Monday, November 29th? (Dawson)

Report from India- I'm alive!!!! So much has happened the last few days, and I feel I just gotta inform you all about it!
So first, let me just tell all of you who donated to my mission, THANK YOU VERY MUCH! All those donations really meant a lot to me, and they'll be making a difference here in a few days..
Let's start from the beginning...
So on Saturday, I departed my loving family and best friend Rebekah at the airport. It was very sad to leave them, and I want them to know that I miss them!! I got onto my plane to Chicago and the flight wasn't fun, but it was quick. I got off and saw my boy Kyle Sevel for the first time in 4 months, waiting outside my gate. We caught up and got a bite to eat at Chili's. I also had to buy Hamlet to read on the trip (kill me). Then Lisa arrived, and the three musketeers were back together again! Good times, good times. She got us some dogtags that said "No Regrets" on them, and I'm wearing mine as we speak! We also met up with another student volunteer named Chris, who is a sophomore from Michigan. He was just sitting here, but he went over to his room. Bummer.
Next, we got on the plane! Next stop? DELHI, INDIA!!!! We then got on the plane, and luckily were able to arrange the seats so we could all sit next to each other! Woooo! I sat and watched a few movies and television programs on the small tvs they had for us. But I couldn't possibly tell this story without telling you about Sargent O'Conner (Sr.) The pilot informed us we had 5 minutes until takeoff, so Lisa thought this meant she would have time to go to the bathroom before we took off. The flight attendent (who we nicknamed Sargent O'Conner) was not the least bit pleased. She calmly said "Just a reminder, we cannot leave until everyone has taken their seats." Okay, simple enough. Then she exploded, "MA'AM, SIT IN YOUR SEAT!!!!!" The entire plane was laughing hysterically at Lisa's expense (myself included). Thus providing us with an amazing inside joke to last us forever. The rest of the flight went fine, I mostly just slept.
Then we landed..... IN INDIA!!!!! We were all extremely excited to be in India! We met up with quite a few people from Op Smile at the airport, and I became acquainted with a few of the medical people we will have on site with us. They are all amazingly nice people and I'm very excited to be getting to know all of them over the next couple weeks. We exchanged our $$ for rupees, and we all piled onto a bus to take us to a hotel in Delhi. The driving here in India is wild.... So many people all trying to get to the same place! The lane markings really mean nothing, I have found. And honking of the horn is a regular part of driving. I'm getting used to it. As we were flying down the road, all the sudden we hear this spuddering, and our bus BROKE DOWN. It broke down in the middle of the road. Eeek. After about an hour and a half, we got a back up bus, and were back on our way to Delhi. Phew ;)
Our hotel was very nice on the first night. It was called the Hotel Broadway, and had pictures from Broadway plays on the inside. Kyle and I got to bed at around 2:30 am, only to be awoken at 6:30 am for breakfast. Breakfast was wonderful! I got some potatoes, toast, and some flatbread stuff (I think called raan?) Anyways, it was great. Then we left to go back to the airport. Luckily, our bus did not break down. We boarded ANOTHER flight (after some wonderful meals at the Delhi McDonald's), this time to Guwahati! This flight was decent, and I got to know Chris a lot more. He likes good music :) We arrived in Guwahati around 2:30 pm, and we got on another bus ride to our hotel. I think I better get used to all these bus rides. Two words could be used to describe Guwahati.. HOT and CRAZY. There are sooooo many people here, and they all contribute to the murky humidity. I swear it was 100 degrees when we got here, but maybe because I'm used to Utah weather. I still thought it was hot though ;) If you're wondering if you see cows everywhere, you do. I've seen probably 50 so far (no elephants though, Rebekah). I noticed a lot of poverty on the drive through, and I'm already starting to be thankful for what I have. However, the people are all smiling and having fun, and I'm liking to get to know them already!
Here we are at the Ginger Hotel. Kyle and I got a quick nap in before dinner, which was absolutely amazing. I ate some rice and some soup, and then the desert was absolutely incredible. Now I am just blogging and getting prepared for tomorrow, the first day of screening! As I slowly figure out the internet situation, I will begin to upload pics. As for the rest of it, I'll just give some quick shout outs! I miss my whole family, and love them oh so much. I miss the Hyde family (especially you Rebekah <3). I miss Brother Day's 2nd period seminary class! And I miss ALL of you reading back home. Thanks so much for your support! Check back in for more updates as they occur. Goodbye!