Another Batch of Photos

At this point, you know the drill.  I am painfully late in uploading pictures, so this album is of some of the various activities I was up to in February.  The PhotoBucket album is available HERE.  I called it, quite simply, February in Kolkata.  For more information on some of the photos, see some of my blog posts from February, especially:

• Fun in Kolkata
• Santiniketan
• So Much to Experience!

I'll try to get more pictures up soon, especially because I can't wait to share pictures from Holi.  For now, this random jumble of pictures should entertain.

Happy Holi!

Like the picture?  Yes, that's what I looked like yesterday after playing with colors for Holi, a Hindu festival for spring.  This particular festival celebrates the destruction of a horrible demon.  As it is religious, the first step in playing with colors was for our friend Shreya to offer colors to the gods.  However, I'll admit that the religious part was not my particular focus.  I played to have fun with one of the most visually exciting festivals that I am aware of.

Apparently, it can be dangerous to travel on Holi because people celebrate on the streets and put less-washable colors on unwilling victims.  To avoid this, my friend Bekkah and I slept over with Shreya, a friend from St. Xavier's College.  After a delicious, home-cooked breakfast, we donned destroyable clothes and began the process of playing Holi.  To be honest, I was a bit worried about the activity.  People warned that only the dry colors would come off easily.  Wet colors would stain skin for a few days, and none of my black-haired Indian friends knew what the colors would do to light brown hair.  After a couple minutes of blessings with dry colors inside the flat, we went outside to play with wet colors on the lawn of the housing complex.  Before long, everyone was unrecognizable.  Children squirted colors with special sprayers, and Shreya's friends filled buckets to dump on heads.  It was completely chaotic and fun!  We returned to the flat for pictures (no safe place for cameras with all the activity) looking unrecognizable but incredibly happy.

After showers to wash off some of the colors, lunch, and a nap, Shreya's family convinced Bekkah and me to stay for another night of fun.  We went outside to meet her friends after knowing them only as the people dumping color on us.  While outside, the group watched a bonfire to burn the evils of the past year and watched the moon from the observatory.  Then we went back inside for great conversation and more.  I had another great time!

Bekkah and I returned home this morning.  We are exhausted and still a bit colorful, but the experience was well worth it.  My first Holi was a blast!

The Sunderbans

Oh, my, have I ever been busy recently!  I hate to think that I have gone so long withoug blogging, but I simply have not had the time.  In the past few weeks, I have watched a variety of movies, participated in two sleepovers, attended classes, visited a museum, and more.  Most importantly, last weekend was the much anticipated CSB/SJU group excursion to the Sunderbans, the largest delta region in the world.  I had been looking forward to the trip since before coming to India, and reading Amitav Ghosh's The Hungry Tide increased my excitement.  Fortunately, the experience did not disappoint.

The biggest draw for tourists to the Sunderbans is the nature.  We failed to see a Royal Bengal Tiger, but we saw deer, monkeys, and many birds.  More importantly, we saw the unbelievable six meter difference it water level between high tide (pictured above) and low tide.  Entire boats sat on mud during low tide that were easily in water during high tide.  This variation of water levels required that only trees able to be deep in saltwater could survive.  We sat awestruck during boatrides past impressive mangrove trees.  I also loved the sunrise and sunsets that we watched from the boat.  I took many photos but doubt they can come close to equalling the remarkable beauty of the views themeslves.

I also enjoyed the opportunity to learn just a bit about life in villages in the Sunderbans.  We watched a jatra (traditional dramatic performance) of the story of Bono Bibi, a goddess who protects villagers in the Sunderbans.  Oddly enough, Bono Bibi's story originates in Islam, and many of her worshipers are Muslim.  This worship deviates noticeably from the monotheistic expectations of Islam.  We also walked through a village to see villagers' homes and rice farms.  Homes unquestionably fail to meet my standards of preferred living, but the happy children we met do not seem to mind.  Some people bought gamchas (like towels) in the market, and we drank fresh coconut water before riding in rickshaw-trucks (think a motorcycle with a flat wooden rectangle on wheels behind it) back to the jungle camp.

In all, I had a wonderful, relaxing experience in the Sunderbans.  The food was delicious, supplemented by quite a bit of masala chai (tea).  We enjoyed great conversations while on the boat watching beautiful scenery.  Some members of our group even fell asleep on the boat, aided by the warm temperatures.  After living for a while in a busy and tiring city, I was happy to experience a break for a few days.  No travelling to class or museums and ending up exhausted by early afternoon.  Just enjoying ourselves and recouperating for another two months in India.

Cows Eat Garbage

 Yes, that's right: cows eat garbage.  Yesterday, I worked on reading with a ten-year-old girl at the Loreto Day School.  As we tried to complete activities in the reading book that her teacher suggested, we worked on a page that required her to select the appropriate response to complete the sentence.  One question was something along the lines of, "Cows like to eat ______ (toys, grass, sugar)."  In America, most children would say, "grass," automatically because the answer is simply obvious.  I would give that answer, at least.  This girl also knew the answer automatically.  Without looking at the choices, she said, "Garbage!"  And she was right.  The book may disagree, but the many cows that roam the streets of India always eat garbage.

Today is the halfway point of my trip.  Upon reflecting on my first two months in India, it occurs to me that yesterday's amusement provides a good example of what India has meant to me so far.  I came with a firm understanding of what is what and how the world works according to my experiences in Minnesota.  India has forced me to change some of these thoughts and reconsider the obvious.  For example, a quality hotel will not necessarily have a working shower head.  The best food may be not at the cleanest restaurant but at the dirty stand on the street.  And, yes, people can kindly make a path to the metro door even when packed tighter than sardines.

I have unquestionably fallen in love with India.  My list of things I want to see and places I want to visit is so long that some items have already fallen into the "Next Trip to India" category.  But in the end, India's impact on me will not be a matter of remembering great trips and sights.  I will never forget the Taj Mahal, riding camels in the desert, or this weekend's trip to the Sundarbans.  More importantly, I will never forget the little things that made me reconsider the obvious.  The "salt of the earth" is not a tasty addition to food but rather an absolute necessity if food is to be edible, as one homily insisted.  Respectable people can eat rice with their hands rather than with silverware.  Cows, dogs, and cats all like to eat garbage.

A Bit Late, But...

I have finally posted pictures from my trip to North Bengal (see blog post)!  Check them out at PhotoBucket.  There are over 125 photos on a variety of subjects.  I hope to post them on Facebook soon as well, followed by more recent photos.  I need to catch up soon, as we leave for another excursion on Saturday!

So Much to Experience!

Wow!  February is almost over, meaning that I have been in India for about two months.  I honestly cannot believe it!  Then again, as they say, time flies when you are having fun.  This cliche has proven itself altogether too accurate in describing the past few weeks.  I have been incredibly busy but having the time of my life.  Here are a few highlights:

As part of a required cultural/art experience, the group from CSB/SJU visited an artist in a village called Krishnanagar.  This particular village is known for the creation of clay dolls.  Artists mold these clay dolls using clay from the Ganges river.  Our group had the wonderful opportunity to try our hand at making these dolls.  I look forward to seeing my clay version of the Hindu god Ganesh when it returns from the kiln.  It was a fun day that even landed us in a Bengali newspaper.

My twenty-first birthday landed on the same day as another group activity, this time far more informal.  Our program director and assistant director, Madhu and Munu, invited us to their home for a sari party.  We selected saris from their extensive collection to wear for the evening.  Then, all dressed up, the group followed a rather unorthodox order for dinner.  We began with a toast to my birthday and to the trip in general, followed by cutting and eating my birthday cake (my second of the day thanks to a cake with breakfast from my host parents).  Then, we ate a delicious dinner that included piyesh, a traditional birthday sweet.  I had a wonderful birthday evening of fun, friends, great conversations, and beautiful saris.

Last Monday, we had the unbelievable opportunity to meet Amitav Ghosh, a famous Indian author whose books we read.  Ghosh gave a book reading and answered questions in a formal presentation at St. Xavier's.  Then, the CSB/SJU group met Ghosh and his wife, author Deborah Baker (who met with our class the next day), for tea.  We loved talking with this very unassuming author.  Ghosh was very curious about our lives and our experiences in Kolkata.  He was impressed that we have adopted various aspects of Indian culture, especially the food.  Apparently, his own kids, who are our age, prefer chow mein and pizza when visiting India from their home in New York.  Madhu proudly added that we eat with our hands like Bengalis to further praise our cultural immersion.  I don't know if we fully appreciated this opportunity to meet Amitav Ghosh, but I enjoyed myself immensely.

This past Wednesday brought Bekkah and me to another wedding with our host parents.  We wore saris and ate delicious foods from around the world.  Just before we left, someone pulled the two of us into a picture with the bride and groom.  I enjoyed seeing the beautiful saris, although I would never want a wedding like that.  It probably literally cost a fortune with the massive quantities of food, an elaborate venue, and unbelievable clothing.  Then again, I have not yet found much that would qualify as an example of simplicity here in India.

Beyond that, we have visited a variety of sites around Kolkata:

• The Victoria Memorial is a beautiful building dedicated to Queen Victoria that houses a museum.  I enjoyed learning more about the history of Kolkata itself.
• The Rabindra Bharati Museum commemorates Rabindranath Tagore (see my Santiniketan post) at his birthplace.  It displays countless photographs from the man's life and travels.
• The Botanical Gardens is a large park area with ponds, trees, and other wildlife.  It's most famous site is a huge, 250-year-old banyan tree with thousands of post-roots.  When we first saw it, my friends thought we were looking at a forest rather than a single tree!
• My favorite site of the bunch was the Missionaries of Charity Motherhouse.  We saw Mother Teresa's tomb and walked through a quaint museum.  The whole place had a sense of memory for the sake of memory rather than for profit.  Then, we attended a mass in the room that housed her tomb.  This prayerful experience left all of us reflective of our lives and our stay here.  I know I am not alone in hoping to return for another mass there.

As you see, I have been busy lately!  I am literally having the time of my life learning about India and its culture through a variety of means.  Beyond this, my friends and I have been studying, shopping at markets, eating out at restaurants as well as on the streets, watching a Bollywood movie (Three Idiots) and more.  Talk about a whirlwind of fun!

Close Your Eyes and Pray

When I was ten years old, my family went to Europe to visit friends.  On our two-day trip to Paris, we developped a theory for surviving taxi rides: close your eyes and pray that the car will not hit anything.  Traffic and travel in India often forces me to recall that theory.  There are far too many cars on the road, and many drivers do not have licenses.  As a result, traffic lanes are irrelevant.  Even more noticeable, drivers only pay attention to objects in front of them (most lost their side mirrors anyways) and honk to gain the attention of anyone they pass.  Think the traffic rules of biking (using a bell to pass, easily crossing to the other lane) on overcrowded streets of too many people.  I hope to detail the various types of transportation, of which there is quite the combination, in another post, but here are a few anectdotes from recent experiences in traffic:

Auto-rickshaws are little three-wheeled vehicles that are a dirt-cheap form of transportation (the yellow vehicles in the picture above).  They should probably only hold two passengers and a driver, but the vehicles only move with four passengers: three squeezed in back and one with the driver.  Often, a fifth passenger sits on the other side of the driver, holding on for dear life while only half sitting on the seat.  As the vehicles move, they make for quite the experience.  I worry that I may at some point hit that bus the auto drives past leaving less than a foot of space between!

In another auto experience, my friend Bekkah and I were in one last night that broke down in the middle of the road.  The driver pushed it to the side of the road and tried to fix it.  We stayed in the auto, unsure of what to do next because we had not yet paid for our trip but were also not at our destination.  Fortunately, our driver caught another auto for us that only had three passengers, and we rode the rest of the way.

The metro actually entertains me and, in my opinion, shows how kind people can be.  It gets extremely crowded during peak hours.  People shove their way in and pack tighter than sardines.  This can make for an uncomfortable ride at times.  However, whenever someone needs to leave the car, people somehow find a way to create exit paths.  It amazes me that riders, uncomfortable as they are, willingly squeeze tighter in order to let me stand in front of the door before it opens.  Then the flow out involves another shoving episode...

I mentioned that drivers often ignore traffic lanes.  This often includes the center lines.  Just as we in America sometimes move into the opposing lane of traffic briefly to pass slow vehicles, so also Indian drivers pass slow vehicles...all the time.  I feel we sometimes spend more time passing than driving in our lane.  This is fine, but it moved to a more extreme experience last Sunday.  Our van saw traffic ahead while on a major highway, size-wise comparable to I-94 in Central Minnesota - two lanes each way divided by a ditch.  Our driver crossed the ditch to the other side and proceeded to drive in the wrong road until the end of the traffic jam, forcing cars to change lanes rather to avoid head-on collisions. Talk about frightening!  I think I would have rather sat in traffic!

This last bit is not amusing at all, but it fits the general topic.  In a very frightening and sad experience, our bus was in an accident on Wednesday.  I was reading when the bus slammed on its breaks.  There was a thud followed by the windshield shattering.  Then I heard, "Oh, my God!  We hit a man!"  A motorcyclist had been in the wrong lane and lost control before he could change lanes or we could stop.  I never want to relive the experience of seeing him pass in the vehicle that took him to the nearby hospital (they didn't wait for an ambulance).  Fortunately, last we heard, the man is likely to recover.  The bus driver should be able to keep his job, as it was obvious that he could not have prevented anything.  Then again, we were told that only the presence of police immediately on the scene kept people from attacking the driver and possibly even the bus itself.  The nightmarish experience literally forced us to reflect on the dangers of driving anywhere in the world.  Passing slower vehicles is easier said than done, and even motorcycles cannot squeeze into all spaces.  I pray that we will never again encounter the horror of another accident.

I did not intend to end on a sad note, but I feel it would be disrespectful to the situation if I followed the last story with something funny.  So I will not.  Expect another post soon with more on some of our recent activities.  I may also have more pictures prepared and even possibly videos.  But for now, goodbye.