Blog 021 - Change in Travel Plans - Again

Change in Travel Plans – Again

Day 59 – Friday, May 2

On Thursday night around 9:30p, we got the news we least expected, and probably most dreaded. Our trip, scheduled to depart Friday morning at 10a to the villages north of Uttarakashi was canceled. Thirty days ago, the tickets for the train had been applied for and as of 9:30p last night they were still not confirmed. That being that, this entire portion of our trip was just canceled. Amazing, but, then again, this is India – expect the unexpected.

In the area we were going, the annual pilgrimage is underway; trains to Hardiwar from just about anywhere are completely booked. This was not unexpected and was the original reason for applying for the tickets a complete month ahead of time. Everyone is going up to the temples along the way from Hardiwar to Rishkesh, Uttarakoshi to Gongorti and ritualistic trek on to the glacier that supplies the waters to the holiest of holiest of rivers to the Hindi, the Ganga.

Now the only issue is what to do just a few days before our scheduled departure date. This week and a half that was going to be paid for by Manav Sadhna will suddenly become an additional week and a half out of pocket. Finding a place to go isn't the issue. There are many – so many - options when considering a trip in India. Leh, Jammu and Kashmir sitting high on top of the world in the farthest northeast, straddling the rim of both the Chinese and Pakistani borders; Khajuraho, a large temple complex situated a little south of Agra with its towering stupas devoted to detailed sensual carvings intended to display the power and might of then gods; Tala Village, a relatively short distance from Khajuraho, is the site of the Bandhavgarh Tiger reserve, small but one of the greatest accumulations of Bengal tigers and other assorted animals living in the wilds of India; and of course Hardiwar, Rishikesh, Uttarkashi and Gangotri remain an option, though not for the purpose of working.

Train travel to the north can be difficult this time of year. Indians that can afford it, make the trip north to escape the sweltering heat of May that arrive the month before the beginning of the monsoons that start sometime in June depending on where you are. As I mentioned previously, this is also the time for religious pilgrimages to a variety of places in the north. The “general” class trains are packed with financially strapped people as they cram themselves into the bowels of the non-AC cars; men, women, and children of all ages. When the seats are taken, they people consume any remaining bit of space including the floors for what can be days of constant travel. There are no reservations in “general” class, no allotment of space. But it is done, day in and day out, through the land in India.

All I know at this point, is that I have to fill up 10 days. No plans, no tickets and perhaps three days to rectify this situation if I want to leave by Monday. Jose and Romi are discussing Leh, I am seriously considering both Uttarkashi and Khajuraho. And it has to be convenient enough to be able to still make my original flight out of Dehradun on the 19^th without having to change it and incur quite a hefty modification charge.

Looks like I am in for a busy next couple of days.

Blog 019 - Destination Palitana

Destination: Palitana
(pronounced Pauli-tana)

Day 33 – Friday, April 4

Day 34 – Saturday, April 5

No Friday meeting today. Instead some of the volunteers went on the Heritage Walk in old city. Like a guided walking tour back in New Orleans. The guide gave a brief slide show, then guided us through the back alleys and turns, pointing out the hidden passages between the “pols” - distinct districts that would belong to each caste. We visited several temples and mosques along the way. A lot of the places, Jose and I had already discovered, but now I have a better understanding of how everything works together.

So tired today, it's hot all the time now. The fans generate a warm heat, which is relaxing to the point of lulling you to sleep. I wish we were still going to the ashramshala instead of going crazy sitting around until the volunteer trip on May 1.

Jose, Romy and I just decided we are going to Palitana tonight. I went and got bus tickets after we were trying to determine the best cost. One way to Palitina, leaving tonight at 11, getting there around 4:45. Hopefully we get there before sunrise so we can start our hike up early. Right now we have no hotel reservations – just going to wing it. If we can't get anything there, we will take another bus later in then evening to Bhanagar (pronounced Bog-nah-gar) about an hour away which we would have to go anyway to get back to Ahmedabad on Sunday. Backpack is packed and ready to go. Camera batteries charged, IPAD charged – can't wait for 10:30. Hope I can get comfortable on a sleeper bus; can't imagine an Indian bus with a sleeper that I can fit in. All part of the adventure.

It's around 8 and Jose brought Romy over. We eat a little and get ready. About 10:30, we head out. Grab a rickshaw right outside and head to the Raj bus office on the other side of town in the Paldi district. It's about 11 and our bus is scheduled to depart at 11:30. So we hang around outside and grab a chai. As something the Indians are proud of, their modes of transportation are on time. Inside the bus is quite roomy, with upper and lower berthings, two people to a section. The sexes are separate, unless they are a couple. Romy and Jose have the bunk above me, I take the lower one. An Indian guy is already settled in from a previous stop. He speaks a little English and is doing something on his smart phone. We talk a little. As I expected, I can't lay out straight, but I find I can stretch my legs up on the compartment wall which works out find – at least I won't get kinked up for the next five and a half hours. The bus pulls out on time, weaving its way along the city streets. You can't see anything, but you can hear the horns. You will know you are out of town when the frequency of horns comes down. I play a few games on my Ipad, then stretch out as best I can. In all honesty, I am a lot more comfortable than I expected to be. I am tired so I doze off rather quickly. A few hours later, the bus stops and it's like a rest stop. I woke up to see Jose coming back on the bus, so I move quick to go use the toilet; last thing I need is to be stranded at a bus rest top at 2am in the morning in who knows where. All turns out good. The bathrooms are more primitive than usual. A line of urinals with holes in the bottoms (that's not unusual), but then it just runs out onto the floor; something you don't realize until it is splashing on your feet over your sandals. Oh well, this is India.

A short while later, our bus pulls off and I fall back asleep. A few more hours and we should get to Palitana. The bus rocks side to side; you can feel when you are on a good road, you don't even have to see it. The occasional horn blast lets you know when there are other vehicles around. This isn't a regular city bus, this is a private bus, so the conditions are a bit better at a little higher cost – but well worth it.

Anyway, we arrive at Palitana about a half hour earlier than scheduled. It's 4:15 in the morning. We are just a stop on the driver's trip. They make sure to let us know. Much like any trip, we are the only westerners around. Most westerners don't come to Gujarat for some reason (not really sure why), so we do stand out and get treated rather well.

Like I said, it's 4:15am and we don't have to stand around long before a ricksha driver asks us if we want to go to the temple, which is our intent. He tries to get a high set rate – high for him. We decline and start walking over to another ricksha, he starts to descend his prices, 150 rupees, 140, 130. We stand to our price of 100 for the 3 of us. 100 would still be high, but it's 4:15am, its dark, we have no idea where we are or even where we have to go and we are haggling price. That's when you know you have been in India a while. We settle on 100 rupees to go to the temple. Our driver starts off into what becomes a rather long ride through the dark, deserted streets of Palitana. Only a few people are up and about. Even the dogs must be sleeping. If we were paying by the meter, we probably would have paid more, but he didn't even have meter. Eventually we arrive at the base of the temple complex around 4:30. Some old men, and even younger boys come to greet us . . . “temple, temple” . . . they want to carry us up on a chair supported by two sticks on their shoulders – kind of like ancient Egyptian style. “no, no” we say, “we want to walk. So they point us in the direction to go. And off we go, with several of the “people bearers” stay a little ways behind us, just in case we would change our mind.

Remember now, we have 3300 steps to climb; we can't see very far in front of us because its extremely dark. The steps are rather wide, so it's not like one bad step and you go tumbling down the mountain. But you can't see anything in the dark. I had brought along a little flashlight, but Jose had thought the same thing and brought his small, high powered light too. Probably a good thing because not far after we started, I happened to see something move. Turns out it was about a foot and half long, rather thin snake. Perhaps that's why people had told us not to go up the steps at night. Anyway, that light stayed on rest of the time we went up, scanning for anything else that might be along the path in front of us.

Perhaps it was about half way, who knows, I began slowing down. Jose and Romy could easily have kept going at a better pace; however, they were patient with me and every time I had to take a break, they would wait with me. I was determined to make it . . . I knew what was at the top. I would not miss this. I kept pushing myself, taking a break whenever I needed it. The weather was very nice, almost cold. The wind was blowing the whole time, the air was cool. If there wasn't the chance of a snake crawling over you, I could have just laid on my back and looked at the clear sky. It seemed you could see every star in the universe. You could clearly see the clouded Milky Way. It was one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. But we kept going, step by step by step. We thought we heard an animal off to the side, nothing. We continued to hear sound, then realizing it was person; a monk was making his early morning walk to the temple, maintaining a steady pace, clothed in white robes, their walking stick keeping a steady rhythm. That must have been around 5:30; it was still very dark. From then on, we would be approached, then passed, by one then another monk or sister making the upward trek to the temple.

Higher up, there would be little temples or short-stops where you could sit and take a break. Otherwise, we just sat on the steps. As we got higher I had to stop more often, but I kept going. I was not going to miss this. Still no signs of sunrise yet. The higher we went, you could look back down to the town and see the lights. It was bigger than we thought it was, but it was still rather small overall.

Eventually, two hours into our trek, itwas starting to get a bit brighter, but still dark. Sunrise was maybe around 20 minutes away. We came to an area with more open walks than steps; good sign, then more steps. You would never know unless you had walked this before. Some other people were around, but not many. We got to an area where you look up, see the top of the mountain and some spires of the temple. We were getting close. Finally the sun was breaking, the early morning view of the sun when you can look at it directly, the yellows and reds. It was simply beautiful, the town far, far below. You could see the winding river, which none of us even knew was there just hours before. And the trek continued.

Every time you think you were done with steps, there were more. I was continually pushing, but I was determined. The goal was stronger than ever now; and it finally paid off. One last curve around the mountain and there it was. The temple complex. Just a few people were there when we were, aside from the monks and nuns. It was still, very quiet, just birds chirping and nuns praying. There were stupas everywhere you looked, prayer flags blowing hard in the wind. The occasional sound of a bell; the scent of incense wafting in the air. This is a huge Jain temple complex. There is bamboo scaffolding where repairs are underway; but overall, most of the complex is just as it was when it was first constructed. We find a place and just sit. The sun hasn't quite rise yet. We sit in front of a ancient stupa complex; you move around till find just the right position. You don't want the sun directly in your eyes, so you move to get the sun behind one of the stupas as it rises, the glow spreading out around it. It's mystical. It's spiritual. It's everything I expected and more. It's a moment you won't forget. All the pain in your legs from walking those steps is gone. None of us say a word for quite a while, each of us in our own world. This is a personal moment, it's what you want it to be.

For the next hour, there is no crowd of people here. It remains more or less quiet for a while. There is one temple where the women are praying to Shiva. Incense and candles. This is an active temple and yet we are allowed to wander at will. The only restriction is no shoes, and no (absolutely no) photography. My camera weeps silently in my backpack. I completely respect this. Some things are meant to be a part of your mind. I couldn't have taken a photo of what I was feeling there anyway.

We walk through the entire complex, slowly. Sometimes, we walk together, others we just break off and see things on our own. You see the gods in their individual shines in one temple, in another they sit side by side. There are writings in Hindi that people can read, but this is way off the casual tourist route. Nothing is provided in English; so you just absorb everything into your mind. We cross over to a different area and ascend more steep steps. There are “security personnel” everywhere, but they are just there to direct people when they seem lost. Very friendly. We find the perfect spot for taking photos of the first complex we had been at. No one else is there. Signs are all over the entire complex “Absolutely No Photography”. I see a security guard walking near by; I open my backpack and show him my camera and make motions to see if I can just take picture. He motions with his finger swaying side to side, “no, no” OK, at least I tried.

We keep walking around. You can start to hear people talking louder now from the other side of the main complex. The place has started to change; not the same as when we got here a few hours earlier. I would have been very disappointed to have come all this way to find that situation. But I was very happy at this point. Little did I know, but my day was going to get even better.

My little security guard started showing us around to different temples that more than likely we wouldn't have found on our own. Then new stepped out of one beautifully carved temple and into a courtyard with a beautifully carved stuppa. Then he said, “one photo”. I took two and then a few more of Jose and Romy in front of it. Then I just said I really would like just a few photos of the other temple complex from that one area where had first met him. He led us back, then disappeared into a corridor. I knew I had to act fast before another guard could find us. I was hoping for the best shots in just a few minutes. I had my telephoto on and just started clicking, knowing not all would come out good. I got maybe ten shots off. So now these few pictures are the “forbidden” photos. Now my camera was crying tears of joy. I slipped the little guy 100 rupees and he was happy too. It was 8:45 now and a lot of people were starting to stream in; it was noisy.

Our walk up was two and a half hours, we spent two hours roaming the complex in near absolute silence and now our walk down was about one and a quarter hours. The walk down was half the time getting up – this was just like my walk up and down the volcano back in Zaire in 1984. I went walk down on my own – told Romy and Jose to take their time, I'd meet them at the bottom. I took a short break about halfway down and some middle age guy walks up to me and says “tourist?” I say yes and he says something about how there are no tourists in these parts. I tell him I am visiting from Ahmedabad, that I am working for an NGO there, and he says, “so, you're not a tourist” and continues to walk off. Such an odd fellow he was. He sounded part German, part British. Felt rather good being considered a local instead of a “tourist”.

Once back down, we all needed water – and it didn't take long to find a little shop to get some cold bottle water. Withing nothing else to do in Palitana, we decided to get to Bhavnagar, but how. No one spoke English at the shop, but they pointed us to a small bank across the street. When I asked him the best way to Bhavnagar, he called a friend of his who I think works in a travel agency. He said we could go by bus for around 40 rupees each or a train for around 200. He even gave the banker the address for the bus and train stations there so we wouldn't get lost. Like I always say, everyone is really helpful around here. We decided on taking the bus; it would be about an hour; but it would be a municipal bus and not a private bus – so think old, dirty, city bus. We got to the station, basically an old dirt field with a small office and a couple of food stands. The guy said stand one for Bhavnagar. We were talking to some college age kids that said it probably stand two or three. Neither one had buses there, so one kid stayed with us and checked the drivers of each one and let us know the correct one before we got on. People continue to be nice here.

On city buses, you just tell the conductor on the bus where you are going and just pay him directly, no getting tickets before hand. Palitana to Bahvnagar, 38 rupees, around 40 km distance. It was crowded with people continuing to get on along the way. A lot of people standing, hot, long, bumpy roads. I was able to get seat in the front half, Jose and Romy were in the back somewhere. But, nevertheless, an adventure in itself. Got to Bhavnagar and grabbed a ricksha. Told him we wanted to go someplace to eat and maybe get a room for the night. He stopped along the way and asked his friend, who spoke some English. He gave a recommendation and it turned out to be a nice place to eat.

Spent lunch talking about our morning and what we wanted to do now. Jose was trying to find out other things to do in Bhavnagar and was striking out on that. So we decided on rather than just spending money on a hotel and going back tomorrow, we would just go back to Ahmedabad and use the money we would have spent on a hotel on another weekend going somewhere else. So we talked to the hotel people who found us a private bus going to Ahmedabad at 3. Got a ricksha and they said they could get us on a 4pm bus. Sounded good. We just sat around for the next hour in a covered area with chairs with warm air blowing down on us from fans; I think we all dozed off. Bus was air condition. Last nights sleeper bus wasn't air conditioned, but it was night and the windows were open – it was really nice. But traveling in the daytime, you seriously need the air conditioning. It's a four hour trip and we stopped halfway at a much better rest stop. Able to get cold bottle water and a mango drink. Got to watch a Bollywood movie. Then a little rest. Got back around 8.

All in all, all 3 of us had a pretty good adventure. We learned how to navigate riding the busses in India; when to get an air conditioned bus; sleeper buses aren't bad at all. We learned you don't really need to make plans ahead of time. And above all – Palitana was pretty awesome.

Blog 018 - Residency Permit Authorized

Day 31 – Wednesday, April 2

Jose's girlfriend arrived yesterday afternoon so I haven't see him since yesterday morning. After morning prayers, waited for Ajay to show up to take me to the police station. Waited. Waited. Sent text message, no response. Finally sent text to Shirish to see if he knew where Ajay was. So he got in contact and found out he was at then hospital with his brother. So I will go to police station on my own. Shirish got me a ride there, but I just went for it. Pass security and go up to second floor where I was three weeks ago. Doing good. See the guy I remembered and he was expecting me. Dug up my file and went over the paperwork again. Things going well. There were two dates on two different pieces of paper, one was my agreement to work till September 15 with Manav Sadhna, the other was October 20 which is the date my visa expires. He says he has to use the September 15 one, but if I want to stay longer, I can request an extension until the visa expires – just go online and submit an extension request at least by August 15; there won't be any problem in doing that. We get that all straightened out and things continue going well. I have to sit in a waiting room, it's crowded. I will have my interview with the head guy of foreign bureau later this afternoon, time undetermined. I was already told by Becky and others this is the worse part. I got all the preliminary things accomplished in about 15 minutes. It's around 11:30, so I sit. It's warm, but the ceiling fans are going. It's actually relatively comfortable. It's the kind of room you start nodding off in. The warm air circulates, making your eyes tend to droop a little, then a little more. You know you are going to fall asleep any second, but you also know your name could be called at any minute, so you shake it off. It's not even noon yet, you know they won't call you for a while. It's busy in there, people getting called up. Today it's a lot of Pakistani people; they have a bureau specifically for Pakistanis. I don't think Indians dislike Pakistanis, but I don't get the impression they really like them either; but that's politics, and I'm too old to care about politics.

Twelve thirty comes and goes, one, one fifteen . . . I hear a call for foreigners. My ears perk up. I have no idea but I get up and merge into a line. I only see one other westerner for sure, a few other maybes. I figure if I am in the wrong line, at least I get to stand up a little while. No harm, no foul. Then I hear my name as they start going through the files. I ask “me?”, pointing at myself at then same time, knowing they are looking at my photo on the page. He points and motions for me to come over. Wow, I am first up, good move. Then they call up a bunch of Thai workers. They start to line up more people outside the door. That could have been me, but I'm first. Then I start to think it's because I'm the old guy and they don't want me falling over. What do I care, if old gets me to the head of the line, then I'm there.

The head guy of foreign bureau attempts to act busy at his desk as they usher the first five of us into his semi-large, semi-official office. He finally looks at my file that then lady has put on his desk. She is telling him I am volunteering with Manav Sadhna and he asks me about Manav Sadhna and how long they have been an NGO. It's all a little game – I've seen all this so many times over the years. The Thai guys are nervously looking around as he questions me. I just talk like we are having a conversation instead of feeling like he is interrogating me, which is what he is trying to do. In a few minutes, he signs off on my pack and goes to the Thai guys. Those poor guys spoke no English and had no idea what was going on. They were so nervous as he went through them one by one. I couldn't help but smile. He finally called in their Indian middle man and they got a few things straightened out, though he was pretty nervous too. He finally signed off on their documents, and we were leaving. He had his head back down shuffling through other papers and I went over to shake his hand and said “It was nice to meet you”. He looked up, smiled, shook my hand, and said the same back. Indians love to shake hands – goes back to that whole lack of human contact issue. I just wanted to leave a lasting impression on him in case I ever have to go back.

On the way out, I asked the lady if that was it – she said yes, so I just left. Note to self: when an Indian tells you yes, ask again. If the Indian says yes a second time, ask someone else.

Took a ricksha back to Manav Sadhna. No less than 20 minutes later I got a call from Ajay saying I didn't pick up my residency paper before I left the police station. So I had to catch another ricksha, go back to the police station, go through security, then talk to the first police guy I had talked to. He went back over the dates, and about how to get the extension if I wanted to stay until my visa expired. That's when I told him why I would most likely get the extension – so I could be here for Diwali. He just looked up at me and smiled as he handed me my residency permit.

So, this time I was done with police headquarters; at least for now.

Working on plans for upcoming trip. Dates and location are set for the Himalayan trip. Leaving May 1 by train. At some point, transfer to bus to go way up to around 6000 feet into the Himalayans at a town called Uttar Kashi. Then go another 20km by some unmentioned mode of transportation. No longer at the foothills of Himalayans, now in the Himalayans – about 30km from the Chinese/Tibetan border. AWESOME ! ! ! Just found out Jose and his girlfriend, Romy, are going too. VerranBai and Sherish are starting to get the tickets set up for the train and I made sure to tell them get a one way ticket for me because I will be flying out of Dehradun at the end. When Jose and Romy heard me say that, they said they will do the same. They haven't made plans yet, but they can work that out later. You get the turbo prop out of Dehradun to Delhi and get anywhere from there. As each day passes, I am thinking more and more of not getting reservations for anything ahead of time and just winging it. As long as I get to Kolkata and Varnasi for sure.

So now I am helping Nelam ,with her monthly and end-of-year reports. I take what she has done in rough English and I just rewrite it based on what I make out of it. Then tomorrow we review it to make sure we are on the same page. I just did one this evening. Reads pretty good now. Anything I can do to help now is good – keeps me busy, and it's something I like doing.

Blog 016 - Already Considering Extending My Departure Date

Day 29 – Monday, March 31

It's truly hard to believe that this is the beginning of my second month here; not surprised, mind you. Talking with Becky last night has me seriously considering extending my time here from September 15 until the end of October. There are two festivals during that time of year that are supposed to be even better than Holi. And apparently, all the processions run directly on the street right down from Becky's balcony. My current employment visa expires October 20. The festival of Diwali is the last week of October. That being said, I would have to travel out of the country prior to that – most likely Nepal. I can get a Nepali limited tourist visa at the Kathmandu airport for a week and see the sites there. Then I can return to India after October 20, get a obtain a limited tourist visa for a week or fourteen days at then Delhi or Mumbai airport upon arrival. That leaves changing my return flight to Houston on Turkish air to the end of October 31; a fee will apply to do that. We shall see how this idea works out.

Today is Monday. Routine in place, I meet Nora and Rahul at the dolphins and we head out. It's already warm, the sun beating down as it does every day. I wear a long sleeve collarless shirt with the sleeves rolled up. I will start wearing my kurtas soon, should have them tomorrow; at least those will be more lightweight. I keep my hair short and wear a ball cap all the time. My new backpack holds all my things pretty good and it fits a lot better on my back. And finally, I have a pack that isn't fraying apart and the zipper works good too. I was starting to wonder if one day either the zipper or stitching was going to give way sending my laptop and other gear out on the road. The new one also has outside pockets on either side for my water bottles. For 700 rupees, I'm happy.

We get there and the kids are all over us. They are always so happy to see us. I can only imagine what it will be like on June 10 after they get back from their two month break. We aren't scheduled to have any work time with the kids now because they are studying for their exams which start on Wednesday. Nora and I are going to buy ice cream for everyone tomorrow, teachers and staff included – 900 rupees for 100 ice creams; not bad compared to US standards.

Nora and I take a while to do a preliminary review of what we would like to accomplish starting with the next session in June. I have many potential plans on what I would like to do with these kids, but I have to keep remembering that we are not like one of the community centers with additional teachers. We are down to bare bones with limited resources. No one knows enough English to get by, let alone Nora or I knowing any Gujarati. You can't get the Standard 6 or 7 kids to the level they should be at without really having started them at an earlier level. We get two standards of kids for only one day per week for only a couple of hours at a time. So it basically comes down to, what do we want to accomplish. So Nora, having been here for several months, has it pretty much all figured out; we can just make our time with them as fun as possible, while continuing to throw in English words all the time. It's frustrating, and you are always thinking of what else you might be able to do. But that's not going to make the situation any better.

The guys here are doing well on both throwing and catching the football. I even got them to get in position with a center, quarterback and a pass receiver. Very crude, but they are getting the idea. It's so hot now, but monsoon season will be here in no time and the thought of a muddy field sounds better and better.

So, it's ice cream tomorrow and that's pretty much it for now. We take the 3:30, number 70 bus back today. The rocking motion of the bus makes its best effort to lull you into a nap, the warm breeze flowing through the open windows. As much as I have started disliking the colder weather in northeast Texas during the winter, the thought of it now already makes me weary of going back. Just looking at some of the hotels for my upcoming trip that offer non-air conditioned rooms and I am planning on that as long as there is a ceiling fan. The air conditioning in the hotel in Mumbai really turned me against the use of air conditioning at all; no way to control the direction of the air flow, and it is aimed right at the bed. I think I'll pass.

Stop for our daily ice cream, then I'm off to Manav Sadhna for wifi while Nora heads home. Wifi is good, mostly, at Manav Sadhna. It is the only place I can upload photos at a decent speed. Dropped Paul an email and some photos so he can let the family know what I'm up to. I seriously wish he would just sign on to Facebook because that is where I make regular updates. I try to make updates to Facebook a few times a week, and an email to Paul around once a week.

On my way out of Manav Sadhna, Shirish sees me and we start talking. I mention that we are wrapping up Naroda tomorrow until June 10. He mentions his people are writing reports and wants to know if I will be able to take their documents and write them better. Obviously, I say no problem. As long as I get the idea of what they are trying to say, I can rewrite almost anything better. He will let me know when they are ready. I also get the first hint that the Himalayan trip will most likely start around the beginning of May. That would be the best timing for me; I just hope they stick to that. Once again, we shall see.

No matter how things go during the course of a day, when I sit down and make my notes, I always realize that life is good.

Blog 017 - Last Day At Ashramshala Until June 10

Day 30 – Tuesday, April 1

Left an hour later today, around 11. Picked up the ice creams on the way and as soon as wet got there the head teacher assembled everyone together on the veranda and we passed them out to the kids. They loved it. So many “thank yous” and of course the smiling faces. We had bought 100 and had just enough. Then the teacher let them all free for fun, so there were frisbees (spinning discs), badmitton birds, jump ropes and of course the football all over the place. Everyone had a really good time. Before long, it was time to say our goodbyes because the next time we see them will be June 10, a full two months. I am really going to miss them till then. The little girl that made one of my bracelets checks my wrist every day to see if I am wearing it; I never take them off. She will be so happy to see me wearing it when she comes back. The long good-bye continues even after we leave the gate. The boys climb over bricks and scale the wall shouting good-byes and waving. Naroda has become a home to Nora and I. There is a chance when the new session starts we will start living out there several days a week to avoid the long commute. Nora wants to sleep up on the roof with the girls and I would live in the dormitory with the boys. I think we will have to take turns on the roof because this area should be pitch black at night with nothing but stars in wide open sky. On the consistently clear nights, this must be an amazing site.

I have to go pick up my shirts in old city on the way home, so we take a ricksha. Taking a ricksa from Naroda might not have been the wisest thing to do. Naroda is outside the Ahmedabad limits, so the driver got lost more than a dozen times, but he never gave up until we found the shop. We decided to keep him, so he waited while I went in to make payment and pick up the items. For being patient, we used him to take us on further to Gandhi Ashram. I gave him 250 rupees, much more than I would normally have; but he had to go way back to his home area of Naraoda, and he was patient with me, so why not.

I go use some wifi at Manav Sadhna. Talked to VerranBai – he mentioned that all the volunteers were invited over to his house tonight dinner. That works out great because I am tired and don't feel like cooking, plus now I won't have to volunteer with Seva Cafe. Becky had talked to me earlier about this and I am meeting her at her place around 6 and we will go together. I go home a little after 4 and sit in the chair and close my eyes; didn't take long before I dozed off. Each day the weather continues to get hotter. Today it was around 41 or 42 (that's around 100F). Today that sun was beating down; you can feel the piercing rays cut through your skin. Sitting in the ricksha with my foot hanging halfway out, it was taking the rays directly. The top of my foot is already sunburn, or should I say brown, following the pattern of my sandals.

I wake up around 5:30 and take a shower before heading over to Becky's place. I meet her daughter, Helen, who is visiting for about week. She is a much younger version of her mother. Very Australian; tall, thin, around 22, blonde, very pretty. This is her third time visiting in India. We chat a bit before heading out to VerranBai's place. I have no idea where we are headed but we arrive in about 15 minutes. It's a nice home in a nice neighborhood Nice veranda, nice porches in back. They call the meal they are making tonight “Mexican” - but it turns out to be more a vegetarian “Tex-Mex” and I am pretty impressed; it tastes really good. His salsa could compare to any good salsa I've ever had in Texas. It's a good night; I had met some of the people before, but not all. Not all are Manav Sadhna. In all, its a nice evening. Laying around in the flat gets boring unless you are just tired and need a sleep break to catch up. Otherwise, it's nice to get out and meet new people. Enjoyed the evening.

All in all, it was a great day at the school, and a very nice evening out.

Blog 015 - Breakfast at Ajay's

Day 28 – Sunday, March 30

Morning off to a good start. Stomach is behaving; no unwanted rush to the bathroom. Hopefully things are on a good track. Got up a little earlier than usual for a Sunday. Everyone is invited over to Ajay's house for a homemade Gujarati breakfast. (Ajay is our main middle man around Manav Sadhna. He knows everyone around town. He is a meeter and greeter with a big smile and he has contacts for everyone. Just don't take his nodding head to mean yes, even when you think it does; that only means not at the moment. And five minutes could mean twenty minutes, thirty minutes or even five minutes.) Me and Jose stop at the store to pick up mango juice and some bananas; hate to go empty handed and it's not like you can bring a bottle of wine. Everyone is there except for Mary who has been a bit ill the last few days. Another bright and sunny day. Ajay lives in a relatively nice home at the entrance to one of the slums across from the Tekro, actually not too far from the hotel that I stayed at here on my first night in Ahmedabad. Ajay's place has two nice courtyards. His mother and brother lives here. We sit in a sort of family room, cross-legged on mats on the floor as a feast of food is brought out before us. They were careful not to make it too spicy for us; it's very delicious and we all eat our full. We have a ginger spiced chai, which is now at the top of my list of best cups of chai I have had so far. We drink out of the standard little chai cups, but Ajay drinks his Indian style, out of a saucer. From what I can see, the reasoning for this is while it sits in a shallow yet wider dish, it allows for quicker cooling. The cup is narrower and deeper, making for a longer cool down time. Makes sense to me. We sit around and chat for a while; a ceiling fan circulates the warm air around. It's comforting; it would be easy to doze off for a little siesta after a filling meal. I could imagine a couple of hammocks here to make it perfect. Alas, all good things must come to an end. We start seeing who is doing what later this afternoon. Ajay and Becky inform us of a place called Sarkhej Roza near Makarba. They recommend to go around 4 because it will be hot there. Apparently it is a Muslim complex with a mosque and a burial ground, but more than that. So Jose and I will be heading out that way later this afternoon.

At 1, we are headed over to Becky's place for coffee, then we are meeting Ajay around 2 to go to the big Reliance store to do some shopping. Becky has a Canadian friend visiting her when we get there – I can't remember her name. She is working in Ahmedabad at the moment working with another NGO and her husband is in Bangalore with a paid job. For the next hour and a half we all just sit around drinking coffee and talking. Ajay calls a bit after 2 and we head out for our trip to Reliance, which is similar to a Costco or Sam's Club in the US.

 

 

Well, we were at Reliance longer than expected, so we postponed the trip to Sarkhey Roze; apparently it takes about an hour to get there, so we just add that to our list of places to visit later. So after Reliance, we head over to Becky's place. It's always good to go have coffee there. She lives in her own flat on the third floor with a balcony overlooking a street that is always busy with vendors and people. Today was no exception. After we talked a while about politics and a bunch of other things, I hear a procession outside, so I grab my camera and head to the balcony. I spent the next two hours or so sitting out there in the nice breeze shooting photos of all sorts of people, cows and dogs. Some see me and look up, others don't see me and I get a lot of candid photos. It starts to get dark and I get to experiment with different settings, which is good because I haven't had a really good chance to practice in the past. This is a great place to do that with the setting sunlight, the shadows, lots of movement and the constant shifting of people at my disposal. Before long it's around 8 and time to head back to our ground floor flat a few blocks away.

Time to call it a night, after sorting photos and trying to access sporadic wifi via Jose's Android phone. It's not consistent so I just try to get to the email and nothing important there. I have given up on uploading photos this way, just save it till I get to Manav Sadhna in the evenings.

Blog 014 - Swaminarayan Mandir . . . and more

Day 27 – Saturday, March 29

I was so tired last night; probably weak from continually losing everything I eat. I remember laying in bed waiting for Jose to finish showering so I could take my turn. I awoke around 5:30 with the lights still on – so I'd say I had been tired. I didn't have the urge to use the bathroom; any other night over the last week and that wouldn't have been the case. Turned off the light and went back to sleep. Woke around 9:30; no urge to run to the bathroom. Could it be possible? Drank some juice, then had to go, but isn't unusual. Later I ate some toast and jelly and some water. After a bit, no urge. Oh boy, this is going to be a good, I hope. Turns out, it has been a good day. The bug must have passed itself – 5 days. This is, after all, India. I could be absolutely wrong.

Today is Saturday, so it's Saturday Special with the kids, but that isn't till around 4. I want to go to old city to just get lost and take photos; and find someplace to buy some kurtas (men's Indian style shirts). Jose wants to come too, so we take off in a ricksha for old city. I have a business card with an address in the hub of old city that should be a good place to start off. We get to a corner – I say corner in losest of terms – more just like a place to stop and lets us off. First thing you see is a guy riding atop a painted elephant; yeah, this is good place to start. I get his photo and pet the elephant on the face; definitely a hardened Indian elephant, skin as hard as the sole of an Indian man's (or woman's) foot. We walk down a little, past carts full of colorful local fruits and vegetables. Come upon an archway covered in carvings. 

 

Walk under the arch and you are greeted with the colorful entryway of a large Jain temple. Remove sandals and enter. This is a beautiful place as you enter out of the heat of the mid-morning sun. You see both men and women take turns ringing a bell as they make an initial offering to the god Hunan, the monkey god. The strong scent of incense wafts through the air, cleansing the soul. The complex is undergoing a renovation at the current time. There are plenty of bamboo scaffolds around the outside, men up on top working. Just inside I see a man tapping with a chisel. I stand there and watch him for a while. Then I realize what he is doing. Little by little he draws a few lines and starts to chip away at a form. He is taking a block of the material and by hand he is creating a carving. Apparently, the renovations, at least this part, are being recreated in same way it was originally done. This is true artisanship at it's finest; a fine craftsman in an art form from ancient times. Chip by chip, slowly, methodically, not even phased when I take a couple of photos of him at work. I see a solid panel to his right. It is a solid stone with a rough drawing on it. This is how he starts. This isn't something for a tourist – this is a passed down art being done for the love of his faith. A few steps away, there begin a series of little rooms, each dedicated to a variety of Hindu gods. To my knowledge, Jain is an offshoot of Hinduism. I watch as people gather in front of each god's sacred section, their images in gold and rich colors. People pray, then circle each section in a ritual trail. It soothes your soul to watch them, knowing their faith is strong. It reinforces the belief that without faith, why is our life worth living. We live, we die, why are we here. We each have our different beliefs, but what's wrong with that. I think what is important is that we believe in something. Even athiests believe in not believing. I slowly walk the complex; I know I can take photos, but I respectfully avoid taking any of the individual gods. (I have the photos of all of these gods in my files from when I visited the Hindu temple in Jackson, Mississippi in 2013) The architecture of the buildings surrounding the temple are beautiful. I later discover they are the monastery, one section for the women, one for the men. The sun beats down, shadows line the paths.

 

It seems as though Ahmedabad is full of respites . . . temples, mosques, winding alleyways in the old city. It's always hot, but you can go for long periods of not even noticing it. Even so much as to get a steaming hot chai on the corner. You could go to every little dive along the paths and get a chai and never fear a bacteria; the extreme heat they use would kill anything in the poorest of waters. No chais are alike and this one kept that story alive. Always different; never bad. I had my camera out, so obviously we overpaid, but what's in a few rupees – pennies in US currency.

We just start walking down random streets. Never fear getting lost. Just ask shopkeepers for some kind of particular item and they point you in a direction. Muslim, Hindi, everyone comes up and talks to you, where are you from, what is your name. Everyone is friendly. They are so proud to have you in their city. Ahmedabad is not on the tourist route, so the local contact with westerners is limited. So if you don't mind the constant interactions, this is a great place to come; and down in the old city even better.

Found a shop that sells shirts and kurtas, but as I would have imagined, nothing my size. The shopkeeper directs me down the street where they will make a shirt for you from material. So we go down there and I get to select through all kinds of fabrics, then they take my measurements. Today is Saturday; they will call me and have them ready for me on Tuesday. I have been told since that I am paying too much. Let's see, I am getting four shirts; I am paying around 3300 rupees; that comes to around $12 for a custom made shirt. I can't even get a shirt at Walmart that will last a few washes without shrinking for less than around $18 on the low end. If I like these shirts and get more in the future, I will definitely attempt to get a discount, but for the moment I am happy.

Stopped off at a corner Hindi shrine. The priest wanted me to take his photo, of course; then he gave me a handful of cut up coconut pieces; how could I resist. Not really sure if I was given a blessing, or he just thought I was hungry. These little shrines are all over; not all are staffed by a priest. On the morning commute, you see people just stop by them and pray. A very spiritual culture indeed.

It was time to head back, Jose needed to get his medicine. Then we had some time so we went to eat lunch; I have no idea what it was but it was pretty good. I really need to learn some vegetarian dishes because rice and pasta, even with vegetables, is starting to get a bit old. Mid-afternoon and I haven't had a bathroom urge yet; hoping for the best.

Head over to Manav Sadhna to get a little wifi before Saturday Special at 4. I got comfortable against a pillow and after a while I must have dozed off. The fans were blowing, I was comfortable, it was warm, I dozed off. That happens to just about everyone at one point; you learn how to block out any noise without even trying. Zen in the land of the Hindi.

Somebody sticks their head in and lets us know know the kids have arrived. Today, no camera for the kids. Today I have brought my football; a REAL football, not a soccer ball. Four volunteers get a quarter of the kids each. I break down my guys into two sections (I dare not say teams). All I want to do, as with the Naroda kids, is to show them how to throw and catch. Watching them grab it in all the wrong places would make a Manning pull their hair out. But I keep walking around, taking each little guy one by one, showing them how to do it. Two lines on each side, throwing it back and forth. As usual, one or two catch on right away. Others need more help. For the next hour or so, I watch as they start to improve. They are having fun. They take turns on their own. They make sure the little kids get an equal turn. As they get better, I continually get them farther apart, watching who has the stronger arm. It starts to look good as it winds down for the day. I tell them next time, we will continue and learn some new things. They start coming over to me one by one, on their own, and thanking me. It just reinforces why I wanted to come here. These people really appreciate why we are here. It truly reinforces the fact that you CAN make a difference no matter how little it is.

Blog 013 - What Does the Future Hold For Our Kids

Day 25 – Thursday, March 27

The dogs have been relatively quiet these last few nights. Traffic too. Been thinking this intestinal bug has been giving me strange dreams of quiet nights. Woke up around 7:30, about a half hour before the phone alarm was slated to go off. Of course, my stomach is growling, giving me just a few minutes to get to the bathroom. So, obviously, it's not over yet. I dared not eat anything this morning, just a few sips of water before heading out. I left a little early to find a local shop that sells cell phone chargers. Of course, no shop opens before 10 around here. No problem; I ask some guy which shop has them and he heads me in the right direction. I will stop by this afternoon on the way home.

Nora shows up at the dolphins a little after 10 and we head out. As always, ricksha drivers always go for higher prices and you haggle your way down, almost always ending at the same price on a daily basis. And, as almost always, its passenger overload, evading traffic police along the way.

The kids are waiting for us at the gate. Today is the first day I have brought the football in a few days. My mind is still on making footballers out of them during the next school session starting in mid-June. Right now, I am just teaching them how to throw and catch. To my surprise, I have several quarterbacks in the making. I show them how to wrap their fingers around it and how to throw it. Not good, good, not good, getting better. Honesty counts. Not every throw is a spiral – even mine. Practice, practice, practice as I tell them. I see one good spiral, followed by a wobbler. But they get better. A few kids have a really good arm and can throw quite a distance – better than I expected. None of these kids had even seen an American football before I came here. I am eyeing my future quarterbacks today. The field now is hard and rocky. Come end of June, the monsoons will begin. I envision a field of wet and muddy little guys running to make a play, all laughing in the rains having an awesome time.

For our classes under the verandah, we had our Standards 1 and 2 today; the smallest of the small. Nora and I just split the kids in half and we each took one group. I wrote down each kids name on small sheets of paper and had them attempt to duplicate them. One in particular did well from the start, others needed a little help, and little Piti is determined to draw her P backwards. I keep showing her and at times she gets it, but then she reverts to writing it in Gujarati.

I go get the alphabet chart we bought last week and we start working on ABC's. One little guy knows it all; makes it difficult when trying to get others to say it. I recommend he help the ones having difficulty instead of just blurting out everything. It's like promoting a leadership program where the ones that do better take their knowledge and use it to help the others.

Nora and I are talking to some of the older kids later, asking what they want to do later in their lives. Policeman, doctor, etc. Sumie, our smart Standard 7 wants to do something in science. Engineering? Machines? I ask. Space, he says. Sumie wants to be an astronaut. How do you let a young boy with dreams beyond the sky, know that he will never have the opportunity to even come close to that aspiration. It saddens me. Sumie is smart, probably one of the smartest in this school, but his future is determined by his class, his parents and his financial situation. When he leaves this school at the end of this session, he will at most only be able to complete two more years through Standard 9. What a pity.

Blog 012 - "Bool, Bool"

Day 24 – Wednesday, March 26

To start off, the stomach issues continue. As soon as I got out of bed around 7:30, I had to go the bathroom really quick. Same thing as earlier. I had to get the clothes I had washed last night off the clothesline before the water container overflows. Two things to clarify here . . .

While I take my pants and some shirts to the laundry ladies across the street, I usually wash my two other shirts I tend to wear all the time and my underwear, in a bucket in the bathroom. Yes, in a bucket. Actually the same bucket we use to take showers with. Yes, we live a simple life – definitely no frills here. Then you hang them on a make shift line overnight, and they are dry long before morning. I wouldn't dare hang them out in the daytime to collect dirt and dust and exhaust fumes. The volunteer apartment Jose and I live in is right on a traffic circle, surrounded by all matter of small businesses and any other kind of shop and street-side eatery you can imagine.

And, oh yes, the water container. I believe there is large water somewhere on the roof of this building. All water leading to the apartments works on a downward pressure system. Each individual apartment has an on/off lever for the water to shut it off at your apartment. While water isn't rationed, it is a very protected commodity. Around 8:15 or so each morning, the water must be turned on. Each apartment has its own plastic water retention system on the small outdoor space. If you have opened the valve and the water starts to collect in the morning, it will overflow when it is full. You have to run out and close the valve till the overflow gets to a manageable level. It's a crazy system from a “western” perspective; but this is India, and it works here.

Anyway I figured I would eat some toast this morning to see if I could start to absorb some of the fluid inside of me. Turn on the butane gas tank, light the portable stove top cooker and get the pan hot before laying on the bread. We have no oven or toaster. You make due with what you have. Add a little honey and breakfast is made.

Jose and I have been trying to determine why both of us have this same intestinal bug. I work out at Naroda, Jose has been at the house all day for the last two weeks remodeling the place. So that eliminates me getting it from the food at Naroda. Lately, I have been cooking at home for the both of us, but I wash everything, and either boil potatoes or eggplant. So it's not that. We have just recently been drinking water directly out of the water filtration system that sits above the sink. I had emptied all of the water previously there, and refilled it. Then we bottle it and put it in the fridge to get cold. All indications are that that is where we got sick. I mention this to Ajay later this evening and he said he would get someone to check it out. When I said it was kind of important, he said he would get someone out tomorrow. That could mean tomorrow, but when in India, tomorrow could be next week. We shall see.

Nora, Jose and I have been planning a weekend trip to Palitana for either this weekend or next. This little bug has already done it's part in making sure it will not be this weekend. More on Palitana later.

Back to Naroda . . . today is Wednesday, so it's time for Standards 2 and 3 – no doubt the largest and wildest of all. These little terrors, around 40 in total, have a lot of energy to burn and though for the most part don't speak any English, they understand how to say “NO”. On our shopping spree last week, Nora had bought some threads for the kids to make bracelets. Now imagine, Nora and I both having around 20 kids each. We didn't plan this activity ahead of time, so we had to cut 4 threads for each. These are little kids, most around 7 or 8 years old. By the time I was cutting threads on the 5^th kid, their attention span had worn off. They would just mob me. I gave up on this project; there was absolutely no way I would be able to cut threads for 15 more kids and have them all patiently waiting for me to show them anything. So I send out one little monkey to find me some chalk. I start drawing a face and told them to get out their assignment books. Finally, they start drawing what I had drawn. One or two come up to the board on their own and ask if they can draw there too. Then it was four of them, while most of the others concentrated on their paper. A few came up to show me their work and they were doing well. Finally, for a few moments I thought I was in control again. Alas, I was only dreaming as they began to mob me at the chalkboard. Remember, we have no individual rooms, no desks; everyone sits on the floor. Mayhem ensues, with pleas for “bool, bool” the Indian accented ball. I was determined that today they would continue drawing. It was nearly time for Nora and I to go eat, and I wanted them to focus on drawing, not “ bool”. I looked and Nora had a better handle on her girls, but not by much. Not even hungry in this heat, Nora and I were counting the seconds until we were told our lunch was ready.

And lunch it was . . . the spicy vegetable stew we normally get was there, with the delicious bread (I will remember the name of it one day – but not roti), was supplemented with a creamy, cold mango puree. Yes, I said cold. I assumed it would be the worst thing for my stomach today (as much as another hot chilli pepper that I ate yesterday), but I didn't really care. It was cold, sweet and delicious. One cup, two, three. This was better than any ice cream. Mangos are in season here now; you can get them at all the fruit and vegetable stands – so many varieties to choose from, any you pick will delight your senses. Everything grown locally. If water was taken away in the city and no one could bathe or drink, as long as it was diverted to the local farms, I wouldn't care in slightest (as long as bottled water was still around).

Then back to our little monsters, who mysteriously while we were away, had transformed themselves into little groups and were all working on their bracelets, the girls AND the boys. One little girl shyly came over to me and pointed to my wrist where I was wearing one of the bracelets someone had made for me the previous day. She took the bracelet she had made – it definitely would have slipped right off of her little hand – and tied it around my wrist. I bent down and gave her a little hug. She was so shy; if she had been less brown toned, I am sure I would have seen her blush. It wasn't long before I got another one. So now I have three. I will wear them everyday and take them with me on my upcoming trip, hopefully getting a photo of them in front of different places.

As soon as we got there, things changed – and thus the pattern reveals itself. We have met the culprit, and it is US. “Bools, bools” rings out from both the boys and the girls. Their lunch time was nearing and as we tell them every day, “after they eat and clean up – which is normally around 2pm. It just reinforces the fact that we are their friends, NOT their teachers. This is Naroda, we make our own rules. We make the rule that we are there to teach, but also to be their friend. And we are their only friends, outside of each other that they live, work, fight and play with 24/7 for ten months of the year.

Nora says she has a bad headache and asks if we can leave a bit early – it's around 2:30. We say our goodbyes to the kids which can be a drawn out affair each day. The long walk starts with a stop at the little shop on the corner. Neither of us have any water all day. I usually take 2 or 3 bottles from home, but not today with water being our determined cause of our intestinal problems. And Nora forget her cold water bottle at home. That is most likely why we were both pretty much drained today – thank God for the cold mango puree at lunch. The 20 minute walk went mostly in silence as we walked the busy road bustling with rickshas and shops and people; the heat intensifies every day and it's only March 26. I later talked to Mary who was here last year, she said it wasn't this hot until mid-April last year – so we have a lot to look forward to. We finally trudge along to the bus station and see the red 202 bus sitting at the front of the que. We get on the empty bus and drink the last of the quickly warmed water. The bus is cool, at least not under the direct sun. It's nearing 3 and other people start to get on; the ticket man makes his rounds, 13 rupees each to Subash Bridge. Ahh, 13 rupees, life is good. Three o'clock and the bus takes off. In India, buses and trains are known for running on time. The windows are slid open as air rushes in. The day may be hot, but the circulating air is it's own air conditioning. The bus has it's own rhythm; close your eyes and you could easily fall asleep. Many people do, you see heads tilting, eyes closed. The 3 o'clock bus is full yet emptier than the 4; I can only imagine the 6pm bus during rush hour.

The bus is a far cry from a ricksha ride. The Subash Circle ricksha “station” is an interesting place to hang out in the morning. I sit on the marble step surrounding a statue of three dolphins not far from where I live, while I wait for Nora to show up around 10. People come, people go – mostly go – to other parts of the city. This time of the morning, you will never ride a ricksha alone. The idea is to cram as many people as possible into the back seat without falling off. Then they try two add to more on the single driver seat. When I got here four weeks ago, I saw no traffic police. Over the last few weeks there must be some campaign going on. Traffic police are out all over, especially at the traffic circles of which there are many. They are actually pulling rickshas over and giving citations for all sorts of infractions. Today, our guy was pulled over – just before he saw the police, he had guy crammed onto the seat next to him jump. The police had seen it, and pulled him over to hand out a citation. He will have a small fine to pay. Seconds after pulling away upon getting the citation, he stopped and picked up another guy, that proceeded to sit where the other guy had been. It was the funniest highlight of the day. Always something to laugh at in India.

Ok, back. Just made some dinner – bought some basmati rice and cooked it according to the instructions. Took onions and some imitation butter (like I Can't Believe It's Not Butter) and sauteed on the side. Big pot of water on the burner and the rice cooking for 15 minutes after bringing to a good boil. I didn't have any measuring cup so I just estimated the amount of water. Came out really good, sucked up almost all of the water. Looks creamy. Put a little over half into the sautee pan with the onions and butter. Wham, without even thinking about it, I just made one of the best onion risottos I have ever made. Deeelicious. Didn't even have to make anything to go with it. I just sat back and ate it all by myself.

Jose had gone to Seva Cafe, but I passed, and luckily so because I wound up in the bathroom twice so far this evening. But better now than having that quick urge come while I'm on a ricksha. This is my first week of missing since I've been here so I don't feel any real sense of obligation at this point.

I took the time to cut my hair this evening; it was starting to get hot as my hair has been growing. And I've been wearing my ball cap all the time now with this sun beating down on my bald spot. I didn't wear it the first week and regretted it; so now I wear it as though I was born with it.

Back to the bus ride. Like I said in a previous post, Nora and I always stop at either the ice cream shop or the juice joint. The last two days we have gotten off at the Subash stop, so it's the juice joint. The lassi's there have a lot more curd, more like a thick cream cheese shake; a little sour, a little sweet. But always cold. They have a really good mango shake which I got today. They are used to us stopping by every day now. This is a new shop, probably a month old and glad to see us. I take out my laptop and work on my photos, Nora reads her book. Later we both walk back to Gandhi Ashram, she goes home and I go to Manav Sadhna to get some solid wifi connection till around 6pm. I fill up my water bottles there as I won't drink what is at home till they fix that problem. Then I walk back and stop off at the little grocery shop to buy stuff for dinner, then the rest of the way home back on Subash Circle.

So I was on wifi today. I really have to start looking at getting a general feel for what I am going to be doing in late April through early June. I haven't got the dates for the Rishikesh trip, so I am making general plans on where I want to go after that. I made a contact in New Delhi from my Facebook page when I was selling my things on there. She has been keeping track of my adventures and is really impressed with my photos. I have asked her for contacts in Darjeeling and Varnasi that might let me stay with them for a week each so I can have a place to stay. For a little gift, I would hope to get a place with a family so I won't have to dip too deep into my funds, especially in Darjeeling. Currently, she knows no one in those areas, but told me to hold on and she will see what she can do. It's all about making contacts. On a good note, I had mentioned that I would really like to visit Amritsar, but wasn't sure about it being safe. She was kind enough to let me know there are currently no problems there. I plan on contacting the American Citizen Bureau at the US Consulate in Mumbia via email tomorrow to see if it is ok for US citizens to visit there. If I can go, I would be willing to sacrifice the Darjeeling visit to go to Amritsar. Ever since I was a kid and I saw the golden Sikh temple there, it has always been on my list of places to visit. As always, we shall see.

So now I am waiting on the dates for the Himalayas trip. The closest airport to Rishikesh is in Dehradun. I can fly from there to Kolkata, via Delhi. If I go to Darjeeling, I would most likely take the train, then return train to Kolkata. Flight from Kolkata to Varnasi. Next, if I was going to Amritsar, I would fly there from Varnasi. Then a flight to Chandigarh, and a two hour bus trip to Simla to cool down before bussing back to Chandigarh and a flight to Ahmedabad.

Flight from Dehradun to Kolkata - $87

Flight from Kolkata to Varnasi - $75
Flight from Varnasi to Chandigarh - $84
Flight from Chandigarh Ahmedabad - $94
Still need to check the flights from Varnasi to Amritsar
Still need to check the flights from Amritsar to Chandigarh
Still need to check the trains from Kolkata to Darjeeling

Have I mentioned that I'm having a really good time here? Feels like home, not Texas home, but India home. Even with the heat, the dirt, and the dust, it just feels right. At least for right now.

Blog 011 - Komul, Raj, Banoo, Ganesh . . .

Day 23 – Tuesday, March 25

Early into my fourth week and my stomach appears to be making the official transition to the spicy vegetarian Gujarati diet, in addition to plenty of fluids either water or juice, and the regular consumption of a lot of fresh fruit. It was destined to happen at some point, why not now. Hopefully it won't take too long. Funny, I don't feel sick at all. Feeling very fortunate about that – most all the other volunteers have been sick with something going around off and on over the last few weeks. I started taking TP with me today to Naroda, just in case; nothing like the thought of using a squat toilet to keep you feeling good.

Dropped off my memory stick at the photo shop at the circle. Trying to finish up all the kids photos before exam time starts. So many little kids – so little time.

 

 

Pre-exam week starts next Monday. Today is our last full day we get to spend with Standard 7 kids. Eleven kids, all ready to move to Standard 8 after their two month break, making the move to another school somewhere nearby. I have only known them for about three weeks, but there is one boy, Sumi, who stands out. Besides doing quite well in his studies, I have been using him to keep the other kids in line. He has taken to his leadership role well too; not mean to the other kids, he has earned their respect too, which is exactly what I was hoping for. I want to get him a diary book and a pen to inspire him to continue to study and perform well. He has the potential to inspire others, just what Gujarat and India needs from it's younger citizens. If more kids are like Suni, India will certainly have a brighter future. I want to write a nice inscription inside his book, and have someone at Manav Sadhna translate it into Gujarati. Hopefully, when he is older, he will look back at it and remember his time with me and Nora here at the ashramshala.

 

 

Got all the photos of Standard 7 today and dropped them off at the shop; will finally have all the photos tomorrow morning. Then the big task of sorting them out and putting names to faces starts.

 

 

I've starting giving the boys nicknames. One with glasses I call “Specs”, two husky ones I call “Muscle 1” and “Muscle 2”, one little guy who doesn't speak much I call “No Talk”. Piti in Standard 1 needs no nickname.

 

 

Some of the names in Standards 2 and 3 are: Komul, Raj, Banoo, Ganesh, Damesh, Joogar, Rohit, Cirug, Mayoor and Saceen.

By the end of the day, my stomach is acting up again. Just part of life here. Still as before, I don't feel one bit sick; just really annoying. My evenings are full of going through my latest photos, listening to music I have stored on my laptop with iTunes, and reading. I just started reading “Life of Pi”. I had downloaded a few books on my iPad before I left. Good thing to have around. Also at night, I plug everything in for recharges – iPad, laptop, camera battery. My Indian adapter works well, along with a power surge protector I bought before I left. All the plug-in things I bought are dual voltage and its all doing well.

Life is good.

Almost forgot to mention . . . Jose came home from Seva Cafe tonight with a stray. Ajay met this guy who needed a place to stay for two nights. Jose was there and Ajay had the brilliant idea to let this guy stay with us. His name is Vinish Sihani who is from Udaipur in Rajasthan, He is on his third day of traveling around India in around 26 days on no money. Good luck on that – I hope he doesn't fall ill. I can understand the concept of traveling with no money, getting some food from strangers, even getting an opportunity to sleep on someone's floor – the Indian people, even the poorest, will gratefully share what little they have. It's just how they are. My only concern for someone like Vinish is getting sick along the way. Granted, he was born, raised and lives in India so the odds are he won't get sick from the street foods or the water. It's like anywhere though – getting rides from crazies is worldwide; getting robbed, beaten or even worse is always a risk. I wish him well on his adventures.

 

Blog 010 - New Supplies Arrive at the Ashramshala . . .

Day 22 – Monday, March 24

A new day starts after a relatively quiet night – at least I didn't wake to any barking dogs. I actually awoke one time and didn't even hear any horns; I just assumed I was dreaming. Up around 8:30 and off to the ricksha stop to catch up with Nora. Of my last two weeks at Naroda, this is my first Monday. On Mondays, Rahul, a former slum kid and now a regular worker with Manav Sadhna, comes along to work on art projects with the kids. He speaks good English, much better than my non-existent Gujarati. But on days like today, he can translate things for us with the teachers. Especially today, with all of our new things.

A pedal ricksha had been arranged to get the bookshelf and a lot of the supplies there. It arrived a few hours and 320 rupees later. Actually, the head guy of the school was around and made the guy only take 220. He wasn't too happy, but the head guy is kind of rough around the edges and the little ricksha driver went away kind of like a dog with his head between his legs. The bookshelf was in a little rough condition by the time it got to us. Imagine a little Indian man pedaling a 3 wheel bike with a larger cart attached to it. Then imagine a heavy, solid wooden bookcase, packed with school supplies. He had to pedal it around 35km across bridges and throngs of people, riding quite a few traffic circles, passing cows and beeping horns, and the inhalation of the ever present dust and exhaust fumes. And he only got 220 rupees, about $3.52 US.

Anyhow, our bookshelf arrived, a little banged around, one of the legs off, and a chipped top board. In a way, the chipped top board was a good thing because it led us to discover some old termite damage. No sign of any termites, living or dead – good thing. We are getting some termite spray to spray all over it prior to the monsoon season when everything gets damp and humid. We had sandpaper today, and all the kids wanted to get involved, so we tore some pieces down so they could all get sanding. Girls, boys, they all were fighting over who got sandpaper. Then a good wet rag washdown. I got the termite damaged piece off and now we need some plywood to replace it, but it's good enough for now.

During the transit, we lost a short 2x4 leg piece . . . no problem, some kid ran out and got two nice sized stones from out in the mud. Voila, problem solved. Childhood ingenuity.

We got out the big maps we had bought – world, Gujarat, and India – and placed them temporarily on the walls. They were so eager to find Ahmedabad. Some were better at it than others; but that is normal anywhere. So we took our time with them; showing them where a lot of things were. Today we had Standards 5 and 6. The interest level is there. They are aware of surrounding Indian states such as Rajasthan, and surrounding countries like Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and China. We seem to be on the right track. After they had eaten, we took out the globe, plugged it in to light it up, and their little eyes just beamed. A map is one thing, a globe puts things in perspective. When I can show them Texas on one side of then earth and India almost exactly 180 degrees on the other side, their eyes just light up. A few days back, we had taught them continents – now they can see closer where Nora is from in Germany. They are so curious about everything.

Later we got them in rows and I went around taking their individual photos for the upcoming picture board idea. It's hard to tell if you have everyone when they are trying to move around so much, but I think I was successful today; these kids are mostly older than the previous sets.

Had to take a break and consume vast quantities of water; so hot, and the kids get all over you almost smothering you. I took a few photos with Nora and some of her favorite kids. My idea from before I came was to find who could take photos. This is risky. Little hands can drop things, so I make a point of holding the strap loosely while I teach a few individually how to take photos. One after another, I let them take turns; first looking through the viewfinder with one eye, second adjusting the focal depth, and thirdly, clicking the shot. I was pleasantly surprised watching little fingers focusing in, and making the click, then seeing the result on the touch screen. They were so happy. This is definitely something I can work with. As with everything else, we shall see.

During the day, I talked to Nora about what else was around the area that she wanted to see, seeing how all of us had a pretty good time yesterday. She mentioned some place around 3 hours away by bus that her parents had gone to years back. A series of temples up on a mountain? Not sure. None of us have been there, just like everything else. Jose, Nora and myself are three of a kind – we dislike the tourist thing and tend to venture off on our own. Remember now, Nora is 19, Jose is 34, and I'm 60 – not exactly what you might expect to find with similar brains. Anyway, we would have to leave Friday night and come back Sunday evening to make the trip worthwhile. So tomorrow after we get back from Naroda, Nora and I will head over to Manav Sadhna to talk with Shirish or Ajay to see what we have to do to get a bus and place to stay. Sounds like another fun weekend coming up.

As always, once we get back to the ashram, we stop off at either the ice cream shop, or the juice shop. Today was the ice cream shop, with a mango milkshake. All the fruit here are locally grown and deeeelicious. It's the perfect end to any day.

I went over to Manav Sadhna for a bit after that to get a good wifi connection for little while. Ran into Shirish who gave me my Indian PAN card, which is basically an Indian identification/tax card. You have to get one if you are here for over 180 days. Plus, I got the big news . . . I got the thumbs up to go on the Himalayan community service trip. For fifteen days, sometime after April 15, a small group goes up to the Himalayan foothills based in Rishikeish to do community service work in the local villages. This could be anything. Rishikeish is the village the Beatles went to back in the 60s to spend time with the Maharishi. Once the 15 days are up, I will use the rest of the off time to visit a bunch of places – hopefully Kolkata (to work for a week at Mother Teresa's House for the Dying), Darjeeling (to see the tea plantations and the tiger reserve), Varanasi (a spiritual center, to see the people bathing in the Ganges, and all their temples) and Simla (back up to the Himalayas to cool down again before heading back to Ahmedabad). This would cover the northern east-west sides of India; from Ahmedabad in the far west to Kolkata in the far east. Bus, plane and train travel – should be a blast. Four weeks of traveling on my own will be less expensive than traveling on my money for six weeks. As I figured from before I came here, this will be the biggest expense of my entire trip; but you only live once and this is a good way to spend it.

Blog 009 - Kankaria Lake

Day 21 – Sunday, March 23

Slept in til a little before 10 this morning – only day of the week to do that. Get a little time to work on my photos a bit. Had to get some money out of the ATM, and pick up some laundry before heading out. Today is Sunday, the day we get to explore the area. Jose and I are meeting up with Nora around noon to head out to Kankaria Lake. Get a text from Nora saying Mary is going to join us. Grab a ricksha and head over to pick them up, then we are off. None of us have been there, so we know a set rate is going to be higher than it should be, but you can't haggle a deal if you have no idea where you are going. We agree on 200 rupees for all four of us, 50 each so not so bad.

 

 

 

Kankaria Lake is a man-made lake about 35 km from Gandhi Ashram. Supposed to have a zoo, boat rides, places to eat, and hopefully a great place to take photos. Being Sunday, a lot of people should be out and about. That turns out to be an understatement. It's hot . . . but that's what you expect. We pay a 10 rupee fee to enter, wow that broke the bank. Once the camera comes out, I immediately start to make new friends. It doesn't take long before I become detached from the rest of my group, but no problem. I can always catch up with them later. All then women and girls are dressed in their colorful tribal Indian clothes, with plenty of gold and other jewelry. Everyone wanted photos; kids, teens, adults. Photos of kids and babies. Photos of old men. People coming at me from all over. How could I resist. I had one women get my attention and said Manav Sadhna – apparently I had met her Women's Day a few weeks ago. Being a tall, white, European, I guess I would stand out in a sea of Indians.

 

 

 

I came across this Indian who spoke very good English. He had a really professional level camera and said he was having problems with his memory card, saying his files were inaccessable. He asked if I could insert it into my camera to see it it was working in mine – determining if it was a memory card problem or a camera problem. At least it was only a memory card problem and he only had lost his photos. Apparently, he is living inn Bangalore and only visiting Ahmedabad through today. He used to work for Goggle in California for several years and had visited many cities in the US while he was there. He now owns his own hi-tech company in Bangalore. Gave me his card and told me to call him if I was ever in Bangalore. Around here, that sort of introduction is a good thing – and it also usually gets you a night or two at someone's house if you are traveling around.

 

 

 

Overall, it was a long and hot day, but the resulting photography made it all worthwhile. It will be a good outing to visit here again sometime before I leave.