Arriving at Woodstock

A few days ago, we arrived late at night in Delhi after a 14-hour direct from Newark. We slept (poorly) for most of the flight, but it was nice to have it over with quickly. 

We met the new teachers over the course of the day and had dinner together on the first night (3 July) which included a birthday cake for me(!). Yesterday (4 July), we caught an early morning Shatadbi Express train from Delhi to Dehradun, and then we took small buses up the mountain. Our welcoming committee made the whole journey feel tight and organized. After lots and lots of twists and turns, we gained about 5500 feet of elevation in about 45 minutes to arrive at Woodstock’s main gate.

All the teachers and staff who were on campus already met us at the gate; we had tea and met our personal buddy who walked us to our housing and is helping us learn how to do things here. He also happens to be our curriculum coordinator, and he seems great so far! 

Our home is pretty cozy and has lots of interesting wood and stone features. It’ll take a while for us to settle in and make it feel ours, but we like what we have to work with.

The entrance

Our bukhari (wood-burning heater)

Our front door

It’s nearly on the ridge of our hill, and we snapped this photo from a few minutes’ walk away from our house:

Can you spot the monkey in the trees on the left?

The monsoon skies cleared up for us when we arrived, so we we’ve been lucky to get a taste of September views. We're told that when the clouds clear, you can see the Himalayas in the deep background. Also on the ridge is a scenic boulevard that’s open to sparse traffic, and we walked a bit of it this morning. At the main crossroads, we found a pack of dogs who followed us for the rest of our trip giving us good company and ample protection from the troops of rhesus macaques who seem to have staked a territorial claim on the area. 

It's really indescribably beautiful here, and the people we've met so far have been very kind, welcoming, and supportive. We’re feeling good about this. 

‘Til later,
~Dinesh and Leaf