Venturing out to the village

 Right now I have moved into my friend Will's room, just for the afternoon for homework purposes. He has the blinds open, a door to the terrace open, and his roommate is gone, so I figured I would just make myself comfortable!! It's so sunny in here, and with the fresh air and sounds of the neighborhood wafting in through the doorway I'm just happy as can be.  And what better way to spread the happiness than to satisfy your needs to hear about my life? (lol)

Last weekend (yes, I'm catching up!) eight of us went on a 4-day field trip to Barefoot College- not far from Jaipur actually. This was a field trip with my Socio-economics class, to learn about NGOs and what's going on in rural India, as we only get to see the lives of the upper-crust in Delhi. Talk about an eye-opening experience!! I loved every minute of our adventure into rural India. This is the sort of thing that I really wanted to get into when I came here. Barefoot College in short, is a place where people can come to learn skills that will help them in their everyday lives, and will help their village. they do not hand out paper degrees, as they feel they are useless out in rural Rajasthan. They would rather teach people useful skills that will better their communities. Even though they are classified as an NGO, they do not like to be called as such. The people at Barefoot believe in equality and honesty among other values. This means that they always publish how their money is being used, and everyone gets the same salary. It really is amazing. You can learn more here.
We slept and ate here, and the food was some of the best that I've had in India (don't tell Auntie...). Also the people we met were some of the happiest I have ever seen. They are all working together towards a goal that will change lives and generations to come.
I honestly don't even remember what we did every day, but we were quite busy I can tell you that much. We visited 2 schools- one day government school and one night school set up by BC. The night school was really something to see. It was set up by BC because they knew there were children in the village who were not getting an education because they were working all day. So these are children who work all day in their homes/fields and are driven to want to be educated so much that they eat dinner and then trek to this night school for 2 hours. It's amazing to see the ambition that these kids have. It's mostly girls too. They are just so happy to be learning!! We also visited a few health centers, which is my area of interest. It is amazing what they are able to do with their lack of supplies and infrastructure.

Women at a worksite- they do hard labor and still dress so beautifully!

Government school

Kiddies!!

More kiddies!!

A map in the gov't school...you will notice that Spain is an island...

Health Center in the village

Cow...idk I thought she was cute

Area where we were in Rajasthan...pretty desert-y

Jaipur!

Last, last weekend me and 3 girlfriends went to Jaipur, a place in India known for the silver and the Amber Fort, among other things. We had such a good time!!!

The way there was a little rough, however. We booked trains at the last minute so we had zero options. We had to take the lowest-class sleeper car available at 4am. Ughhh. I can't even explain to you the horror that was that train ride (there and back). Bunks with strangers in the dark, with windows with no screens. It gets COLD in India at night, especially with the wind whistling in through the window. Never again.

We look happy...don't let that deceive you

When we got there we got the free taxi service from the hotel to pick us up at the train station. We were staying at the Krishna Palace and it was SO CUTE! Sadly I don't have any pics of it. Before arriving in Jaipur we had made arrangements with an auto driver to drive us around for 2 days and show us the city. My housemates had toured with him when they were in Jaipur and recommended him. His name is Raj and he showed us so many wonderful things that we never would have found ourselves.

Day 1:
One of the first things we did was to climb to the top of a very tall spire (height, claustrophobia, spiral staircase phobias all challenged) and look over the entire city of Jaipur. What a great intro to the city!

We went to see some tombs that aren't listed in the guidebooks and they were gorgeous!! We were the only people there which is an excitement in itself in India. There were courtyards full of these intricately carved tombs. Frankly I have no idea who is buried there, but that didn't really matter to us. We just enjoyed walking around this deserted gravesite chatting and taking pictures on such a beautiful day. The weather was perfect too- sunny and mid- 70s.

We explored the entire site, finding some underground areas which we first thought were dungeons, but realized were actually for keeping livestock or something else much less interesting. Then we found a maze of rooms built into the ground which were suuuper creepy. It was completely silent, except for the flapping of pigeon wings (more on those horrible creatures later). I actually got kinda scared at one point when we stumbled upon a decrepit-looking doll in one of the rooms. It looked as though her eyes followed you everywhere. We proceeded to get the hell out of there and back into the sun!!

When I was walking around by myself I was followed by a demon pigeon, no joke. It would actually walk around behind me making scary pigeon noises, and when I entered a tomb it would fly up into the eaves and growl. I swear. It would also fly around my head, scaring the crap out of me. Now I'm a little fearful of pigeons... They are also really big here! Like, they might be able to do damage if you provoke them. Seriously.

We also went to the famous Water Palace! This has a really interesting story- the water body was dammed so it could be built. This ruler wanted part of his palace to be under the water for protection, and for a cool place to go in the summer. Wild.

Elephants!!! I just love them. They are such sweet and intelligent creatures and I never wanted to leave. If you're not careful, I'll bring an elephant back as my souvenir :) I fed, pet, hugged, became best friends with 2 elephants. And they blessed me! My life is complete. That's one of things I'll miss about India- you pretty much get blessed everywhere you go, even in fancy restaurants. I know it might seem kitschy to some people, but it really does put me in a better mood. So anyway I made people take a bunch of pics of me with my new best friends.

                                                    

Also, because this was not just my trip I was dragged along shopping. Hmmph.  It was pretty cool though- Raj led us through all of these back alleys to a jewelry wholesaler. It was really secretive and I felt like I was in a movie!! Naturally I don't care one bit for jewelry so I just sat back and watched everyone pore over rings, necklaces, and earrings for what seemed like hours. Oh wait, it was hours. I did see 2 pieces I liked so I inquired of price, tried them on, and bought them all within 5 minutes. THAT'S how I like to shop lol. No muss, no fuss. I'm wearing them almost every day actually, trying to get used to wearing rings.

After such a long day we just went home and hit the hay. After not sleeping all night on the train, and having such a full day we were ready to sleep for sure!

Day 2:
Moooore shopping. I won;t bore you with the details, but I did buy maroon pants, and a green kurta (traditional women's tunic-like-clothing). I'm trying to branch out.

Most of the day was taken up by the Amber Fort, something Jaipur is famous for. What an amazing place! All of the old palaces and architecture here is really something to see. It's quite a trek up to the fort, but it was good to actually get some exercise here in India, the land of fried food and no walking. I don't even know what to say about this place so I'll just post some pictures :)

At the top of the fort, with the mountains and Jaipur behind me

A hall covered entirely in mirrors!!

In the evening we went to the MONKEY TEMPLE- another one of my highlights in India. Jaipur really was just awesome. It's called the monkey temple because the area is overrun by thousands of monkeys, but it is really a Sun Temple. I got really close to wild monkeys which was amazing/a little scary, but if you don't provoke them there's no problem. This is another situation of something really interesting being at the top of a really big hill, so it's good that it had gotten a little cooler by then!! When we got to the top, we were greeted by a woman who blessed us (yay!) and her husband, who are in charge of the temple. This place is breathtaking, especially at sunset. Again, words can't do it justice so I'll post pics. The monkeys actually aren't allowed in the temple itself so it's a very peaceful place.

Menagerie!!

Sun Temple

Sunset from the top of the Sun Temple

That night at 1am we headed back to Delhi :( We all wanted to stay in Jaipur forever. The people were so friendly, there was hardly any traffic noise, and the air was pretty clean, all compared to Delhi. I'll spare you the details of the train ride back- see beginning of post for a reminder. Never. Again.

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TAJ MAHAL

Yet another disclaimer: I know that the blog posts have been lacking a little but I would like to continue to remind...certain people...that I am in fact, enrolled in college here and have crazy amounts of work to do :) I will try to be better about blogging.

With that out of the way, I WENT TO SEE THE TAJ MAHAL (...2 weekends ago. I'm a little behind...). Regardless, I saw one of the wonders of the world!!!

There were 7 of us so we hired 2 taxis to take us down there, drive us around while there, and drive us back. This is a service that is quite cheap in India and pretty common. The trip down took ~5 hours, but our car had such a good time, laughing and talking the whole way. When we got there we checked into our guesthouse and decided to grab a bite on the run on our way to Fathepur Sikri (not the Taj, but another cool place in Agra). And what did we find?

That's right- McD in India. Of course we all thought it would be funny and ironic to go McD- a bunch of American tourists. All the Indians inside were like, freakin Americans going to McD in our country, ugh. Oh well, we had a blast. No beef in McD folks, but there was chicken and veggie burgers and paneer patties!! I stuck with chicken, seeing as I never get to eat it (Auntie's house is strictly veg- no eggs either). It was pretty good actually. After our little social experiment we headed to Fatehpur Sikri, an hour out of the city center. This palace/village was built by Akbar wayyy back when. It's really beautiful and incorporates Hinuism, Christianity, and Islam in the mosque because Akbar's wives were of all these traditions. That seems pretty progressive to me, considering the time. This place is beautiful, like all other historical things in India.

The next day we headed to the Taj!! It costs foreigners Rp. 750 (~$15) to get in, but it was totally worth it. We got there at the perfect time- right after the sunrise rush and right before all the tour buses arrive.  It's tradition for people in my hometown to take pictures of themselves with the town newspaper and then send them in to be published. Well, I really wanted to do this with the Taj but newspapers aren't allowed in...can you believe it?! How odd. So, one dream dashed that day. 

When we got there, there was quite the fog, as there always is on Indian mornings, so my first glimpse of the Taj looked like a mirage- so beautiful

I could not believe I was actually standing in front of the Taj Mahal! It was completely unreal, because it looks just as flawless and wonderful in person as it does in pictures. This was definitely the highlight of my India trip thus far. Kiki said this day was the happiest she has ever seen me! I was just lovin life. I was content to just sit and stare at it, which I did while some of the others walked around.

Me cheesin in front of the Taj

I have to run to class, but the next entry will be on my trip to Jaipur from last weekend

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Bahut achchha!

Today we went on  a field trip for my Cities of Delhi class to the Qtub Minar, which was amazing. I still can't get over how many historic places are here in Delhi and how OLD they are. It's mind blowing.

The real reason I'm writing is because I had a fabulous experience today. I rode on a tuk tuk by myself for the first time since I came to India!! It sounds silly, but you all know I have anxiety about new experiences, especially alone so this was sadly a big deal. I haggled with the driver, albeit briefly. Once you throw some  Hindi phrases at them they start to take you seriously. I have a few I like to use in partular. They mean "(insert price here) is the right price", "I am a student, I go there every day". When used in conjunction they are magic words! I'm not taking Hindi anymore, but I still do some independent study, for this very purpose. Any way, I get in the tuk tuk and he asks me how I am in Hindi. Normally, this is a courtesy that doesn't occur so one is supposed to treat it with suspicion. However, he was a nice older man and sometimes you can just tell about people, and to me he seemed like a good guy. So we had the following conversation:
Mr tuktuk: Ap kase ho?
Me: Meh tik hain. Ap kase ho?
Mr. Bahut achha! Me tik hain.
Mr. Ap ka nom kya hai?
Me. Mera nom Katie hain. Ap ka nom kya hai?
Mr. Mera nom (something unintelligible) hai. Can we...english?
Me. Ji hain!! (Yes!!)
Me. How are you?
Mr. I am good, how are you?
Me. Very good! What is your name?
Mr. My name is (....)
Then he just smiled really big to himself and we continued the trip in silence. And that wasn't even the best part! Being alone in the tuktuk was one of the greatest feelings I have had since coming here. I just felt like I was on top of the world- I was travelling alone in Delhi after having a conversation in the local language. It was sunny and warm and I just felt freakin awesome- so proud of myself :)

Also tonight at dinner it was just my roommate, myself, one of the new girls, and auntie. It is unusual for auntie to join us at dinner now which I find very sad, so I treasured the time we had with her. As always, auntie was dropping some serious wisdom on me and I just soaked it all in. I really value everything she has to say and offer, and I want to make her proud with what I do, much like my own Mom :) I wish I had brought a nice notebook so I could write some of these things down, but I'm sure I'll scribble them down somewhere.

8 of us are off to Agra in the morning, so there will be LOTS of pictures to come :)

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Blah blah filler post

SO. MUCH. HOMEWORK
I was really hoping that the workload would be slightly less stringent here, so we could actually get out and explore more than the weekends. Ah well.

It's a really short post today folks. The thing I really wanted to talk about was a crazily surreal moment I had in my evening tuk tuk ride. I got home a little later than usual because we had someone come in and talk about food in India after classes were over. Sadly, it was quite the snoozefest. So anyway, I'm heading home and they sky is freakin beautiful. It's this gorgeous pinky-orange and the sun is this glowy yellow-orange and I am just staring at it contentedly and admiring the beauty of the sky. Then it hits me. I'm staring. At. The. Sun. Because that's totally possible here apparently, with all of the pollution. Can you believe it?! As I was staring at it my brain was telling me it was the moon, you know, like when it gets orangey? Well, nope. The sun. Huh. It's the impossibly high level of smog that makes the sky so pink and pretty at night and also makes it possible to stare into a ball of fire. You know, nbd.

Also I'm really excited because I sent a special giftie to my family for Valentine's Day. I'll talk more about it once they receive it so I don't totally spoil the surprise :)

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Question time!

Today is really boring, honestly. I'm sitting on my bed doing hw, looking for summer job opportunities, and cleaning. Woohoo.

In slightly interesting news, I discovered that 2 more girls will be moving in with us for 2 months or so. More on that later when I meet them and actually have something to say about it...

I was asked 2 questions by the lovely S Deaver and thought you all might possibly be interested in the answers.
Where are your classes held?
    I take all of my classes as the IES center, which is in New Friends Colony in New Delhi. I live in Greater Kailash 2, if any of you are interested in looking on a map. It takes me approximately 15-20 minutes to get to school every morning, depending on how bright-eyed and bushy-tailed my tuk tuk driver is. I get to IES at 9 every morning and generally don't leave until 5. I have anywhere from 1 to 4 classes per day, with breaks in between.
Where do you eat when not at home?
   The beauty of life here at Auntie Chopra's house is that I never have to eat anywhere else!! She makes us breakfast and dinner on the weekdays and all three meals on the weekends. At breakfast there is always a dish of paranthas, which are like naan but more substantial, usually made with potatoes or minced veggies. We all take one with us for lunch during the week. The only time I have eaten anywhere other than home is when we went out for Will's birthday. It is nice to be fed regularly, but I would like to try some other places in the area. Being so near M block market makes it very difficult because there are so many wonderful restaurants. And EVERYTHING delivers here. Ice cream shops, restaurants, McDonalds, it's crazy. My friends and I are always lamenting at 2 in the morning during a study sesh that we wished McD would just drop off some c-nugs, fries and shakes. Well, in India that's totally possible. I just don't know about the availability of those exact products here haha.

I hope that covers it! Everyone feel free to send questions and I'll answer them as soon as possible!

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Out on the town

What an interesting few days I've had!! Full of fun, excitement, and new experiences- as it should be here in India.

On Thursday there was a talk on Justice in Diverse Societies at the India International Centre. The two speakers were Soli Sorabjee (former attorney general of India) and Frederick Lawrence (President of Brandeis University). Guess who got to go? Me!! My housemate, Will, is a student of Brandeis so he was going and took all of housemates as guests.

Me and Will in our fabulous business casual

It was an incredible night. The talk was very interesting, basically covering the two country's experience and legislature dealing with justice. Both men are very knowledgeable and I learned quite a lot. Afterwards there were circulating waiters with delicious finger foods and drinks. I had my first experience with an actual drinkable wine since being in India, so that was a lovely surprise. I also had the chance to do some casual networking and got a few business cards of NGOs in India that I will be looking into more carefully. Not only that, but I had the opportunity to meet and speak with both Mr Lawrence and Mr Sorabjee which is a treat. Mr Sorabjee is an adorable older man with an aura of dignity and intelligence but is also very relate-able and quick with a joke. I made a bit of a social gaffe with Mr Lawrence however. He asked where I was from in MA and after assuring him he would not know, he insisted and I told him. Mr Lawrence is well aware of Wilbraham, as he apparently once dated someone from there!! Without thinking of the social repercussions I asked who it was, seeing as I might know her. Severe awkwardness ensued when he refused to reveal her name. So yeah, I embarrassed the president of a prestigous university AND I am wayyy curious as to the mystery lady. If anyone reading this has any information let me know!

In slightly less cosmopolitan news, I have finally figured out the perfect way to take a bucket bath. I knew you all were worrying about my lack of abilities to stay clean (lolz) so I figured I would clear that up. It was a very exciting day for me.

More news about Will- we all went out and celebrated his 21st last night! Almost everyone on the program came and we had such a good time. We all ordered tons of drinks and appetizers and just hung out. It was really wonderful. This restaurant we went to in M block (5 minutes walk from the house) has 3 floors!!! 1 is a formal dining area, 2 is a bar and dance floor and 3 is a terrace with a few tables. We basically took over the terrace for 3 hours and after paying the bill headed down to 2 for dancing. We were the only people there which was really fun. We were all just jumping around to really old American music and some popular music from India having a blast. My new prof pic is from that night :)

In not so fun news, I can feel the homesickness creeping up on me occasionally now. India is just so...much all the time. Occasionally I am missing the quietness of Wilbraham or Bloomington and I miss Mom's cooking/baking like crazy. I went through a bout of just not eating much because the food here lost it's appeal to me. It is all fried or uses the same spices. I miss pasta and buffalo chicken anything A LOT and basically everything Mom and Dad make me :) I've also been dreaming about this baked brie that a family friend makes. Mmmmm. But so far these bouts of homesickness are few and far between.

Missing you all

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