Hospital Survey in Chennai

I spent the past week in Chennai surveying Sri Ramanchandra Medical Center. We had nine of our Operations and Sales managers from all over India come in to help and learn the process. We think we have put together a proposal that will win us the business. The price will be 14,69,000 Rs (Which is stated 14 lakh 69 thousand rupees). At a rate of 48Rs/ dollar that is $30,604.00/month. If we get it we will likely start on Nov. 1. I will be one busy guy.

At any rate, the pics show the place. The Main Entrance, and the side view show the size. There are six wings of which if you look closely, you can only see four. There are a lot of trees on the campus, and the hospital is part of a medical school and nursing school. There is also a free hospital on the grounds. Notice the sea of two wheelers, (the prefered method of transport).

The pic of the back of the truck is interesting in that it is requesting that each family only have one child. Some people in India would like to see the population begin to decline.

Killing time in Chennai

I'm staying at the Hotel Manhattan in Chennai (about a one star facility). Having a rough time with my stomach, so I skipped dinner last night and slept instead. Got up early, and am waiting until about 9:30 when the team is ready to go. I always bring a book with me, and this time at least I have the internet. I had a couple hours to kill, so I had a leisurly breakfast, and am reading my book. "Heaven" by Randy Alcorn, thick book, but very informative about my final destination and permenant home.

I attended the Muslim "feast" the other night at my driver(Harun's) house. It was not a big deal. He made the meal, Curry Chicken and Mutton (goat), and rice, and vegetable curry with some sort of sweet for desert. I ate cautiously, but I'm sick most of the time anyway. I look forward to the day when "food processing" gets back to normal.

Sorry no flashy pics this time, I'll shoot some later.

Dead Time in Bangalore

I have been real busy this time while here in India. Part of it is that Nickie and I have been enjoying doing things together, like going to TGI Fridays for "special meat" meals and traveling to new and different places like Madamapalle. Right now, Nickie is in Thailand visiting her family, it is a holiday in India, and I had one appointment this morning, so the rest of the afternoon is completely unscheduled. It feels good to not be going somewhere, coming back from somewhere, or be expected to be doing something productive. I do already miss Nickie, but I know the trip will do her good. She has a lot of dead time while I am at work and traveling every week. For me, I usually have dead time when I am in the airport waiting for a plane, or sitting in some company lobby waiting for an appointment that is always late. It's funny how this apartment in Bangalore has become home, and I really value my time here relaxing, and being "unscheduled". Tonight I have been invited to a Muslim feast to celebrate the end of the past month of fasting. My driver is hosting the deal at his house, so I felt complelled to agree to go. I may not like most of the food, but he will appreciate the fact that I came. I'll try to get some good shots.

Our Hosts in Madanapalle

Here are some shots of the pastor and his family that hosted us while in Madanapalle. The oldest son Samual (on the far right side with the white shirt on) acted as our personal guide and went everywhere with us. He is about Josh's age, and was a very nice young man. The other group are the folks that pastor and lead one of the hill station churches that had us to their house for dinner.

Praying With People

One of the greatest pleasures and most humbeling parts of this experience was praying for people. At every church, almost every person wanted Nickie and I to hold their hands and pray for them. Some had specific concerns, and others just wanted blessings. We spent up to 45 minutes at each church in prayer with individuals and families.

The Middle Church

These shots are of the middle sized church that we visited. The welcome here was also very friendly and the people treated us great.

The Main Church in Madanapalle

Here are some shots of the main church that we visited. This one was more inside the town, and the pastor here is the one that planted the churches in the hill stations. This is also the church where I delivered the message. Nickie also talked to the group!

People "fooding"

One of the main attractions of church is feeding the people afterwards. Here are some shots of that event. We were also invited to eat everywhere we went and there are some shots of that as well. I am running out of space for this weeks posting, so I will post more next weekend.

Outdoor "Hill Station" Church

We attended an evening worship service at an outdoor church. I was asked to share my testimony through an interpreter. The people were very gracious and loving. They have been unable to build a permenant church due to local political resistance. The church service was held on the road in front of the pastor's house.

Mountain Sites and "Hill Stations"

In India, they call the villages in the mountains "hill stations". We visited several of them, and the church that we want to help build is located in one of them.
Here are some general views of mountain sites.

People of Madanapalle

While in Madanapalle we met a lot of people. Pastor Sampath's dad (84 yrs. old) and his sister. Pastor Suney and his son are also pictured, and the unfinished building is Pastor Suney's. We are hoping to help financially with the completion of the church. The two ladies pictured are doing a lot of the work of the construction.

The "treacherous" Road to Madanapalle

This village is about 2.5 hours 130Km east of Bangalore. We traveled there with a friend Pastor Sampath Kumar to visit village churches. On the way, a cow jumped out in front of our car, and although our driver slambed on the brakes and left skid marks, we were unable to avoid having a hood and windshield full of cow. It was quite an adventure, and the "cowgirl" that was suppose to be driving the herd yelled at us! She was the one that made the cow mad, and caused him to dart in front of us.
The other pics are some of the sites on the way. The car is due to be taken care of this week. We drove it all weekend, and back home in the condition that it is pictured here. Luckily it didn't rain! Also, the driver is lucky that the cows back hit the windshield rather than the feet.

Portable Laundry Service

In various parts of the city you find guys like this doing ironing for hire. The irons are very heavey, and are filled with hot coals to keep them hot. Pretty interesting.

Our Church Pastor

In Bangalore we atttend the Evangelical Free Church on Kamanihaley Main Road. Our pastor is Jaichand with his wife Sarita, and his daughter Chetena. They came to our house for one of Nickies famous spagetti dinners.

A Weekend in Bangalore

This weekend, we explored the neighborhood a little bit more. We took the overpass across the street, and looked down on a public phone kiosk. They have three phones so you can call local, long didtance, or international for a fee. We also went to TGI Fridays which is just accross the street, but crossing the street is a "true adventure". Traffic on our road is CRAZY! Of course, we went to church, and took a couple of shots there and at least on shot of my beautiful wife in her new Indian clothing that she bought at the mall when we went grocery shopping. We had chicken and steak skewers at TGI, and will be returning soon for a full meal. This has been a good weekend. After church our friend Bill came over for lunch. I cant wait to have a steak at TGI.....