Somehow, even though I mean to write frequently, the days just slip by, and before I know, its been a week since my last post. And there's just too much to tell to cram it all into one post. So, I admit, as an audience, you are not getting the full story. Sorry.
However, its really a good thing that I don't have time to write a post every day, because it means I'm very busy.
Earlier this week, I went to see Slumdog Millionaire. If you haven't seen it yet, I suggest that you go. Its a really good movie, and the cinematography is phenomenal. It was cool for me to watch, because I noticed so many small details that I never would have picked up on had I not been living in India. Like the flowers strung over pictures of the deceased.
Sarawsati Puja is tomorrow, and so a few days ago, Lauren , Nienke (a new volunteer from Holland) and I went to Prativa's house to get mehndi (henna) done on our hands. We did it a few days early because it takes a few days to turn brown. At first it is bright orange. On Indian people this looks fine, but on white people like ourselves, it looks kind of ridiculous. While Puja, Prativa's older sister, was doing our mehndi, Prativa was playing with dolls with her little three-year-old neighbor. The dolls were white - semi-reminiscent of Barbies - and they had vermillion and bindis drawn on in marker, and they were dressed in saris. Prativa was kissing them and handling them so gently. It was the sweetest thing in the world to watch.
Last night, the other volunteers and I went into Kolkata to watch a dance performance called Sunya Se. The dancers were trained in Kathak, traditional Indian dance, but the performance was contemporary and modern in style. It was about the five elements: space, air, fire, water, earth. It was really awesome.
Tomorrow is Saraswati Puja, the holiday for Saraswati, the Goddess of Education. We will have a party at school in the morning and we'll go look at pandals at night. I will wear my new sari.
~m
Friday, January 30, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
thoughts on sleeping
I don't have time to write a full blog, so...
Last week some of the girls were over for computer class and I took Manisha into my room to read. She asked if one of the beds was mine, I told her no, my mom slept on that one and I sleep on the adjacent one. "You don't sleep in the same bed?" She asked. "No." "Why?" she asked with perfect puzzlement. "Because we have two beds" - hardly an explanation. In a culture where a person can spend their whole life without ever once sleeping in a bed alone, the idea of sleeping alone just because one has the space does not make sense. Just one example of how our cultures differ. In more affluent families, children do have their own beds. I know that Manisha shares a bed with both her parents and her little brother. I don't know what Piya does though. Piya has two beds in her house (they take up all the floor space in the whole house). And as far as I know, she, her parents, one sister, two brothers, and a sister-in-law all sleep in that tiny space. I do wonder how they arrange themselves. Of course some of my students don't have beds at all, they just sleep on straw mats on the floor. Who would have thought that in something as simple as sleeping, people can differ so much?
Last week some of the girls were over for computer class and I took Manisha into my room to read. She asked if one of the beds was mine, I told her no, my mom slept on that one and I sleep on the adjacent one. "You don't sleep in the same bed?" She asked. "No." "Why?" she asked with perfect puzzlement. "Because we have two beds" - hardly an explanation. In a culture where a person can spend their whole life without ever once sleeping in a bed alone, the idea of sleeping alone just because one has the space does not make sense. Just one example of how our cultures differ. In more affluent families, children do have their own beds. I know that Manisha shares a bed with both her parents and her little brother. I don't know what Piya does though. Piya has two beds in her house (they take up all the floor space in the whole house). And as far as I know, she, her parents, one sister, two brothers, and a sister-in-law all sleep in that tiny space. I do wonder how they arrange themselves. Of course some of my students don't have beds at all, they just sleep on straw mats on the floor. Who would have thought that in something as simple as sleeping, people can differ so much?
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Milir dadur bari
Last night, my mom and I went to Mili's Grandma's house for dinner. It was about a half hour walk from Mili's house. When we got there, we were introduced to Mili's uncles and their wives and kids. In India, the men and their wives and children live with their mothers. So Mili's mom moved in with Mili's dad and his mom, who is now deceased. But the sons of the family live at their parents' house and their wives move in with them. Anyway, there were three sets of aunts and uncles whom we met upon arrival. They took lots of pictures which I am getting printed for them.
None of them spoke English, so the communication consisted of Mili translating and little bits of information being conveyed to or by me in Bengali. I don't know much Bengali, but I can follow what people are talking about so much better than I could when I first arrived.
They of course served us tea and biscuits. Dinner was puri, fried bread that puffs up nearly into spheres, but it can be pushed down into a flatbread shape and is soft and flaky, with a poato curry of sorts. It was delicious. For dessert, we had extremely sweet (that's how all Bengali sweets are) coconut sweets in a sauce. They too were good.
They asked my mom and me to sing, so we sang some children's songs. Mili in turn sang for us in Bengali. It was a really fun night.
~m
None of them spoke English, so the communication consisted of Mili translating and little bits of information being conveyed to or by me in Bengali. I don't know much Bengali, but I can follow what people are talking about so much better than I could when I first arrived.
They of course served us tea and biscuits. Dinner was puri, fried bread that puffs up nearly into spheres, but it can be pushed down into a flatbread shape and is soft and flaky, with a poato curry of sorts. It was delicious. For dessert, we had extremely sweet (that's how all Bengali sweets are) coconut sweets in a sauce. They too were good.
They asked my mom and me to sing, so we sang some children's songs. Mili in turn sang for us in Bengali. It was a really fun night.
~m
Sunday, January 18, 2009
half way home
Friday was half way point for being in India. I guess that feels about right. Time is going quickly, but it doesn't feel like it's slipped by without me noticing. And I'm comfortable with the amount of time left. It doesn't feel too short, or unbearably long. I know as I near the end I'll wish for more time here though.
Yesterday at craft class, we had the kids draw what they want to be when they grow up. One girl drew a math teacher, but it was more to flatter me than because that's actually what she wants to be. The outcome of the assignment was disappointing though. Dreams and ambitions aren't fostered here like they are in America. I really think most of the girls don't aspire to be much more than a mother and a wife. They don't think its possible, and frankly speaking, for most of them it isn't. I can't tell you how much this breaks my heart. Mili, one of the smartest kids I've ever met, drew me. (once again, with the purpose of flattering me) It was sad for me though, because I really do wonder what she wants to be. Or if she even thinks about it. If she were in different circumstances, she could be ANYthing. One girl just copied one of the boy's drawings. The other girls were more original, but I don't think any of them really wanted to be what they drew. They just wanted to finish the assignment. The boys drew a pilot, an astronaut, an artist and a terrorist. The boy who drew a terrorist did it just to get a rise out of us, but I think he really needs some psychological help.Today I spent all day at a big field in Khardah. There were track and field competitions all day. Some of my students competed. Prativa came in second place in a race. Kajal got first in a jump roping race. Piya did a race where she had to balance a pot on her head, but she didn't place. It was really fun to watch though. And, being here is like having celebrity status. I constantly had people coming up to shake my hand or talk to me. Its fun, but it can get tiring. I'm really glad I'm not famous.
Sealdah has been empty of late, due to a festival going on. I'm enjoying the calm, more relaxed sessions though. It can be so intense when everything is in full swing.
~m
Yesterday at craft class, we had the kids draw what they want to be when they grow up. One girl drew a math teacher, but it was more to flatter me than because that's actually what she wants to be. The outcome of the assignment was disappointing though. Dreams and ambitions aren't fostered here like they are in America. I really think most of the girls don't aspire to be much more than a mother and a wife. They don't think its possible, and frankly speaking, for most of them it isn't. I can't tell you how much this breaks my heart. Mili, one of the smartest kids I've ever met, drew me. (once again, with the purpose of flattering me) It was sad for me though, because I really do wonder what she wants to be. Or if she even thinks about it. If she were in different circumstances, she could be ANYthing. One girl just copied one of the boy's drawings. The other girls were more original, but I don't think any of them really wanted to be what they drew. They just wanted to finish the assignment. The boys drew a pilot, an astronaut, an artist and a terrorist. The boy who drew a terrorist did it just to get a rise out of us, but I think he really needs some psychological help.Today I spent all day at a big field in Khardah. There were track and field competitions all day. Some of my students competed. Prativa came in second place in a race. Kajal got first in a jump roping race. Piya did a race where she had to balance a pot on her head, but she didn't place. It was really fun to watch though. And, being here is like having celebrity status. I constantly had people coming up to shake my hand or talk to me. Its fun, but it can get tiring. I'm really glad I'm not famous.
Sealdah has been empty of late, due to a festival going on. I'm enjoying the calm, more relaxed sessions though. It can be so intense when everything is in full swing.
~m
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Yesterday was my first day back to teaching after my trip. We had craft class on Saturday and Sunday, but yesterday was the first day of real class. The kids are having exams in their other school right now, so the attendance was very low. Piya and Kajal were the only advanced students who came. We went over the packets that I had left for them to do while I was gone. It was geometery, specifically angles. We had done this in class before, and had a test on it. Almost everyone bombed the test though, so I left the packet for them to do more work on it while I was gone. Piya and Kajal both did really well on the test though, it was the other students that needed the review.
Prativa, Manisha and Jayanto were the intermediate students who were there. We also went over the packet I had left for them. Theirs involved adding fractions with different denominators. None of them had been able to do their packets, even though we had started working on it in class before I left. I went over a few problems with them and Prativa understood and she was off. Manisha and Jayanto weren't so quick. Jayanto could do it when the format was provided for him, but when he had to figure out what the next step was on his own, he really struggled. Manisha could do it, she just wasn't as comfortable with it as Prativa. She'll get better though.
After school, Subhamita and Kakoli came over for the CRAWL meeting. They brough the boxes that my mom had sent for us to have the the CRAWL Christmas party. She had sent them on December 2, and they didn't arrive until this week. They sat in customs in Kolkata for a month. Just goes to show how efficient the Indian Post Office is. A mouse had chewed through the corner of one box, but most of the stuff was unharmed.
Subhamita and Kakoli were going to start Bengali lessons with Lauren and me, but Subhamita's father is very sick, so they had to leave early. We'll start next week.
Aude and I went to play football, which was fun. The teams were divided evenly for once, so it was a good game. Afterwards, Jayanto and Suraj came for special reading class. Lauren gave an English test at school, and all the kids who scored below a certain number have to do special reading class instead of computer class. Jayanto and Suraj are both in special reading, so I was off the hook for computer class.
Prativa had invited Aude and me to come to her house to try some food made out of milk (turned out to be yogurt) that her grandmother had made. So we walked Suraj and Jayanto home, and then went to Prativa's house. Mili came too. First they gave us balls of puffed rice and honey. They were like rice krispee treats but with honey instead of marshmallow. Then they gave us the yogurt with sugar on it. Then they gave us rice and dal with potato and cauliflower in it. All of it was very good. When we finished at Prativa's house, Mili asked us to go to her house. Mili's grandma had come to visit (Prativa's grandma who made the food is her father's mom, so she lives with them. Mili's grandma is her mother's mom, so she lives elsewhere. Women move in with their husband's family when they get married here.) and she too had made lots of food. They served us tea, and then theese things called peethas which are kind of like crepes. They are thicker than crepes, but the texture and flavor is similar, and they had a sweet filling. They also gave us something that looked but didn't taste or feel like ice cream. I don't know what it was. Then they gave us rice pudding with apples and cinnamon and other spices in it. It was all quite delicious, but of course way more food than we needed. Mili's grandma asked us to come to her house, so I think next week Aude and I might go. It will be interesting...
Today, Prativa was the only student who showed up for school. My mom and Lauren started working on English with her while I helped Bobby sort out a cabinet. Dulal showed up almost 45 minutes late, but I did math with him for a bit. We went over the packet I'd left. Then Lauren and my mom did English with him while I did math with Prativa. She's actually not the best at math; it isn't intuitive for her. But she tries so hard to do well that she is easily my best student in the intermediate group. She is so sweet.
Lauren, Aude, Imelda and I played football today, and my mom came to watch. The students tried to get my mom to play too. I asked them if their mothers would play. "no!" they said. "Well neither will mine."
Manisha is out of town for her older sister's wedding and I haven't seen Sayani in awhile, so Prativa was the only student who came for computer class. She and Sayani are in special reading, Manisha isn't. Prativa is one of the best speakers of English, but she's not good at reading and writing it, so that's why she's in special reading. Anyway, Lauren had to clean her room when we found out a new volunteer will come tomorrow, so I sat in for her. Prativa read Frog and Toad stories. She liked them. As I think I've said already in this post, she is sooooooooo cute.
So the past few days have been good.
~m
Prativa, Manisha and Jayanto were the intermediate students who were there. We also went over the packet I had left for them. Theirs involved adding fractions with different denominators. None of them had been able to do their packets, even though we had started working on it in class before I left. I went over a few problems with them and Prativa understood and she was off. Manisha and Jayanto weren't so quick. Jayanto could do it when the format was provided for him, but when he had to figure out what the next step was on his own, he really struggled. Manisha could do it, she just wasn't as comfortable with it as Prativa. She'll get better though.
After school, Subhamita and Kakoli came over for the CRAWL meeting. They brough the boxes that my mom had sent for us to have the the CRAWL Christmas party. She had sent them on December 2, and they didn't arrive until this week. They sat in customs in Kolkata for a month. Just goes to show how efficient the Indian Post Office is. A mouse had chewed through the corner of one box, but most of the stuff was unharmed.
Subhamita and Kakoli were going to start Bengali lessons with Lauren and me, but Subhamita's father is very sick, so they had to leave early. We'll start next week.
Aude and I went to play football, which was fun. The teams were divided evenly for once, so it was a good game. Afterwards, Jayanto and Suraj came for special reading class. Lauren gave an English test at school, and all the kids who scored below a certain number have to do special reading class instead of computer class. Jayanto and Suraj are both in special reading, so I was off the hook for computer class.
Prativa had invited Aude and me to come to her house to try some food made out of milk (turned out to be yogurt) that her grandmother had made. So we walked Suraj and Jayanto home, and then went to Prativa's house. Mili came too. First they gave us balls of puffed rice and honey. They were like rice krispee treats but with honey instead of marshmallow. Then they gave us the yogurt with sugar on it. Then they gave us rice and dal with potato and cauliflower in it. All of it was very good. When we finished at Prativa's house, Mili asked us to go to her house. Mili's grandma had come to visit (Prativa's grandma who made the food is her father's mom, so she lives with them. Mili's grandma is her mother's mom, so she lives elsewhere. Women move in with their husband's family when they get married here.) and she too had made lots of food. They served us tea, and then theese things called peethas which are kind of like crepes. They are thicker than crepes, but the texture and flavor is similar, and they had a sweet filling. They also gave us something that looked but didn't taste or feel like ice cream. I don't know what it was. Then they gave us rice pudding with apples and cinnamon and other spices in it. It was all quite delicious, but of course way more food than we needed. Mili's grandma asked us to come to her house, so I think next week Aude and I might go. It will be interesting...
Today, Prativa was the only student who showed up for school. My mom and Lauren started working on English with her while I helped Bobby sort out a cabinet. Dulal showed up almost 45 minutes late, but I did math with him for a bit. We went over the packet I'd left. Then Lauren and my mom did English with him while I did math with Prativa. She's actually not the best at math; it isn't intuitive for her. But she tries so hard to do well that she is easily my best student in the intermediate group. She is so sweet.
Lauren, Aude, Imelda and I played football today, and my mom came to watch. The students tried to get my mom to play too. I asked them if their mothers would play. "no!" they said. "Well neither will mine."
Manisha is out of town for her older sister's wedding and I haven't seen Sayani in awhile, so Prativa was the only student who came for computer class. She and Sayani are in special reading, Manisha isn't. Prativa is one of the best speakers of English, but she's not good at reading and writing it, so that's why she's in special reading. Anyway, Lauren had to clean her room when we found out a new volunteer will come tomorrow, so I sat in for her. Prativa read Frog and Toad stories. She liked them. As I think I've said already in this post, she is sooooooooo cute.
So the past few days have been good.
~m
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
I promised a certain reader that I'd try to write more...
Being back in Khardah has been nice. I was getting tired of constantly being on the move. Being a tourist is ok for awhile, but I really prefer to stay in one place and get to know it and its people well, rather than just looking and leaving.
I was definitely very happy to see all of my students again, and I think they were excited to see me too.
At craft class on Saturday, the kids painted used clay chai (in Bengali, cha) cups to be used for decoration. Lots of them painted the same design, but Binda made hers very intricate and beautiful. It was interesting because the next day at craft class, they made birthday cards for Imelda (a volunteer who is from Ireland but lives in Australia) and Binda really struggled. She could barely draw hearts, let alone write "happy birthday". But painting she had been fabulous at. She's 15 I think, but she's way behind the other students. She barely speaks any English, and I don't think she goes to school outside CRAWL. In CRAWL, she's in Bobby's class with the little kids, learning the alphabet and such.
Sealdah was empty on Sunday because of some puja or other. My favorites weren't there, so I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing them on Friday. It will have been four weeks since I've seen them at that point.
On Moday, I had a nice relaxing day at the flat. I started reading "Am I a Hindu", which explains the basic aspects of Hinduism. I'm living in a Hindu place, but I really know nothing about Hinduism. Anyway, that's changing now. I got about halfway through the book on that one day... When I went to play football with the kids, they didn't want to play, so we just walked around Khardah until it got dark. I enjoyed it. After that, all the volunteers went out to eat at the Penguine Inn for Imelda's birthday, and we had cake and ice cream back at the flat.
Today, Aude (volunteer from Switzerland), Imelda, my mom (she's staying at the flat and volunteering with CRAWL for two weeks) and I went into Kolkata. We had breakfast and went to a little store that sells imported foods, and then we went to the Victoria Memorial. None of them had been before. The weather was great, unlike when CRAWL went for the field trip.
We did play football today. The kids are too damn rough with eachother, but I didn't have the energy to police them today.
That's all for now, I think...
~m
Being back in Khardah has been nice. I was getting tired of constantly being on the move. Being a tourist is ok for awhile, but I really prefer to stay in one place and get to know it and its people well, rather than just looking and leaving.
I was definitely very happy to see all of my students again, and I think they were excited to see me too.
At craft class on Saturday, the kids painted used clay chai (in Bengali, cha) cups to be used for decoration. Lots of them painted the same design, but Binda made hers very intricate and beautiful. It was interesting because the next day at craft class, they made birthday cards for Imelda (a volunteer who is from Ireland but lives in Australia) and Binda really struggled. She could barely draw hearts, let alone write "happy birthday". But painting she had been fabulous at. She's 15 I think, but she's way behind the other students. She barely speaks any English, and I don't think she goes to school outside CRAWL. In CRAWL, she's in Bobby's class with the little kids, learning the alphabet and such.
Sealdah was empty on Sunday because of some puja or other. My favorites weren't there, so I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing them on Friday. It will have been four weeks since I've seen them at that point.
On Moday, I had a nice relaxing day at the flat. I started reading "Am I a Hindu", which explains the basic aspects of Hinduism. I'm living in a Hindu place, but I really know nothing about Hinduism. Anyway, that's changing now. I got about halfway through the book on that one day... When I went to play football with the kids, they didn't want to play, so we just walked around Khardah until it got dark. I enjoyed it. After that, all the volunteers went out to eat at the Penguine Inn for Imelda's birthday, and we had cake and ice cream back at the flat.
Today, Aude (volunteer from Switzerland), Imelda, my mom (she's staying at the flat and volunteering with CRAWL for two weeks) and I went into Kolkata. We had breakfast and went to a little store that sells imported foods, and then we went to the Victoria Memorial. None of them had been before. The weather was great, unlike when CRAWL went for the field trip.
We did play football today. The kids are too damn rough with eachother, but I didn't have the energy to police them today.
That's all for now, I think...
~m
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Travels part dui
When we were leaving the hotel in Delhi to go exploring, my parents and I hailed an autorickshaw. The driver saw the Obama pin I was wearing and got really excited. He said he'd take us anywhere for a reduced rate. We got in and as he was driving us, we started talking. We ended up hiring him to take us around for the whole day. Because it was sunday, lots of things, espeicially the shopping areas, were closed. He drove us by all the government buildings and then took us to the Gandhi Smriti (memorial). It's at the house where Ghandi lived the last days of his life, and where he was killed. The house has been converted to a multimedia interactive museum. The exhibits were some of the koolest I have ever seen. They were all so creative. I really wish we could have spent more time there. We spent most of the rest of the day going to different shops, but that night we went to a dance performace. It wasn't very good though. Overall, I liked Delhi quite a bit. I'd like to go back again when its a little warmer and when I have more time to spend there.
The next morning, we caught a plane to Kolkata. I took my parents to Park Street and New Market. My dad and I went to the Kali temple, which is supposedly Kolkata's holiest spot. Its hundreds of years old and possibly where Kolkata got its name. The temple itsself was really beautiful. It was painted silver and rainbow colors. A guide showed us through. We went through all the motions of a regular Hindu devotee.
The next day, we went to the Sunderban Tiger Reserve. The Sunderbans are the delta region for the Hooghly, the Ganges, and many other rivers. Its lots of very small islands that shrink and grow with the tide. It is one of the few places in the world where tigers remain in the wild. In fact, the Royal Bengal Tigers of the Sunderbans are the only man-eating tigers in the world. They are a threat to the local people of the Sunderbans, but they are being protected because they had been about to go extinct. Anyway, while at the camp, we rode boats through the waterways and looked at wildlife. It was a really nice change of pace from all the hustle and bustle of the previous days. One day we took a walk through a small village. There was no electricity or running water as far as I know. The people were of course very friendly. I spoke a little bit of Bengali to some of them. There was a Bengali family who lives in Canada that was on the trip with us and they translated for us too. They have a good understanding of Western culture, and obviously they have a good understanding of Bengali culture. Because of this, they told us lots of things about their culture that a Bengali who has never been to North America wouldn't think to tell us because they've never seen anything different. So it was really educational to be with them.
When we got back to Kolkata, I took my parents to Khardah and showed them around and introduced them to my students. Then I subjected them to the busy trains. We went to Howrah to see the Howrah Bridge and took a ferry to Babughat. From there we went to the VM.
My mom and I said or goodbyes to my dad that night, and we came back to Khardah as he flew home. It was a fun trip, but I'm happy to be back in one place again. I really did miss the students quite a bit.
We have two new volunteers here now; Aude from Switzerland and Imelda from Ireland/Australia. They're both really nice.
~m
The next morning, we caught a plane to Kolkata. I took my parents to Park Street and New Market. My dad and I went to the Kali temple, which is supposedly Kolkata's holiest spot. Its hundreds of years old and possibly where Kolkata got its name. The temple itsself was really beautiful. It was painted silver and rainbow colors. A guide showed us through. We went through all the motions of a regular Hindu devotee.
The next day, we went to the Sunderban Tiger Reserve. The Sunderbans are the delta region for the Hooghly, the Ganges, and many other rivers. Its lots of very small islands that shrink and grow with the tide. It is one of the few places in the world where tigers remain in the wild. In fact, the Royal Bengal Tigers of the Sunderbans are the only man-eating tigers in the world. They are a threat to the local people of the Sunderbans, but they are being protected because they had been about to go extinct. Anyway, while at the camp, we rode boats through the waterways and looked at wildlife. It was a really nice change of pace from all the hustle and bustle of the previous days. One day we took a walk through a small village. There was no electricity or running water as far as I know. The people were of course very friendly. I spoke a little bit of Bengali to some of them. There was a Bengali family who lives in Canada that was on the trip with us and they translated for us too. They have a good understanding of Western culture, and obviously they have a good understanding of Bengali culture. Because of this, they told us lots of things about their culture that a Bengali who has never been to North America wouldn't think to tell us because they've never seen anything different. So it was really educational to be with them.
When we got back to Kolkata, I took my parents to Khardah and showed them around and introduced them to my students. Then I subjected them to the busy trains. We went to Howrah to see the Howrah Bridge and took a ferry to Babughat. From there we went to the VM.
My mom and I said or goodbyes to my dad that night, and we came back to Khardah as he flew home. It was a fun trip, but I'm happy to be back in one place again. I really did miss the students quite a bit.
We have two new volunteers here now; Aude from Switzerland and Imelda from Ireland/Australia. They're both really nice.
~m
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Travels pt 1
On Sunday I flew to Mumbai to meet my parents. Their plane got fogged in in Indianapolis and they missed their connecting flight, so instead of getting to Mumbai almost an entire day before me, they arrived about five hours after me. So when I got to the hotel, I checked in and then went out to explore a little and have dinner alone.
The reunion with my parents wasn't very dramatic, but we were all happy to see each other again. Its weird that it'd been four months. When I talk to my friends who are in their first year at college, I say things like "it must be weird to not see your parents for so long, I can't even imagine how that would be" only to realize that I'm doing just that.
Mumbai is really nice; I like it alot. Its so different from Khardah and Kolkata that it almost didn't feel like India to me. Its very chic. Of course I only small a very small part of the city, but the buildings were well maintained and the architecture. I thought that it felt very European. I asked my mom if she though so too and she said no, it felt more like Mexico. Haha. So I guess its all a matter of perspective. Coming from Kolkata, Mumbai feels like Europe (or so I imagine, I've never actually been) and coming from the US it feels like Mexico. Anyway, the part we were in was beautiful. Our hotel was literally around the corner from the Taj Hotel. There were huge barricades around it and the Gateway of India, but they were both beautiful nonetheless.
We went on a self-guided walking tour and went to Chowpatty Beach to watch the sunset and walked on Marine Drive. Mumbai was nothing like how I imagined it from the books I'd read. I'd like to go back for a longer period of time if I ever get a chance.
Mumbai is very different from Kolkata in many ways. One of the first billboards I saw upon my arrival was for Kotex thin maxi pads. That would never be up in Kolkata. The women who would definitely wear saris in Kolkata wore salwars in Mumbai, sometime with big white sneakers (which you also wouldn't see in Kolkata) and with or without the dupatta, or with it on backwards or askew (which would never happen in Kolkata; dupattas are very important). The girls and young women who would wear salwars in Kolkata wore westernized clothes in Mumbai. I hardly saw any saris at all. Another noticeable difference was, frankly, there were alot more fat people. I saw people jogging on my taxi drive to the hotel and I knew I wasn't in Kolkata any more. And of course, the people in Mumbai didn't look like Bengalis because they aren't. I do miss being able to read the signs though. I took pleasure in sounding out words in Bengali even if I didn't know what they meant.
We spent one full day in Mumbai and then flew to Jaipur. Rajasthan was somewhere between Mumbai and Kolkata as far as Westernization and general atmosphere. But it had its own feel. The forts we visited were amazing. They are so old and yet ingeniously designed and beautifully intricate. We did a fair amount of shopping in Jaipur. We visited an ancient archaelogical center which was amazing in its complexity. It sports the biggest (or maybe second-biggest) sundial in the world.
We spent two days in Jaipur before driving to Agra. The buildings here too were amazing. I wish I remebered the names of everything we saw (in Jaipur and in Agra) We visited the Agra Fort, or the Red Fort, which was huge and beautiful. And we visted a fort outside of
Agra which was used instead of the Red Fort for about 10 years. It was neat too. We went to see the Taj Mahal from across the river. It is amazing. This morning we actually went to the grounds of teh Taj, but it was so cloudy that it couldn't even be seen from the main gate. Up close, it is huge and beautiful. The marble inlay is so intricate. The weather was very unfortunate though.
After seeing the Taj, we drove to Delhi, which is where I am now. I saw the Taj this morning. I'm going to go eat dinner now. Don't know when I'll write again. Happy New Year! (oh, we celebrated new year's eve at the hotel in Jaipur. We danced with the Indians)
~m
The reunion with my parents wasn't very dramatic, but we were all happy to see each other again. Its weird that it'd been four months. When I talk to my friends who are in their first year at college, I say things like "it must be weird to not see your parents for so long, I can't even imagine how that would be" only to realize that I'm doing just that.
Mumbai is really nice; I like it alot. Its so different from Khardah and Kolkata that it almost didn't feel like India to me. Its very chic. Of course I only small a very small part of the city, but the buildings were well maintained and the architecture. I thought that it felt very European. I asked my mom if she though so too and she said no, it felt more like Mexico. Haha. So I guess its all a matter of perspective. Coming from Kolkata, Mumbai feels like Europe (or so I imagine, I've never actually been) and coming from the US it feels like Mexico. Anyway, the part we were in was beautiful. Our hotel was literally around the corner from the Taj Hotel. There were huge barricades around it and the Gateway of India, but they were both beautiful nonetheless.
We went on a self-guided walking tour and went to Chowpatty Beach to watch the sunset and walked on Marine Drive. Mumbai was nothing like how I imagined it from the books I'd read. I'd like to go back for a longer period of time if I ever get a chance.
Mumbai is very different from Kolkata in many ways. One of the first billboards I saw upon my arrival was for Kotex thin maxi pads. That would never be up in Kolkata. The women who would definitely wear saris in Kolkata wore salwars in Mumbai, sometime with big white sneakers (which you also wouldn't see in Kolkata) and with or without the dupatta, or with it on backwards or askew (which would never happen in Kolkata; dupattas are very important). The girls and young women who would wear salwars in Kolkata wore westernized clothes in Mumbai. I hardly saw any saris at all. Another noticeable difference was, frankly, there were alot more fat people. I saw people jogging on my taxi drive to the hotel and I knew I wasn't in Kolkata any more. And of course, the people in Mumbai didn't look like Bengalis because they aren't. I do miss being able to read the signs though. I took pleasure in sounding out words in Bengali even if I didn't know what they meant.
We spent one full day in Mumbai and then flew to Jaipur. Rajasthan was somewhere between Mumbai and Kolkata as far as Westernization and general atmosphere. But it had its own feel. The forts we visited were amazing. They are so old and yet ingeniously designed and beautifully intricate. We did a fair amount of shopping in Jaipur. We visited an ancient archaelogical center which was amazing in its complexity. It sports the biggest (or maybe second-biggest) sundial in the world.
We spent two days in Jaipur before driving to Agra. The buildings here too were amazing. I wish I remebered the names of everything we saw (in Jaipur and in Agra) We visited the Agra Fort, or the Red Fort, which was huge and beautiful. And we visted a fort outside of
Agra which was used instead of the Red Fort for about 10 years. It was neat too. We went to see the Taj Mahal from across the river. It is amazing. This morning we actually went to the grounds of teh Taj, but it was so cloudy that it couldn't even be seen from the main gate. Up close, it is huge and beautiful. The marble inlay is so intricate. The weather was very unfortunate though.
After seeing the Taj, we drove to Delhi, which is where I am now. I saw the Taj this morning. I'm going to go eat dinner now. Don't know when I'll write again. Happy New Year! (oh, we celebrated new year's eve at the hotel in Jaipur. We danced with the Indians)
~m
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