This will be a quick one as I'm heading out for an off-site meeting all day but...last night I saw the most fantastic typo. You could buy beer one of two ways:
Glass = 400 Rs.
Picture = 1000 Rs.
A Picture of Beer! Makes total sense, the words Pitcher and Picture sound almost the same. Anyway, that just cracked me up and I had to share it.
Happy Halloween everyone! (not celebrated here, I almost forgot it was Halloween)
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
sightseeing day 2
I realized that I never talked about my second day of sightseeing in Mumbai, I got so distracted by Divali. Well, my second day of sightseeing I did a self-guided walking tour through the city. There aren’t many big must see sights in Mumbai, just lots of smaller sights. The biggest thing that I noticed while walking through was the influence of the British. There was one place in particular where you really would think that you were in Europe; there was a statue of a man on a horse just like you would see in Europe, and the building behind it had very western architecture. It was very odd, sort of like being in two cities at the same time. It was all very pretty, but at the same time I felt like you could see the negative side of the British...in the area where they had built it was really beautiful but the rest of the city was kind of well, not nice. It felt as though the British wanted their lives to be comfortable and didn’t care much about the Indians. Disclaimer: I know almost nothing about the time the British were here so I don’t know what it was like and I could be completely wrong; I'm just saying that is the way it looks.
One thing that was kind of nice about Mumbai is that people didn’t really pay attention to me…but in a good way. It is a big city and people have places to go and people to see, kind of like NYC, so they don’t find seeing a foreigner like me walking around interesting. It isn’t that I didn’t get any stares, but about ¼ the amount I would get other places. I liked that.
Anyway, during my walk I discovered a lovely little botanical garden (I changed the welcome picture on my blog to have a picture from that garden). It was full of people enjoying their lunch breaks. There was also a big square with the high court on one side and a big grassy area in the middle. The grassy area was filled with people playing cricket. I never thought of cricket as being a very difficult sport but they take it quite seriously here and are pretty athletic about it. It was fun to watch for a while. I still don’t get the sport at all but I figure that I’ll learn about it soon enough. Then one final stop at the Train station which is really huge and very gothic and very cool.
And after 3 hours of being outside in the sun I was melting (thanks to my hat I didn’t have a headache though) so I went back to the hotel and jumped in the pool. All in all I would say that Mumbai is a cool place to visit if you are in the area, but probably not one of must-see of the sights in India…at least for me. But I already have other place in and around the city I'd like to see if I go back.
One thing that was kind of nice about Mumbai is that people didn’t really pay attention to me…but in a good way. It is a big city and people have places to go and people to see, kind of like NYC, so they don’t find seeing a foreigner like me walking around interesting. It isn’t that I didn’t get any stares, but about ¼ the amount I would get other places. I liked that.
Anyway, during my walk I discovered a lovely little botanical garden (I changed the welcome picture on my blog to have a picture from that garden). It was full of people enjoying their lunch breaks. There was also a big square with the high court on one side and a big grassy area in the middle. The grassy area was filled with people playing cricket. I never thought of cricket as being a very difficult sport but they take it quite seriously here and are pretty athletic about it. It was fun to watch for a while. I still don’t get the sport at all but I figure that I’ll learn about it soon enough. Then one final stop at the Train station which is really huge and very gothic and very cool.
And after 3 hours of being outside in the sun I was melting (thanks to my hat I didn’t have a headache though) so I went back to the hotel and jumped in the pool. All in all I would say that Mumbai is a cool place to visit if you are in the area, but probably not one of must-see of the sights in India…at least for me. But I already have other place in and around the city I'd like to see if I go back.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Kaboom take two
So, yesterday was Divali and boy am I happy it is over. The celebrations involved lots and lots of fireworks that were very heavy on the booms and very low on the sparkle, you would think that with China as our neighbor (we share a border I promise, look on a map) and since they invented fireworks that fireworks would be better here, alas no. From about 9 p.m. until midnight it was boom after boom after boom; and they weren’t organized, so it was all individuals setting them off at random times. Occasionally I would see a nice big one in the distance but mostly just loud booms with small light right outside my house. It really freaked me out. I don’t think I’m that boring of a person but kids setting off fireworks in the middle of a populated neighborhood just strikes me as unsafe. And it really was so LOUD. I almost put earplugs in to sleep. Seriously.
Anyway, it is over and I survived. But I think if I’m still here for Divali next year that I’ll take a long weekend and head off to Dubai or something to avoid the madness.
Total aside: a few people brought their kids by the office on Monday. I love it when super little kids here see me. They aren’t used to seeing white people (for lack of a better word) and they stare at me and are usually kind of scared and interested at the same time. It is very cute. After a while they warm up to me.
Anyway, it is over and I survived. But I think if I’m still here for Divali next year that I’ll take a long weekend and head off to Dubai or something to avoid the madness.
Total aside: a few people brought their kids by the office on Monday. I love it when super little kids here see me. They aren’t used to seeing white people (for lack of a better word) and they stare at me and are usually kind of scared and interested at the same time. It is very cute. After a while they warm up to me.
Monday, October 27, 2008
surreal experiences
Tomorrow is Divali, a big Hindu holiday; importance wise it is like Christmas. So, today would be like Christmas Eve, which means that no one is getting any work done. In the office we currently have some incense burning (cough cough) to the goddess Laxmi, the goddess of wealth (good for business I suppose) and everyone is standing around the incense and the little statue of the god singing prayers.
They have put a paint drawing on the floor - it is hard to explain what it is but it is really pretty - which apparently invites Laxmi into our workplace. I've put a photo at the bottom (with me, hooray, finally evidence of me here in India!) to give you an idea.
I've also been Indian-ized. I've been given the red dot on my forehead, and a red string on my left wrist which protects me from bad things and have been given a scarf to make me look more Indian because I'm apparently dressed very boring today.
It is very surreal to me; and very loud. People do like to talk over one another here. Just one of those "only in India" types of moments which I seem to have fairly often.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
random thoughts
I think I’ll put off talking about sightseeing day 2 and share a few random thoughts:1. Just when I start to get frustrated by India (the honking, the sheer number of people, etc) something happens to make me appreciate the uniqueness of the country. This weekend I saw something totally new and random. There were stands along the street in Mumbai where people were buying juice, it was where the juice came from that had me puzzled. There were these big sticks (see photo - and hooray, I managed to upload a photo!), looked like really skinny bamboo that were being cranked through, well, a crank. They would fall apart and this juice would come out. I was fascinated and highly puzzled. So I took at photo and asked someone what it was. Turns out it is sugar cane and the ‘juice’ is essentially sugar water. Fascinating. Kind of like the worlds first sports drink. I was not brave enough to buy it though, it looked kind of weird.
2. I am not a hat person, never have been. It isn’t that I’m vain or anything, I just have a really big head, literally, so I have a super hard time finding hats that fit. But when I decided to come here I realized I should probably get a hat, so I slowely crutched into REI (with help from my parents) and found two good hats. One of which has a super big visor, isn’t that beautiful, but has served me well. I forgot it on Sunday and thought, oh well, how much of a difference can it really make. Turns out it makes a HUGE difference. I was only outside for about ½ the day, most of which was in the shade, and I was absolutely wrecked when I was done and had a headache for the rest of the day. Moral of the story: if you are coming to India; bring a hat, and if you forget it at the hotel, turn around and go back.
3. I forgot the funniest part of the story yesterday. So, on the ferry back as we are approaching the city I noticed people in the water. There were these guys, maybe about 15 or 20 of them swimming. As our boat got closer they grabbed on to the side of the boat (there were tires lining the side of the boat that they could grab) and they road along with us for a while. One of them even climbed up onto the boat and them jumped back in. Not sure if it was just for fun or what but as they were riding along with us one of them lost his shorts!
"Caves"
You know how sometimes when you go sightseeing you have this idea in your mind of what something will be like and sometimes it is completely different in a way that really disappoints; and other times it is completely different in a way that is amazingly better? Well Sunday I had both. The first thing I wanted to see was this mosque that is ‘on an island’. I put that in quotes because there is a walkway that goes out to the mosque. According to books the walkway gets covered up during high tide turning it into an island. Well, driving through the city by the water I saw a building and asked the driver if that was it…it was. Didn’t look at all mosque-like to me, just like a building, and apparently the walkway only gets covered up during high tide in monsoon season. So while I was imagining a magical floating mosque instead I got something that looked like, well, a building at the end of a walkway.
Onward to sight number two. This was Elephanta Island to see the Elephanta Caves. The caves were created in around 500-600 AD and are a Hindu temple with wall carvings of some of the gods. To get there you have to take a ferry ride which is a little over an hour each way. I was so excited for the ferry ride since I miss being near water and feeling the breeze off the water, the air in Delhi doesn’t really move. The ride there was so nice. It was really hot but the boat was covered and with the breeze you barely noticed the heat. After landing at the island you walk a little while past little stands with people selling fruits and veggies then you enter an area with a sign warning you about the monkeys saying they can be dangerous to which I thought “cool, monkeys!”.
So, you get to the bottom of this hill with some stairs. The stairs are lined with little stands selling elephant statues, T-shirts, purses, the usual tourist stuff; and you can rent a chair to sit in and be carried up the stairs. I thought that was a tad bit indulgent so I walked. Word of advice, if you are there and it is at all warm, take the chair…there are over 100 stairs and I was melting once I got to the top. (it was about 97 that day and humid). But when I got to the top there were the monkeys! There were even some baby monkeys, pictures to follow when I have time to upload them. They were cute but if you had food they would come and grab it from you so the warning was useful.
Anyway (I feel like I'm rambling, sorry), if you are like me and you hear the word ‘caves’ you think of something down and inside, so I thought that after going up all those steps I would have to go down more steps. Not true. The caves are more like temples built into a hill, but they are largely open and the sculptures are HUGE! I have no clue how high they went but there were probably about 10 or 12 different panels, each of which had a different sculpture of a god; maybe about 20 feet high. One of them was just of Shiva’s head. It is difficult to explain, seeing as I had read 3 different guide books and it wasn’t at all what I expected. If you are ever in Mumbai I highly recommend going because it is a unique place and really beautiful. Sometimes places of worship can lose their spirituality when they become a tourist destination but there was definitely a feeling of holiness to the place…maybe it was just the incense that was burning but it felt special to me.
The walk back down was much easier and after a yummy lunch I hopped back on the ferry. While on the ferry I had someone take my picture since I have no photos of myself here and well, after a morning of sightseeing in 97 degree heat I did not look at all attractive, as a matter of fact I looked decidedly uckey, so the picture has been deleted. I will get physical proof of my being here soon enough. I’ll just have to have a picture taken when I begin sightseeing, not when I finish.
Onward to sight number two. This was Elephanta Island to see the Elephanta Caves. The caves were created in around 500-600 AD and are a Hindu temple with wall carvings of some of the gods. To get there you have to take a ferry ride which is a little over an hour each way. I was so excited for the ferry ride since I miss being near water and feeling the breeze off the water, the air in Delhi doesn’t really move. The ride there was so nice. It was really hot but the boat was covered and with the breeze you barely noticed the heat. After landing at the island you walk a little while past little stands with people selling fruits and veggies then you enter an area with a sign warning you about the monkeys saying they can be dangerous to which I thought “cool, monkeys!”.
So, you get to the bottom of this hill with some stairs. The stairs are lined with little stands selling elephant statues, T-shirts, purses, the usual tourist stuff; and you can rent a chair to sit in and be carried up the stairs. I thought that was a tad bit indulgent so I walked. Word of advice, if you are there and it is at all warm, take the chair…there are over 100 stairs and I was melting once I got to the top. (it was about 97 that day and humid). But when I got to the top there were the monkeys! There were even some baby monkeys, pictures to follow when I have time to upload them. They were cute but if you had food they would come and grab it from you so the warning was useful.
Anyway (I feel like I'm rambling, sorry), if you are like me and you hear the word ‘caves’ you think of something down and inside, so I thought that after going up all those steps I would have to go down more steps. Not true. The caves are more like temples built into a hill, but they are largely open and the sculptures are HUGE! I have no clue how high they went but there were probably about 10 or 12 different panels, each of which had a different sculpture of a god; maybe about 20 feet high. One of them was just of Shiva’s head. It is difficult to explain, seeing as I had read 3 different guide books and it wasn’t at all what I expected. If you are ever in Mumbai I highly recommend going because it is a unique place and really beautiful. Sometimes places of worship can lose their spirituality when they become a tourist destination but there was definitely a feeling of holiness to the place…maybe it was just the incense that was burning but it felt special to me.
The walk back down was much easier and after a yummy lunch I hopped back on the ferry. While on the ferry I had someone take my picture since I have no photos of myself here and well, after a morning of sightseeing in 97 degree heat I did not look at all attractive, as a matter of fact I looked decidedly uckey, so the picture has been deleted. I will get physical proof of my being here soon enough. I’ll just have to have a picture taken when I begin sightseeing, not when I finish.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
I'm back
I'm back from Mumbai, I hope you didn't miss me too much. I like to live in this world where I imagine that everyone checks my blog daily desperately excited to see an update and are devastated when there isn't one. The nice thing about blogging is that you have no idea how many people actually read it so you can imagine yourself to be exceedingly important.
Anyway, I digress. I have many thoughts on Mumbai but I will spread them over a few postings so as not to ramble on. My first thought is that while there I kept being reminded of the first line from "A Tale of Two Cities"..."it was the best of times, it was the worst of times". I thought of this because Mumbai is a city of extremes, it has the best and the worst and not much in between. You really notice while you are there, even for a few days, that there is so much money in that city; everything costs more than in Delhi; there are great opportunities for shopping too; I drove past one area with amazingly beautiful dresses; if I wasn't so hot and sweaty I definitely would have stopped to shop. I haven't seen shopping that nice here. And then you have the super super poor. I decided not to do the slum tour; one of those things that is a good idea in theory, but when I arrived I realized it would be too tough for me to continue living here if I saw up close and personal how people in the slums lived. Living in a country with such a poverty problem you need to be a bit blind to it in order to go about my daily life. My guilt over seeing such poverty meant that I just gave every taxi driver really big tips (read: $1 tip on a 30 minute drive that cost $4) and wished them a happy Diwali (super big holiday here next week, the Hindu Christmas if you will). They all looked very happy because people don't really tip here. It isn't much but it is something.
All in all I had a pleasant time but I still don't think I would want to live there. It is too intense of a city; from the traffic to the number of people it is difficult to really relax; it is like the intensity of Manhattan with three times the people and a few goats, cows and chickens thrown in for good measure. I spent my afternoons at the hotel pool (it was crazy hot so I could only sightsee for half days before becoming too exhausted) and that was the only place in the city where I could really fully relax. And boy did I relax :)
Total Aside #1: my pilots both ways were American. That was random, getting on a plane in India and having an American voice greet me. It kind of made me wonder; how good of a pilot are they if they have to come to India to get a job? So I made up back stories where they were in the Air Force and came through India, fell in love and stayed here. Did I mention that I'm a nervous flyer and things that are not completely normal really freak me out.
Total Aside #2: I found the NFL on TV here!!! I was so excited to watch the Pats, especially since they were winning. I get the Sunday night and Monday night games. Of course it starts at around 5:30 my time, but I usually wake up at 8 here so can catch the end.
Anyway, I digress. I have many thoughts on Mumbai but I will spread them over a few postings so as not to ramble on. My first thought is that while there I kept being reminded of the first line from "A Tale of Two Cities"..."it was the best of times, it was the worst of times". I thought of this because Mumbai is a city of extremes, it has the best and the worst and not much in between. You really notice while you are there, even for a few days, that there is so much money in that city; everything costs more than in Delhi; there are great opportunities for shopping too; I drove past one area with amazingly beautiful dresses; if I wasn't so hot and sweaty I definitely would have stopped to shop. I haven't seen shopping that nice here. And then you have the super super poor. I decided not to do the slum tour; one of those things that is a good idea in theory, but when I arrived I realized it would be too tough for me to continue living here if I saw up close and personal how people in the slums lived. Living in a country with such a poverty problem you need to be a bit blind to it in order to go about my daily life. My guilt over seeing such poverty meant that I just gave every taxi driver really big tips (read: $1 tip on a 30 minute drive that cost $4) and wished them a happy Diwali (super big holiday here next week, the Hindu Christmas if you will). They all looked very happy because people don't really tip here. It isn't much but it is something.
All in all I had a pleasant time but I still don't think I would want to live there. It is too intense of a city; from the traffic to the number of people it is difficult to really relax; it is like the intensity of Manhattan with three times the people and a few goats, cows and chickens thrown in for good measure. I spent my afternoons at the hotel pool (it was crazy hot so I could only sightsee for half days before becoming too exhausted) and that was the only place in the city where I could really fully relax. And boy did I relax :)
Total Aside #1: my pilots both ways were American. That was random, getting on a plane in India and having an American voice greet me. It kind of made me wonder; how good of a pilot are they if they have to come to India to get a job? So I made up back stories where they were in the Air Force and came through India, fell in love and stayed here. Did I mention that I'm a nervous flyer and things that are not completely normal really freak me out.
Total Aside #2: I found the NFL on TV here!!! I was so excited to watch the Pats, especially since they were winning. I get the Sunday night and Monday night games. Of course it starts at around 5:30 my time, but I usually wake up at 8 here so can catch the end.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
random things
In my Hindi class last night we went over days of the week and discovered that the word for Friday and the word for Thank You sound really similar. How funny is that. Friday is shukrvar and Thank you is shukriya. I can guarantee that is one I will remember.
Oh - I found out what the henna was about yesterday. Apparently in the Hindu religion all the married women fast for their husbands today (husbands can still eat, they are fasting to bring their husbands good health and long life). They get their hands done with the henna the day before and then today they dress up in their best outfits and fast. Traditionally they don't work on this day. It was really funny driving home last night because we drove through this market where there were probably about 100 women at some stage of getting their hands done. Imagine seeing every woman holding her hands like she had just gotten her nails done; it was quite the funny sight. I was excited to see the women in their nicest saris today but they are all inside. Oh well. I'm just happy that I don't have to fast myself.
And finally - good job Sox! I like these night games, I get to work and it is the 7th inning. I "tuned in" on espn.com right when the rally started.
Oh - I found out what the henna was about yesterday. Apparently in the Hindu religion all the married women fast for their husbands today (husbands can still eat, they are fasting to bring their husbands good health and long life). They get their hands done with the henna the day before and then today they dress up in their best outfits and fast. Traditionally they don't work on this day. It was really funny driving home last night because we drove through this market where there were probably about 100 women at some stage of getting their hands done. Imagine seeing every woman holding her hands like she had just gotten her nails done; it was quite the funny sight. I was excited to see the women in their nicest saris today but they are all inside. Oh well. I'm just happy that I don't have to fast myself.
And finally - good job Sox! I like these night games, I get to work and it is the 7th inning. I "tuned in" on espn.com right when the rally started.
Hockey and Henna
Shortly after moving to Toronto I went to a friends apartment and there was a hockey game on TV; it was Buffalo versus someone; and I said "oh, I didn't know Buffalo had a hockey team". Well apparently that it just about the silliest thing a person can say because my friend cracked up and liked to tell that story to people as a "silly American" story; and everyone else thought it was pretty funny too.
Today I had a similar moment here. I was at lunch and asked about this guy who is in lots of commercials; I thought he was a cricket star, turns out he is an actor. See, in one of the commercials he sings and is not good which is why I thought he was an athlete. So I say (based on the fact that 99% of Bollywood movies are musicals) "I thought all actors had to sing". This, apparently, is the Indian equivalent of not knowing that Buffalo has a hockey team. They don't have to sing to be actors because they just use voice-overs for the singing. They do, apparently, all have to dance. All I know for sure is that this guy can't sing but sure seems to love his Samsung Mobile phones because the ads are on all the time.
And, I haven't had one of those "my life sure has changed" moments in a while but I definitely had one when I got back from lunch...the girls in the office were giving each other henna designs on their hands. Usually they only do henna at weddings, or so I thought, but apparently at work is okay too. Of course I wanted them to do my hands too but I had to be the responsible boss type and tell them to get back to work. Sigh. Oh well, I just have to get myself invited to an Indian wedding so I can get henna too - they do really beautiful designs.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
weekend plans
I'm going to Mumbai/Bombay this weekend. I have to be there on Tuesday for a meeting so decided to take a day off on Monday and spend a long weekend there. It is funny because everything I had ever read about Mumbai made it seem like somewhere I wouldn't really want to travel to and it is the first place outside of Delhi where I'm going sightseeing.
I only have 1 thing that I really want to see, which is this temple on an island which is I think called Elephantine Island. I've been completely spoiled as a traveler in Europe recently because I just buy the Rick Steves guide books and he tells you what is good and what isn't and gives you an itinerary. I can't even tell you how many of his walking tours I have followed. I have so many India guide books and they just tell list every sight and not the 'must sees'. I'll have to read every book and decipher them to figure out what is best. Seems like Mumbai is a bit low on must-see sights, it is more about the ambiance. Maybe I'll see some big Bollywood stars...and not have the slightest clue they are famous.
Apparently there is a tour you can take of one of the slums in Mumbai. I think I might try and take it if there is one running. Probably sounds a bit depressing to you, but I think it would be interesting to see how they function.
Anyway, expect a full report next week of my sightseeing. I'm so excited to spend 3 days with an ocean breeze that I just might spend every day sitting by the water.
Total aside: what is up with the Sox???? Losing to the Rays, seriously? Is this one of the signs of the end of the world?
I only have 1 thing that I really want to see, which is this temple on an island which is I think called Elephantine Island. I've been completely spoiled as a traveler in Europe recently because I just buy the Rick Steves guide books and he tells you what is good and what isn't and gives you an itinerary. I can't even tell you how many of his walking tours I have followed. I have so many India guide books and they just tell list every sight and not the 'must sees'. I'll have to read every book and decipher them to figure out what is best. Seems like Mumbai is a bit low on must-see sights, it is more about the ambiance. Maybe I'll see some big Bollywood stars...and not have the slightest clue they are famous.
Apparently there is a tour you can take of one of the slums in Mumbai. I think I might try and take it if there is one running. Probably sounds a bit depressing to you, but I think it would be interesting to see how they function.
Anyway, expect a full report next week of my sightseeing. I'm so excited to spend 3 days with an ocean breeze that I just might spend every day sitting by the water.
Total aside: what is up with the Sox???? Losing to the Rays, seriously? Is this one of the signs of the end of the world?
Monday, October 13, 2008
Snoop Dog in India
So there was this HUGE Bollywood movie that came out over the summer called Singh is Kinng and apparently it is the biggest Bollywood movie to date, I'm pretty convinced that every person in India went to see it, it is all anyone talked about for about a month. Anyway, this morning I was getting my coffee and the coffee shop has a TV which is always on Indian MTV in the morning and, as usual, a song from the movie was on (if you don't know anything about Bollywood, almost all movies are musicals) only this one had Snoop Dog in the video! Don't know if this made it into the random news back in the US but it was pretty funny watching Snoop Dog in the middle of a Bollywood movie video.
Just one of those random things that really shouldn't surprise me anymore but does.
Anyway. Much more importantly...go Sox! Today's game starts at around 2:30 a.m. my time which means I will not be watching it, but I will dream positive Red Sox thoughts.
Just one of those random things that really shouldn't surprise me anymore but does.
Anyway. Much more importantly...go Sox! Today's game starts at around 2:30 a.m. my time which means I will not be watching it, but I will dream positive Red Sox thoughts.
Friday, October 10, 2008
kaboom
So the way yesterday's holiday was celebrated was quite surprising to me. There is a little park right in front of my house and every night there are always kids playing in it. Last night I got home and there were even more kids than usual playing and they had what looked like a scarecrow built. About an hour later I heard all these big booms and looked out to see them lighting firecrackers and then lighting the scarecrow thingy on fire!
I was so surprised, especially since the crackers were super loud and there was this big fire. I got some pictures of the fire and am hoping to upload more pictures soon, I promise.
Apparently the scarecrow thingy was actually Ram who they burn in effigy.
It was kind of like Guy Fawkes day with a side of the 4th of July. But it was over really quickly. Once the fire was done and after about 10 minute of firecrackers everyone went home.
Apparently for Diwali everyone is lighting off firecrackers...good thing I know now because they are seriously SO LOUD!
Have a good weekend.
I was so surprised, especially since the crackers were super loud and there was this big fire. I got some pictures of the fire and am hoping to upload more pictures soon, I promise.
Apparently the scarecrow thingy was actually Ram who they burn in effigy.
It was kind of like Guy Fawkes day with a side of the 4th of July. But it was over really quickly. Once the fire was done and after about 10 minute of firecrackers everyone went home.
Apparently for Diwali everyone is lighting off firecrackers...good thing I know now because they are seriously SO LOUD!
Have a good weekend.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Happy random holiday
October is holiday central in India. Today is a holiday here; but not a 100% holiday. What I mean is that some people are working and some aren't. I guess a good equivalent would be Columbus day; about 1/2 the people have the day off. What is the holiday? Something to do with the god Ram killing some other god or something like that. I've studied the Hindu religion but there are lots of gods and it is difficult to keep them straight. There have already been three birthdays of various gods since I've been here, I wonder if people can choose which god is their #1. On one of the birthdays some people took the day off as a religious holiday; another day we just had incense burning in the office next to a statue of a god. When I saw that I definitely had a "wow, my life sure has changed" moment.
At the end of the month we have Diwali; whatever happened with Ram today causes him to be exiled and Diwali is his homecoming, it is the Indian equivalent of Christmas in terms of importance and gift giving. I guess October here is kind of like December back home in terms of holidays. You get a few days off; people are always here and there, taking lots of days off, it is difficult for me to think of October that way; usually it is the really busy productive month before the holidays. Not that I'm not busy, but there is a general air of festivity and relaxation around. So, happy holiday having something to do with Ram.
At the end of the month we have Diwali; whatever happened with Ram today causes him to be exiled and Diwali is his homecoming, it is the Indian equivalent of Christmas in terms of importance and gift giving. I guess October here is kind of like December back home in terms of holidays. You get a few days off; people are always here and there, taking lots of days off, it is difficult for me to think of October that way; usually it is the really busy productive month before the holidays. Not that I'm not busy, but there is a general air of festivity and relaxation around. So, happy holiday having something to do with Ram.
random thoughts
A few random thoughts for today:
1. Just last week someone said to me that they hadn't seen many cows around Delhi lately and I realized that was true. I know they are trying to mooove them out of the city and figured that was why. Well last night I must have seen 20 cows in 10 minute - no joke. Apparently they have all just changed location to this one street. It was surprising after not seeing them for a while.
2. On the Indian TV shows and commercials all of the voices sound like they are dubbed. It is so odd it is difficult to explain. Even if the actor is speaking in English and it is their voice own voice it still sounds like they did a voice over. I wonder why. It seems so odd to me. I literally didn't even realize this one commercial was dubbed over until about the 5th time it was on because it sounded like a normal commercial. Oh - commercials here tend to run over and over again. It is as though they only allow 10 different commercials to air at any time so you see them over and over and over again.
3. Hindi lesson update! In last nights class we learned several things about dealing with taxi/rickshaw drivers. We learned 'left', 'right' and 'stop here'. We learned "your meter is not broken" - broken meters are the classic way they rip you off - and, my favorite "I'm not a tourist" - which is basically the way to say, I know the right price and that is what I'm paying.
I've only been ripped off once but it was inevitable. I was leaving the hospital after an appointment and still had a cast on my leg so every taxi was going to way overcharge me. Since then I've become very good at getting the right deal.
And most importantly - a Happy Belated Birthday to Ryan. Sorry I didn't put it in Monday's blog Ry, I meant too.
1. Just last week someone said to me that they hadn't seen many cows around Delhi lately and I realized that was true. I know they are trying to mooove them out of the city and figured that was why. Well last night I must have seen 20 cows in 10 minute - no joke. Apparently they have all just changed location to this one street. It was surprising after not seeing them for a while.
2. On the Indian TV shows and commercials all of the voices sound like they are dubbed. It is so odd it is difficult to explain. Even if the actor is speaking in English and it is their voice own voice it still sounds like they did a voice over. I wonder why. It seems so odd to me. I literally didn't even realize this one commercial was dubbed over until about the 5th time it was on because it sounded like a normal commercial. Oh - commercials here tend to run over and over again. It is as though they only allow 10 different commercials to air at any time so you see them over and over and over again.
3. Hindi lesson update! In last nights class we learned several things about dealing with taxi/rickshaw drivers. We learned 'left', 'right' and 'stop here'. We learned "your meter is not broken" - broken meters are the classic way they rip you off - and, my favorite "I'm not a tourist" - which is basically the way to say, I know the right price and that is what I'm paying.
I've only been ripped off once but it was inevitable. I was leaving the hospital after an appointment and still had a cast on my leg so every taxi was going to way overcharge me. Since then I've become very good at getting the right deal.
And most importantly - a Happy Belated Birthday to Ryan. Sorry I didn't put it in Monday's blog Ry, I meant too.
Monday, October 6, 2008
3 months later
I've been here for 3 months already. Can you believe it? I certainly can't. It has flown by. Every once in a while I find myself thinking "I can't believe I actually did it." I mean to be completely honest, until I was actually on the plane I didn't know if I would actually have the guts to go through with it.
What I really can't believe is that I've been here so long and still haven't made it to the Taj Mahal...hopefully in November.
Sometimes I feel like I'm in a bubble over here. The US economy is apparently going to pot and I'm sitting over here with a maid and a driver (neither of which are as glamorous as it seems...well, the maid bit is really nice). Not that life is super easy here, I'm just so very far removed from what is going on there. I'm not concerned about us not reaching our sales goals because of the economy; it is a total non-issue; people either have money or don't.
I do still feel connected through the Red Sox though (go Sox!). Their last two games have still been going on when I've gotten to the office in the morning (9 a.m. for me is 11:30 p.m. in Boston) so I can "watch" the end of the games on espn.com. That is a fun way to start the day (well, today was good; yesterday not so much), and it helps me to not feel so very far away.
Anyway, must run, its 1:30 and I'm super hungry so should probably get lunch.
Have Hindi class tonight and haven't studied...oops! I'll study over lunch.
What I really can't believe is that I've been here so long and still haven't made it to the Taj Mahal...hopefully in November.
Sometimes I feel like I'm in a bubble over here. The US economy is apparently going to pot and I'm sitting over here with a maid and a driver (neither of which are as glamorous as it seems...well, the maid bit is really nice). Not that life is super easy here, I'm just so very far removed from what is going on there. I'm not concerned about us not reaching our sales goals because of the economy; it is a total non-issue; people either have money or don't.
I do still feel connected through the Red Sox though (go Sox!). Their last two games have still been going on when I've gotten to the office in the morning (9 a.m. for me is 11:30 p.m. in Boston) so I can "watch" the end of the games on espn.com. That is a fun way to start the day (well, today was good; yesterday not so much), and it helps me to not feel so very far away.
Anyway, must run, its 1:30 and I'm super hungry so should probably get lunch.
Have Hindi class tonight and haven't studied...oops! I'll study over lunch.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
rickshaw fun
Yesterday I had the most random rickshaw ride that really felt like something from a movie. So, I leave the office and hop in a rickshaw (my driver had the day off because it was a holiday, why I was working is a whole other story). The ride to my house isn't far, maybe 10 minutes. About half way there I realize that I left my keys at the office. Now, I haven't reached the point in my Hindi classes where I can say "I forgot my keys, please turn around and go back, then wait for me and then we'll take off again". So there was a ridiculous amount of gesturing. It started with "u-turn", then "straight", then "no really, straight", then "u-turn"...you get the idea. By the time we got back to the office he figured it out and waited for me, I ran in and got my keys and ran out then went home.
While he was driving me he asked if I was American, I said yes.
So, he drops me off by my house and I pay him way too much (read: $1.50) because he took me back and forth. Then I hear him calling "ma'am", I turn around and it turns out that my iPod had fallen out and he was bringing it to me. Such honesty! He then points to himself and says "Muslim" as he is handing it over. He wanted me, as an American, to understand that Muslims are good and honest people because we (Americans) are perceived in the world as hating all Muslims. It was such a nice moment. Luckily I don't buy into the whole "all Muslims are bad people" theory; and I hope that he got from that brief interactions with me that not all Americans are filled with hate. I may have come of as extremely flighty (I mean really, I forget my keys and my iPod within 10 minutes, what is wrong with me?), but hopefully I came off as nice too. I suppose it is only appropriate that on Gandhi's birthday we would have such a moment.
And thus ended an eventful and enlightening rickshaw ride.
While he was driving me he asked if I was American, I said yes.
So, he drops me off by my house and I pay him way too much (read: $1.50) because he took me back and forth. Then I hear him calling "ma'am", I turn around and it turns out that my iPod had fallen out and he was bringing it to me. Such honesty! He then points to himself and says "Muslim" as he is handing it over. He wanted me, as an American, to understand that Muslims are good and honest people because we (Americans) are perceived in the world as hating all Muslims. It was such a nice moment. Luckily I don't buy into the whole "all Muslims are bad people" theory; and I hope that he got from that brief interactions with me that not all Americans are filled with hate. I may have come of as extremely flighty (I mean really, I forget my keys and my iPod within 10 minutes, what is wrong with me?), but hopefully I came off as nice too. I suppose it is only appropriate that on Gandhi's birthday we would have such a moment.
And thus ended an eventful and enlightening rickshaw ride.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Gandhi
Today is Gandhi's birthday so it is a national holiday. I thought that was kind of funny when I first heard about it, but then I realized that we have Washington's birthday as a holiday so there really is no difference, it just seems odd to me since Gandhi is a modern figure.
Of course that is kind of where the corollary between the two stop. Washington is someone we read about in history books but hardly ever talk about. Gandhi is seriously loved here. His face is on all of the money. There is a huge memorial to him here in Delhi, it is in the location where he was cremated, and it is somewhat of a pilgrimage site. I imagine that today there are many people at the memorial praying and paying their respects.
I even heard someone in the office explaining to a vegetarian in the office that it was okay if they tried out meat because even Gandhi tried meat when he was young.
Seeing how much he is respected and loved I can only imagine just how difficult life was for Indians when they were still under British control since really, life is still pretty tough for a lot of people in the country.
So, happy Gandhi's birthday all.
Side note: I have noticed that some of my posts show as posting the day before depending on when I post, so today is Oct 2nd my time.
Of course that is kind of where the corollary between the two stop. Washington is someone we read about in history books but hardly ever talk about. Gandhi is seriously loved here. His face is on all of the money. There is a huge memorial to him here in Delhi, it is in the location where he was cremated, and it is somewhat of a pilgrimage site. I imagine that today there are many people at the memorial praying and paying their respects.
I even heard someone in the office explaining to a vegetarian in the office that it was okay if they tried out meat because even Gandhi tried meat when he was young.
Seeing how much he is respected and loved I can only imagine just how difficult life was for Indians when they were still under British control since really, life is still pretty tough for a lot of people in the country.
So, happy Gandhi's birthday all.
Side note: I have noticed that some of my posts show as posting the day before depending on when I post, so today is Oct 2nd my time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
