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.

toy trains and turkeys

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I am missing home, thinking about pies and the Macy's Day Parade... everything that is good and true in the world, eh? I did, however, have a Thanksgiving adventure of sorts and for that I am thankful.

I traveled overnight from Santiniketan on some boring old India train... it was lame, so I slept the whole time. Then I arrived at 8:30 am in New Jaipalguri, where I was to board that Toy Train to Darjeeling at 9 am. Quick turnover! It was hectic, but I made it. The train pulled up and, to my surprise, it really is just a toy train. It was blue with yellow trim (very becoming) and had only 4 cars, each about 25 feet long. That's a pretty small train. Unfortunately I don't have ANY photos from the whole journey because my camera battery died (AH! It sucks, you don't even need to tell me). But, it's in the mind and I'll tell you a little about the trip...

The train is small for a reason. Basically we were going up and up and up on the smallest track possible through the most amazing terrain. It was just hills and then just mountains and we would pass through small villages where the train must be a part of everyone's life, because it goes straight through the markets and rights next to people's doorsteps. It was so much fun riding around through these villages. Little kids would pop out of doors and wave and then all the school children would pile into the cars to get a ride to the next town. It was crazy and fun and loud and increasingly cold.

Yes, it's very cold. So cold that I think I'm going to putt long underwear on under my carhartts. So cold that I need MITTENS! I couldn't be happier. I want to be cold. Thank Thanksgiving for coldness.

The train ride was also incredibly beautiful, of course. Beautiful in a way I didn't expect. It was freezing in the mountains, but there were marigolds and poinsettas blooming everywhere, and morning glories were wound around the bamboo in the forests and were all in full bloom. It was so bizarre. As we ascended the vegetation got a little more sparse, but basically it's still lush and jungle-like, just with huge fir trees instead of bamboo.

My hotel is lovely. It's located at the tippity top of the hill that is Darjeeling, and my room looks out on the mountains! Well, I assume it does, because right now it looks out on fog. I hope that clears up soon. It will, I can feel it.

I'm going to go feast now. All I have had on this Thanksgiving day is a bowl of rice. WHAT?!? It's time to eat.

Love to all, missing you and happy turkey eating.
This is an erratic post, c'est la vie.

trash burns

It is my last day in Santiniketan. At 9:30 pm tonight I'll leave here, board a train and then board another train at 9 am bound for Darjeeling. I'll be riding in a Toy Train on Thanksgiving!! How cool!
It's trash burning day here in the old santi-town. Actually, every day is trash burning day, but today they're burning the morning too, which is unusual. Usually at about 4 pm the air fills with smoke--smoke that stays in my hair and on my scarves and inside my nose. I've decided is a mosquito-repellent, and so I've embraced it. But the smoke in the morning is a bit much, I have to say.
I also had to pay my nice old cleaner woman 70 rupees this morning, and for what? That's all I have to say. I swept my own room much of the time. But she's just so old and... she held out her hand... and I gave her 20 and she wasn't satisfied so, whatever. $1.50 later, she's giggling and blessing me. I guess it was worth it for the karma.
I was up for four hours last night, from the hours of 12 - 4 am. I'm not sure why... just staring at the ceiling and turning on the light now and again to swat some mosquitos. But, in my dazed and confused state I came up with the idea that the tractor riders here in santi-town look like rogue bandits. So, it was a worthwhile 4 hours of sleep lost, because obviously the theories were flowing.

If I am unable to write tomorrow, Happy Thanksgiving all! I will be thinking of you in Darjeeling. I'll treat myself to chick curry or tandoori chicken or something... I haven't had meat in 1 week so it will almost be like turkey, right?

Santiniketan Landscape!

i'm sorry. it's taking too long. I don't have enough rupees. save it for darjeeling. LOVE ya'll

the "abode of peace"

Hello all! As promised, here are some pictures. The first is, of course, my dear Marmite, the constant companion.

I leave this quiet town tomorrow evening, on a train bound for Darjeeling. If all goes well I will get to ride the Toy Train, which I'm looking forward to.
Today is a holiday for the inhabitants of Santiniketan. In the
tradition of Tagore, this town takes Tuesday and Wednesday off, instead of Saturday and Sunday. Tagore was trying desperately to differentiate his ideal society from all other societies, hence the strange "sabbath days." It is almost painfully quiet here today, but really lovely. I took a walk next to a river and while I was staring off into the distance, meditating on art and nature and being quite "Tagoric" I happened to feel something squish under my shoe. It was, of course, cow poop, and though I tried desperately to remove it from my sandle it's just caked right in. My life in India, a comical experience.

I'm having trouble uploading photos, but here is a photo of the guest house I'm staying in:

It's lovely. Sometimes there are goats and cows that eat the vegetation outside (and you thought deer were bad, mom!). In addition to the cows and the goats, I was standing a food stall the other day and witnessed a HUGE monkey (I mean, the size of a ten year-old child) steal about ten packs of Lays potatoe chips. None of the Indians seem to notice. I laughed and thought it would make a good commercial. Ah, monkeys. As long as they aren't biting anyone they are pretty darn funny.

So, yes. Everything is dandy. I'm going to post some pictures of the countryside too, but not right this minute because the internet is being dumb. I am excited to leave this town, but not because it lacks anything, just because I like being on the move. I get emails often from my dear friends in Delhi, who are all having a great time partying with each other... and sometimes I wish I was there with them... but most of the time I'm thankful for this experience and for this chance to just be immersed in something that is so different than anything I've ever done. It's fun, in a different sort of way.

they speak bengali here

Pictures, ah, the bane of my existance. I will post some, but really probably not til I get to Darjeeling where the internet will run more smoothly.

Enjoying my time here in Santiniketan. I don't speak one lick of Bengali, but I speak some Hindi and with Hindi-English I can sort of get by. There is an old woman who comes into my room in the morning who speaks no English OR Hindi... so that's fun. She comes in and I think she might want money, but I'm not going to pay her. Basically she cleans my room a little bit and then throws flower petals everywhere which just irks me. Why do I want flower petals all over my room, lady? But I just smile and say "OH! Thank You!" and she smiles back toothlessly and says "OH! TANK YOUUU." and then laughs maniacly. It's all very weird. Today she made me come outside with her to shake a tree and get more petals, something I really wasn't interested in doing. It's amazing how much time I spend appeasing strange old women in India, I'll probably miss that when I go home.

I've been writing an outline for my paper and feel pretty great. I want to finish it all up before heading to Darjeeling so that I can just spend time hiking around the hills and making collages while I'm there. I don't really want to be working on a paper.

I would like, also, to say that I have found a constant companion here in Santiniketan for my evening meals. I simply turn on the television to a channel called "Star Movies" and, voila! I've got any C-list movie from the last 20 years at my fingertips. I've seen bits and pieces of the likes of "RoboCop-3" and "Kate and Leopold" and "Hackers." I'm sure Julie will argue with me when I say that Hackers is c-list, because I'll bet she loved that movie. Everyone wears rollarskates... it's just weird. That's my brush with American culture at the moment. Also, this morning I went to get some passport photos taken (I need them for my special VIP security pass at the Tagore museum) and the men there were looking at YouTube videos of strange child celebrities from America like Zack Effron (is that his name?) and other 'High-School Musical' types. Strange.

Speaking of High School Musicals, good luck to Mom and all the cast and crew of Oliver! I'm thinking of you all over here.

"santiniketan" or "the cows and the goats"

I'm in a tiny town in India... northwest West Bengal to be exact. It's small, there are a lot of goats and really annoying men. It's very dusty and quiet, one might even say peacful. I walk every day from my lovely guest house (where a nice Bengali family lives, they give me dinner and let me watch terrible television with them) to the Visva-Bharati campus. Visva-Bharati is the university that Tagore founded in 1919 and it's beautiful there. Today I got access to the special archives (with my secret letter from Uma Das Gupta, a very distinguished scholar, ahem, ahem) and spent the morning pouring over books. Tomorrow I'm going to look for photographs of Tagore to put in my collages.

So, yes. There's actually not much going on that's of interest to the general public. I had to spend about two hours looking for an internet cafe, that's how small this town is. It's just nothing really, just trees and a few lakes and goats and lots of cows. It's beautiful. I will take photos either to post here when I get to Darjeeling, or to share with you all when I'm home.

I do miss the craziness of Kolkata. There was something condusive to working in that hostel full of loud drunk people. I'm going to hunker down here and do lots of work, but I'm excited to continue on to Darjeeling soon. Darjeeling is apparently very, very "modern" which will be a bit of a relief. The simple life is lovely when you aren't trying to get anything accomplished, but not having internet when you are trying to write a research paper is a bit daunting and frustrating.

I'm sorry for my incredibly lame posts. I wanted to check in and tell everyone I'm safe, but the only thing I do all day is research a cool dude and make art and swat mosquitos (lots of mosquito swating going on).

I miss you all! I'll write again soon...

the grind and the marmite

WOW! ISP and all that's involved in it has hit be full force today. It's already November 16 (how did that happen?) which means I have only 20 more days of ISP! In those twenty I shall write a very good (hopefully) paper and complete 18 more little artworks (hopefully).

Gah! It is a lot of work, enough to provoke sounds of exasperation. Everything is still great. My two favorite British friends left today, Anna and Sally. We spent every morning together eating breakfast at the Blue Sky Cafe, for 20 rupees you can get poached eggs on toast!! They introduced me to the wonders of Marmite (bizarre stuff, but really delicious, and it's just yeast extract so it's good for you too!) and the proper behavior of true Brits. It was a lovely week-long friendship that has now come to an end, and in a way that's great because I need to become isolated and self-involved for the next 20 days if I am to complete this project.

I spent the weekend wandering around Kolkata. I went to St. Paul's Cathedral, an impressive remnant of the Raj, and I visited the Academy of Fine Arts which wasn't what I expected it to be... but was pretty cool, none-the-less.

Tomorrow I'm headed to the National Library, then to Santiniketan on Wednesday. I met with THE Tagore scholar of India today. Her name is Uma Das Gupta and it was a pretty great meeting. She was pleased with my project and thought the art component (I'm calling them "meditations") is a perfect way for a young student to get to know Tagore in an intimate way! How great. It really is great. Now I just need to prove that I can do something with it and keep on trucking.

First, however, I need to go to the bustling market to get some Marmite...

galen.

backwards and forwards

Still living the life in Kolkata. I have spent almost 6 hours today (I had a break for breakfast) work on one very, very tiny collage (about 4" by 7" I think). It's based on the most beautiful poem by Tagore, from his book "Gitanjali" which won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. He was the first Asian to win the Nobel Prize (go figure). Here is the poem:

"Let all the strains of joy mingle in my last song--the joy that makes the earth flow over in the riotous excess of the grass, the joy that sets the twin brothers, life and death, dancing over the wide world, the joy that sweeps in with the tempest, shaking and waking all life with laughter, the joy that sits still with its tears on the open red lotus of pain, and the joy that throes everything it has upon the dust, and knows not a word."

I love his poems because they are just full of joy, very fun to read. I made another piece this week but I'm not as proud of it and it takes me FOREVER to post pictures!!! Blah. So, here are some photos of this one that I just made today. They're really bad because my camera's bad, but they get the point across. Focus on the parts that are in focus. Ha.

Here is a photo of some of the intricate parts:

And more....

I'm having fun in my little hostel room. I finally got it cleaned this morning. The floor was coated in charcoal. Yuckkkk.

I also saw three short films that make up the larger film "Smell" last night. It was an Indian film and it was pretty interesting. Not amazing, but good. It was fun to see some Indian art film, it's very unusual to see anything but Bollywood. When in Kolkata, however, it's easy to find some seriously avant-garde stuff. This is the cultural hub of India. I'm here until Wednesday and I couldn't be happier! I don't have to do work this weekend, so I'm going to be a tourist and visit many a place. Maybe I will even post pictures!!!

Love.

SUPER fried chicken

That's what I had for dinner tonight in good old Kolkata. I'm exhausted, literally exhausted. I spent the whole day working on my project. I took a one hour and $4 cab ride to meet my advisor, Professor Tapati Guha-Thakurta, in northern Kolkata. $4 is a LOT of money in India, I'm living in a hotel for only $5 a night.... so think about that one. So yes, it was a bit of an expensive day, but what are you going to do? This all led to me wanting to spend little-to-no money on dinner, hence the SUPER fried chicken. It's not really fried, it's really tandoori and it's REALLY delicious.

Anyway, enough about food. So, yes I worked all day. I met my advisor for the first time. I was very, very nervous. She is one of the pre-eminent scholars of modern Indian art. She knows all about my subject, her grandfather actually studied at Rabindranath Tagore's school! She's really amazing. The thing is, she really liked me! She gave me an endless list of books to check out, many of which I won't read just because i don't have time in one month, but some of which are really, really helpful. It's just all so exciting. She gave me names of people to meet with in Santiniketan. She also told me she wished I could just do the collages and not have to write a paper (I wish that too....) but we came up with an outline for the paper that makes it relevant and not too hard to do in addition to everything else.

After the meeting I went to the hostel and locked myself up in my room with my books. I read for about 2 hours then I got a surge of creative energy and did some work on one piece that was really terrible and is now much better!! Great. I'm just excited for everything. It's a cool feeling.

My plans have changed a bit. I am now leaving Kolkata a week from today (so, next Wednesday the 18th). I want to meet with a Tagore scholar and she lives here, and I also need to track down a lot more books. It's a good thing. My advisor told me that Santiniketan can get depressing for a person alone for more than a week. Good thing she told me, I will not be there as long and I'll be much happier for it!

I'm going to go listen to the "spiritually enlightened" australians play terrible songs they have written inspired by George Harrison. That's what happens every night at the hostel, but they are leaving soon and that's maybe a good thing..... it's a funny place, full of happiness and bizarre things. Last night I got into a bit of an intoxicated rant with some Brits about the multiculturalism of Britain vs. the American identity. It really didn't go anywhere, but it was fun none-the-less.

MUCH love. If you are reading this you are probably someone I am missing!!

the month (to clarify)

In response to Ezra's question: I'm traveling around India for the next month, but only in West Bengal. I leave Kolkata on the 14th and go to Santiniketan, a small city/town a bit northwest, and then I leave on the 27th for Darjeeling, and stay there for 1 week. Then I return to Delhi.

I judged the inhabitants at the hotel far too soon. I ended up meeting some really great people last night, 2 girls from Bristol and another brit and an American guy. We might all head out some night this week to the Kolkata Film Festival, which would be really fun. We are all staying on the roof and it's very social and a little crazy at the hostel at night. I'll be honest... I'm finding myself annoyed by all the work I have to do.... but it's also really great. It will be good to be in Santiniketan and out of Kolkata, because Kolkata has SO many tourists and is very happening.

I worked on a collage this morning and got frustrated because i don't have all the materials I want.... so I'm heading out to hunt for more and to go to the Rabindra Bharati Museum (Rabindranath Tagore's home).

Tonight I'm going to a fancy dinner with Storm-ji (the Academic Director of my program). She and her husband are in Kolkata looking at places for a new program center and so they are taking me out! A real meal!! This is very exciting considering I've been eating only bananas, peanut butter, muesli, and weird Indian food for the past few days.
Love ya'lls.

wanderings around Kolkata

I spent the entire day wandering around Kolkata looking for one specific site that I desperately wanted to find (the Town Hall that I mentioned earlier). I couldn't find it... and I ended up in a municipal building talking to a bunch of old men.... but I found things that were far cooler and better.

The first thing I found was a great bookstore with amazing biographies of Rabindranath Tagore (learn the name, I'm doing my ISP on him, so I'll say that name a lot for the next month). I bought one, and also bought a book full of his paintings that I plan to cut up and use in my collages. HAH! That's great too.

Then, as I was wandering around the streets of Kolkata and being treated like some sort of low-class prostitute (really, the color of my skin is a dead give-a-way that I'm up for grabs. I was dressed in FULL Indian garb and still getting harassed), I stumbled in the New Market. It was a frightening indoor market full of wacky guys who wanted to show me all the silver and salwars and silks that I could buy. I didn't want to buy anything, so I shooed them off in a rather rude manner (I'm finding myself to be really, really unforgiving when I'm alone in India--I kind of just yell at people who follow me or piss me off) and ventured into the market by myself. I ended up at this little spice shop and I asked an old man if he had any vegetable dyes (in broken hindi/english-HINGLISH). He said "ha-ji" and he got some other little man to run off to get me a bunch of colored dyes. He told me they were "bahut mehengue" (very expensive).... but then we got to talking (they gave me a bunch of Darjeeling chai in garum-garum pani (hot-hot water) so that it was safe-safe) and I explained that I'm an "art student" studying Tagore...

And you see, in India, TAGORE is a big name, especially in Kolkata. Actually, Jawaharlal Nehru said that he learned more from Tagore than from Mahatmas Gandhi, chew on that one for a bit. Anyway, Tagore's a big deal, and so this spice man got very, very excited and showed me how to make the vegetable dyes (add water-not too hard) and then sold me bright orange and this beautiful eggplant purple color for 300 rupees, down from Rs 1000! Quite a deal, I must say.

So, on my first day I didn't find what I wanted, but this was better than some weird museum...

My hotel is a little weird because it's full of travelers to India. I am used to travelers to Delhi, who are all kind of party-going young folk who drink coffee and are from France and Britain. Here in Kolkata the tourists are all parachute-pant-wearing hippies who smoke a lot of pot and sit on the roof doing really bad yoga postures.

I'm going to go eat dinner and hang out with them on the roof, I guess. Namaste.

"goodbye love, didn't know what time it was"

I thought I posted last night, but it's not showing up... very curious.

I have arrived in Kolkata after a 26 hour train ride. I was on the train from 4 pm Saturday to 6 pm Sunday. It wasn't too bad, actually. I managed to meet some interesting characters (all Indian). I was in first class which kind of rocked... I had a huge bed and it was cold and there was a really pleasant and funny family from Bihar with me. No creepy men, no cockroaches, no threat of theft... was I even in India?

Before I left I filled my iPod with music from my friend Isabel's computer, and thank God I did that! Instead of listening to my normal wacked out sad folk music I was listening to David Bowie the whole ride, and other such bizarre dance-inducing songs. When I'm alone in the middle (or in this case the East) of India I find it's best to listen to music that makes me laugh. That will be the weirdest thing about being completely alone for a month--I know I have to laugh a lot and I'll just have to make myself laugh at things. That isn't really too hard in India, there's a lot of hilarity.

So, yes. I'm here. I should be out doing work... but I'm taking this morning slow. I just arrived last night, after all. Last night I was pretty upset about the state of the hotel I checked into. It's called the Hotel Paragon on Sudder Street, and the downstairs area is just a big s**t-hole. All peeling paint and toilets that smell like they've never seen a toilet brush (in fact, I am positive they haven't). I had a lime green room with two beds and nothing but a flourescent light and a fan. Yes, depressing. So this morning I went up some stairs in the hotel and what should I find?? And entire rooftop terrace with plants and open spaces! I switched rooms, the rooftop room costs about 20 rupees more (less than 50 cents), and I have big windows and a dresser!! It's still a communal toilet situation, but there's something less gross about a toilet that opens to the outside when you're done with it, than one that's in a dungeon... My new room will be much more condusive to making collage in... and I can even use the tables on the terrace to work on. It's great. I'm much happier. Now all I have to do is buy some toilet paper (I did the Indian thing this morning, I need no EXPLAIN that, but it's not that pleasant) and bananas.

I'm off to start the first day of ISP. I'm just going to tool around one of the markets looking for collage materials, and then I'm going to a museum that has a display on the history of the Bengali Independence movement! History! Cool!

Love you all, I'm safe and happy.

"belly bhangra"

Well, here I am, back from the adventures into the unknown territory of the Indian performance. We performed 13th out of 16 at the dance recital. Recital is not really the right word--this was a full fledged belly dancing extravaganza. Our dance teacher Meher belly-danced while her friend did hip-hop and pop-and-lock moves, girls danced with swords, a nine year-old belly-danced, and then we went... the Americans doing "belly bhangra."

It was, to say the least, one of the best experiences I have ever had. The crowd went WILD and clapped along with us as we shimmed in our coin belts. It was absurd, fun, and distinctly Indian. I say that because everything took about 3 minutes longer than it should. The curtain wouldn't open, and the MC made terrible by endearing jokes, and the entire show started about 40 minutes late.

I have to run off to dinner with Aunty, then I'm going out on the town with the dancers.

There will be a DVD. Hopefully all of you will get to see me do one of the weirdest and most humiliating performances of my life.

Much love.

lord of the dance.

It's been another hectic week here at SIT India. I've gotten steady B+'s on just about everything. I wrote a pretty cool paper about pilgrimage that got a B+ because I talked to much about "home" rather than "India." Well, whatever.

We performed our Bollywood routine yesterday to riotous applause from the SIT students and staff. Tonight we're performing in this big dance recital that our teacher, Meher, is putting on. It will be hilarious. We are by far the worst dancers - everyone else is a hot belly dancer or these amazing Bhangra dancers. We look like foolish white girls in little cholis (shirts that do not cover anything) and fluffy skirts. It will be an experience, to say the least.

I've been trying to get everything together for ISP--tying up loose ends and whatnot. Aunty is making me a bit sad because she says she'll be very lonely... and in truth I'll be pretty lonely too. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to eat on ISP. I'm buying a bunch of granola and peanut butter and bananas. Hopefully that will pull me through. I've also got all my hostels and trains booked, and everything is set. It's a little frightening to be going off on my own in the old India, but it's also exciting and I feel prepared. It will be nice to get out of the stifling SIT building and the group of 14 students. It has been wonderful but a bit clostrophobic at times.

I will let you all know how the dance performance goes as soon as I can. I leave tomorrow at 4 pm for Kolkata, and I'll be on a train for 24 hours... so I definitely won't be posting then. I'll try to get the to internet as much as possible during ISP, but if I'm incommunicado for extended periods of time it's not because I don't love you, it's just because I won't have any opportunity to get to a computer.

I'll write again soon. And maybe a better post than these last few. Really, I've just been running around doing errands and attempting to write good papers. Much love.

my aunty parties with shah rukh khan?

This is Aunty-ji















This is Bollywood mega-star Shah Rukh Khan.

On October 31st, while I was out pretending to be a rickshaw and dancing to American tunes, my aunty was socializing with the best-of-the-best in Indian high society. When I stumbled into our flat at one am, Aunty was still off at her dinner party—dressed in her finest sari and, supposedly, drifting from Bollywood star to Bollywood star. She came home at about three am, then got up for temple at five am. Amazing. And, I must say that while Halloween was great fun, I would have passed it up had I known that Shah Rukh Khan would be at this party. I mean, really? That would have been wildly cool.

But, it was not my destiny to mingle with Bollywood stars. We had a great Halloween shindig. I was in rare dancing form and was having a wonderful time until we noticed that Indian men had gathered on the nearby rooftop to watch us from above. We were also on the roof, and somehow their voyeurism (lecherous voyeurism) ruined my dancing mood. They did leave, and the other SIT students also decided that Isabel and I would have “won” first prize if there was a legitimate costume party. There was not, however, and so we left empty-handed.

Tonight I went to dinner at Aunty-ji’s daughter’s house (Jaya, I have mentioned her before). Her house is gorgeous and modern. She has a giant stone Saibaba, and she has a temple dedicated to Saibaba and it’s just amazing. We ate some delicious coconut curry zucchini business from Goa, and I showed Jaya and her children (Shavin and Nittika) photos of my family and dad’s art and Sam’s art and Ezra’s Halloween costume (they were confused about your underwear). Jaya asked me if you are rich, dad, when she saw your paintings. I said no and she said “Why not? He should be rich!” She thinks you need an agent (duh) – but it can’t be me.
She loved Sam’s work so, so much. She wanted to buy one (we should discuss that brohan). She also wants to hook you up with some of her artist friends in India, she said “He should come here.” Maybe you can come to India and have a show in Delhi and stay with these people and meet Bollywood stars. There’s nothing better, really.

It will be a shock to leave in one week. I’m getting nervous, but it’s the good, healthy kind of nervous. Happy Halloween everyone!!

my friends who blog

Hi all.
Tomorrow is Halloween. I will have stories from Halloween. I'm going to be a rickshaw - my friend Isabel is a rickshaw wala. It will be, without a doubt, a great costume. We might win the fake contest!!

I wanted to post links to two blogs - my friend Isabel's and my friend Anna's. They both post pictures (something I can do soon, because I have a rented computer!!) you can see a different side of India through them.

Isabel Blue: http://www.isabel-in-india.tumblr.com
Anna Young: http://annamal.com

I have some great friends here, I don't know if I've mentioned it but my I have 5 friends who are awesome. Anna, Isabel, Ellie (who accompanies me on many outings with Aunty, so ease the pain of having to hear each of her stories 100 times), Arielle, and Megan.

Tonight I am going to a fancy country club to hear Indian music. Now it's off to Sarojini Nagar Market to get my costume (green leggings, yellow shirt, mirrors to attach my head, and bollywood celebrity stickers and Ram stickers to put on my forehead).

sweater vests

Delhi has gotten chilly. Well, it isn't chilly come nine AM, but until then it's down-right cold! The rickshaw drivers have begun wearing sweater vests and colorful shawls, currently my favorite fashion statements of India. Right now I'm wearing a sweater over my kurta (Indian shirt that goes to the knees, slits up the sides, supposed to be worn with goofy pants but because I'm in the "young, hip" contingent I can wear it with jeans). I like the cold.

I've had a week of allowing my mind to wander around everywhere that I'm not - to my ISP, to Deer Isle, to Skidmore. I'm thinking about everything except Delhi. But now I've decided to be IN DELHI for the next week and a half. I'll be gone soon and it's actually making me sad. It's a dirty, crazy city, but it's also one-of-a-kind.

Today I'm traveling to JNU (Jawaharlal Nehru University) to see a lecture by this professor that I am desperately seeking to be my ISP advisor. She's got contacts in Kolkata and knows all about Bengali Nationalism (Rabindranath Tagore's jam). I'm going to her lecture equipped with a very formal letter and will beg for her to sign off on my project.

Then it's off to the start of a crazy weekend. I'm going out to some restuarant tonight with Aunty-ji. It's called Haldiram, and I am being taken against my will because I would rather eat at home... but it will be fun. Tomorrow I am being taken against my will to her "club" with the entire family to eat food and listen to music. I get the feeling the "club" is basically a left-over-from-the-Raj-era country club... so that will be fascinating to say the least. Saturday is the Halloween party of SIT. We're trying to be allowed to play beer pong in the program center. I'm dressing up with my friend Megan as Thing One and Thing Two (easy, and not Indian - we were going to be Sita and Ram but needed a break). Sunday I'm going to another family dinner, and then Monday my friends and I are cooking American food for Aunty.

I'm also trying to hit up Old Delhi (it's an atrocity that I haven't been there yet, I guess school took over or something, which is a terrible excuse).

Anyway, it's crazy, but things are falling into place. Mom, the birthday party was great and funny. Julie, I got a computer, put my pictures on it, and then the computer died so I have to trade it in for another one (rented computers)... but I PROMISE I will put an online album up before I leave Delhi. Promise. Sorry, but I'm not lying when I say that technology is the most unreliable thing. Much love to all.

mera juta mai japoni

The days are flying by here in Hindustan. I have yet another cold (arg! India), a product of the 17 hour train ride from Kolkata, I think. But other than that I'm good. Things are winding down at the program center in Delhi. We have one week of finals coming up, and "practica presentations" (we'll be presenting our Bollywood dance which is truly, truly ridiculous) and then it's off to do our Independent Study Projects on November 7th!

I'm getting ready. I'm booking train tickets to Kolkata and from Kolkata to Santiniketan and from Santiniketan to Darjeeling and then back to Kolkata. I got art supplies (expensive, at least by Indian standards) and I'm reading more Tagore than my little brain can wrap around. Sometimes I get these weird feelings that I'm not sure what I'm doing on this project - like I sort of happened upon it and now I'm just doing it and saying, "what the hell." I guess that's the idea. If I kept second guessing myself then I could never commit... and I'm sure this all has some place in the rest of my life, as all experiences usually do.

Message for quasi-brother Walker: Can you please let me know if there are some specific tea houses I should visit in Darjeeling? You and your tea cult must know about this.

But, for now atleast the days are still spent in Delhi. The weather has become much more pleasant - in fact, I was COLD this morning in the rickshaw! Aunty is doing well, she's redoing her uptairs terrace so that guests can stay (she wants me to come with my WHOLE FAMILY - hey family)! She still loves Friends and we eat the best food ever. I will be very, very sad to leave her. It will be a totally different experience in a few weeks when I'm out on my own in gross hostels... but good in a different way, of course.

I'm also already getting panicky about leaving in the sense that I haven't made it to Varanasi or Rajasthan... places I'm dying to go. Although I also want to go to Ladakh and can't do that, so obviously I just need to come back. Right? Right.

money, money! picture, picture!

We have returned from another excursion, this time to the jungle state of Orissa and Kolkata in West Bengal. It was a lovely trip. I turned 21 on Monday, after seeing a 64 Yogini temple and a Buddhist stupa build by the Japanese to honor Emperor Asoka. It was pretty great.

The first stop on opur trip was Bubaneshwar, where we saw the temples and stupa. We also saw the most beautiful Indian countryside - just jungle and rice paddys as far as the eye could see. It was spectacluar. We visited a village where they have been panting in the same Orissan style for centuries - and where all the villagers are painters. We also went to a beach and saw the ocean!!! This was my favorite part of the trip, I'll be honest. I missed the ocean a lot.

We then traveled to Kolkata, where I'll be living for 1 1/2 weeks of my Independent Study period. Luckily, I loved the city. Sure, it was a bit smelly and wild, but it was just so incredibly cool. There are all of these beautiful old Raj-era structures that are now overloaded with Indian squatters, and standing right in the middle of fish markets. We also ended up staying at the most gorgeous hotel, and we ate like kings and queens. It was very fun - like we were on vacation, but we were "learning." I'm excited to stay there. We visited the Tagore house, where I'll be doing the majority of my research before taking off to Santiniketan, and it was beautiful and informative and really peaceful. All good things.

I'm posting photos to an online album and you can all look at them soon enough. I'll let you know when. Much love.

Diwali, Diwali, don't put me in that sari!!

Ah, Diwali, the festival of lights here in India. Today is the true day of Diwali (though from all the festivities of the past week one can't really discern one festive day from the next) and I had my initiation into "true Indianness." Yes, that's right. I wore a sari today. I will be wearing one tonight too, for puja (prayer) to Lakshmi (goddess of wealth). Saris are beautiful, yes. Saris feel wonderful, yes. But are saris really fun to wear? No, no. No. Let me tell you a story of my sari afternoon. (haha, get it, sari-sorry)

Aunty wanted me wear my new (maroon) sari for a little Diwali luncheon with her husband's family. He is deceased, but she is, of course, still invited to the family functions. So, about 1 1/2 hours before we left for the party, I was told to put on my sari. Well, of course I couldn't do it myself, so Aunty came into my room to help me. I guess the sari I have is a bit long, and she had to get help from the servant downstairs... so I was being pushed and proded and turned around by two elderly women as they attempted to get the meters and meters of silk wound around my body. Now, once this was finished, I tried to walk. Then I realized that the sari is the Indian equivilent of the corset, though this particular fashion restricts your legs rather than your abdomen. I think I prefer a restricted abdomen...

Anyway, so now the sari was on. I looked pretty and whatnot. (pictures, yes I know, I know). But then we went to the party. Now, this was not just any old Diwali party. We ended up at a lawn party under a tent with fancy outside furniture. Everything was yellow and gold and pink. The party was chock full of fashionable, hip, young Indians. I might add that these people are all exceeding wealthy, as well. So, of course, I am the only young person in a sari other than the 11 year old girl with the braces and glasses who decided to sit next to me at lunch. I chatted with a Punjabi woman who went to Colby (wow! small world) and an American girl (in a very revealing outfit) whose grandmother is Indian. It was a nice lunch, but I was in a sari. Every time I sat or walked or got up I had to shift it and adjust it and then I felt really strange, like some dorky Indian-obsessed American girl who crashed the elitist-Western-influenced class of Delhi.

This was, I have to say, the most culturally enlightening experience I've had yet.

But, that's all said and done. I'll put the sari back on when I get home. Delhi is beautiful right now... Diwali means candles and christmas lights and gifts a plenty! It's pretty much Christmas, except it's 80 degrees and we're eating curry, not pot roast (pot roast? do we eat pot roast at Christmas?).

To respond to my dear brother Ezra, there are monkeys. They come on the roof of our school and eat the chair cushions and we have to get a monkey wala to come and bring his BIG monkey to chase away the small ones. Very exotic. Also, there are men who ride around my neighborhood with monkeys on the back of their bikes, dressed in little outfits. It's sad. They can dance and it makes me sad. That's all about the monkeys. They're kind of like chickadees here, or... racoons. More like racoons.

There was something else I wanted to tell you all... oh! The other day we were shopping for Diwali and I found the most beautiful paper in the world (oh, India!). Also, the area we were shopping in (GK N-Block Market) decided to celebrate the holiday by playing such American hits as "I believe in miracles," "Doing That Thing You Do" (from that old movie written by Tom Hanks?), and various Stevie Wonder tunes. Huh. India?

Oh, and I was very, very ill yesterday, but now I'm fine. Had a freak attack of super-tummy-death-world. That's what I'll call it, for lack of a better phrase. But now I'm all right. I sat on Aunty's couch, drank Limca (the best soda ever), and watched TERRIBLE Hindi television.

I'm going on a trip again on Monday - this time to the West, to Orissa and Kolkata! I get to scope out the city I'll be in for one month of my ISP period!
Mucho love. Happy Diwali.

festivals, monuments, revolutionary poets

I know, I know. I said I would post pictures, then I didn't. I have no excuses. I hope I'll get them up sometime. If not I'll just do one of those cool online albums so ya'lls (ezra) can see them.

We are back in the swing of school and there is so much to do. I have to organize an interview with a professor at JNU in Delhi for my independent study project. We are getting underway with the planning of our ISP's.... it's crazy but so, so exciting. I was fascinated with the artist Nandalal Bose, but then I came across the poetry, plays, short stories, and basic philosophical writings of Rabindranath Tagore (who founded Santiniketan, which is now Visva-Bharati, an art school based on ashram values in West Bengal- Bose attended the school and was part of Tagore's inner circle of intellectual hoo-hahs), and I think he's pretty hip to the jive. So, now my goal is to convince my uber-academic AD that doing a study of Tagore through collage is relevant.... I still have to write a 20 page paper so I can't imagine why she wouldn't let me do it. Either way, I will do it.... so we'll see what happens.

I should talk for a moment about the trip. We saw some really amazing things. My favorite monuments being the Gwalior Fort, the temples of Khajuraho, Datia, and of course the Taj Mahal. Gwalior Fort was really cool because it's built into a hillside, which I loved. The Taj is truly incredible and was especially satisfying because we went there at 5 am. We were the first in line to enter at 6 am and we got to have about 15 minutes to ourselves. There was no one in or around the building, and it was shrouded in mist. Truly, truly awe inspiring. It was also the first tomb tht actually felt like it was "haunted" or something. I went into the main chamber and even the faintest whisper would resonate all the way into the dome - very eerie and beautiful.

It was also really great to get out of Delhi. We saw the countryside, and we saw poverty on a level that is sometimes (not that often, but sometimes) hidden in Delhi. Agra was especially disturbing... but at least we are all in group and there's an oppurtunity to discuss what we see.

Anyway, the festival season is still in high swing. This Saturday is Diwali (kind of like Christmas except, according to the Indians, MUCH MUCH better). The city is decorated with lights and I'm expected to get a sari. Our family is having a huge, huge dinner. This past Saturday we had a dinner for the beginning of Diwali week - and I guess you have to gamble so we played poker until about 2 am. I say we, but I really mean the men played poker. My aunty's daughter (Jaya) is hilarious and informed me that Indian men are chauvinists, after her husband Rajiv (who is also a jokester) told us we had to stay one more hour. There's an interesting power dynamic. Rajov told Jaya we would stay, then Jaya sent her daughter over and Rajiv immediately got up because, in this family, the daughter has ALL the power. They're a great family.

Hope all is well. I'll check in again soon.

excursion return

I'm back! I am going to spend most of today in the internet cafe, trying to figure out how to get my photos on here and also doing research for my independent project.

The excursion was absolutely amazing! We traveled from Delhi-Gwalior-Orccha-Khajuraho-Agra-Delhi again. We saw the Gwalior Fort, the temples of Khajuraho (tantric masterpieces), the Taj Mahal, and Fatuhpursikri (I am butchering the spelling of that). I didn't get sick once, despite the sketchy hotel food, and I maintained a positive attitude! Sometimes that's hard when you are with the same 12 people for over a week.

The good news is that the Academic Director has improved by leaps and bounds. I think she was in her element - telling us about architecture and Mughal emperors and all of that. It was great. She also really loves my particular group of friends. She sat in our van with us on all the car rides (one of which was an extra 3 hours because we had to take a detour when a village abrupted in a mob because of some murder that happened 7 days before we drove through) and sang along to the mo-town and Muddy Waters-esque music we insisted on listening to. For some reason that's the soundtrack to this trip. We are all a bunch of jokesters. Humor is essential in India. That's what I'm finding.

I really want to get pictures up here. These buldings were unreal. The Taj Mahal is, truly, everything one would expect. I have to run home right now to see Aunty's preschool do a play of the Ramayana... but I will post later when I'm back here doing research.

Love to all.

excursioning

Just writing a quick message. We are going on excursion to many amazing sites for the next week (the Taj Mahal, for example)!! I might be off and away and not at a computer/internet. It's been a crazy, albeit boring, week full of studying for a hindi midterm. It was crazy....

But yes, mom. I am taking "actual pictures." Sorry I'm not posting any. I really don't have time to load them onto an unreliable internet cafe computer and then try to post them on here... but maybe I will be able to sometime.

Love to all.

bottle rockets and dasara

It has been a crazy, crazy couple of days... I'll try to quickly recap the highlights for ya'lls.

This last week was Durga Puja - a week of prayer devoted to the Devi Goddess - and the celebration culminated on Sunday and Monday. Well actually, to be honest, I was sort of confused because there's a lot of celebrating going on. Basically there's Durga Puja and there's the Ramlila Festival (the story of the Ramayana) and they both culminated within a day of each other and with my over-stimulated brain and lack of Hindi I get confused. But here's the jist of the past two days:

On Sunday I woke up and did puja (prayer) with my Aunty and her grandchildren (Litika and Shavin). We prayed at her home temple and then 7 little girls and one boy came over (representing the seven goddesses and RAM). We fed them all puree (like chipoti but SOAKED in grease), haval (I think that's how you spell it), and chana (chickpeas, basically) and gave them all bindis, 10 rupees, and a red bracelet for auspiciousness. The children were all from a poor famliy that lives nearby and were the cutest EVER. After they left my entire extended family came over with vats of food from a local restuarant and we fed 300 local people. It seems, for Hindus, that half of the celebrations are just giving things away. It was pretty awesome.

I went to Bhangra class in the afternoon. I can't feel my thighs right now because we had class on Saturday and Sunday. On Sunday our teacher forced us to do about 20 squats to hops (literally, we squated then bounced up into the Bhangra position and danced like maniacs). I am going to post a Bhangra video for you all to see. It's the best dance style ever... probably.

Anyway, this is sort of a wam-bam-thank-you-mam post... but last night was Dasara (the last day of the epic Ramayana, when Ram kills Ravana the demon). I went to Lajpat Nagar-II, the neighborhood next to mine, and watched four Ravana effigies get blown to pieces. THere were fireworks being shot off about 50 feet away from me, and these two-story high effigies full of bottle rockets, fireworks, and other explosives were set up in the square. When they blew up it was like a really contained atomic bomb; a little frightening but also amazing. I mean, really. Amazing. So much fun!!!

It's been days of festivities. We also went to a Darga this afternoon (a Sufi tomb) and watched musicians play Qawwli, Sufi "trance" music basically. It was great. We were led by a guest lecturer who I wish was our Academic Director because he was kind AND knowledgeable. Apparently those things can go together, despite what our current AD thinks....

anyway, love to you all. I'm still alive and kicking. This place is crazy in the best of ways.

the good, the bad, and the puja

Sorry for the week-long hiatus. It has been a hectic week, and I have much to report. I'll just include some highlights/lowlights for you all.

First of all, my computer is lost in transit between the U.S. and India - that's a major lowlight that needs no further discussion.

Another lowlight (I'll move to the better things) is that I am finding this program to be a bit, well, unfitting. I find the lectures fascinating and I really like learning Hindi and my Bollywood dancing workshop is the most amazing thing every (really), but the Academic Director is really hard to take. One day in class she referenced some obscure piece of literature and when we replied that we had not read it she exclaimed, "DO YOU GUYS EVEN READ?"

Ah ha. That's very funny, right? I laughed uproariously. Don't worry, dear parents, this will not be another one of my brushes with authority (a la Miss Gates), but she tries my patience and my deep commitment to human decency. Being treated like a petulant child cramps my style a bit. Let's leave it at that.

But, there is a silver lining, and it might actually be gold.

I really, really love India, and I really, really love a lot of the people on my program. I've found a great support group (we can commiserate about some of the less fun aspects of the program) and my homestay family is to die for. Truly. Aunty is now asking me to call her "mama" (I'll call her H-Mama on here, so that my own mother does not become confused) and last night the extended family came over for tea. We will be celebrating Durga Puja on Sunday and I'll get to hang out with the whole family and get down and Hindu with it all. I'm pretty excited.

On Sunday I went to a Bhangra lesson (Sikh dancing from the Punjab) with some of my friends and had the realization that we may have been in India too long since we think that our Sikh teacher is like a gangster, and that Kurtas (long Indian-style shirts) are "attractive." But Bhangra's crazy and by the end I am covered in sweat and feel great.

Also, I'm making headway with my Independent Study Project. I went to the National Gallery of Modern Art on Sunday and I came across the work of Nandalal Bose, a nationalist artist who sort of headed the Bengal School movement. He's pretty amazing, and used traditional Indian materials in his work. So, I'm thinking I'm going to go to West Bengal and sort of retrace his steps (from Calcutta - Darjeeling and all in between) and I'll be simultaneously writing a research paper about his philosophies on nationalism and myth and mature in artwork, and also doing my own collage work from found materials. I'm still trying to pass off some of the aspects of the project to the Academic Director. She's pretty supportive but also a major art historian and has her own ideas about "what is interesting" to study. If the "practicum" portion of the project doesn't fly I'll just make the art anyway, because that's kind of the point behind the whole thing... we'll see.

I really miss you all. Much love.

jugar and my car

We learned a term this week that I thought I would share with you all. We were sitting in class one day and Storm-ji (Academic Director) couldn't get the powerstrip to work. She informed us that this was the product of the uniquely Indian concept of "jugar." I guess it's actually a verb, and the definition is a bit hard to explain but basically instead of fixing things permanently it is common for Indians to fix them temporarily.

Now, some people had a real issue with understanding this term, but I have to say I'm familiar with the verb jugar. We jugared the Cabriolet all summer. In India it would not be surprising to see a car like mine--with a duct tape roof, apoxied door handles, and a ratcheted convertible top. Add in the fact that we have to blast the heat during the (might I say quite cool) Maine summers in order for the engine not to overheat and I'd say we've jugared the hell out of that vehicle.

So, India's not too far off from home, I guess. I mean, in many respects it is obscenely different - but then there are concepts like jugar that remind me of my dad and Pete.

I've got a little cold, but nothing terrible. My immune system is pretty down (Pete, I should have brought some ImmunoSea, but forgot... it would have been worth it for sure!). Yesterday I went on the first of four "heritage walks." They are led by this fascinating Indian man who is an architectural encyclopedia. He took us to all of these beautiful old ruins that hardly anyone goes to. We ended up wandering through narrow alleyways in a predominantly Muslim area of Delhi. Fortunately, our walk coincided with not only the month of Ramadan, but we were also in the area just before sunset. The men had just gotten out of the mosque and there wre kabobs being roasted and dishes being prepared for the nighttime feasting. It was an awesome spectacle. Not to mention the fact that whenever we enter a place like this (a part of Delhi that is not frequented by tourists) we are followed around and stared at and there's sort of an automatic party feeling. That's a strange way to describe it but... I don't know, it's hard to explain.

I'm running out of time on the computer. India is hilarious. Mom, no costumes yet. I'll tell you about them when we get them.

wait, Friends?

Just a quick little post to let you all know that I'm still doing well. I've finally recovered from the illnesses that plagued me for days. It seems I'm back on a regular schedule, if you will.

The days are filled with Hindi, lectures, yoga, Bollywood dancing, and commuting to and from the program center. The lectures are seriously good, if incredibly broad. This week we have had lectures on Orientalism/Occidentalism, Art Music in India, Indian History Pre-1947 (yes, 5000 years in one lecture), and on Who's Who in Hindu Art. It has been illuminating, though I often find that I'm just reeling and cursing the entire academic world when the lectures are through. Mostly I'm astonished at how much knowledge our lecturers have and I've realized I don't hunger for that much knowledge about one specific thing. It's amazing but kind of scary, or awesome? God, I don't even know anymore.

And then there's the Bollywood dancing and the yoga. Yoga is amazing, even if it is at 7 am and I have to get a rickshaw from my neighborhood at 6 am. That's okay. Really, it's fine. Bollywood dancing is just pure joy and full to the brim with everything tacky and sexy. Taking that workshop is a much needed glimpse into Indian modern life (the real India of 2009). SIT is so much about the ancient civilization and "culture" that it's totally relieving to have one part of the day devoted to Indian pop culture. Our teachers, Maher and Inder, are the most awesome and hot people ever. Maher was a semi-finalist in "India's Got Talent" for belly-dancing, and Inder just won the title of the BEST Salsa dancer in India. Of course, because I have two left feet, they just laugh at me as I try to shimmy and twitch my hips around... but they also invited us out to some salsa clubs (Indian salsa clubs??) which will be awesome. So, so, so fun. I'm very excited to see the young hip Indian population and "mingle."

But here's how I really unwind every night: Aunty loves, loves, loves "Friends." Yes, the NBC show. Of course she does. She sits there and giggles about all the weird sexual scenarios and says how "sweet" everything is. "Friends" is apparently the international language.

the adventure really has begun

The monday after our first big excursion out of Delhi and I am reeling. We have traveled 12 hours by train in the past 2 days and had the full-on study and tour of Amritsar. I do have photos, but until I get my computer (soon) I cannot get any pictures up on this blog. I know, it's a disappointment, but for now the words will have to do.

The trip to Amritsar really was amazing. We attended a lecture on Sikhism at Khalsa College, a very prestigious and beautiful college in the Punjab. The lecture was a bit bizarre, but fun in it's own right. The professor informed us that, whether we accept it or not, the scripture of the Sikhs (that's pronounced "sick" not "seek," just so everyone knows. We westerners have been mispronouncing apparently...) provides the moral code that could rid the world of "AIDS, smokings, drugs, and other world troubles." Yes, you heard him, smoking and drugs. I am making a conscious effort to open myself to the religious and spiritual rntings and ravings here in India, but sometimes (like in that lecture) I find myself faced with statements that are just... well... different. I do have to say it's been eye opening thus far in the amount of tolerance everyone has for each other... but I'm not sure how much tolerant they have for Godless atheists. We definitely have a few on our trip, which is interesting.

Of course, then we visit places like the Golden Temple (the holiest of holy place for Sikhs) and all of my cynicism is washed away by the grandeur of what can be constructed from pure faith. It's pretty incredible. The Sikhs have also been some of the most welcoming people I have encountered yet. We were whisked into the communal kitchen at the Golden Temple and asked to take pictures of women making chipoti, and a very old bizarre man told us crazy stories and wrote his name on a sheet of paper in English.

There's almost too much to tell about this trip to Amritsar, a phenomenon that I'm sure will keep happening. We also saw Bhangra dancing and we watched the Indo-Pakistan changing of the border guard. That was particularly awesome--especially in the way of a political performance. We're talking stadium seating, screaming Indians, and border guards who can do high kicks. It was like a military dance/festival/pride fest. I loved it.

I loved it despite the fact that not two minutes earlier I had gone to the bathroom and had a little, well, incident. You see, Indian toilets are holes in the floor, and this particular hole had a lot of water around it and well... I fell. I just tripped a little bit and down shot my foot, right into the Indian toilet bowl (a hole) into my favorite Indian smell, caca-poopoo-fecal matter. So, whilst watching the Indo-Pakistan changing of the border guard, my foot was covered in poo.

But that's my trip so far--absurd and exhilirating. The jewel is in the shit, as they say.

Love to all.

mujhe toilet jana hai.

My most important phrase yet in Hindi... this digestive stuff is hitting me hard, but I think I'm at the tail end (haha) of it all. Last night I sat on the toilet and exclaimed, "Gods that bless this country - bless my bowels!" Then I knew it was the pits. The pits of the pits of the pits. But it's also okay. So don't worry none on bit at all.

I hope this blog is making sense, I was reading over the last entry and saw a lot of English mistakes and I'm starting to wonder if my writing is going to suffer dramatically from Hindi-overstimulation. And I'm telling you, we are being overstimulated. We have Hindi class every day for 3 hours. Three hours of solid grammar with Prahlad-ji. He's very nice, but definitely practices the Indian teaching style... meaning he's a bit distant and tends to cover about four chapters a day.

We had our first "Arts and Culture" lecture today, which was great. All about the Indian art theory of the Rasa. I won't go into it all, but it's cool. I'm actually headed off to the India International Centre tonight to see an exhibit of Hungarian art (films, paintings, etc) to write about for my cultural event report. We are required to go to a cultural event every week and then report on it.

Blah blah, enough academics. That is my life right now... but there are a few other things happening. It has been pouring all day, for one thing, and this morning we drove in a cab (no rickshaws could go) and we were going through 1 1/2 feet of water and the cars were all overheating and people were pushing them down the street - it was madness. Thankfully it covers up some of the stench of my street, though the underlying smells are still there for sure.

Also, I've gotten hooked on this Hindi soap opera that my host-mother watches. It's all about a family in Rajasthan and this little girl who gets married at age 13 and I have no idea what's going on but Aunty always laughs and yells "OH MY GOD!" at the television before "explaining" the scenarios to me. She is truly hilarious.

Anyway, still percolating on the ISP ideas... they are getting good.
Love ya'll.

chicken soup and chicken curry

I have finally settled into a home here in Delhi. I'm staying with a woman named Nirmal Milek in Lajpat Nagar III in New Delhi. I call her Aunty, and it's just me, Aunty, and her Nepalese servant in the house. Yes, having a servant is weird. Very, very weird... but it's part of the social structure here so one can't really fight it, at least not as a foreign exchange student.

Aunty owns a whole building in Lajpat. The first floor is a preschool. I went there today and played with 30 1 1/2 - 4 year olds. Oh man. They are absurdly cute and just stare at me like I'm some sort of alien which, I guess, I am. We danced a lot and sang bursery rhymes. The whole school is in English. Aunty and I live on the second floor, in a really nice apartment. There are some ants, but other than that it's pretty chic. We have dinner every night (chicken soup the first night for my stomach, then chicken curry last night because I have been feeling much, much better) at 8 pm, then we watch really terrible television for an hour. Basically we watch "Planet Bollywood" (some Bollywood entertainment show) or really badly produced Hindi soap operas. Aunty is adorable and yells in Hindi at the television and then hits my arm, laughs, and yells "This very, very funny!"

I don't understand anything, but I have a pretty good time laughing at her exclamations. I am lucky to live in the house I live. This morning Aunty took me into the kitchen where her shrine is and we prayed together and lit incense.

We have the day off today so I am spending some time getting school supplies, art supplies, and going to shops around the house. I have been pretty overwhelmed with everything... tomorrow we start real classes and it promises to be very, very touch academically. It's great, but I'm nervous.

So much has been happening... I'm sorry to say that so far I haven't really been that thorough on this blog. I promise I will get some pictures up soon and report more on the happenings.

Oh, and just because I want to stick to the theme... I have been noticing the more unpleasant smells recently, they are rampant around my neighborhood. Many wafts of urine and human waste come creeping up from the baking sidewalk. Apparently in the next ten days the temperature will drop and I am looking forward to that. It's about 100 degrees all the time and I have no more sweat to sweat. Delicious.

delhi belly

I've got it. The Delhi Belly. But no one panic--it's just a natural part of acclimating I suppose.

This week has been a bit intense, hence the lack of access to the computer and whatnot. We are done with orientation officially as of today, and we meet our homestay families this afternoon! I am living in Lajpat Nagar (a bustling market of Delhi) with one woman who is a widow. She runs a school for 2 1/2 - 4 year olds! I hope I can get down to it (it's under the apartment) and hang out with all the kids, as we are not allowed to work with children to our Independent Studies because of ethical issues. That would be a nice break from the academic and social pressure of the day-to-day SIT stuff.

I've learned (in orientation) that this program is going to be a lot of work. That's great, but a little overwhelming. We had a 2 hour Hindi lesson today that was amazingly rapid and confusing, and also I felt ill so I couldn't really focus on anything. The Academic Director and the Student Affairs Coordinator (Storm-ji and Guy-ji, they are a couple which is nice - like Mom and Pop) are giving me dried fruit to assist me in my stomach problems. Need I say more? No. I need not.

Delhi is insane but so much fun. I think I got a little ill because I have been up at about 4 am every morning thinking about my Independent Study Project, sort of a nervous excitement about it. I'm not sure what will happen - because logistically it is hard to figure out. I might not get as far north as I want to go because... well... I probably shouldn't go to Kashmir and also because it will be dead-of winter when I do the project. I might end up in Rishikesh or Hardiwar, which would be wonderful (no Pops, no mountain-viewing in Delhi, but in Rishikesh there is).

So, these are the things that are going on... I'm constantly thinking and assessing and figuring out what this program is about and what my expectations are. Oh, and the other students are cool. There aren't very many of us and that might become hard, but for now it's nice.

Also, just because it would be SO MUCH FUN I might study "Bollywood Dancing" for my art practicum. HA! Yes. Bollywood stardom here I come.

Oh, and (jeez, many things...) we went shopping and are wearing beautiful outfits of hybrid western/indian clothing. Awesome.

peace and love

the arrival

I am officially in Delhi. And yes, there are smells to be smelled. We are staying at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in New Delhi for our orientation, and every morning we wake up to chanting and, because of the late monsoon season, it smells like wet, wet dirt and intense tropical flowers. Right now lunch is wafting down from the kitchen (I am in the SIT Program Center, where we have classes and we have lunch on the rooftop terrace that overlooks the rooftop city of Delhi) and, though I just had some weird little fried snack, I'm getting pretty hungry.

The program is actually awesome beyond anything I expected. The Academic Director (Storm-ji, yes... that's right... "Storm-ji") is really nice and funny and even swears (Oh! Thank goodness). The staff is pretty amazing, and I'm getting to know the students. There are 12 of us, 2 boys and 10 girls. That is tough, but I'll make due. The coolest thing is that starting next Wednesday we begin our regular routine - yoga at 7 on the roof (!!), hindi for 2 hours, lunch, Arts and Culture lecture (various scholars come and give us the digs on all that is Indian art), and then PRACTICA workshops. The practice workshops are the coolest. We can do a workshop in pottery, or tabla, or bollywood dance, or sitar playing. I really don't know what to do... but I'm excited because everything sounds great.

Also, I just talk to Storm-ji about the possibility of getting my hands on film equipment and taking it into the mountains (and we are talking MOUNTAINS) for my Independent Study Project. She is down with helping me to facilitate whatever bizarre adventures I hope to have, which is really, really amazing. I will most definitely have to rent the equipment, but that's all right because I am so obscenely rich.

Also, a few notes about Delhi in general:
Basically I'm just overwhelmed at the moment by the people and the driving (insane, absolutely terrifyingly insane) and the sheer sprawl of buildings and little communities. It's pretty confusing. Granted, it's my second day here so I am sure that will get better. SIT does these things called "Drop-Offs" where they just drop a group in a part of the city and we have to find certain things and then report back to the Program Center. WE had one yesterday and got monsooned on and managed to find nothing useful... then, in about 1 month and a half we have a "Hindi drop off" in which we have to find things only using Hindi.

I do not expect that to go smoothly, but maybe I'll be a quick study.

Hopefully I will get pictures on on here soon...
Love to you all.

The Journey Begins

Ah, blogging. I'm not sure what it's like to blog, but I'll give it a try for the sake of my dear parents and because I won't have to send those nasty "group emails."

I'm off to New Delhi on Sunday. I'm fairly packed (except I don't have my backpack), and can't exactly place how I'm feeling, as I don't think I've had time to process much of anything. We start off with one week of orientation in Delhi before moving in with host families for 6... or is it 8? weeks. I don't know. Something like that.

I agonized over a title for this blog... spent many days at Sophie's Cup asking for "witty titles" from Laura and the Sams and what I settled on is not really witty. Basically I just have a keen sense of smell (as do most of us), and I'm determined to chronicle, on occasion, what smelling is really like in India. Every person who has talked to me about India says something about the "smell."

And to them I say: I can handle the smell of 2 day old dead fish that have dropped off bait trucks, EVEN when I am driving in the cabriolet with the top down, so really? Can it be that bad? Aha ha ha...

But in truth, this blog has no theme and will just be about me - which is totally self-indulgent and kind of fun (for me) but maybe not for you. Good luck getting through it and hopefully there are interesting pieces of intelligence (wisdom seems too far-fetched).

Love to you all,
Galen