatever she was doing, run to me with her arms outstretched and a huge smile on her face. I only wished that there was more that I could do for her.

Okay, to pick up from the last post, which was written on the last night I was in Brisbane. The flight home was uneventful but long as! I’ve realised that the cheapest flight to and fro Australia is not necessarily the best one. My flight went from Brisbane to Singapore, 4 hours in Singapore, Singapore to Tokyo (correction: I wrote Taipei in that post and it should have been Tokyo), 2 hours in Tokyo, Tokyo to Los Angeles, 6 hours in LA (my best friend Christine picked me up from the airport and we went to walk around UCLA campus, ate at some great eateries in Westwood and then we went to Santa Monica beach for a quick walk), LA to Calgary. Fortunately, my trip back to Brisbane is via Hong Kong (which is shorter and I don’t have to travel through America). (insert photo of Christine and I at Santa Monica)

Coming home has been great! Seeing family and good friends at this time of year always rekindles the soul and makes the spirit grow stronger. It seems that everyone has changed, which is a great thing. I reckon that it is indicative of the fact that people I know have been working towards their own goals and desires. The really odd thing about being in Calgary at the moment is that the weather is fantastic (for those of you in warmer climates, you will definitely disagree with this), hovering around 10 degrees Centigrade and no snow has fallen in Calgary for weeks! It was a very brown and dry Christmas.

I’ve been able to spend time with some really solid friends. As much as I love my close friends in Brisbane, some of whom are like family, it’s reaffirming to know that you can jump back into a friendship of 4, 5, 6 and 10 years without having a glitch in it. The development of history within a friendship can be quite painstakingly difficult. I’ve been quite blessed with the friends that I have, such that developing such history has been an enjoyable journey.


My family doesn't celebrate Christmas. However, we celebrate the fact that we are together as a family and can look back at the year, along with eating some great food and enjoying great laughs. For the past few Christmases (except for the time that I was living in Kenya), I have have celebrated Christmas with the Richmonds. It's always a riot! We all wear the paper hats that come out of the crackers; every year, I have to make little rips in mine because it can't fit on my head. (Oh, those are my new glasses that I bought from Delhi). Christine and I normally ending up drinking a bit too much wine and have great conversations. This year was special because it will most likley be the last one that we will be spending together for quite some time. Also, her parents are becoming snowbirds and moving down to Mexico and her sister is moving to Vancouver to fulfill her goals of fashion desing (she is fantastic!).

Every year for New Year’s, my friends and I are always trying to think of what we can do. This year, however, Vijaykaka (kaka = dad’s brother, and this word is different from sister’s brother) bought me a ticket to “BollyVegas” and pitched the idea to me as an multicultural extravaganza. He also said that I could bring a friend. So, this year I celebrated the New Year’s with my parents, Bhavisha, Vinay, Vijaykaka, Ashakaki, and one of my best friends, Christine. Christine (who bought a dress especially for that night, not because she was prepared but because all she bought to Calgary were casual clothes) and I (glad that I left a suit in Calgary) got dressed up and before heading over my uncle’s house for a little pre-party party gathering, our mothers took photos at Christine’s house. It almost felt like Grade 12 graduation or something! Upon arrival at Vijaykaka’s house, we took back some rum-orange juice before making our way to the venue, which was a new hotel/casino that opened up in the South-East of Calgary. The food sucked at this place. No, sorry, the best dish at the place was the salad. A night of drinking vodka, rum and champagne made me and Christine quite happy (the double vodka and orange juice and taking back two glasses of champagne really put us into the ‘happy’ zone). I know that some of you might think that I have some guts to drink in front of my parents. I would rather them know than doing it behind their back. My cousin Vinay kept asking me as the night progressed, “Veevekbhai (bhai = brother), are you smashed yet?” This was the first time that my cousins have seen me drink more than one drink and I was quite composed, as opposed to falling all over myself at the first med keg (good God!). Christine, Bhavisha, Vinay and I ripped up the dance floor and it was great to create such a positive energy field amongst us, which carried us into the new year.

New Year's Resolutions (the major ones)

1. Learn to take time for myself
2. Become more active in the 'community' in Brisbane (community meaning the medical, university and Gujarati community)
3. Get back into the gym (so far so good!)
4. Tell those around me that are important how important they really are.

B.L.A.C.K - Black

It is 2:15am on Monday morning and I have just finished watching “Black”, a film by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. WOW. It is not the typical melodrama, coordinated singing and dancing, with a love triangle mix Bollywood film that most people would suspect. My parents had seen this film earlier in the year and my mum told me that it was a movie that I must see. Unfortunately, the movie didn’t show here in Brisbane. While I was in Delhi, I found a copy (not a pirated one!) and bought it.

The film is about a girl named Michelle McNally (played by Rani Mukherjee); she cannot see nor hear nor speak. She inhabits a world of infinite black…of a seamless, endless void where nothing reaches her and she reaches nothing. Her world is frightening in its complete remoteness. On the sheer will of her ferocious rage against destiny, Michelle struggles to stay afloat in the impenetrable whirlpool her life has become.

Into this devastating isolation enters a battle weary teacher, Debraj Sahai (played by Amitabh Bachchan), life’s wounded but arrogantly insolent warrior. With a single minded obsession, Debraj takes the challenge that is next to impossible – to lead this wild, uncontrollable child into the light of knowledge.

Thus begins a journey of two headstrong individuals. They overcome failures, obstacles, even ridicule as they tread the path less taken. What they seek is that moment of miracle when the ray of knowledge will penetrate through the dense black of Michelle’s life. Black is the cathartic tale of a deaf, mute and blind girl who saw what people with sight fail to see, a vision of her God. Michelle McNally saw what other lesser mortals could not. She saw her God, heard Him and walked with Him into the light.

From the beginning to the end, my cheeks were moist from tears. I would not consider myself a person that would show such emotions, especially when it comes to a Bollywood film. However, this one is an exception. There were so many moments in the movie that expressed how I have felt at times with my hearing loss. To see the frustrations that Michelle’s parents and sister had with her, resonated with me and what I felt that my parents and brother went through. It is a film about celebrating the colour black. It is a film that illustrates the spirit of a human being going from darkness to light.

This movie is probably the best movie (along with Hotel Rwanda) that I've seen this year. Note: The Lion, Witch & the Wardrobe is awesome! :)

It’s time for me to rest; after movies such as Black, my head hurts and my heart pangs for a certain something; I just can’t explain it. Also perhaps it’s my body’s way of saying, “Hey you…yeah, you. You think that you can do without sleep? No you di-int! You gots lot of jobs to do today!” I guess the most important job is that I get on my flight to Calgary (by way of Singapore, Taipei and then Los Angeles).

MBBS II HERE I COME!

It's been about a week since the UQ SOM have released the MBBS I provisional year-end results, and I can say (provisionally - if you can say that) that I'VE PASSED!!! I'm on cloud 9! I just can't believe it! Not only did I pass, but I kicked ass! I went into the final exams with a very miserable mark (< 50%) and my marks has improved by 30%!

Now...I can relax, enjoy the rest of my time in India and look forward to the challenges that lie ahead...

Namaste from Delhi!

I do apologise for letting this blog go…it seems that every time I go and sit down at the hospital cyber café, I am unable to log onto this site and write about my thoughts. I do warn you that this is a long post…so, go to the toilet now, get that cup of coffee (or cold drink, depending on what part of the world you are in).

Well, the past 4 weeks have been absolutely incredible! I don’t know how I will be able to put into words the things that I’ve seen and been able to experience. That being said, I will try my hardest to do so.

My time with St. Stephen’s Hospital has been primarily spent with the Community Medicine/Health department. I’ve not worked in the hospital at all; instead, I travel with a few registrars, consultants and nurses to an urban slum about 30 minutes east of the hospital, a place called Sunder Nagari. Louise and myself talked with one of the consultants and have drafted a protocol for future elective students coming to St. Stephen’s Hospital wishing to do their elective in community health. To be able to be a part of the process is exhilirating!

The time requirement for the elective was 20 hours a week, which is easily met by working at the hospital in the mornings from Monday to Friday, leaving you with the afternoon, evenings and weekends off to explore Delhi and environs. However, at the Community Outreach Centre (affectionately known as Community) the bus leaves SSH at 7:45am and arrives back at 5:45pm. It’s full on! I’ve done more hours in two weeks at Community than some of the others have done all month. The atmosphere out at Community is so life affirming, so much so that I have asked for and have been granted a week extension of my elective to work at Community.

So, what is in the day of Veevek while in Delhi? Well, it starts of by my alarm going off at 6:45am and having a hot bucket bath and getting dressed for ‘work’. I go to the Hospital Dietary for a quick breakfast (usually chai and toasted toast) and get my packed lunch to take out ot Community. I get on the bus and greet all the other persons on it. We normally talk amongst ourselves, which normally revolves around what people have been up to the night before or what the day is looking like out at the centre. After the 30-40 minute ride (depending on the traffic), we get to Community and I look at what the day is (each day of the week has certain activities associated with it, i.e. Wednesday is Well-Immunisation Day, meaning as many children as you can think of (and then think of some more on top of that) come and get their immunisations done. This also means that Veevek normally leaves Community with a massive headache because of all the noise from the crying bastards…I mean…children. Community runs a medical clinic (with all major interventions being referred to the major government hospitals nearby) also runs a daycare and a child-to-child education programme along with empowering women in the local community with vocational skills. I have become so attached to some of the children that are in the daycare (ages ranging from 1 to 4). In fact there is one little girl that comes (she is about 1 year old) and her name is Anjali. I learnt that she was ‘fatherless’ and had some social developmental delays. After spending one week with Anjali on my breaks and feeding and playing with her, she called me “papa”. The daycare workers were in shock! They had noticed an incredible difference in Anjali. She smiles more; she has become more active during playtime and exhibits normal child development behaviours. All the other children in the daycare call me “bhaiyya”, which is Hindi for ‘brother’. Making these children forget their worries for any amount of time is time well spent. I had also taught the kids a Gujarati children’s song (Chukee ben, Chukee ben), which they will sing at a local competition hosted by the YMCA on December 7th – 9th. I also helped choreograph a Rajasthani folk dance that the older girls are doing (they are around 12-14 years old). I only wish that I could do more for those kids. Also the impact of the other community health workers has been great as well. With my semi-fluent Hindi skills, my interactions with the staff and patrons of the centre have become co-ordinated and I have felt as if I’ve become a part of that community. On my breaks, if I am not playing with the children, I talk to the other youth workers there (they practice their English and I practice Hindi) about their plans and how the Community has changed their outlook on live and the local community that they are living in. The nurses (one in particular that I think is just the cat’s pajamas is Sister Lovey [head nurses on a ward are usually referred to as sisters in India], who has a PhD in Nursing and is in her mid 30s) have been instrumental in my understanding of how Community operates. Because of them, I’ve been able to help with the immunisation drives by weighing children when they come in, by administering oral polio vaccinations and giving injections of MMR (measles, mumps & rubella) and DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus). The most senior female consultant, Dr. John, is a 67 year old with severe rhuematoid arthritis. Her and I get along like houses on fire! She takes the time to explain to me the inner workings of differential diagnoses and how socio-economic factors influence the ability of patients to make health decisions (she was quite surprised that I was able to understand it, then I told her that I have a background in economics focusing on health economics and she just smiled). I was able to assist her with the tuberculosis clinic, which was AWESOME! In fact, tuberculosis was the topic of my community case report, which I had to present to the consultants and registrars. I was able to visit patients’ in their homes and look at public health factors that influence their health status – absolutely mindblowing.

Alright...this has to be enough for the day...it's 8pm and the dietary is only open for another 30 minutes. My eyes are tired, my heart a little depressed as all my friends have left Delhi this morning. I will write very soon...

Ladies & Gentlemen, Indian Airlines would like to announce the depart of Flight IC408...

First off, I want to wish everyone a very Happy Diwali (Nutan Varshabinandhan) & Sal Mubarak! For those of you that are celebrating the end of Ramadan, Eid Mubarak!

The past week has been all about partying, relaxing, re-energising, getting my thoughts collected and packing up my belongs (in that order). I've reconnected with some friends and am enjoying every moment that I have.

On a more exciting front, I'm leaving for India today! I'll be flying via Malaysia and staying a couple of days in Sri Lanka before meeting up with the rest of my friends on Saturday that are going to be at the same hospital. For a nice treat to myself, I'm staying at the Taj Samudra Hotel, which is a part of the international reknowned Taj Hotel Groups.

I'm looking forward to the exposure and experiences that come along with the challenges of being in a hospital that serves 5 million people. I am a little apprehensive of speaking Hindi as I've not done so in quite some time. I've been practicing by watching bollywood films but the 'hindi' used is a mixture of English, Hindi and Urdu.

I'll be in India until December 14th and may do some travelling with a couple of friends, however that has yet to be decided. I'll be back in Australia for a few days before heading to Calgary and spending Christmas and New Year's with my family and close friends. I can't wait!

Have a good one...

IT'S OVER!!!

I've finished my last MBBS I exam yesterday!

The days leading up to those exams were horrible. Stress overload, thinking that my level of knowledge was inadequate and that I would make a horrible doctor. Then I smacked myself up side my head and realised that everyone else in the course must be feeling the same way with regards to level of knowledge that they have (or don't have) heading into the exams.

The first exam was the MSAT (Multi-Station Assessment Task), and it consisted of 9 stations, that were 9 minutes long. Each station also had a 9-minute instructional stations right before it so that you can prepare for that station. There were 2 stations on communication skills, 2 stations on history taking, 2 stations on clinical examinations, and 1 ethics station. I got full marks for most of the stations, not sure how I did on the ethics station (it was talking to someone in your PBL group who shows up late, takes very long breaks, makes derogatory comments about the patients in our cases, puts down female members of the group, and thinks that sociology and things similar are not necessary in the study of medicine). I just didn't know what the "right" path was. Apparently, everyone that did the Saturday (it was held over Saturday and Sunday to accommodate the 296 students that were schedule to take it) MSAT passed.

After finishing the MSAT, all motivation to study for the written exams went down the drain. It seemed quite anti-climactic. I went over all the past exam papers and my basic/clinical sciences revisions. The first exam was a bitch! There were 5 parts and one ethics essay. The essay was fine and a few of the papers in the exam were from past papers, so that made things a bit easier. However, they School of Medicine used way too many multiple choice questions, which doesn't really assess what you know about a particular subject area (the MCQs dealt with haematology). I know that heaps of people were quite annoyed with that form of testing. I rather have short answer than MCQ. The next written exam was 7 parts and covered pretty much whatever wasn't covered on the first exam. More of those papers were from past exams, which probably saved my ass!

After the last exam finished, a number of us headed to Claire's place to start the post-exam celebrations and have pre-party drinks and food. Too much fun was to be had...I forgot how much fun it was to be in a group of people and talk about things other than medicine. After getting some of our alcohol metabolism going, we all headed to the bowls club (lawn bowling...no longer a geriatric sport!) by way of taking the City Cat (or what Claire likes to call it, "Shitty Shat"). It reached up to 31 degrees Centigrade and with that kinda heat mixed with copious amounts of alcohol consumption results in some weird shit. After several hours at the bowls club, most students headed down to the local waterhole, the Regatta (affectionately known as the Regretta). They were serving free drinks for an hour for med students and then after that hour, you could buy 4 drinks for $10. That mixed with top 40s music, a Leanne (voted "best dancer" by her PBL tutor), and some med school drama (oh the drama...even if I wasn't interested in medicine, I would stay in this course because of its drama!), resulted in a fantastic night!

It's now 10:43am on the day after my last exam. I'm sitting on the balcony having morning tea. The day seems to be like any other, and I've to keep reminding myself that I deserve a break. I have a week till I leave for my medical elective in India. So much shit to sort through before leaving - packing for India (can only take up to 20 kilos! and as anyone that has travelled to India...that's normally the weight for the carry on lugagge!), packing my room so that Dave and Suz can move my stuff while I'm away, need to get some last minute supplies for the trip, and to sort out some other stuff (address book, upcoming birthdays, etc) before I head out.

I can't believe first year is done (well, it will officially be done on December 2nd when the elective finishes)! What an exciting year it has been...and I would have done it all over again, exactly how it has, in a heartbeat. :)

Reaffirmation?

The past couple of days have been very painful...my right eye has been extremely photo sensitive, to the point where the room has to be dark. Any sort of light was quite painful to the point where tears would be streaming down my face. That being said, I spent most of my time in bed, with a sleep mask (courtesy of Qantas) and blankets over my head. Today, was the first day in which I was able to tolerate some sort of light.

Also, the past few days, I've been feeling quite annoyed (not sure at whom or what) and dissatisfied (once again, not sure if it is with myself or with my circumstances). This evening I got out of the house (which took Dave and Suz by surprise), I originally intended on going for a walk, maybe seeing a movie, and then chilling at a coffee shop. However, I decided to head down to South Bank (where World Expo' 88 was held). This evening, the Gujarati Association of Queensland was celebrating Sharad Poonam, which is a celebration of the harvest time in Gujarat. At the Suncorp Piazza (a large plaza, that has a roof over it, but not completely covered on all sides), there was garba and dandiya raas. I thought that I would go and make another attempt to meet people. I wasnt' dressed for the part, as I wore jeans and a t-shirt. On the way there, I ran into one of the guys that I met at Navratri. I introduced myself and he told me that he, and a number of other people, were really impressed with my dancing. He asked me if I was Indian, then Hindu. I told him that I was Hindu Gujarati (not that that matters). I got there and people were dancing and I dove right in. I recognised heaps of faces and people gave the obligatory smile when they see someone that they have seen before. Also, there was a really nice Gujarati girl that I met last time and she was here again tonight. I get so bashful...argh! It's quite irritating. Doing garba and dandiya raas with the opposite sex, is the Gujarati version of dating/flirting. You show off your hottest moves and styles. The best complement is if someone mimics your movements/steps. I doubt that I will see this girl again until next year. Then again, who knows?

Also, I've started to miss my family a lot. I guess because the feeling of staying in Australia has finally gotten into my head. I can't wait to see Mum next month and then the rest of my family (sans Hasit and Johanna) including Vinay and Bhavisha near Christmas. What good times to be had. :)

Alright, I should get back to studying about antibiotics. I'm at Lou's place - we are having a study party and at this rate, we are going to be up for most of the night. fun, fun.

The final week...

This is the final week of lectures for the MBBS I at UQ. The atmosphere amongst the cohort is quite charged - people have become withdrawn, moody, unusually cheerful, while some have become apathetic, lethargic and just wanting this ordeal to be over with.

Being the type of person that I am, I need to have my social interactions but with these final exams looming, I feel a bit guilty for wanting a bit of time to just have fun. I can hear my parents in the back of my head say, "beta, you know dhat ishtudy comes furst, den you can play, okay" (or in Gujju-che speak, "Beta, thenay kaberche ke banavanu bowaj important che. Exam pacche, taney je karvu hoi, ee chut che.")

But I found myself to start thinking about what happens if I fail my exams? It's a serious possibility (this is not to say that I have done nothing all year...it just means that no one can guarantee that they will pass all the components of the exams). I have a friend that went through a very similar situation back in Canada. She failed first year and repeated it. In the beginning, she wouldn't tell people outside her med circle of friends that she had failed. However, she got over the stigma of failure and held her head up high. She became a resource for her cohort. And I can see myself doing the same thing. If I do fail, then I would make sure that I would develop friendship more and that I would be a resource for others. However, I doubt that my parents and family would agree with that. I have no clue as to where I would get the tuition if I were to repeat first year.

Alright, now I have just successfully scared myself (once again...it seems to be a daily ritual at the moment that I scare myself into thinking that I will fail and shiite like that). Breathe...in through the nose and out through the mouth...[Veevek takes a deep breath]. That's better.

Also, it doesn't help that at the moment that I'm studying about suicide, domestic violence, and drug abuse. These are all very important topics because these are many of things that prevades all societies and doesn't get reported often. And why don't doctors ask about domestic violence? Well, first off, lack of skills and training; belief that it is not common; fear of offending the patient(s); privacy beliefs; perpetrator may be a patient; belief that nothing will change from intervention; belief that women will provoke the violence; and (one of the most common) lack of time with the patient.

Okay, I need to get off the computer and go over some past papers with Annabelle and Kim. It's going to be a very long day...

So disappointed...

Well, yep. I am. I was looking so forward to Saturday night. Why? Every year around this time of year, millions of Hindus celebrate Navratri. Navratri is an annual festival is a Hindu festival of worship and dance. The word "Navratri" literally means nine nights; Nav-nine and Ratri-nights. The festival is celebrated for nine nights every year at the beginning of October although the dates of the festival are according to the Hindu calendar.

The state of Gujarat is most famous for its Navratri celebrations. Traditionally, Navratri was celebrated only by Hindu women only, in the honor of goddess Amba/Durga. Amba/Durga is a believed to be a Shakti (literal translation "energy"). Women would put "Garbha deep"(an earthen pot with holes, which has a lamp inside of it - representing life within a womb) in the center, as a symbol of shakti/godess. And at the rhythm of prayers and folk songs, they dance with clapping in concentric circles around "Garbha Deep" or "Garbo".

Even more popular is the dandiya raas. Dandiya raas was traditionally performed by men only. Dandiya is actually a pair of bamboo or any wooden sticks of the length 1.5 to 2 feet. Men would held this sticks in hand, and start with a circuluar formation. Nowadays, both sexes do garba and dandiya raas.

Alright, there is the information bit of Navratri. So, why am I disappointed. Well, I got all dressed up and got down to the place where it was being held. The hall was massive! And I would have to say that there were similar number of people as would come out on a Saturday night during Navratri in Calgary. People were beautifully dressed (there were some absolutely beautiful girls tonight) and hearing people talk in Gujarati made me feel a part of a larger community. However, I also realised some very harsh things about the community. You need to know people in order for them to introduce you , to what is a very closeknit, to their social circles. Everytime I would go and make conversation with someone, they would say "hello" and then leave. I did recognise a few people from uni and perhaps if I see them around, I will go up and introduce myself. I guess I took that for granted in Calgary because my parents are very active and social within the community. I did some garba (have several blisters on the sole of my feet), which was great! Even if I just had one extra person with me, it would have made all the difference. Some of my friends were going to come but, at the last minute, they weren't able to come. This is going to sound so fucking stupid...but my feet, ears, hands and eyes were feasting on the dance, people and sounds. However, my heart wasn't it in because it was the first time in a long time that I felt as if I didn't belong.

Alright, enough with this post. I told myself that there is no point in being disappointed anymore. I just have to keep trying and next year's Navratri might be a whole different experience.

Now, I need to go and nurse these blisters...

Quite far yet so near...

It has been too long since I’ve last posted on this thing, and for that I apologise. So many thoughts, ideas and reflections have been through my mind in the last month and I’ve been trying to sort through them as opposed to putting them on this site for public perusal.

I can’t believe that I’m almost done my first year of medical school. It’s quite a scary thought – I know only a few people that have not had a freak out in the last little while. Right now, we are in Week 31 – which looks at central nervous system and higher brain function. The academic year is 38 weeks (the last 4 weeks is the medical elective period; the rest of the university only has 32 weeks). After this week, we have another week of the central nervous system and then the last two weeks look at psychiatric issues and suicide/depression. Rumour has it that this is the School of Medicine’s implicit way of providing therapy to the MBBS I cohort, as final exams are fast approaching.

Apart from trying to keep on top of my studying (which is getting to be more difficult that I imagined as there are heaps of past exams, my notes, and weekly quizzes to go through), I’ve been counting the days down to a number of key events that will be my rewards for finishing the exam. First off, there is a tradition that MBBS I students go to Stradbrooke Island after they finish the last exam. Straddie, as it is called by locals, is one of the largest sand islands in the world and from what I’ve heard from Brisbanites, it has some of the most beautiful beaches in all of Australia. During the same weekend, Ruth will be coming up to Brisbane (tenative - but a friend can dream)! I can’t wait to show her the sights and sounds of Brisbane, as she did with me when I vistied her in Adelaide. It will be a bit difficult to get her around as I don’t have a car. However, that will hopefully change at the beginning of next year when I buy myself a shitbox with wheels. Ruth’s arrival also means that those student members of MAPW QLD that are interested in NWIP will be having a retreat and having workshops on how to conduct non-confrontational dialogue and things like that. There are some future plans with NWIP coming out of Australia, however, I reckon that I will just keep those ideas to myself for the time being because I don’t want to get my hopes up about it and then have them come crashing down because I was just a bit too eager.

After the Straddie trip, I have a few days to get my shit together and leave for Delhi! I’ll be leaving on November 3rd. I’ll be stopping in Kuala Lumpur for the day and then make my way to Colombo, Sri Lanka for a couple days. I’ve never been to either Malaysia or Sri Lanka. It will be nice to add those two places on my travelling belt. Regardless of the fact that they will be whirlwind trips, I can’t wait! I’ll arrive in Delhi on November 5th. I’ll be picked up by some people from St. Stephen’s hospital and then taken to my hospital accommodations.

I’m so excited about having a medical elective experience in India. I will be going to Delhi with a number of other students from the class; fortunately, I like them all. My only worry is that we will all hang out together (which is fine) and that most of them will use me as a conduit for their experiences in Delhi. I reckon that I already know who will hate it and who will love it. I know that seeing India from a tourist perspective and as a person who claims the place as a source of ancestry often yields in different paradigms.

Regardless, something that is even more awesome, I will be meeting up with Mum in Mumbai on November 13th. We are then going to fly to Porbandar, Gujarat (her birthplace). One of my cousins (on my mum’s side) will be getting married and one of my dad’s cousins will be getting married as well. After the weddings, her and I are heading up to Ahmedabad to do some shopping for my brother’s wedding which will be next year, and to do some personal shopping because when in India, one goes shopping. :)

My elective period goes until December 2nd and I will be in India until December 13th. I fly back to Brisbane via Colombo and a night stopover in Kuala Lumpur. I arrive in the evening of December 16th, only to pack and move, and then get on a plane to Calgary on December 20th.

Now, if only I can get through the next 5 weeks without having a major upset or freak out session. Wish me the best of luck…I’m going to need it.