A Bug's Life

Well, it's bug season in Bangladesh. The season is a combination of spring and summer in the US. The heat is as strong as the summer, but it's just starting to rain occassionally (it's been totally dry for months) and all the plants are blooming like spring. Except for the heat, it's a lovely time. Any inch of this country that wasn't covered with plants before, is now fully green (the majority with rice paddies). In fact, our yard was "cleaned" before we moved in - which means all the plants were ripped out and the ground left brown and barren. Now, there is grass (magically) and plants everywhere. And along with the plants, rain, and heat...came the bugs. There are many bugs we can't identify because we've never seen them before (actually, the mosquitos are so big, we can hardly believe they are mosquitos). But, there are many familiar types: ants of every size, flies, dragonflies, butterflies, moths, bees, wasps, roaches, centipedes, and giant spiders (yes, I know the last 2 on the list aren't actaully bugs). Ezra has learned the Bangla word for mosquito ("mosha") and swats for one anytime he hears the word. Actually, he doesn't know the difference between mosquitos and any other flying bug, so he swats at everything equally.

On another note, we were recently at the home of a friend and saw "A Bug's Life" playing in Bangla for her 4 year old son. Since we have no Bangla tutor and are always looking for ways to learn more of the language - Emily bought the DVD for us to watch. It's amazing how many English movies and TV shows are available here in dubbed Bangla and it's no wonder everyone knows a lot more about our culture than we know about theirs.