They use the river Ganges to bathe (as do the cows and buffalo), wash clothes, the sewer pours directly into it and they believe they can erase their sins by taking a dip in it. Millions of Hindu's travel to it every year on a pilgrimage and it's one of the most religiously sacred spots in India. It's believed that dying in Varanasi (the city built along the shores) is good luck and will stop the cycle of rebirth. The rivers edge is full of temples and bathing and cremation ghats and is the life, colour and activity that I"ve come to expect in India (x's ten). Varanasi, the city itself, is one of the oldest in the world and is built along the rivers edge. Walking around the tiny roads is like stepping back in time (into a maze).. so bring a map. It's easy to get lost and they don't let those pesky rickshaw drivers in (thank god...it's too narrow) - getting home after dark is a bit sketchy!
Denise and I did a 5:30am wake up for a boat ride down the river yesterday. I guess that's when there is the most activity..check the pics.. you will see what I mean! You are told not to take pictures at the cremation ghats (and yes, we saw bodies under sheets waiting to be cremated) but I'm not sure why you would want to anyway. The smell wasn't as bad as I thought it would be either. I guess we've become accustomed to bad smells in the last two months anyway.. I think the part that shocked me the most was how I felt about the womans body we saw floating in the river. She appeared to be pregnant and was caught on a fisherman boat. Kind of sad, obviously it doesn't seem a very dignified death. In India they normally cremate your body when you die, unless you are a child. I *assume* that is why she wasn't cremated.. because she was carrying a child. It mad me sad, but it didn't disturb me at all (like I thought it would... or perhaps "should" is the right word). The fact that people bathe and swim in the same spot is very strange (disgusting really)..but I felt a deeper level of respect and understanding for the religion and the culture and how serious it all is to them. Maybe that makes no sense, I can't really explain it. And I've got zero time to try because I fly out in 3 hours.. ah!
4.29.2007
4.28.2007
India! OUT!
It must be 45 degrees today and it's humid. I can't remember the last time I showered so I'm really hot and I'm jammed into a tiny cubicle with a pathetic excuse for a fan blowing hot air in my face. I am drenched in sweat head to toe and my butt is glued to the seat. Lovely.
We are in Varanasi waiting to catch our night train back to Delhi and I'm desperately trying to compose my final thoughts on India. For some reason the power isn't off today (it's normally off between 10am and 2pm daily and then frequently for the rest of the day!!!!). It's nice to escape the afternoon heat with something quiet to do. Besides, we are officially 'India'd Out'!!
Denise and I sat on the roof of our guesthouse last night and ate our last Indian dinner (by candlelight!), drank beers to celebrate and watched the world (happily high above the madness) while we discussed our time here and our experiences. While we were relaxing a man at the guest house came to pray in the temple (yes, on the roof). He was oblivious to us while he rang a bell, sang songs and chants and lit incense. Shortly after the Muslim Call to Prayer started echoing throughout the entire city. Beautiful. The manager of our guest house sat with us for awhile and read our palms telling us about our future; health, love, happiness; and he had some amazing insights into our past.
I've mentioned before that there is so much I love and hate about India. Things I will miss and things I can't wait to get away from!! There is a constant buzz in the air which is now so familiar, the honking horns, the buffalo, cows and gangs of dogs sleeping in mud puddles, people everywhere in constant motion, rickshaws threatening to slice off your toes and everyone calling you to ask you your name, your country and to buy from their shop, good smells, bad smells and then the really terribly bad make you nauseous kinda smells. Oh, and my butt has been grabbed way too much for my liking. It must be the blond ponytail.
I've enjoyed my time in India immensely, much more than I ever anticipated to be honest. I feel different in the sense that I feel more confident, tougher..stronger, more spiritual and more aware of the world. India is it's own action packed movie full of religion, hope, controversy, contradiction, generosity, happiness and love, hatred and corruption, colour and beauty, repression, filth and sadness. How can you not walk away with something in a place like this?
This last week we saw Tigers in the wild at Rathamborne wildlife park (so cool!). We did an early morning jeep safari with a few other hard core safari connoisseurs. They even had outfits made for them to wear (you have to see the pictures..they matched!!). I did a quick stint of Agra which I hated (we had McDonald's AGAIN!) and then we hid in Delhi for a few days (watched a Hindi movie which was hilarious) and then came to Varanasi to end our tour of India.
I honestly can't believe how fast our trip is going. Tomorrow night we board a flight to Tanzania.. and after about a zillion transfers and hours of waiting and many airports we will arrive to Mwanza to settle down for a month and teach kids. I honestly can't wait for the break but I'm not sure I'm qualified to teach! Anway, we've kept up a pretty steady pace for the last four months..and the thought of not having to re-pack every few days is wonderful. Our only concern... what is the food going to be like!!!?????? :)
We are in Varanasi waiting to catch our night train back to Delhi and I'm desperately trying to compose my final thoughts on India. For some reason the power isn't off today (it's normally off between 10am and 2pm daily and then frequently for the rest of the day!!!!). It's nice to escape the afternoon heat with something quiet to do. Besides, we are officially 'India'd Out'!!
Denise and I sat on the roof of our guesthouse last night and ate our last Indian dinner (by candlelight!), drank beers to celebrate and watched the world (happily high above the madness) while we discussed our time here and our experiences. While we were relaxing a man at the guest house came to pray in the temple (yes, on the roof). He was oblivious to us while he rang a bell, sang songs and chants and lit incense. Shortly after the Muslim Call to Prayer started echoing throughout the entire city. Beautiful. The manager of our guest house sat with us for awhile and read our palms telling us about our future; health, love, happiness; and he had some amazing insights into our past.
I've mentioned before that there is so much I love and hate about India. Things I will miss and things I can't wait to get away from!! There is a constant buzz in the air which is now so familiar, the honking horns, the buffalo, cows and gangs of dogs sleeping in mud puddles, people everywhere in constant motion, rickshaws threatening to slice off your toes and everyone calling you to ask you your name, your country and to buy from their shop, good smells, bad smells and then the really terribly bad make you nauseous kinda smells. Oh, and my butt has been grabbed way too much for my liking. It must be the blond ponytail.
I've enjoyed my time in India immensely, much more than I ever anticipated to be honest. I feel different in the sense that I feel more confident, tougher..stronger, more spiritual and more aware of the world. India is it's own action packed movie full of religion, hope, controversy, contradiction, generosity, happiness and love, hatred and corruption, colour and beauty, repression, filth and sadness. How can you not walk away with something in a place like this?
This last week we saw Tigers in the wild at Rathamborne wildlife park (so cool!). We did an early morning jeep safari with a few other hard core safari connoisseurs. They even had outfits made for them to wear (you have to see the pictures..they matched!!). I did a quick stint of Agra which I hated (we had McDonald's AGAIN!) and then we hid in Delhi for a few days (watched a Hindi movie which was hilarious) and then came to Varanasi to end our tour of India.
I honestly can't believe how fast our trip is going. Tomorrow night we board a flight to Tanzania.. and after about a zillion transfers and hours of waiting and many airports we will arrive to Mwanza to settle down for a month and teach kids. I honestly can't wait for the break but I'm not sure I'm qualified to teach! Anway, we've kept up a pretty steady pace for the last four months..and the thought of not having to re-pack every few days is wonderful. Our only concern... what is the food going to be like!!!?????? :)
4.17.2007
The true hospitality of India
Last night I was lucky enough to be invited along as a guest to the home of a man by the name of Kesaul. Sitting on a mat on the floor we ate chapati (the best I have tasted in India), slurped Dal (lentil soup sort of) and drank "Thums Up", the Indian version of Coca Cola (yup, I absolutely laughed my butt off at the spelling of 'Thum' especially since the logo is a thumb. Being the only person in the room with English as my first language I looked mini crazy as I giggled hysterically pointing and babbling thumb over and over because they didn't get it). In fact, nobody spoke the same language (Hebrew, English and Hindi) but it didn't matter - you always find out a way to communicate. I compared jewellery with Kesaul's wife and bonded with him and his daughters because we all eat with our left hands (socially not that acceptable in India - need I say more - hahem).
My friend Avi, from Israel, used to live in Pushkar years ago and trained to make jewellery with Kesaul and so he became quite close with the family, hence the invite. Kesaul is a very eccentric, religious man with an absolute heart of gold. We walked in, sat down, were offered the usual chai and watched while Kesaul casually hauled from a hash pipe and lit matches with his toes. He was surrounded by religious trinkets for worship, flashing lights, albums full of pictures of visitors and journals filled with good wishes from new friends he had met over the years. He proceeded to tell me all about Pushkar. It went sort of like this: "Happy heart, happy mind, happy life, you understand? Giant lake, Pushkar goes round and round in circles and I sit while everything spins and you spin now, giant flower, Brahma, used to only be water, you lucky heart to meet us in Pushkar, good karma, Avi happy mind, you understand. Good karma, you have happy heart no? I rename you 'Indra' because it's easier to say, so your new name is Indra, understand? Good mind, happy heart, you understand and you have good Karma in Pushkar?". Yup. It was wicked. We walked into town with the family after dinner and the best and most surprising part was the giant bear hug I got from Kesauls wife when we said goodbye. (Normally the women are extremely shy).
Indian hospitality is always something that blows my mind. The families trip over themselves to accommodate you (and by Western standards they have what you would consider "nothing"). They feed you, learn about your home and family, there is never awkward conversation or boastful stories. It's about family and new friends and being happy about life at that exact moment, rather than being showy or serving trendy food and expensive wine. It's a refreshing perspective on life.
I also had the opportunity to have chipati and tea this morning with Pawan and his mother at their home. They noticed my skirt is ripped so I'm going over there now for her to fix it and then taking Pawan out for dinner before I leave Pushkar. I will spend the rest of my life brainstorming how I can make sure this kid goes to college..
My friend Avi, from Israel, used to live in Pushkar years ago and trained to make jewellery with Kesaul and so he became quite close with the family, hence the invite. Kesaul is a very eccentric, religious man with an absolute heart of gold. We walked in, sat down, were offered the usual chai and watched while Kesaul casually hauled from a hash pipe and lit matches with his toes. He was surrounded by religious trinkets for worship, flashing lights, albums full of pictures of visitors and journals filled with good wishes from new friends he had met over the years. He proceeded to tell me all about Pushkar. It went sort of like this: "Happy heart, happy mind, happy life, you understand? Giant lake, Pushkar goes round and round in circles and I sit while everything spins and you spin now, giant flower, Brahma, used to only be water, you lucky heart to meet us in Pushkar, good karma, Avi happy mind, you understand. Good karma, you have happy heart no? I rename you 'Indra' because it's easier to say, so your new name is Indra, understand? Good mind, happy heart, you understand and you have good Karma in Pushkar?". Yup. It was wicked. We walked into town with the family after dinner and the best and most surprising part was the giant bear hug I got from Kesauls wife when we said goodbye. (Normally the women are extremely shy).
Indian hospitality is always something that blows my mind. The families trip over themselves to accommodate you (and by Western standards they have what you would consider "nothing"). They feed you, learn about your home and family, there is never awkward conversation or boastful stories. It's about family and new friends and being happy about life at that exact moment, rather than being showy or serving trendy food and expensive wine. It's a refreshing perspective on life.
I also had the opportunity to have chipati and tea this morning with Pawan and his mother at their home. They noticed my skirt is ripped so I'm going over there now for her to fix it and then taking Pawan out for dinner before I leave Pushkar. I will spend the rest of my life brainstorming how I can make sure this kid goes to college..
4.16.2007
Mwanza Orphanage
Wow. I am sitting here making plans to meet up with Denise and Martin again (a week on my own by the pool.. a complete self indulgance but I loved the R&R, zoned out and had a mini escape from India). Anyway, I realize I have less than two weeks here before we fly to Africa and we are almost at the half way point for our trip! Time flies when you are having fun and I'm going to be home soon before I know it.
When I left a lot of you mentioned that you would be interested in donating to the orphange in Mwanza in one way or another! Please email me personally if you want to donate cash (we can figure out something) or if you want to put together a package the address for postage is Hands of Mercy Outreach International, PO Box 10024, Mwanza, Tanzania. If you need ideas let me know, I can certainly ask our contact if there is anything they need.
My personal opinion is that a cash donation is more effective (and you don't waste money that could have gone to the kids on postage!). Cash is a double hit.. on the local economy and then I can go shopping and buy them what they need when I get there and we can fully assess the situation. The money will not be given to the orphanage but Denise and I will choose to spend it as necessary! We will of course give full information on what the money was used for and I have a few ideas for some other things we will do.. but enough about that ;)
Importantly, here is some information pieced together from a newletter that our contact sent out. I do realize that being my friends / family doesn't mean you will automatically want to hand out money or 'stuff' so maybe this will help. Last time I checked I was not able to get tax receipts because the orphanage is not an internationally registered charity. With that said, they are working on it. Remember, even $5 will go a long way..
AND one more thing ... a friend of Denise's family - I should mention he is five years old - took the initiative to raise money for the kids at the orphanage and instead of asking for birthday presents from his friends he asked for money. He donated his birthday to these kids.. and he is five and it was entirely his idea. That is amazing and inspiring :)
Hands of Mercy Outreach International, Tanzania
Hands of Mercy begun the new year with a new start by moving into a new home. The old home was very cramped and unsuitable for the number of people living in it. Thanks to a donation from Unatrac (UK), we have been able to rent a bigger compound for the children. The new house has plenty of room inside for all the children to sleep, eat and play. In addition, we also have a section for classrooms where we run extra classes for our own children and a nursery school for local community kids. The compound also has a huge area outside where the children can play, and where we have planted crops.
At present we have four volunteers at Hands of Mercy, who are officially our first volunteers at this project. We have a couple from New Zealand with us now who have decided to uproot lives back home, and move here to help the children. They intend to be with us for quite some time, and are like a grandmother and grandfather to the children.
Recent volunteers from Watoto wa Africa also used some of their fundraising to help at Hands of Mercy. Volunteers over the last few months have provided Hands of Mercy with bed sheets, mosquito nets, ground sheets for the children to sit on, seeds for vegetables and fruits to plant at our farm, shoes for each child, and special food for Christmas and New Years days. Hands of Mercy also organized a special Christmas concert and church service for four of the local orphanages, which our volunteers also contributed towards for the food and hiring of equipment.
Recently, Bridge to Aid, a local Tanzanian charity, came to visit Hands of Mercy. They sent us a dentist and nurse who gave the children some education about dental care and brushing their teeth. They checked all the children’s teeth for any problems and wrote reports on all the children. I’ve never seen children so excited at the thought of having their teeth checked by a dentist. But all things that are new are exciting to these kids. Each child received a sticker afterwards for their bravery, and a brand new toothbrush to practice their newly learnt brushing techniques.
The orphanage has recently been donated a generator, water pump, and two large water tanks thanks to Stanley Mining Tanzania. The boys from Stanley have been out at the orphanage in the scorching sun for the past two weekends bringing out all the equipment for us, and setting it up. Now the children can see at night, and we have running water inside the house. People from Stanley Mining also make up part of a group of people who are undertaking the challenging Kilimanjaro Marathon with the intention of raising money for Hands of Mercy. The money raised by our marathon runners will go toward some new beds and mattresses for the children, as currently the children are sleeping 4 to a bed.
Any questions, let me know. I gots to go back and swim.
When I left a lot of you mentioned that you would be interested in donating to the orphange in Mwanza in one way or another! Please email me personally if you want to donate cash (we can figure out something) or if you want to put together a package the address for postage is Hands of Mercy Outreach International, PO Box 10024, Mwanza, Tanzania. If you need ideas let me know, I can certainly ask our contact if there is anything they need.
My personal opinion is that a cash donation is more effective (and you don't waste money that could have gone to the kids on postage!). Cash is a double hit.. on the local economy and then I can go shopping and buy them what they need when I get there and we can fully assess the situation. The money will not be given to the orphanage but Denise and I will choose to spend it as necessary! We will of course give full information on what the money was used for and I have a few ideas for some other things we will do.. but enough about that ;)
Importantly, here is some information pieced together from a newletter that our contact sent out. I do realize that being my friends / family doesn't mean you will automatically want to hand out money or 'stuff' so maybe this will help. Last time I checked I was not able to get tax receipts because the orphanage is not an internationally registered charity. With that said, they are working on it. Remember, even $5 will go a long way..
AND one more thing ... a friend of Denise's family - I should mention he is five years old - took the initiative to raise money for the kids at the orphanage and instead of asking for birthday presents from his friends he asked for money. He donated his birthday to these kids.. and he is five and it was entirely his idea. That is amazing and inspiring :)
Hands of Mercy Outreach International, Tanzania
Hands of Mercy begun the new year with a new start by moving into a new home. The old home was very cramped and unsuitable for the number of people living in it. Thanks to a donation from Unatrac (UK), we have been able to rent a bigger compound for the children. The new house has plenty of room inside for all the children to sleep, eat and play. In addition, we also have a section for classrooms where we run extra classes for our own children and a nursery school for local community kids. The compound also has a huge area outside where the children can play, and where we have planted crops.
At present we have four volunteers at Hands of Mercy, who are officially our first volunteers at this project. We have a couple from New Zealand with us now who have decided to uproot lives back home, and move here to help the children. They intend to be with us for quite some time, and are like a grandmother and grandfather to the children.
Recent volunteers from Watoto wa Africa also used some of their fundraising to help at Hands of Mercy. Volunteers over the last few months have provided Hands of Mercy with bed sheets, mosquito nets, ground sheets for the children to sit on, seeds for vegetables and fruits to plant at our farm, shoes for each child, and special food for Christmas and New Years days. Hands of Mercy also organized a special Christmas concert and church service for four of the local orphanages, which our volunteers also contributed towards for the food and hiring of equipment.
Recently, Bridge to Aid, a local Tanzanian charity, came to visit Hands of Mercy. They sent us a dentist and nurse who gave the children some education about dental care and brushing their teeth. They checked all the children’s teeth for any problems and wrote reports on all the children. I’ve never seen children so excited at the thought of having their teeth checked by a dentist. But all things that are new are exciting to these kids. Each child received a sticker afterwards for their bravery, and a brand new toothbrush to practice their newly learnt brushing techniques.
The orphanage has recently been donated a generator, water pump, and two large water tanks thanks to Stanley Mining Tanzania. The boys from Stanley have been out at the orphanage in the scorching sun for the past two weekends bringing out all the equipment for us, and setting it up. Now the children can see at night, and we have running water inside the house. People from Stanley Mining also make up part of a group of people who are undertaking the challenging Kilimanjaro Marathon with the intention of raising money for Hands of Mercy. The money raised by our marathon runners will go toward some new beds and mattresses for the children, as currently the children are sleeping 4 to a bed.
Any questions, let me know. I gots to go back and swim.
4.12.2007
Pawan Kumar
I decided to take Pawan for breakfast this morning. I've noticed him hanging around the temples and my hotel for the past few days and this morning he asked me for money from my country for his "coin collection". I didn't have any Canadian change but he was pretty happy with the Vietnamese money I scrounged up (I had to explain where Vietnam was because he had never heard of it!).
He followed me around talking to me about Pushkar and helped me find a place that would do a cash advance on my Visa. I knew he was probably pretty hungry (his mother doesn't make breakfast, there is only food enough for dinner) so I invited him to eat with me at a tourist cafe. The owners wouldn't let us sit upstairs, but rather to the side so nobody could see us!
He's only 12 years old and he spends his mornings begging from the tourists..spare change, chapati, biscuits... today he is trying to get a new pair of shoes. In the afternoons he goes to school because a family from Spain paid to send him for the next five years. His father works sewing clothes for tourist shops but drinks away his income. His mother doesn't do anything. The family relies on the money that Pawan can bring in so they can eat, pay rent (about $18CND per month) and buy other necessities. Today was his first chocolate ice cream shake ever and I practically had to twist his arm that I didn't mind.
Pawan has two younger brothers, which he won't allow to work. He thinks they are to young (although he was younger when he started begging at seven years old) and wants to keep them away from this type of work. He doesn't have a glimmer of childhood in his eyes and it's not that easy to get him to laugh. He told me that his biggest dreams are to be a pilot (he did laugh when I thought he said Pirate) and to live in Europe. He says that they won't come true, dreams like that won't be possible for him, so he prays to God every day that he will be reborn a European in his next life. He doesn't like living in India at all. I asked him what he does for fun, does he play football or games? He actually looked confused and asked me what I meant!
The story is the same for all of the kids we've interacted with over the last few months. It really teaches you a lot about compassion and tolerance and I struggle with it everyday. Some days I get so annoyed with these children! Not a day goes by where I don't get harassed for spare change or food constantly and it begins to wear at you. Sometimes I pretend they don't exist, sometimes I tell them no and to leave me alone and other times I melt and buy them food or drink. Every once and a while I feel like screaming and stomping like a five year old because I want to help every single child and ignoring them feels so wrong and it is so frustrating to be faced with it and be totally useless. I know I shouldn't even buy them food because it doesn't teach them anything. It doesn't make them work harder to go to school and try and get a job. Pawan said it is not possible for him to get a job in a shop and he tries to work for the tourist authority as an official guide, but obviously he is too young and they can't hire him. He has friends from Australia and a week ago he received a letter from them. They had sent him photos and 1000 rupee which is about $30 bucks. The postman opened the letter and stole the money! I asked him if he got mad at the postman for stealing and he said no, that the Gods watch the postman and when he dies the Gods will get him in trouble for stealing from a poor boy and his family.
Everyday that he goes to town to beg he prays on his way in that the Gods will be happy with him today and the tourists will give him money. He doesn't have a favorite God because he is too worried that he will anger the others if he favours one. I asked him if he ever gets mad at God that he is poor but he says no, only sometimes he gets irritated but he would never be officially mad at God.
He wishes he could learn to swim, and I would happily teach him but they won't let him in the pool at my hotel. The sign says Indians 9am-11am, Tourists 11am-6pm. Imagine?
The hardest part about travelling like this is learning how to face how real the world is outside of our cozy lives and deal with the guilt of having just about everything and not having very much appreciation for it!
On a much brighter note, we had dinner the other night in a hotel restaurant. The tables were low to the ground and you sit on cushions around the perimeter of a sandy garden. There was a cow in one corner that the staff kept chasing out of the kitchen, a giant German Shepherd tried to cozy up in our laps and then a cat took a huge poop in the middle of the restaurant!! UM! Can someone call the health authorities please :)
AND the guy with the cow with five legs put a curse on me this morning because I wouldn't give him money. Dammit!
He followed me around talking to me about Pushkar and helped me find a place that would do a cash advance on my Visa. I knew he was probably pretty hungry (his mother doesn't make breakfast, there is only food enough for dinner) so I invited him to eat with me at a tourist cafe. The owners wouldn't let us sit upstairs, but rather to the side so nobody could see us!
He's only 12 years old and he spends his mornings begging from the tourists..spare change, chapati, biscuits... today he is trying to get a new pair of shoes. In the afternoons he goes to school because a family from Spain paid to send him for the next five years. His father works sewing clothes for tourist shops but drinks away his income. His mother doesn't do anything. The family relies on the money that Pawan can bring in so they can eat, pay rent (about $18CND per month) and buy other necessities. Today was his first chocolate ice cream shake ever and I practically had to twist his arm that I didn't mind.
Pawan has two younger brothers, which he won't allow to work. He thinks they are to young (although he was younger when he started begging at seven years old) and wants to keep them away from this type of work. He doesn't have a glimmer of childhood in his eyes and it's not that easy to get him to laugh. He told me that his biggest dreams are to be a pilot (he did laugh when I thought he said Pirate) and to live in Europe. He says that they won't come true, dreams like that won't be possible for him, so he prays to God every day that he will be reborn a European in his next life. He doesn't like living in India at all. I asked him what he does for fun, does he play football or games? He actually looked confused and asked me what I meant!
The story is the same for all of the kids we've interacted with over the last few months. It really teaches you a lot about compassion and tolerance and I struggle with it everyday. Some days I get so annoyed with these children! Not a day goes by where I don't get harassed for spare change or food constantly and it begins to wear at you. Sometimes I pretend they don't exist, sometimes I tell them no and to leave me alone and other times I melt and buy them food or drink. Every once and a while I feel like screaming and stomping like a five year old because I want to help every single child and ignoring them feels so wrong and it is so frustrating to be faced with it and be totally useless. I know I shouldn't even buy them food because it doesn't teach them anything. It doesn't make them work harder to go to school and try and get a job. Pawan said it is not possible for him to get a job in a shop and he tries to work for the tourist authority as an official guide, but obviously he is too young and they can't hire him. He has friends from Australia and a week ago he received a letter from them. They had sent him photos and 1000 rupee which is about $30 bucks. The postman opened the letter and stole the money! I asked him if he got mad at the postman for stealing and he said no, that the Gods watch the postman and when he dies the Gods will get him in trouble for stealing from a poor boy and his family.
Everyday that he goes to town to beg he prays on his way in that the Gods will be happy with him today and the tourists will give him money. He doesn't have a favorite God because he is too worried that he will anger the others if he favours one. I asked him if he ever gets mad at God that he is poor but he says no, only sometimes he gets irritated but he would never be officially mad at God.
He wishes he could learn to swim, and I would happily teach him but they won't let him in the pool at my hotel. The sign says Indians 9am-11am, Tourists 11am-6pm. Imagine?
The hardest part about travelling like this is learning how to face how real the world is outside of our cozy lives and deal with the guilt of having just about everything and not having very much appreciation for it!
On a much brighter note, we had dinner the other night in a hotel restaurant. The tables were low to the ground and you sit on cushions around the perimeter of a sandy garden. There was a cow in one corner that the staff kept chasing out of the kitchen, a giant German Shepherd tried to cozy up in our laps and then a cat took a huge poop in the middle of the restaurant!! UM! Can someone call the health authorities please :)
AND the guy with the cow with five legs put a curse on me this morning because I wouldn't give him money. Dammit!
4.11.2007
Hindu Gods and Painted Cows
There is always something happening in India. It is a land of hilarious contrast and contradictions of which you can't even begin to imagine. As I type this there is an ornately decorated cow peering in at me. He has five legs and his owner is trying to convince me to come out and take a picture of them for good luck. Um, yeah been there done that. (Besides, I've previously explained my new fear of cows made stronger last night when a baby cow suddenly ran straight at Martin and head butted him from behind). A lady in a purple sari is screaming at someone at the top of her lungs and some man just walked by and farted, burped and horked all at the same time. Impressive.
Walking down the street is kind of like being in the middle of a circus. You are trying to avoid fresh cow paddies and mysterious wet patches, dodge motorbikes that zoom around the small zig zagged streets at full speed, painfully ignore the children begging for rupees or milk who endlessly yank on your arm all the while trying to not breath when you pass the outdoor urinals (which they encourage the men to use, instead of a wall or the gutter). I'm still to discover where the woman go. The men who stand outside of their shops constantly leer at you and try and convince you that you need to buy something as you wander past. Dogs with three legs run around chasing cows and tourists before curling up in a cozy pothole smack in the middle of the street, despite the zooming rickshaws and motorbikes whirring past. It's a bit exhausting sometimes. Add the intense heat and your day ends with your head spinning as you try and take in everything you saw, the people you met and the new experiences you had that constantly blow your mind. I absolutely love it!.
I am chilling for a few days in a small town called Pushkar in Rajisthan. It's semi desert so it's freaking hot, but dry heat so it's manageable. I have a room with a view (about 200 white temples, a lake and mountains) for the exorbitant price of $9 Canadian dollars and I have a big pool to laze around. I'm planning on doing yoga and swimming and reading for a week. There is no way to ever truly escape India (perhaps a 10 day meditation course in the mountains where I am sure I would officially lose it so I think I will pass). This is my best effort for calm. It's quite hilarious that a country known for yoga and meditation is so mental and full of activity. Actually, it's no wonder because I don't know how they would survive without it.
Pushkar is a strange place full of backpackers and the tackiness they bring with them such as Internet shops, Falafal stalls, kids selling hash and colourful shops filled with baggy clothing and silver jewellery. Mix that with 400 temples, families in colourful saris on holiday to worship at the temples and bathe in the lake to wash away their bad karma and Sadhu's who are making the pilgrimage here to worship Shiva or their god of choice. It certainly makes for interesting.
Pushkar is a sacred holy city for Hindu's. It's one of many pilgrimage spots in India, and the only place in the world that has a Brahma temple. (It's supposed to be the only one because his wife, Saraswati, put a curse on him when she realized that he married another woman; the curse being that he could not be worshipped anywhere else in the world; anyway, we hear a rumour there is also a Brahma temple in Bangkok. I don't think anyone should tell Saraswati and I certainly hope she doesn't read my blog, because I wouldn't want to anger Hindu Gods). To further give you the Coles Notes (or Bill and Ted) version Brahma is the tubular dude who created the universe. There are about 450 million gods who are technically just a representation of him since he is off doing meditation somewhere more peaceful. The most important Gods are Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu. There is also a God with an Elephant head, Shiva's son, by the name of Ganesh and he seems high on the cool scale.
If I understand correctly the main principles of Hinduism are Karma, Reincarnation and Moksha. The idea being that you are want to live your life so that you can eventually escape the cycle of rebirth by being borne into higher castes and so on. One huge objection I have is that women can generally not be liberated but only hope that they are reborn as a man and will be liberated in the next life. Being a woman in India is never easy. The caste system basically defines who you can marry and what jobs you can do (is completely illegal but still prevalent) and has India completely backwards and inside out.
Anyway, the pool and a book are calling me so I suppose I should get back to it ;)
Walking down the street is kind of like being in the middle of a circus. You are trying to avoid fresh cow paddies and mysterious wet patches, dodge motorbikes that zoom around the small zig zagged streets at full speed, painfully ignore the children begging for rupees or milk who endlessly yank on your arm all the while trying to not breath when you pass the outdoor urinals (which they encourage the men to use, instead of a wall or the gutter). I'm still to discover where the woman go. The men who stand outside of their shops constantly leer at you and try and convince you that you need to buy something as you wander past. Dogs with three legs run around chasing cows and tourists before curling up in a cozy pothole smack in the middle of the street, despite the zooming rickshaws and motorbikes whirring past. It's a bit exhausting sometimes. Add the intense heat and your day ends with your head spinning as you try and take in everything you saw, the people you met and the new experiences you had that constantly blow your mind. I absolutely love it!.
I am chilling for a few days in a small town called Pushkar in Rajisthan. It's semi desert so it's freaking hot, but dry heat so it's manageable. I have a room with a view (about 200 white temples, a lake and mountains) for the exorbitant price of $9 Canadian dollars and I have a big pool to laze around. I'm planning on doing yoga and swimming and reading for a week. There is no way to ever truly escape India (perhaps a 10 day meditation course in the mountains where I am sure I would officially lose it so I think I will pass). This is my best effort for calm. It's quite hilarious that a country known for yoga and meditation is so mental and full of activity. Actually, it's no wonder because I don't know how they would survive without it.
Pushkar is a strange place full of backpackers and the tackiness they bring with them such as Internet shops, Falafal stalls, kids selling hash and colourful shops filled with baggy clothing and silver jewellery. Mix that with 400 temples, families in colourful saris on holiday to worship at the temples and bathe in the lake to wash away their bad karma and Sadhu's who are making the pilgrimage here to worship Shiva or their god of choice. It certainly makes for interesting.
Pushkar is a sacred holy city for Hindu's. It's one of many pilgrimage spots in India, and the only place in the world that has a Brahma temple. (It's supposed to be the only one because his wife, Saraswati, put a curse on him when she realized that he married another woman; the curse being that he could not be worshipped anywhere else in the world; anyway, we hear a rumour there is also a Brahma temple in Bangkok. I don't think anyone should tell Saraswati and I certainly hope she doesn't read my blog, because I wouldn't want to anger Hindu Gods). To further give you the Coles Notes (or Bill and Ted) version Brahma is the tubular dude who created the universe. There are about 450 million gods who are technically just a representation of him since he is off doing meditation somewhere more peaceful. The most important Gods are Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu. There is also a God with an Elephant head, Shiva's son, by the name of Ganesh and he seems high on the cool scale.
If I understand correctly the main principles of Hinduism are Karma, Reincarnation and Moksha. The idea being that you are want to live your life so that you can eventually escape the cycle of rebirth by being borne into higher castes and so on. One huge objection I have is that women can generally not be liberated but only hope that they are reborn as a man and will be liberated in the next life. Being a woman in India is never easy. The caste system basically defines who you can marry and what jobs you can do (is completely illegal but still prevalent) and has India completely backwards and inside out.
Anyway, the pool and a book are calling me so I suppose I should get back to it ;)
4.02.2007
Tibetan Radio??
First of all, I thought I should let you all know that my massage this morning was fantastic. I lay there while Denise had needles inserted in her leg and we could hear Tibetan chanting in the background (which was amazing and relaxing)... I had to fill the time somehow! I might marry my Tibetan massage therapist and bring him back to Canada with me. I am totally in love with him. :)
So. They have this dude who stands at the town centre with a megaphone and a few times a day he shouts out the news to the town. Information on town meetings, the weather, political situation in Tibet. I don't really know. I guess it's their version of a radio. It's really hilarious :)
So. They have this dude who stands at the town centre with a megaphone and a few times a day he shouts out the news to the town. Information on town meetings, the weather, political situation in Tibet. I don't really know. I guess it's their version of a radio. It's really hilarious :)
4.01.2007
I got butted by a cow!
Denise and I are currently in McLeod Ganj (A lot of Tibetan refugees fled here after the Chinese occupation of their country fifty years ago.. remember Brad Pitt in Seven Years In Tibet ? Yup, this is one of the places they came.. I can't find *him* anywhere though..?.).
It's a much needed break from the heat and we wanted to do some trekking; which we did yesterday and the day before! We climbed to 2900m and played in the snow in the Himalayas!! It was four hours (straight up) and about three back down..we were hobbling like we were 300 years old by the end.
I'm not sure if it is the altitude, a lack of protein and veg, wonky food or just overall exhaustion from travelling but we were both deliriously sick last night and can barely move today. Perhaps we are just officially tired :) Good thing we are planning on spending a week here to recover and started our day off with a healing Tibetan massage ($6) and then lazed around drinking tea and reading books at a cafe. Denise just had some acupuncture done and we booked more massages for the morning. Just in case.
The last (days, weeks?) have been sooooooooooooooo busy. I've been on a search to find my grandmother's past which was really exciting! She was born in Belgaum and also lived and went to school in Mumbai (Bombay). A lot of the buildings from the British occupation are still evident (mind you they are quite decrepit). Being in Belgaum was a taste of 'real' India - minus the tourists and the Pizza Huts and the western dressed locals. There were no other tourists. The children literally mobbed us if we took out our camera. We felt like celebrities, it was crazy. Everyone was inviting us to their homes, they wanted us to take picture of their pets.. crazy!
Next we were on to Mumbai where we found ourselves working on the set of a commercial as extras (paid!) and then being Peroni Angels (paid!) for the opening of fashion week at the best night club in town (they checked our taxi for bombs and we had to walk in through metal detectors!). We basically had to take pictures on the red carpet with all of the Bollywood stars and models. We constantly had six photographers shooting us at all times. It was maybe the most bizarre experience of my life. :)
Oh yeah, and I got head butted by a cow. With horns. Yooouch!!!
It's a much needed break from the heat and we wanted to do some trekking; which we did yesterday and the day before! We climbed to 2900m and played in the snow in the Himalayas!! It was four hours (straight up) and about three back down..we were hobbling like we were 300 years old by the end.
I'm not sure if it is the altitude, a lack of protein and veg, wonky food or just overall exhaustion from travelling but we were both deliriously sick last night and can barely move today. Perhaps we are just officially tired :) Good thing we are planning on spending a week here to recover and started our day off with a healing Tibetan massage ($6) and then lazed around drinking tea and reading books at a cafe. Denise just had some acupuncture done and we booked more massages for the morning. Just in case.
The last (days, weeks?) have been sooooooooooooooo busy. I've been on a search to find my grandmother's past which was really exciting! She was born in Belgaum and also lived and went to school in Mumbai (Bombay). A lot of the buildings from the British occupation are still evident (mind you they are quite decrepit). Being in Belgaum was a taste of 'real' India - minus the tourists and the Pizza Huts and the western dressed locals. There were no other tourists. The children literally mobbed us if we took out our camera. We felt like celebrities, it was crazy. Everyone was inviting us to their homes, they wanted us to take picture of their pets.. crazy!
Next we were on to Mumbai where we found ourselves working on the set of a commercial as extras (paid!) and then being Peroni Angels (paid!) for the opening of fashion week at the best night club in town (they checked our taxi for bombs and we had to walk in through metal detectors!). We basically had to take pictures on the red carpet with all of the Bollywood stars and models. We constantly had six photographers shooting us at all times. It was maybe the most bizarre experience of my life. :)
Oh yeah, and I got head butted by a cow. With horns. Yooouch!!!
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