Recent Goings-on

So today was the first day I wore typical Indian dress. I actually felt more comfortable. I went to bed at 7:30 last night because I was exhausted from the day. Well, this morning I woke up at 5 again (let's hope this doesn't become a trend). It was still dark out. My bed is actually comfy. It is really only a cot with a big mattress on it and a sheet, but it isn't bad. Anyway, I woke up at 5, hung around and read until 6 then went out for a walk. I had the famous chai for the first time. It tastes more like tomatoes than any chai I know. The way these early-morning cooks make it is with a big pot of boiling milk. It involves some adding of spices and pouring from one pot to another in a long stream then back and forth from galss to pot until it goes back into the glass and into my hand. Even the small shops serve it in actual glass. Customers (meaning just about everyone up at that hour) stand around outside these open-air shops and sip the brown liquid, pay, then wander off. Anyway, I tried it and I liked it.
I stopped at a juice bar and got a pineapple smoothie and two almond-flavored angel food cakes. This was the first time I told anyone I am from Canada. The one person who spoke good English asked which country is mine, so I said Canada, hoping to avoid any sharp glances. It worked. After my breakfast, I walked back to the guest house and took a shower- I really needed it after that half hour outside. Later, I ate a very large brunch (wel, it was at 10:30 in the AM, so I consider it brunch). Now I am here (at the internet cafe, that is)! Hope all is well in the States!

Culture Shock! Or, I am simply shocked by the culture...

Things I would write in a book about the differences of Indian culture to American:
1. When people wobble their heads from side to side, it means they are nodding "yes." Ex.- If you are in a cell phone store and you ask if they have basic phones, the employee will wobble their head from side to side. Don't be fooled! This means they do have what you are looking for.
2. When people nod their head up and down, it means "no." Ex- If you order the Chocolate nut ice cream and the waiter nods, look for something else.
3. When people answer with some sort of mumble to the question, "do you speak English?," it means they don't.
4.Sakh Sagar Veg restaurant serves American- size portions. Order carefully or you will wonder whether you are in India or at The Cheesecake Factory. Ex- The dosa platter is the most expensive dish on the menu for a reason. It is 5 of the light, fried pancake-like breads, each with a different filling, served with 4 chutnies. Do not order this meal if you are planning to have an ice cream sundae for dessert.
5. Early-morning street vendors selling chai mean 2 and a half rupees when they say two-fifty, not two hundred and fifty rupees.
6. The bottled water from the restaurant under the internet cafe has a peculiar taste- almost like spices.
7. The power goes out regularly. Be patient, it should be back on in about 2 minutes.
8. That high-pitched shrieking you hear in the morning isn't a pack of dogs crying. It is a bird in the tree outside your window. NOTE: This sound will make you beg for those annoying wipperwills from Virginia.
9. Rickshaw drivers are extremely tricky. Hire one in motion over the ones sitting in a group on the corner. Work out the price beforehand. Make sure the driver agrees.
10. It doesn't get cool at night.
11. You will feel out of place when sweat drips down your face and it looks like someone just dumped a bucket of water on your head. Indian people don't sweat. The only sign of them being hot is the occasional wipe of a rag on a face.
12. Don't bring your sunglasses. No one wears them exept the very Western tourists.
13. Don't bring sneakers. No one wears them exept the very Western tourists.
14. NEVER cross the street alone. Drivers give the least care to pedestrians. Follow a local if you must cross.
15. DO NOT enter any vehicle if you get carsick. There isn't any sort of order on the roads. It is every man for himself. Think: the highways in Los Angeles.
16. Ladies: Salwars are the way to go. It is like wearing pajamas, with a scarf. Men: You can get by with a towel wrapped around your waist.
17. Yes, your restaurant meal only cost 70 cents.
18. No, your shoes were not brown originally.
19. Yes, that is a dog.

I am in the country!

Hi! What a relief it is to be in my hotel room in Mumbai, on the computer, and have all my luggage here with me. I was increadibly nervous that my checked stuff wouldn't come through and the clothes on my back would have to last me a long time. But, no! All is well with me in Mumbai. It is 5:49 in the morning and I slept a total of three hours last night. I slept on the the second plane ride from Italy (stretched out across the middle row of seats- thank goodness for an empty flight), so by the time I got to the room, it felt like the middle of the afternoon.
This hotel is really cool. It is an ecotel, so all over the room are small signs giving me tips on how to save the environment. The lights are controlled from a switchboard with pictures of each light in the room. When you press the button, a small tone sounds and the light flicks on. It is nice!
So I got in around 10:30 last night. I got my baggage and stepped outside, expecting an onslaught of beggars because I just read the first chapter of "Holy Cow" where the narrarator describes massive crowds of beggars lurking outside the airport doors. This was quite civilized. Sure, there were about fifty people waiting there, but only to pick up people. There was a gated off area where only people waiting to be picked up can wait. Three policeman (one armed) stand in one corner and two others man the exit of the gated area. No one other than airline passengers (not even the hotel reps) can stand in the gated area. That was very comforting.
So I get into the shuttle for my hotel, which was just someone's car (oh and the steering wheel is on the wrong side), and we enter the four-way roundabout sans stoplights and any sort of order. I realized the horn is everyone's turn signal. I saw my first ever rickshaw on the short, crazy ride to the hotel. Wow, the city is stunning. First of all, there were people everywhere- walking through traffic jams, wheeling carts of fruit along the street, feeding the stray dogs, and loitering, in general. There is a strip of hotels right near the airport and next to the fancy Intercontinental's driveway, there is a small shantytown! The city (what I saw of it)was lit up with bright red Christmas lights. There is a ten-day celebration for Lady Ganesha going on and we are on the third day.
I have never, ever been to a place where no one looks like me. My white skin makes me look different. This is absolutely foreign to me and was my first sign of culture shock when we landed. I am taking yet another flight to Chennai this morning. WHen I land, it is a long drive to where I will be staying. More to come later. Peace and Happy Ganeshafest!

The Current Time in Southern India

Still at Home

Hello Friends and Family! This is my very first blog entry. I have set this up to allow you to follow my adventures as I traipse through India and Thailand. My plans thus far are this: On Monday, August 28, I will fly to Milan. From there (after a three-hour layover and numerous gelatos) I will fly to Mumbai (Bombay), India. I am spending the night in Mumbai and the next morning I am flying to Chennai (once known as Madras)- the capitol of Tamil nadu, India's southeastern state where I will be living. Now, Chennai is not my final destination. After I arrive, I have a 14-16 hour drive- practically due south- to Kanyakumari, the southermost tip of India. India is shaped like an upside-down triangle. On a map, Kanyakumari is the black dot at the absolute bottom of the country. Its claim to fame besides being a pilgrimage for Hindus is "where the three seas meet and mingle." The Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the Indian Ocean all come together here. I am really looking forward to the view...and the beach! I am imagining a city rich with history, Hindu temples and statues, resorts, and Indian tourists. It should be quite interesting. More about how my predictions play out later. For now, I am passing my last few days eating meat and playing on the computer. How very North American of me.