The New Normal

Sometimes I am shocked by how normal my life is in Islamabad. Go to meetings, work in front of a computer, hit the gym, run by the grocery store for a dozen eggs and some broccoli. On these days I think, other than wearing pants under all my dresses (=how to turn American clothes into shalwar kameeze) and having my own driver, I could almost be living in a U.S. suburb.

Except for nights like Monday, when I had dinner with Eve Ensler at my friend Dania's house. Ensler was visiting the region as she often does as part of her campaign to end violence against women around the world. She is most famous for writing the play "The Vagina Monologues" and, although I did not ask her about them, is friends with all sorts of famous women like Susan Sarandon and Oprah who star in productions of her play. She is an extremely cool woman and someone you would definitely want in your bookclub, your yoga class, or your extended family (although it rarely works out that way).

After dinner, Dania gave us all an impromptu belly-dancing lesson and I had an extra thick piece of delicious date cake with custard for dessert (okay, so some things remain constant).

To Brush or Not to Brush?

I've always said the most dangerous thing in Pakistan is the food. But perhaps it is time to also add "the water."

First of all, let's be fair: it's been a long time since I've gotten sick from any cause at all in this country. (Why do I tempt fate like that? why?why?) Ever since I've arrived, I've examined every stick of celery, every unwashed apple, and every dish containing mayonnaise with an eagle eye of doubt and mistrust. All the while, however, I have been blithely filling my mouth every morning and every night with something that I have recently been told is far more dangerous: untreated, unchlorinated tap water.

There is a cute little notice in one of the hotels I frequent that says "Tap water is unsuitable for drinking." This is putting it mildly. Like those college trips you took to Mexico, you're not supposed to drink the tap water here. Or eat lettuce that is wet from being washed in it. Or let a piece of ice float in your drink that has been made with it. I totally get it, and I have been diligent. Except for one exception: I brush my teeth with it every day.

No, I don't swallow it. But doesn't a teeny tiny little bit of it go down in the process? And is it possible that, perhaps especially during monsoon season when waterways flood and septic systems run haywire, a little bit of that teeny bit might have nasty things in it? This is the question I am thinking about today, when what I should be thinking about is the media outreach workshop I need to put together for next week, or how I can quickly get hold of an entire Pakistani winter wardrobe (all of a sudden it is cold here).

But today I am thinking about waterborne bacteria instead. And about clean water in general. And about how this is a problem in Pakistan and how to solve it. The other day I saw a cute ad for "Global Handwashing Day" on TV here. It had cartoons, and smiling children, and a happy little song. I'm thinking jettison all of that, and go with a picture of teeming, crawling bacteria under the microscope. Then show how soap and water kills it. Wouldn't that do it?

A friend of mine who lived in Pakistan for three years kept a pitcher of filtered water in her bathroom next to the sink to rinse her mouth out after brushing her teeth. I always thought this was overkill. Picturing my fictional crawling bacteria advertisement has got me wondering if I was wrong.

Friends who live in Pakistan: I need to take a poll. Do you brush your teeth with tap water? Please advise. I need guidance.

And yes, I'll admit I used that picture of the cat because it is just so darn cute.

Perplexing Question of the Day about Pakistan

Why is it, in a country often lauded as being as IT-savvy and advanced as India or the United States, THAT I CAN'T PAY MY BILLS ONLINE IN PAKISTAN?

This is a mystery to me. No online bill payment, period. Not your phone bill, not your electric bill, not your rental car, not your gallons of clean water to drink bill, not your super cool Wi-Tribe bill. What is Wi-Tribe, you ask? Just a great little service that lets you connect to the internet anytime, anywhere in Pakistan's major cities using just a little gadget on your laptop for only about $15 a month. Cool, right? Progressive, cutting-edge, technologically modern and up-to-date? Until you have to march down to the store to wait in line for 40 minutes to pay your bill, in person, in cash every month. What?

Does anyone have any answers to this one?

McPakistan

One thing that is the same all over the world? McDonald's.

Well, kind of. The ubiquitous McDonald's sundae is actually a hundred times better at its Islamabad outpost: the ice cream is creamier and the whole thing is drowned in hot fudge (U.S. franchises being stingy when it comes to toppings for some reason).

There's another difference: remember when Big Macs came in styrofoam, Madonna and Cyndi Lauper were battling it out for supremacy, and you had never heard of global warming? You don't have to imagine that here. Except for the Cyndi Lauper thing. Pakistan is very up-to-date when it comes to pop music.

And finally, there's one item on the menu that lets you know you're not in Kansas anymore: the "McArabia" sandwich. McDonald's answer to local ethnic food is a vaguely Middle Eastern chicken wrap. I haven't been brave enough to try this yet.

Of course, these days I don't know if I'm brave enough to go to McDonald's. It has, you guessed it, recently been added to the list of places likely to be blast targets. I'll be finding my cheeseburgers elsewhere for awhile...