Rain, rain, go away!

It started raining early this morning. At 3:30 I woke up to lots of lighting and thunder and at 4:30 it started pouring. Since we today would be heading down to Utan where we had been rained out once before, I checked the weather radar and saw that they had had exceptionally much rain. Great. It was going to be another soggy day, “hovering” over puddles.

Fortunately, it stopped lightning by the time we left, but the rain was relentless. In fact, the train had to stop on the rails for a while and by the time we reached Bhayandar, where we catch the bus to Utan, the station was under so much water that we decided we should try to get hold of the producer before venturing out in a bus and potentially get stuck. We asked at the station for a payphone but the best we could understand was that it was outside. After chuckling at the large, red warning signs not to stand close to the trains during the rain because the trains are electric, we didn’t feel like getting soaked in an attempt to find a phone that most likely wouldn’t be working in this weather. So, we went to the stores are across from the station and asked if we could use their phone. They were not very thrilled but we have found that people in general are willing to help, so we called and got the ok.

The ride in an old bus to Utan is really something. At times, I felt like I was driving through the Ozarks, except for the palm trees, loose cows, chickens, and goats and flooded fields. Hm..maybe not so different afterall. Anyway, we tried to convey to bus controller where we needed to go but he had no idea what we are trying to say. We got out the sheet of paper with the address and instructions and before we knew it, the paper was passed through the bus and we receive many different opinions as to where we should be heading. We did manage to finally get dropped of where we needed to be and started walking. True to our experiences so far, we managed to get lost for a little while and soon found ourselves in the neighboring town. We walked back for the third time and suddenly realized we had walked passed his place three times. By now, we were drenched.

We were welcomed with warm, Indian coffee and a great smile. Who could at this point care about a little rain? Zia and his wife Shameema are such wonderful people and answered all the questions we had after our last visit. Then they took us out to the dye area and started explaining even more. They are true artists in their field.

After several hours of intense instructions and trouble shooting, we were treated to a delicious lunch, during which we talked and learned even more. At the end of the day, Shameema took us to a church close by. I am not sure if it is the church they attend or just one she feels close too, but it looked like a Catholic church and was really beautiful. We went in and sat down for a few moments during which she took the time to pray. The church is located right at the beach of the Arabian Sea and I couldn’t help but to wish my own congregation could experience the setting and the view. While we sat in the church, you could hear the waves hitting the rocks.

We might have been back to the apartment a little later than usual, but it was so worth the extra stop.