home

I'm home! I made it back to NYC after 26 hours of traveling and here I sit, awake at 7 am due to jetlag, but alive and happy.

The last few days in Delhi were a whirlwind, sorry I didn't write. This will be my last post. But just wanted to wrap things up and say that everything ended up going well. My project was really well-received, so that's great. On the last day in Delhi I visited with Aunty one last time and got to see the whole family doing one of their weekly community-feeds! It was a lovely and sorrowful farewell. I hope I see her again but... she is very old. So, only time will tell.

I am going to spare this blog the "end-of-my-journey" wisdom schpeel. I have gained and lost wisdom, but it's inarticulable right now... For the moment I am just happy to be home. NYC is quiet (yes) and clean (really). It's bizarre, actually, how FEW people there are in this country. Bizarre and lovely and a little lonely.

I got used to the rickshaws, children, motorcycles, cars, cows, elephants and camels that littered the streets of India.

Oh, one last story. The very last night I was in Delhi I ended up in someone's wedding procession. I don't know how it happened. I was sitting outside with my friends and all of the sudden we heard a Dol (spelling?) drum being played. Dols are used in Bhangra, so we followed the sound in the hopes that we would see dancing. What we saw was an entire wedding procession marching down the streets!! There was the groom on a horse, a million sweaty men dancing to Bhangra, and a string of electrical lights carried on the shoulders of men, powered by a generator that was being towed by a man on a bicycle! We started dancing and were soon the center of attention, with cameras pointed at us, and the bride's best friend asking us to come to the dinner party. We did go, but ended up leaving because we were in jeans and felt very, very awkward.

It was divine and completely wacky and just a little bit uncomfortable (or, very uncomfortable). A perfect way to conclude my journey.

delhi continued

Ah, back in Delhi. It's the city of dirt, dust, and dirty old men. But it is nice to be back, believe it or not. It was hard at first - I found myself being moody and annoyed at everyone for having stories that I can't relate to... but now I've come to terms with that, and it's much better.

We are staying at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, where we stayed when we first arrived in Delhi. It's amazing to be in the same place because everything is so different. I feel like I actually see the ashram now; the surrounding community and the layout of the rooms are recognizable. It's interesting. I'm staying in a room with my dear friend Isabelle, which is lovely because it's freezing and we have a pile of wool blankets and FLEECE LINED SLEEPING BAGS to sleep in. I wasn't able to sleep in when in Darjeeling, but now that I'm back in Delhi I can sleep and relax. That's probably because I don't have a paper to finish. Everything is coming to a close.

Yesterday my friends I went to Jan Path Market to buy christmas gifts and I had a great experience getting my Indian shoes fixed. A shoemaker tracked me down through the market and informed me that my shoe was broken (which... it was). So, Isabelle and I sat down with this old man as he fixed my leather shoe. He sat cross-legged, holding my show between his feet, and sewing the leather together. He looked very animal-like, and was incredibly adorable and endearing. He then told me that I needed rubber soles. I was convinced he just wanted money, so I said "No, No, ji." But, like a true salesmen, he did it anyway. He just resoled my shoes. He said "Give me whatever you want." So I paid him a good amount (because he was a great man), and he gave Izzy and I chai! It was amazing to watch him work--a true crafstmen. We sat there for about an hour and were able to see the whole community of the street wandering by, the chai-wallah and the peacock feather-wallah. It was fascinating.

I just realized I'm leaving a day earlier than I thought which is kind of funny. I leave on Sunday and not on Monday! What?! Meaning I arrive in America a day sooner than I thought, and get to eat some salad a day sooner than I thought!! Salad, I am looking forward to the vegetables and the fruit.

See you all soon, I will write again soon, I hope.

putain oui!

I have left Darjeeling and there is a hole in my heart. The last few days were truly great. My friends and I were joined by two more younguns from Kolkata, two french guys who taught us the joy of the swear word "putain." The mountains came out the last morning I was in Darjeeling and at 6:30 "the french" (as we called them) and I were on the roof of Hotel Aliment and Mathieu exclaimed, "Oh! Putain oui!!" which he described as, essentially, "F**K YEAH!" Obviously an enlightening experience, eh?

But in all seriousness, my stay in Darjeeling was amazing. Not only was the project a success (my very scholarly advisor is pleased, which is a great, great thing), but I managed to find time to jaunt around. The last day in Darjeeling the French, my friends from Seattle (they all worked at Mother Theresa House and were from Seattle University), and I went to this teahouse called Nathmull's. We got fancy tea (Rs 125 a pop!) in champagne glasses and got super hyped up on green tea. Then Michelle, Emily, Pierre, and I went for an incredible walk all around the hills of Darjeeling and talked about traveling, America, France, and English. I learned that the french say "For Your Wish" when you sneeze, instead of "Bless You." I don't know why but I found that sort of profound. Pierre informed us that he has always hated America, but after meeting Americans he thinks he'll come visit the country. We were pleased. It's amazing to watch people's perspectives change right in front of you...

Now I'm back in Delhi and my perspective has changed. I find myself yearning for those nights on the roof of Hotel Aliment, for the sweet simplicity of Darjeeling. The life of my friends here in Delhi has been a great, huge party. It sounds amazing and fun, but I wouldn't trade my month for anything.

I stayed with Aunty last night and that was amazing. She's the funniest woman in the world. She told me today that I have to invite her to my wedding (?). She's crazy.

Now I'm going to see her preschool's Christmas play (they celebrate Christian, Hindu, and Muslim holidays) and then I'm off to print my paper and finish up my own Christmas shopping.

Love to all. I cannot wait to come home! I didn't want to leave Darjeeling but the shock of Delhi has sent me pining for home...

familiar faces, sacred places

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've finished everything (paper and all) and have been spending time tooling around/lazing around Darjeeling with ten other students. I met this group of wonderful people in Kolkata and they just showed up at my hotel here in Darjeeling, so we've been doing the tourist things together, which has been great!

We went to this place called the "Happy Valley Tea Estate" and got a lesson in tea harvesting. Everyone rode these sad little ponies but, because of my intense animal-rights values, I decided to walk to the estate. It was, to say the least, a "trek." I got lost, of course, but ended up there eventually and everyone talked about how the ponies felt like they were going to fall over under the weight of humans, so I felt good about my decision. After the tea estate we tried to go back to the "Hot Stimulating Cafe" where warm local beer is served, unfortunately it seems they are never open.... maybe tonight??

But, we had a great night regardless. We ventured back to the hotel and sat on the roof drinking hot chocolate (with just a speck of rum/brandy in it) and sang Christmas carols. There is a little teeny baby here at the hotel who is the granddaughter of the owner. She came out and said things like "Good night" and "see you!" which was also precious.

Then yesterday we woke up at 4 am to venture to Tiger Hill, where you can see views of Everest. Unfortunately Darjeeling and the surrounding hills have clouded over in the past few days so we just saw the tip of Kenchengdzonga... but it was still beautiful. We saw the sunrise and then we walked 5 km back to Ghoom, then took a jeep to Darjeeling because we hadn't had breakfast yet.

Today is another site-seeing day. I have a routine in which I edit until about 10 am (editing/finishing up the paper) and then I go off with everyone. We're heading to the Mountaineering Institute to see the Everest exhibit, and then it's back to the hotel, most likely, for a little r & r.

I leave for New Delhi on Sunday (2 days)... it's strange because it almost feels like I'm going home, but then I really DO go home a week from Monday! Wow. The time passes quickly.

Thukpa

My new favorite meal in Darjeeling, Tibetan Thukpa soup. OH! It's so delicious. It's hot (steaming, actually) and mild and full of vegetables, what could be better?

I love my hotel. Really, if you come to Darjeeling it's the best place to stay, hands down. This morning I was working on my ISP paper and the hotel owner interrupted me to tell me, "I can tell you are a very smart person." It was a bit strange, but nice all the same. Apparently this guy has been all over the world, he was in the British military. He listed his many stomping grounds: Singapore, Austria, Germany, Italy, England, China, Japan, Nepal, Croatia, etc, etc, etc, etc. He told me he "knows foreigners" and he can tell that I'm a good traveler, not like those people who fight with him because of the room rates. Despite his slight pessimissism about the state of foreigners in general, it was very flattering and nice.

It's a bit foggy today, but I welcome the fog. I'm feeling homesick (I guess that makes sense, I'm home in less than two weeks) and somehow the fog is comforting. At night the city is always covered in fog, and I sit out on the roof with my friends and watch the kerosene lamps light up all over town. There's electricity here, but many people don't have it. I prefer kerosene, at least for aesthetic purposes. The light is softer and orange, and looks beautiful in the fog.

I spent too long at an internet cafe yesterday, trying to get good scans of all my artwork so that I can make color prints for my final report. It was a frustrating experience, but I have some okay scans. Trying to accomplish anything "business-like" in India is a bit of a pain in the ass. The good news is that I'm almost finished, and that means I can just read some books for pleasure and wander around the back corners of Darjeeling. It's a cold day, which means it might be another tea-sampling day. There really is nothing better than wandering around the city and drinking tea. Although, I did hear about a little cafe that serves homemade warm beer (curious). Apparently it's famous and delicious, so I think I'll venture there today, once my paper is finished, to celebrate my accomplishments.

Nothing more to report other than work, fogs, and mountains.

beauty is truth, truth beauty

I'm steeped in the words and philosophies of Tagore, trying to crank out this 15-20 page paper as fast as I can so that I can just concentrate on Darjeeling and my collages. The wonderful thing about this paper is that it's an really just an examination of what art is, according to Tagore, and how I am somehow "living the tradition" of his philosophies. He's a big ol' Keats lover, all about aesthetics and beauty and truth and universalism. Some of it's a big "God-ey" but when one is in the presence of the Himalayas, the idea of "the sacred" seems somehow tangible.

So, here I sit, at the computer typing away on one of the clearest days in Darjeeling. I could see ALL of the peaks this morning!! Truly amazing. I've decided to purchase a film camera for $20 (1000 rupees) for the remainder of my trip. It's worth the $20, I think. I want pictures of Darjeeling and I will want photos of my friends when I get back to Delhi, that's for sure.

I wandered around Darjeeling yesterday, popping into tea shops and Nepalese/Tibetan export shops. I love wandering around in these stores that are jam-packed with all things turquoise and coral and silver. I was on one store where I couldn't even walk without hitting chimes and bells and prayer wheels. The tea is amazing! It really is. I think I'm drinking about 15 cups of black tea a day, between the pot in the morning, the pot in the afternoon, and the sampling throughout the day. Don't worry, I will not neglect my dear family at Christmas, Darjeeling tea might be sitting underneath that tree.

I really love this town. I was sitting on the roof last night, looking at the moon over the bright white peaks of the mountains, and I thought that maybe I could stay here for an extended period of time. It's so peaceful this time of year (I think during tourist season it's not... but right now it truly is) and the people are so unbelievably kind and friendly. It doesn't really feel like the India that I've been in for 2 1/2 months. The men are less creepy, the shop keepers don't pester so much. It's just quiet and very, very holy. I haven't felt this much connection to a place yet in India, and it's a really wonderful feeling.

That's all for now. My hands of freezing but I bought some beautiful knitted gloves, and I must centure upstairs to my room, put them on, then visit this Buddhist monastary that is supposed to be beautiful.
Namaste.

waking up to darjeeling

All right, here's the deal. I got two photos this morning that I will post asap, but then my camera died. Just died. The shutter will not open. I am honestly so, so mad, but what are you going to do? Nothin. So, it's fine. I'll see if I can find a repair shop, or a disposable camera somewhere.... but we'll see. It sucks, but it's just a camera and they are just photos. Blah.

Anyway, that's unimportant but not really because of all the "where are the pictures" talk. I'm sorry I don't post pictures, but it would mean I would be spending about one extra hour on the internet and I'm not interested in that really. These connections are too slow!

On a lighter and happier note: I woke up this morning to the site of the Kanchenjunga mountain range, shrouded in pink mist, outside my hotel window. The clouds parted (apparently for the first time in a week) and I could see the whole town and above, perched in a cloud, were the white peaks of the Himalayas. Truly beautiful and motivating. So, at 6 am I was up and rarring to go, but there's really nothing to do! It's 9 am now, so I'm going to venture to the market and try to fix my camera. We'll see what happens.

Last night I ended up celebrating Thanksgiving with a Slovakian, a Hungarian, and a Frenchman. I imposed myself on them, and bought them a feast of chowmein, tibetan bread with honey, and spring rolls. We feasted and drank some disgusting Indian beer (not Kingfisher), and laughed about how the Slovakian thought that the "turkey" we had at Thanksgiving was actually a Turk. Really? That doesn't even make sense. But here he was, picturing a bunch of fat, hungry Americans eating squash with a little token Turk visitor. Ah, the hilarity of miscommunication. I had fun listening to them speak in battered English, and I even got to practice some Spanish and French because we could all speak bits of those languages. It was very fun.

I went to sleep under 4 blankets and woke up sweating. I'm good with cold. It helps me sleep, it helps me wake up, it just generally puts me in a good mood.

The air is fresh here. Fresh and clean and it smells like real air, not like pollution. It's thin, too. I think I'm about 7,000 feet up? Something to that degree. Not too high, but for a sea-level dweller like myself it is a bit of a shock.

Much love, sorry about the camera shizz.