Circle of friends

My time spent at Bonani was great. When I got there, I also met Rafiba’s three-year-old sister, Nusaiba, and another cousin from my father’s side (my dad’s brother’s daughter), Lina. The three of us spent most of the days either munching, snacking, or chatting about my journey, and our lives, while Nusaiba played around us. Rafiba is getting married in January and the preparations are still ongoing. We became pretty good friends and kind of like sisters, in a short while. They were both very welcoming, friendly, and had been eager to meet me. Rafiba’s brother Zaheen also dropped by every evening so I got to meet him and get to know him too. Rafiba is already studying at a university, but Zaheen will start from the next term this fall. He just finished college a few months back as well as his exams. Lina, meanwhile, is already in medical school.

That’s the thing many will find strange, that once a person starts at a university, he/she jumps right into the area of his/her concentration, whether it be pharmacy, business, medicine, or engineering. Those who start in medical school go directly into a five-year program. Once they complete the program, they’re full-fledged doctors but still have to do a residency.

That Sunday night, the 24th, I met with Adina and another friend, Maleya, for dinner at a sushi restaurant in the Gulshan residential area. Maleya also went to UNI with us and graduated with us, though not at the same time. The three of us were very good friends back in Iowa and always hung out together. After Maleya graduated, she came back to Dhaka with her mom. Her mom had come to Iowa to see her graduate. When Maleya left, neither nor I thought we’d see each other again, unless either she came back to Cedar Falls or I came to Dhaka. It was a great reunion for all three of us, and almost felt like it used to with one exception. Maleya has since gotten married and has a baby son, Zayaaf. He is so cute and looks like his mom.

After that reunion dinner, and after heading to the Sheraton Hotel lobby for some delicious ice-cream, Maleya dropped me back at Bonani. I felt like I was leaving one circle of friends and heading back toward another. I’m close to both sets of friends, but closer to particular people than a particular group.

This ice-cream incident reminds me of another place I went to earlier this week, either the 22nd or 23rd, with Adina and her family. After dinner, we headed for a popular spot well known for its variety of flavors. This is also why so many Westerners who live and work in Dhaka frequent this place. By Westerner, I am referring to Americans, British and other Europeans, and even though, I’m geographically wrong, in one sense of the word, I’m also referring to Australians and New Zealanders. My apologies; I can’t think of the name of this place right now.

After heaping a chocolate caramel and mocha special into a cup, I sat down with Adina’s family to chow down and people watch. I was curious to know what most Western women wear while in Bangladesh. Most there wore either salwar kameez sets or Bengali-designed tops and ankle-length skirts. I watched a group of people from very diverse backgrounds but they were on the other end of the seating areas, so I couldn’t hear what they were saying. It was still strange and comforting to be there because at that point, I really felt like I was back in the states in probably a more diverse city than Cedar Falls. Chicago, New York, San Antonio, Los Angeles, or Houston, maybe?