Delhi

This was where our group split. Because I had to be back in time for my GHP interview, my mother and I were forced to return home a day early and miss the Taj Mahal. It was sad, but I will readily admit that I was ready to go home.

After a group lunch we said goodbye before taking a truncated tour of the city with a travel agent friend named Ramesh. We spent most of our time just driving around the city, looking at all the embassies and ministries and sites. The driving was much more tame there, due to laws against honking your horn. At times one could almost forget that she was still in India!

We visited such sites as the India gate (a memorial to the soldiers that died in World War 1) and were even able to stand outside the gates of the President's house. It was rather nice to take a liesurley tour instead of the fast paced, race against the sun types that we were accustomed to.

We ended the night with dinner at a nice restaurant. I had mentioned earlier in the day that I was going to eat pasta when I got home, so Ramesh was kind enough to keep that in consideration when he took us to an Italian place.

Before we left to get on the plane, Ramesh bought me medi (henna on my hands) for good luck on my interview. It was beautiful! Navigating the airport with went mendi was not fun, however, because I couldn't touch anything.

Varanasi

The first day we arrived in the afternoon following a morning of traveling. We set off right from the airport on a bus tour through the city. There was much history present, as it was significant to both the Buddhist as well as Hindu faiths. There was a museum full of old stone artifacts mainly centered around Buddhism, including an iconic statue of Buddha meditating that was in surprisingly great condition. We also saw the site where Buddha first preached, and there was a huge stupa built over it. Over the years it had been defaced and the statues removed, but it was still rather magnificent in its size and age.

When the sun began to set we made our way to the River Ganges. There was a nightly ceremony being performed by some of the young Hindu priests called Aarti, which means fire in Hindi. It was a very strenuous looking exercise, as it involved holding up heavy candelabras (for lack of a better word) that had fires lit on the ends. I’m not Hindu, but the ceremony was still beautiful to watch.

Perhaps even more interesting than the ceremony itself, however, was getting there. The streets were too small for our bus, so we needed to take rickshaws and even walk for part of the distance. It was a significant change from when we observed the city from the safety of our bus, because now we were inside the city, surrounded by its sights and sounds and people, a part of it. It was rather terrifying. I had only ever been to Lucknow before this, and the population of Varanasi was significantly larger. People would stare at us, and there were crippled beggars and hungry children asking for money and there was nothing that could be done about it because in the long run it would have been worse to give them anything. There was a constant fear of pickpockets, and peddlers would walk right up to you and get in your face and relentlessly try to sell you their wares and you had to keep your head down and ignore them or else they would never leave you alone even when you said no. I’m not the most personable of people, but it was difficult to ignore them without feeling bad.

The worst of these was a pair of boys who at first just made conversation with us just for the heck of it; one of them told me that he thought I had nice eyes. After a bit, however, they started trying to sell us things. There was a much increased difficulty level to saying no once you’ve made a personal connection to the person trying to sell you something. They told us that maybe we could buy something when we got back tomorrow, and we said sure, maybe, we’ll see, and hoped that we wouldn’t see them again.

The following morning we woke up at five am in order to go on a boat ride on the River Ganges. I did NOT want to go—I can’t very well describe the adverse effect that Varanasi had had on me, and it got even worse compounded with the exhaustion that I was feeling. My mother made me go, however, and so reluctantly I did. Frankly, it wasn’t the boat ride that I didn’t like the idea of; it was walking through the city again that made me upset. I dressed as differently as I could from the night before, hoping that the boys wouldn’t recognize me, but they did. Mom understood how upset I was, so she deflected them without any interaction from me, which was good except that it made me feel terrible. The one who liked my eyes tried to make conversation with me, but I was so exhausted and upset that I just looked at my feet and wouldn’t talk. After a minute he said he understood that I was tired and excused himself, which only made me feel worse that I had been that obvious in my unhappiness.

I don’t remember too much about the boat ride. We passed some cool looking old buildings and at the end there was a crematorium. Ironic, right? As we got off the boat, there was a little old man, a Hindu priest, that was giving out blessings. He singled me out and put a little red dot on my forehead, saying “be happy today.” I nearly started crying then and there.

All in all, I wouldn’t say I’m the biggest fan of Varanasi.

Day 8

Today was a day meant for fellowship and really bonding with the ladies that we went to church with yesterday. We drove in a rickshaw, which is sort of a bike with a bench on the back, for the first time. Karishma led a wonderful morning devotion before we played a few warm up games. One of them involved taking off your shoes and then finding the owner of a different pair, and it was certainly amusing to see older women running around with someone else’s shoe in their hands. This was followed by a wonderful tea break (during which I discovered cheeslings, which are kind of like Gold Fish but square) and a picture slide show that I had put together the night before.

One of the most impactful experiences yet was the long discussion that we had next. We split into smaller groups in order to better discuss some things that each side, American and Indian, wanted to know about the other. My group talked a fair bit about prison ministry, as well as helping women and children who are in far off villages get an education and better medical care. A saree tying demonstration followed, and then shopping. I’m not going to lie, I got some wonderful shoes.

Once everyone returned from shopping (which was later then scheduled, since we were all women, though I’d like it to be known that I was on time) we had a closing devotion. It was very sad to have to say goodbye to all the women that we had just gotten to know, but luckily I didn’t have to say good bye to Karishma quite yet. She, Paula, my mother and I went to a chikan store. Chikan is a type of stitching that is exclusive to Lucknow and quite beautiful. Mom wanted to get a saree, and Karishma offered to escort us there to help us get the best prices.

My least favorite experience of this whole trip (even worse than the feeling that steam was coming out of my ears from the spicy food) was definitely having to tell Karishma goodbye. Since it is her dream to travel, I hope to one day help that to come true by bringing her to the United States to stay with me for a week or two and let her experience our culture.

Tomorrow we are heading to Varanassi, which we recently found out is actually pronounced vah-rah-nah-see instead of vare-ah-nass-ee. As we get closer and closer to the end of our trip, I find myself more and more upset that we have to leave.

Day 7

(I apologize for not having updated sooner— yesterday was incredibly long, and once I returned to my hotel I didn’t have the energy to write a blog post!)

The day began with going to church with some Indian women from the community. Our hostess’s name was Sapna, and she also had with her her daughter and niece as well as my new friend Karishma. We attended St. John’s UMC, a very small church that was probably smaller than the whole of the ground floor of my house. We were introduced to the congregation and were also given flowers, which are currently settled in a coffee pot in our hotel room. Everyone was very excited that we were there— they fed us some very good food and insisted that we were introduced to nearly every person at the church. We were even invited to a wedding occurring next month, an invitation I was quite loathe to have to decline. Going to an Indian wedding is certainly on my bucket list.

For our actual lunch we went to Sapna’s home, where she taught us to make chipote, a type of flat bread that is a necessity at every Indian meal. We didn’t eat the chipotes that my mother and I made because they were too raw, although they did insist that they were great for our first time. While lunch was being prepared, the four of us (not including Sapna) watched an Indian movie called Robot and talked about normal things that people in America would talk about, like movie stars and music. It really drove home the fact that even though we live different lives, we are really not all that different.

We really didn’t want to leave Sapna’s beautiful home, but we had to in order to arrive in time to go on a tour of Lucknow. We started at a place called the Residency, which was an important British stronghold during the Sepoy rebellion. I can’t wait to tell Mrs. Webb about it— the whole time we were there I was telling the other members of the team about the rebellion, very proud of what Mrs. Webb had taught me. We also went to a prayer house, as well as La Martiniere school. It was beautiful— the roofs were adorned with statues of lions, and when the school was first built they used to put torches in their mouths to light the campus. The school was built by a French general for his beloved, who ironically never stepped foot in the country of India. We had a tour guide with us, but Karishna became rather annoyed with him because he was not telling the facts correctly. Luckily she knew what she was talking about, so I was able to get the real facts from her.

We capped off the day by going to Karishma’s house to eat dinner with her family. All of them were incredibly gracious, and all of the feat that they prepared was delicious. Before we began they had told me that they had used as few spices as possible because they knew that I didn’t like spicy food, and I was very grateful. Once I bit into it, however, I realized that no spice for them is different than no spice for me. Do you know in cartoons when the character eats something hot and their face turns red with steam coming out of their ears? That’s how I felt with one particular dish that I must have gotten too large a bite of.  Karishma’s family found it slightly amusing, and Karishma herself ate a bite of a dish that I had thought rather spicy and told me that she didn’t taste any spice at all. We have different perspectives, to be sure.

I am so pleased to have been able to meet these wonderful people, and it is my hope that I can keep in contact with them long after I leave India.

Karishma

This is Karishma, my new friend. Earlier on in the week it had been suggested that a girl close to my age be found to spend time with me instead of me spending all my time with the older women of the Ubuntu team, and I’m so glad I said yes! Karishma is loving, godly, and beautiful, and I’m so happy to call her my friend.

Day 6

Today was probably the busiest day yet. Before we left on our adventures to new places near Lucknow, we took some time to present some gifts to Dr. Charles (the principal of IT College) in order to thank her for her hospitality and kindness during our stay. I also saw that the international students who had been staying at the dormitories with the Indian girls had gotten mendi (henna) put on their hands. I was a little jealous.

Since the conference was over, we were able to go to a few of the places that ITC students go every Saturday to do community service. Our first stop was a hospital that, among other things, housed children who had been orphaned by HIV/AIDS. There were about five or six kids, and they were ecstatic that we were there to see them. Two of the little girls even performed dances for us— this one in the pink was precious. She was probably my favorite part of the entire day, and if you can’t tell, I really, really adore this girl. We were also able to see some of the hospitals facilities.

Next we traveled to a relatively remote village to see the ITC girls perform a puppet show educating kids about the importance of hygiene. The girls did a fantastic job, even going so far as to tell the story in the town’s native variation of Hindi. After the story was told, the kids were asked questions about good hygiene and received prizes for correct answers.

In order to get to the village, we had to walk about a kilometer (a little less than a mile). One of the ladies in our group, Paula, is 84 years old, from Alabama and with an accent to match. There were some cars that volunteered to carry people to the village, but Paula refused to be driven and insisted on walking all the way there. Even when we tried to carry her bag, she wouldn’t let us. Paula might be my new hero—  she’s certainly very inspirational.

A plan to be taken to church with local women has been in progress all week, and today it was cemented and we were finally able to meet the Methodist ladies who would be hosting us tomorrow. My mother and I were particularly lucky— our hostess says that she plans to make for lunch butter chicken, a favorite of Mom’s, and afterward my new friend Karishma invited us to eat dinner at her house with her family. Two home cooked Indian meals in one day? Yes please! I’m terribly excited for tomorrow when we will also be taking a tour of Lucknow. Stay tuned!

Last Day of the ITC Celebration

Today marks the last day of the ITC 125th celebration. Some of our group chose to get up early and go to the morning devotion as well as the last panel discussions about public health issues and global citizenship. It was very nice when some of the international students would get up and let their opinions and voices be heard. All the students shared a hope for the future that we can work together to make the world what God has meant for it to be.  Rosanne Valasco from the Philippines penned this encouraging message for the young people at the conference:

The afternoon was continued with a valedictory session in which final speeches were made and each of the groups that had traveled to be at the event were recognized and allowed to say a few words. It was an emotional and touching time as everyone explained what the conference has meant to them and we in essence said goodbye.

After lunch we had some free time during which we could interact with the students and teachers, go to an exhibit about the college that was found in the library, shop at a bazaar set up by local crafts women, or all three. The exhibit was very interesting, consisting of many documents and items that were important in the history of the college and even the tea set of Isabella Thoburn herself. The bazaar was also very nice, and there were many things to buy at inexpensive prices with the proceeds going to a good cause. Generally, when you buy from a store they are not entirely fair to the people who make their goods, but many of the vendors made the items that they were selling with their own hands.

We all had a new kind of experience as far as the students were concerned.  So many of the students wanted to take our picture or have their picture taken with us that we all felt like rock stars!  It was our pleasure to pose with the girls and show our caring for them in that way.

The celebration was officially ended by a wonderful closing ceremony of hymns, leader/response, and prayer. The school choir sang beautifully, and in their white sarees they really looked like angels. This idea was driven home as we were leaving the chapel and they began to sing that iconic song that repeats “Hallelujah” again and again. Harriett Olson gave another message about the importance of peace to ensure access to education and urging us all to be peacemakers in the world.  The celebration ended with a literal bang as fireworks were set off in front of the college and a jazz concert sponsored by the Cultural Attache of the American Embassy rounded out the evening. It was a great end to a great conference!

Day 4

Now that we’ve been here a little longer, jet lag has begun to wear off. I’m still exhausted, but travel does that to you, right? Each day it gets a little better, though, and I bet that I’ll be totally on Indian time right about when we have to head back to the US!

This morning I woke up well rested and we left quickly for the college in order to give the morning devotion to the college assembly. I read the scripture (a piece talking about worrying about what is to come, slightly ironic considering my GHP ordeals) and Jeanie gave a great message about being held back by things that you are just too stubborn to let go of.

After that we began discussions about higher education for women. Ms. Harriett Olson, Secretary General of the Women’s Division, gave a rousing speech about transcending the boundaries that society sets before us. Besides Ms. Olson, there was also a vibrant Indian woman who was very opinionated about the suppression of women. She was adorable.

During her speech, she called the girls in the audience her future. When she went to take a picture with me, she said "I'm going to put my arm around you. I just called you my future, and I should hug my future, right?"

One of the most interesting parts of the day was that after the speech we were assaulted by college girls who all wanted their pictures taken with us. It was like Africa, except they all had their own cell phones. We got a couple pictures ourselves— aren’t they just gorgeous?

There were more panel discussions through out the day, mostly on women’s rights, the benefits of education for women and diversity. We stayed for these panels, but the group was very tired and we ended up leaving as soon as they were over in order to restore our energy. Some of us went shopping, and some of us went to see a play that the college students put on, but I’m not going to lie, I immediately took a nap.

At one point in the day I had to use the bathroom. There were both normal toilets and choos, but the line for the normal toilets was long and the one for the choo nonexistent. As such, I decided to go with the choo. You know how sometimes you’re reading a book and the title doesn’t make any sense but then out of the blue they use the title and it’s awesome? That’s how I feel right now. I promise that I won’t do it again.

I also have another driving story! Indians will stay inside the lines of the road when it is convenient, but as a general rule they will leave them in a heartbeat if it looks like a faster way has opened up. This caused a problem this morning when we got to a busy intersection. All of the cars were bunched together and essentially unable to move, partially due to the rickshaws, bikes, and pedestrians that darted in between them. It’s really a miracle that no one was hurt, the way that people were walking right in front of cars.

Tomorrow we will be ending the educational conference with more panels and a celebration of all we’ve achieved. I know it will be great, and I can’t wait to share pictures and stories with all of you!

First Day at the College

So today was a very busy day indeed. We left at about nine o’clock to get to the college in order to get the best seats possible to see the President of India herself. We had to wait for a couple of hours before the celebration began, but the wait was made easier by some new friends who happened to be sitting around us.

There were many speeches, but I’m not just saying this when I say that the President’s was the best. She spoke at length about the importance of women’s education, and you could tell that it was very important to her. As a side note, she was a very small woman. She had to step up on a box when she went to the podium. I really identify with her because of that.

After that we ate some lunch and then were invited to a celebration put on by the students. I wasn’t sure exactly what it was going to be, but when I realized that it was dancing I was ecstatic. Indian dancing is a gorgeous thing, and it was a pleasure to watch, truly divine.

Besides being good dancers, all of the girls were crazy beautiful and also incredibly sweet. You could ask any of them which way to a place and they would lead you there and even make conversation on the way. It was really great of them, and something that I know that I personally would not have been able to do.

All in all, besides the jet lag, it was a wonderful day. I look forward to the coming excursions to the college being even greater than this one!

Finally Arrived!

It's about nine in the morning right now. At this moment I am sitting in my hotel room, which looks rather like an American Mariott, listening to the beautiful sounds of Indian traffic. See, it's fun, because no two horns sound alike, so once your brain gets used to a few another one pops in and wakes you up after you've basically been on the move for 24 hours.

Traffic and fourteen hour plane rides aside, however, it's all been very nice. Once we got all the way to Delhi we were settled into our hotel and fell right asleep. This morning we finally got to meet the rest of our group, a lovely group of ladies who I can't wait to spend the rest of this trip with.

I don't have a whole lot of time, but I do have time for a story! Indian driving. Terribly scary thing. I had heard stories, but in real life it's even more fun. Driving here consists of about 60% driving, 30% honking your horn telling everyone to get out of the way, and 10% not hitting the pedestrians and bike riders that are running straight in between all of the cars. I'm not exactly sure what the kilometer to mile ratio is (a fact I'm rather embarrassed of), but it looked like we were driving pretty fast in kilometers. I haven't seen a speed limit sign yet.

Anyways, I'm off to my first day at Isabella Thoburn College and, what's that? Lunch with the president of India? Yeah. No big deal.

Chicago Ohare

Hey there. (That’s Chicagoian for “hello”)

We’ve finally made some progress! Right now we are waiting in Chicago Ohare for our next flight- a whopping 14 hour straight trip straight to Dehli. I’ll be honest, I didn’t know that that was logistically possible, but apparently it is. At the end of all this I might even be able to say that I circumnavigated the globe! I’m inferring that, because I can’t imagine that we would have to fly to Chicago just to go across the Atlantic.

The flight here was mostly uneventful. I think I’m spoiled by cross continental flights, because when I saw the miniscule size of the two hour Chicago flight I was appalled. There wasn’t a TV, either, that was no fun. Or food! Yeah, I’m definitely spoiled… unfortunately, this one doesn’t look to be too much better. It’s overbooked, so EVERY seat is going to be full. This means that I’ll (ideally) be squeezed between my mother and some random person who hopefully isn’t too large. We’ll just have to wait and see and wish for the best.

Anyways, we’re ready to board. I’ll check in when I can.

Almost a Start

Last night my mother was baking a pie when she told me she had some bad news.

My first thought? "Oh no, the pie must be burned."

What she actually said? "Some AirFrance employees are going on strike. Our plane has been delayed until at least Tuesday."

The pie was really, really good though.

At seven thirty the next morning my dad walks into my room and wakes me up, asking me if I wanted to rethink the trip because we wouldn't be able to leave until Tuesday. I told him I didn't know and went back to sleep because I don't make important decisions early in the morning. Then he wakes me up again at nine and tells me that we're leaving in four hours.

Did I mention that I hadn't packed yet?

So I packed, we headed off to the airport, ate bad Asian food as a good bye lunch, said all of our farewells, meandered our way through security, and trotted to our gate to make sure we were there on time. Once we arrived at our terminal, however, an announcement was made that due to inclement weather our flight was cancelled. Let's note that this makes two out of two flights that were nullified as of yet.

Dragging all of our luggage behind us, we sped as fast as we could to the help desk where we tried desperately to get our flight rescheduled on the same day. This was impossible, however, due to the fact that everyone who had been on an Air France flight had already rescheduled due to the strike. The earliest way we could possibly get to Delhi was a trip through Chicago on Monday afternoon.

And that's the story of why I'm still in Canton instead of en route to Delhi.