Christmas didn't feel like Christmas at all, but it was fun for what it was.
On Christmas morning, we had a party at school. The kids had decorated stockings the day before and when they arrived, Santa had come and filled them. We had food and took lots of pictures (with the disposable cameras from the field trip) and decorated Christmas tree ornaments. The girls came over to watch Home Alone. They liked it. The boys watched it on Christmas Eve and they LOVED it. They laughed so hard! After the girls left, Lauren and I went into Kolkata. We went out to eat at a really nice place called Marco Polos. I had pesto pasta and a peach daquari. Delicious. Aside from ordering a round of beer with my family in Mexico, it was my first time ordering and being served alcohol in that way. Park Street was absolutely packed with Christmas pedestrians. It took so long to walk down the street. We stayed at a hotel for two nights.
The day after Christmas, we got up and went to a little bakery for breakfast. It had the freshest bread I've had since I've been in India. Then we went to the Park Hotel salon so I could get my hair cut. Lauren decided to get her hair dyed a darker, reddish brown. It turned out a disasterous purple though, so she had to re-do it. This took a very long time. By the time it was fixed, it was time for our massages. We each got a one hour professional massage at the spa at teh Park. It was heavenly. The facilities were amazing. I never dreamed I would be in such a nice place, but things are so much cheaper in India.
After our massages, we met up with Babai and walked around town. We went to a mall and to a hooka bar/cafe'. It was fun. Then Babai had to go and Lauren and I went out to dinner. A big Indian family walked in the restaraunt right after we were seated, and Lauren and I remarked how American the three girls looks. (Style of clothing; one of them was wearing tie-dye) Then we heard them speak, and sure enough, they were American! We assume their parents were from Kolkata and they had come back to visit. It was funny though, because Lauren had asked me what a certain kind of naan was (I didn't know) and a few minutes later we heard them ask the same thing.
Today we got up and went to the same bakery for breakfast before coming back to Khardah.
Lauren and I were at Piya's house earlier today. Her brother's new wife was there, and she was really friendly. She was so subdued at the wedding party, I was surprised today that she is really very spunky and cheerful. They gave us the customary tea and biscuits, and then they gave us chapati and potato curry that they will have for dinner later tonight. It was my first time eating any of my students' dinner food. It was delicious.
Tomorrow I am going to Mumbai to meet my parents. We will tour around India for two weeks. I can't wait!
~m
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Field Trip
Today we took the CRAWL students on a field trip to the Victoria Memorial and the Botanical Gardens. We chartared a bus and drove into Kolkata. Every student got a disposable camera to take pictures of the memorial and of eachother. We had a picnic breakfast at the VM, and then played frisbee and cabade (a really popular game in Bengal that is kind of like tag) in the lawn. As expected, the kids were shocked to see couples holding hands and leaning into eachother under trees all throughout the grounds. It was cause for much giggling and whispering. We took the kids through the museum quickly; we didn't really take time to read any information. All this took a few hours.
Next, we got back on the bus and drove to the Botanical Gardens. We had a lunch of kachuri, which is fried flat bread, and aloo dum, which is potato curry. It was yummy. Then we walked through the gardens. We looked at the world's largest tree. It's a banyan, which drop roots from their branches and just continue to spread and spread. The canopy of the one tree covers some ridiculously large area.
On the bus, we listened to music and watched music videos. After plenty of prodding, tugging and pleading from the students, I agreed to dance with them in the aisle of the bus. It was extremely difficult. Driving in India involves weaving and slamming on the breaks quite frequently. So we would try to dance, only to be thrown in all directions, falling over eachother. It was still fun though. Most of the kids have never ridden in cars or buses except for on previous CRAWL field trips. On the ride back, almost every single one of them got sick and threw up. We passed out plastic bags. Some were sick from the beginning, but by the time we reached Khardah, even the girls who had been dancing with me were sick. There was vomit dripping down the outsides of the bus when we got back. It was a sad end to such a fun day. Despite that, I think the kids all really enjoyed themselves. I know I did.
~m
Next, we got back on the bus and drove to the Botanical Gardens. We had a lunch of kachuri, which is fried flat bread, and aloo dum, which is potato curry. It was yummy. Then we walked through the gardens. We looked at the world's largest tree. It's a banyan, which drop roots from their branches and just continue to spread and spread. The canopy of the one tree covers some ridiculously large area.
On the bus, we listened to music and watched music videos. After plenty of prodding, tugging and pleading from the students, I agreed to dance with them in the aisle of the bus. It was extremely difficult. Driving in India involves weaving and slamming on the breaks quite frequently. So we would try to dance, only to be thrown in all directions, falling over eachother. It was still fun though. Most of the kids have never ridden in cars or buses except for on previous CRAWL field trips. On the ride back, almost every single one of them got sick and threw up. We passed out plastic bags. Some were sick from the beginning, but by the time we reached Khardah, even the girls who had been dancing with me were sick. There was vomit dripping down the outsides of the bus when we got back. It was a sad end to such a fun day. Despite that, I think the kids all really enjoyed themselves. I know I did.
~m
Monday, December 15, 2008
continuation of wedding party description, and then some
When we arrived at Piya's brother's house, we sat on the bed with the bride and about a zillion little cousins. (Most of the Indians I know here don't have living rooms. When they have guests over, they sit on the bed, or on the floor if they don't have a bed) So we sat and talked and took lots of pictures. Finally we got the bride to smile and relax a little, but she'd quickly go back to looking sad. I did manage to get a few pictures of her smiling, which will hopefully compensate for all the ones where it looks like she's about to burst into tears. Anyway, we sat and visited for about an hour, and gave her the gift we'd bought (a yellow and blue shawl). She thanked us and quickly set it aside, like she did with all the gifts she recieved.
Then we went outside to the tent (it was basically a pandal - constructed of bamboo and fabric - without the dieties) to have dinner. Everyone else who was there by then ate at that time too. The plates were made of palm leaves, and the first thing we did was pour water on them to rinse them. Serves brought around rice and dhal, which we ate with our hands. Because we are foreigners, we were being watched by everyone, which made it even more awkward to eat in a way to which we are so unaccustomed. Its sad that its actually difficult for me to use my own fingers to perform a task as simple as eating. But it was hard for me not to drop grains of rice or get food on my face. I think part of the difficulty came from the fact that eating like that is so against the way I've been trained all my life; its bad manners. I would look up expecting to see people gawking at me for being so rude, but instead I'd see everyone else just shoveling it in.
The meal consisted of rice and dhal, potato and cabbage curry (aloo gobi), a sweet chutney with crispy chips, and spongey white sweets drenched in a sugary sauce. There was also chicken curry, but I didn't eat it because I'm vegetarian. We finished off with packets of pan (or paan), a breath freshener that is a mix of a flavored powder (in this case mint) and crushed betel nuts. It was pretty yummy. The betel nuts have addictive qualities though, and some people's teeth are stained red from constantly chewing pan. There is red spit all over everything here because of it.
We went back into the house, back onto the bed to visit for a little while longer, and then we left. Prativa and Arati had to get home, and Bobby wanted us to go all together. Huge groups of people were arriving as we were going out. So we missed the main partying, but it was still really kool to be included at all.
A few days later, Piya came to the flat to choose which pictures she wanted me to print. Last night I picked up the prints and bought an album and took them to her house. The pictures are something her family could never afford (or at least would never choose to spend their money on). So I was really happy to be able to give them the photos. They were all really excited.
Piya had gotten a photo of herself taken at a studio. She was in the same outfit she'd worn for me to take her picture last month (with the addition of a red hat that made her look remeniscent of a flapper), if you remeber that blog entry. The pose was awkward but cute. She had had three copies printed, and she gave one to me as thanks for all the photos I'd had printed for her. "You one keep." She said. I'm very happy to have it.
~m
Then we went outside to the tent (it was basically a pandal - constructed of bamboo and fabric - without the dieties) to have dinner. Everyone else who was there by then ate at that time too. The plates were made of palm leaves, and the first thing we did was pour water on them to rinse them. Serves brought around rice and dhal, which we ate with our hands. Because we are foreigners, we were being watched by everyone, which made it even more awkward to eat in a way to which we are so unaccustomed. Its sad that its actually difficult for me to use my own fingers to perform a task as simple as eating. But it was hard for me not to drop grains of rice or get food on my face. I think part of the difficulty came from the fact that eating like that is so against the way I've been trained all my life; its bad manners. I would look up expecting to see people gawking at me for being so rude, but instead I'd see everyone else just shoveling it in.
The meal consisted of rice and dhal, potato and cabbage curry (aloo gobi), a sweet chutney with crispy chips, and spongey white sweets drenched in a sugary sauce. There was also chicken curry, but I didn't eat it because I'm vegetarian. We finished off with packets of pan (or paan), a breath freshener that is a mix of a flavored powder (in this case mint) and crushed betel nuts. It was pretty yummy. The betel nuts have addictive qualities though, and some people's teeth are stained red from constantly chewing pan. There is red spit all over everything here because of it.
We went back into the house, back onto the bed to visit for a little while longer, and then we left. Prativa and Arati had to get home, and Bobby wanted us to go all together. Huge groups of people were arriving as we were going out. So we missed the main partying, but it was still really kool to be included at all.
A few days later, Piya came to the flat to choose which pictures she wanted me to print. Last night I picked up the prints and bought an album and took them to her house. The pictures are something her family could never afford (or at least would never choose to spend their money on). So I was really happy to be able to give them the photos. They were all really excited.
Piya had gotten a photo of herself taken at a studio. She was in the same outfit she'd worn for me to take her picture last month (with the addition of a red hat that made her look remeniscent of a flapper), if you remeber that blog entry. The pose was awkward but cute. She had had three copies printed, and she gave one to me as thanks for all the photos I'd had printed for her. "You one keep." She said. I'm very happy to have it.
~m
Thursday, December 11, 2008
These past few days have been really fun. I didn't go to Sealdah on Sunday because I was kind of sick (still kind of am, but not to the same extent) and I felt it was better to rest.
I took the girls to the Iway for computer class and at craft class I did a GK (general knowledge) on geography. We went over the continents and oceans, and I printed out pictures of landmarks from every continent (except Antarctica). The kids liked the photos, but didn't really care about the rest...
On Monday Lauren and I went into town to buy a bunch of things. We got some movies to watch with the kids (the Lindsay Lohan version of The Parent Trap dubbed in Hindi, Hook dubbed in Hindi and Home Alone in English) and a few cheesy Bollywood movies for ourselves (we don't want to upset any parents with questionable content). We got fancy salwars to wear to Piya's brother's wedding party. We had been to that same shop twice before for Lauren to get salwars, and we had always haggled down the price. This time we couldn't talk them below Rs 1000 apiece, and we were really angry about it. But when we got home, Bobby said that was a reasonable price. We felt bad because we had argued with the guys for so long. Haha, oh well... I'm sure we'll be back again. Lauren likes going there, but I prefer to buy the salwars that aren't yet put together so I can get them custom tailored. We also bought a few random food items.
When we got back to the flat, Prativa, Manisha and Arati came over to do mhendi (what Americans call henna. Here henna is the same stuff - tumeric - but henna means hair dye and mhendi is the design on hands) on our hands for the wedding party. They did some and we also began watching The Parent Trap, which they really liked. They all speak Bengali and Hindi, but most of them, with the exception of Prativa, can only read and write Bengali. Prativa only reads and writes Hindi. Actually, she can read and write Bengali and English too, but not very well... Anyway, the movie was a hit. They're coming back over on Sunday to finish watching.
On Tuesday we went with Bobby to buy a wedding gift. We settled on a nice blue and yellow shawl. We then bought bangles, earrings, necklaces, and bindis (the little jewel or dot worn on the forehead) to wear to the party. Then we went to Prativa's so her sister could finish doing the mhendi on our hands. When it first dries, it is very orange. It looked like they had drawn on me with orange sharpie. But over time it turns browner and darker. Because of this, my two hands were different colors since one was done the day before the other.
The actual wedding party was really neat. We were there before most people even arrived. We had to leave a little after nine to get Prativa and Arati home, but it was still really fun. Piya was dressed in a really nice sari, wrapped in a Hindustani way which looked really kool. Everyone around here wraps them a Bengali way. But Piya's family is Hindustani, so hers was wrapped differently. She looks older than me when she gets all dressed up, so I called her Piya Auntie. Anyway, we took bicycle rickshaws to the part of Khardah where her brother lives. Its quite far away. When we got there, not very many people were there yet. The bride was all dressed up in a really elaborate sari and wearing pounds of makeup and jewellery. She was sitting on her bed, which was all decorated with flowers, to recieve guests. People come in to give gifts and to wish her well. She was absolutely gorgeous, but she looked exhausted (understandable after many days of wedding festivities) and, frankly, she looked like she was going to cry. It was an arranged marriage (something like 90% of marriages in India are arranged). So though she had met her new husband before, it wasn't as if she knew him very well. I would have been terrified. She is only 18 and he is 31.
I had written alot more for this post, but then internet explorer messed up and I lost it. I'll continue the description of the party later.
~m
I took the girls to the Iway for computer class and at craft class I did a GK (general knowledge) on geography. We went over the continents and oceans, and I printed out pictures of landmarks from every continent (except Antarctica). The kids liked the photos, but didn't really care about the rest...
On Monday Lauren and I went into town to buy a bunch of things. We got some movies to watch with the kids (the Lindsay Lohan version of The Parent Trap dubbed in Hindi, Hook dubbed in Hindi and Home Alone in English) and a few cheesy Bollywood movies for ourselves (we don't want to upset any parents with questionable content). We got fancy salwars to wear to Piya's brother's wedding party. We had been to that same shop twice before for Lauren to get salwars, and we had always haggled down the price. This time we couldn't talk them below Rs 1000 apiece, and we were really angry about it. But when we got home, Bobby said that was a reasonable price. We felt bad because we had argued with the guys for so long. Haha, oh well... I'm sure we'll be back again. Lauren likes going there, but I prefer to buy the salwars that aren't yet put together so I can get them custom tailored. We also bought a few random food items.
When we got back to the flat, Prativa, Manisha and Arati came over to do mhendi (what Americans call henna. Here henna is the same stuff - tumeric - but henna means hair dye and mhendi is the design on hands) on our hands for the wedding party. They did some and we also began watching The Parent Trap, which they really liked. They all speak Bengali and Hindi, but most of them, with the exception of Prativa, can only read and write Bengali. Prativa only reads and writes Hindi. Actually, she can read and write Bengali and English too, but not very well... Anyway, the movie was a hit. They're coming back over on Sunday to finish watching.
On Tuesday we went with Bobby to buy a wedding gift. We settled on a nice blue and yellow shawl. We then bought bangles, earrings, necklaces, and bindis (the little jewel or dot worn on the forehead) to wear to the party. Then we went to Prativa's so her sister could finish doing the mhendi on our hands. When it first dries, it is very orange. It looked like they had drawn on me with orange sharpie. But over time it turns browner and darker. Because of this, my two hands were different colors since one was done the day before the other.
The actual wedding party was really neat. We were there before most people even arrived. We had to leave a little after nine to get Prativa and Arati home, but it was still really fun. Piya was dressed in a really nice sari, wrapped in a Hindustani way which looked really kool. Everyone around here wraps them a Bengali way. But Piya's family is Hindustani, so hers was wrapped differently. She looks older than me when she gets all dressed up, so I called her Piya Auntie. Anyway, we took bicycle rickshaws to the part of Khardah where her brother lives. Its quite far away. When we got there, not very many people were there yet. The bride was all dressed up in a really elaborate sari and wearing pounds of makeup and jewellery. She was sitting on her bed, which was all decorated with flowers, to recieve guests. People come in to give gifts and to wish her well. She was absolutely gorgeous, but she looked exhausted (understandable after many days of wedding festivities) and, frankly, she looked like she was going to cry. It was an arranged marriage (something like 90% of marriages in India are arranged). So though she had met her new husband before, it wasn't as if she knew him very well. I would have been terrified. She is only 18 and he is 31.
I had written alot more for this post, but then internet explorer messed up and I lost it. I'll continue the description of the party later.
~m
Saturday, December 6, 2008
December, WHAT?!?!
Yes. It's true. It's December. It has been for a few days, in fact. I'm as shocked as you are.
Anyway, this past week has been good. I'll try to run through the highlights.
(Oh, I recovered fully from whatever weird sickness I had that caused me to pass out. In fact, I was completely better by the next day. But starting yesterday I seem to be a little under the weather again. I'm gonna skip Sealdah so I can sleep in tomorrow and hopefully prevent real sickness.)
So, the highlights:
When Lauren and I went into town, I had a really yummy, American-tasting veggie sandwich. It had lettuce on it, which is a no-no for foreigners in India, but I was fine.
School and football have been going as usual. Attendance at school is better than it was when I first got here; most kids come most days. And the kids are so much more respectful and just better students in general than they were when I got here. It just takes time to earn their respect.
On Thurday when Prativa, Manisha and Sayani came for computer class, we totally blew it off and had "American culture class" instead. We played some American and Hindi music and danced. And looked through Lauren's hindi-english picture dictionary, especially at the vegetables. We had the girls try peanut butter (they liked it). And I showed them a bikini that I had brought with me (I didn't put it on) Even though I had described it to them before, they were really shocked. It was a really fun two hours.
On Friday, I wore a sari to school. I didn't get as big of a reaction as I had expected, but it was definitely a hit. Though I can wrap them myself, Bobby wrapped it for me because obviously she can do a much better job.
On Friday night, Lauren and I went to a puja for Piya's brother's wedding. Lauren and I were kind of a spectacle; they made us dance in front of everyone. It was really kool though. The rituals invovled lots of smearing of paint and tumeric. The groom was very serious while around him it seemed like people were partying. People were chasing eachother to smear haldi (tumeric paste) on each others' faces. Lauren and I both got hit. It makes Indians glow, but we just looked yellow. We looked rediculous. We had to use peroxide to get it off. So anyway, it was really awesome to be included in the culture that way.
I talked to a girl, Rhea, who is 18 and had been married for two years. I asked her how it was to get married so young to a person she didn't know. She said she was terrified. Her husband is 10 years older than her, which is common. (Piya's brother is 31, but his bride is 18) It was interesting though because she described her marriage as her not having enough time for her husband because she's in school. Rather than her not having enough time for school because of her husband. She said it works out though, because he isn't demanding of her. I was appalled though, when he asked her to ask us to give him a picture of us because we are "very beautiful". Being white wins us that title.
We're gonna go to the wedding reception on Tuesday, but we won't get to go to the wedding itsself, which is on Sunday. I'm still really excited though.
~m
Anyway, this past week has been good. I'll try to run through the highlights.
(Oh, I recovered fully from whatever weird sickness I had that caused me to pass out. In fact, I was completely better by the next day. But starting yesterday I seem to be a little under the weather again. I'm gonna skip Sealdah so I can sleep in tomorrow and hopefully prevent real sickness.)
So, the highlights:
When Lauren and I went into town, I had a really yummy, American-tasting veggie sandwich. It had lettuce on it, which is a no-no for foreigners in India, but I was fine.
School and football have been going as usual. Attendance at school is better than it was when I first got here; most kids come most days. And the kids are so much more respectful and just better students in general than they were when I got here. It just takes time to earn their respect.
On Thurday when Prativa, Manisha and Sayani came for computer class, we totally blew it off and had "American culture class" instead. We played some American and Hindi music and danced. And looked through Lauren's hindi-english picture dictionary, especially at the vegetables. We had the girls try peanut butter (they liked it). And I showed them a bikini that I had brought with me (I didn't put it on) Even though I had described it to them before, they were really shocked. It was a really fun two hours.
On Friday, I wore a sari to school. I didn't get as big of a reaction as I had expected, but it was definitely a hit. Though I can wrap them myself, Bobby wrapped it for me because obviously she can do a much better job.
On Friday night, Lauren and I went to a puja for Piya's brother's wedding. Lauren and I were kind of a spectacle; they made us dance in front of everyone. It was really kool though. The rituals invovled lots of smearing of paint and tumeric. The groom was very serious while around him it seemed like people were partying. People were chasing eachother to smear haldi (tumeric paste) on each others' faces. Lauren and I both got hit. It makes Indians glow, but we just looked yellow. We looked rediculous. We had to use peroxide to get it off. So anyway, it was really awesome to be included in the culture that way.
I talked to a girl, Rhea, who is 18 and had been married for two years. I asked her how it was to get married so young to a person she didn't know. She said she was terrified. Her husband is 10 years older than her, which is common. (Piya's brother is 31, but his bride is 18) It was interesting though because she described her marriage as her not having enough time for her husband because she's in school. Rather than her not having enough time for school because of her husband. She said it works out though, because he isn't demanding of her. I was appalled though, when he asked her to ask us to give him a picture of us because we are "very beautiful". Being white wins us that title.
We're gonna go to the wedding reception on Tuesday, but we won't get to go to the wedding itsself, which is on Sunday. I'm still really excited though.
~m
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