SETTING UP HOME AT G5

Come Oct 29 and we started on our journey to the Promised Land, the village destined for us by Almighty God. 

The workers from Pernem delayed in coming. They were unprofessional so Glenn brought in some of the MBBS boys to help. 

Oct 28 Last glimpses of our old home. 

Bed dismantled, workers taking the cupboards down the stairs, etc. 

By noon, all the things were in the house. We had a quick lunch and waited for evening to come so we could move our pets to the new house. Anticipating trouble from the stray dogs that lined the road outside the building, I prayed fervently as we drove to Bastora. Praise God, there was not a single dog in sight when we arrived and we could safely get Ebony and Ivory inside (the latter was in her yellow basket)

It took the two of them a couple of days to orient themselves and then the carpenters descended on us. As I pen this, the carpentry work is almost over and the house is in semi-comatose state. 

Kitchen drawers n doors being made

Polishing of old furniture 

Carpenter Sood putting stoppers to elevate the sofa.

Carpenter Sharmaji helping Sood to finish the work faster. 

Our first contractor was still around, doing small end jobs like fixing taps and knobs, and he kept delaying his work and frustrating me further. 

We had to get the garden bed ready but couldn't start that because the carpenters were working in the area. Glenn got me some large stones from MBBS to put at the bottom.

We collected the flower pots and my compost bins from CS7 and I put the latter in my kitchen window. The kitchen, btw, still has that war zone look. There are kitchen gadgets and utensils in the master bedroom as well so you can imagine how irritating it is to cook. 

For the first week after we came to G5, Glenn supplied us food from MBBS but, for the last couple of days, I have attempted to start cooking as Aaron resumed college on Monday 7 November. 

I also did not get Mass at Bastora church because the novena was going on. The feast is this Sunday 13 November. 

Network coverage, being very weak in the village, I haven't really been able to watch much YouTube videos. I download during the night when reception is better and watch offline nowadays. 

I have been slowly getting acquainted with my neighbours. My immediate neighbour has four dogs but she keeps a neat backyard. She has fenced her area so the dogs can roam free in that place. 

View of the backyard from my kitchen window 

Most of those living on the ground floor have cemented the area in front of their flats as did we when we were doing the porch area. However, the rest of the compound is sadly very uneven. The area in proximity with our flat is ours to maintain provided we do not plant anything. We are allowed to keep plants in pots though. 

On the second floor of our wing lives a poet and his family. Originally fron Mapusa, they moved in 2005 to this building. I have also met a journalist from Bandra who's always on the move and is very kind to the stray dogs. Then there is a doctor who knows how to handle snakes. 

In the next wing is an artist from Mumbai whom I haven't met yet. I did meet, however, another family from Mumbai last week. It was such a strange coincidence that I must elaborate. 

I had gone for morning Mass on 3 Nov, not knowing that there's no morning Mass on the novena days. I was sitting in the compound waiting for the church doors to open when a family sauntered in. The wife spoke to me, asked me where I am from and thinking that they are tourists, I pointed in the direction of my building without mentioning the name. To my surprise, she said she's from my building. Then I chatted more freely and discovered that she lives in the other wing and that they were going back the next day. 

Dan is with me these days and helps me in the garden cleaning. Yesterday we played badminton for a while till I got fatigued. Aaron takes Ebony for her walks and gets a 21-bark volley every single night. She keeps her cool amd I think the dogs are now trying to be friends. We started feeding them with rice and some tinned mackerel given by our journalist neighbour. Of course, this is done outside the compound. So the dogs too know they are not permitted inside and keep their distance. 

Workers clearing grass in the compound 

The dry waste collection is on Tuesdays. Everyone leaves it at the gate from where its taken by the panchayat workers. Scrap dealers also roam about asking for anything to sell. Right now, we only had some cardboard boxes and aluminium shafts from the old frames to sell. 

Dry waste collection by panchayat 

Few days ago, the building got workers to clear the grass in the compound. Now the backyard is accessible. We still have our debris dumped behind which we are going to remove by this weekend. Then that whole area can be beautified. 

Painter Laxman at work on the kitchen drawers. 

So this is week one of our stay at G5. I have met many interesting people, including the carpenters Sood, Chotu and Sharmaji, the polish guy Raju and his assistant Laxman who paints for a living. I also made my acquaintance with Adil, who will be making our sofa set cushions. Adil is a young chap, around Kirsten's age, but already running his father's business. 

Adil's card - in case you're interested.

So, with these few updates. I take your leave. I will add to the blog as and when I get time. Till then, Shalom Shanti. 

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For those new to the blog, here's a glimpse of my family 

From left to right - Aaron, my artist son; Glenn n myself in green, our daughter Charis Ann and youngest boy Daniel, next is Nathan in the white shirt and last but not the least, our eldest boy Kirsten.