Namaste Mussoorie

My last night in Mussoorie was amazing. The group went out for dinner where endless appetizers were served with good music outside. After eating (where I consumed 5 pieces of nahn with dinner) we left for Mussoorie's night celebration. Here, a huge Ravanah, the demon king, was lit on fire. The entire town watched the monumental flammable sculpture of the demon king go aflame, and cheered as the fire consumed and left nothing but a pile of ashes. Immediately after was a fireworks show; funny thing is that Mussoorie has what I like to call reverse Fire works. These fly straight into the sky, but after reaching their zenith come back down shooting into the crowd. Pretty cool if I say so myself, but still somewhat terrifying. Would hate to be shot by one of those. I leave for New Delhi bright and early. My time in Mussoorie has been incredible, putting to shame any expectations I may have had. Until we meet again Mussoorie.

-Handwritten September 23, 2009

Joining the fun

Deciding we needed a well-earned break from studying Hindi, Chelsea, Hannah, Jeremy, and I decided to go out for a night on the town. We met some awesome people who were fascinated at the site of us. I think I've become pretty oblivious to people staring since entering India. After some site-seeing, dinner, aquarium-visiting, and general roaming, we decided to head back to HQ, only to be caught in the middle of a wedding procession. Blaring speakers pumping music into the parade of dancing, crowding people in addition to the live marching band and walking light holders all met us on our way back up Mussoorie's hilly streets. What can you do when such an event blocks you from home? You join in. I would say that we were entertained, but I think it was the locals who were far more entertained by our dance moves.

-Handwritten September 22, 2009

History repeating?

I was able to speak with Creena Aurora, a woman who originally came to Mussoorie in the '40s, but actually settled her to live in the '60s. She's a very sharp and knowledgable person. It was awesome to get a perspective from someone with a pretty extensive history in Mussoorie. It fascinates me to see how in some ways Mussoorie is completely breaking away from its original intent with its inhabitants being predominantly Indian (Mussoorie still being quite diverse, which includes a Tibetan community). In other ways, Mussoorie is still living up to its hill town legacy as, according to Creena, tourism is getting out of hand, interfering with architectural preservation. Creena Aurora herself lives in an original British cottage... renovated, of course.

-Handwritten September 21, 2009

Navdanya

Waiting on line to see what was for lunch, I finally reached the first container of food. After filling up my plate with the various foods offered by Navdanya, I hurried to sit down and begin my meal. Within the very first portion touching my tongue I noticed a difference in taste almost immediately. Its odd to describe it as such but I could taste the green of the vegetables and food I was consuming. After eating seconds, thirds, and even fourths, I went about the rest of the day with no usual stomach pains, or uncontrollable urges to run to the bathroom. In fact, after a day in Navdanya, my stomach (which had previously been quite ill) has actually fully recovered. The meals I ate at Navdanya were organic, grown and cooked within the compound. Touring the fields and witnessing the amount of work put into sustaining such a project was indeed an experience to remember.
My initial reaction to my meal times at Navdanya was suspicion. It is no surprise to anyone that I love to eat; in fact, eating is one of my favorite past times. This is even more so when I eat foods that are infused with the history and technique of a given culture. Being Hispanic has only increased such a delight. However, since being in India I have had some ill experiences dealing with my habit of consumption, which has therefore led to my suspicion. My suspicions were not realized, and I wholeheartedly feel that the food at Navdanya has actually had the opposite predicted reaction and healed me. The work and care put into the growth of such foods truly shows when one eats at Navdanya, and I feel food is one facet of culture equally important when compared to the economy, politics, history and many more of a culture.
When I read Vandana Shiva’s Stolen Harvest I felt as though something was finally being done towards the security of food and agriculture. Yes, I live in an apartment in New York City, but I still understand my dependency on the agricultural field for my own sustenance, as well as the knowledge of what I enter into my body. Those who chemically alter foods, pirate the right to grow and work the fields, and commit so many more wrongs are indeed evil. We as a people are already experiencing the effects of poor food quality, yet there is not enough attention being done to change said issues. Vandana Shiva’s book, I therefore feel is a first step in educating the masses on the activity of today’s agricultural businesses. Her movement is equally if not more important, as seed banks can now give farmer’s a chance to grow crops as they were meant to be grown. When reading her work all I could think was “evil geniuses,” only to find that my sentiments were shared exactly among many others. I can only hope to be able to leave such an important mark on the world as Shiva has done.

-Handwritten September 18, 2009

The Yamuna

I dunked my head in the Yamuna River. Some may argue that that may not have been the best decision with pollution and such. But hey, its the Yamuna; if I get sick I say it was worth it. Quite honestly it was when my head was submerged in the glacier-cold water that I felt fully connected with my environment, and in turn, India. Not sure why, Some men were laughing, but I think it was all in good fun. Later, I was given prayer beads by a Sadhu. They're pretty cool, and I've decided to put enough faith in them to believe that I'll be protected from any harm or bacterial sickness that may come my way. I'm really not that worried though.

-Handwritten September 19, 2009.

So surreal

Mussoorie at night looks like a scene out of a movie. If I absolutely had to choos (without doing any justice to what I see), Star Wars actually comes to mind. Staring at the lights in the mountains while Chelsea muses about the stars, along with the cool climate of the Himalayas, all equate to a moment where existance feels all too surreal, but in a good way. I find that I'm feeling more pensive than usual. I'm not saying that I am, or I am not, usually a deep person; I just tend to notice my deep moments more so because India has allowed me to.

-Handwritten September 15, 2009

humor and communication

As of now my Hindi is limited to basic conversation and a few random (at times inappropriate) phrases. This, however, does not stop me from waving someone down and saying "Namaste, ap kaisi/e hei?" to them. This was how I even began my talk with a tailor who is now in the process of making me a kurta. English is prevalently spoken, but even then I try to respond in Hindi. The language school instructors are excellent, and are not afraid to share their humor. My daily exercise is the hike from where we stay, to the language school for study. Walking may not seem that intensive, but Mussoorie has its way of changing minds. Just a note, there's a gang of monkeys and langurs that are quite vicious in the morning. I made the mistake of making eye contact with one in particular and was approached. Granted I'm a city boy, but monkeys present an entirely different situation than I'm used to. I was saved by this super cool man who casually pretended he had a rock, and scared the monkey. I thanked him with my very much practiced "Namaste, ap kaise hei?!"

- Hand written September 13, 2009

A misadventure

During a class assignment involving interviews, Chelsea, Lisa (other students) and I set off together to find people to complete our task. Leaving Chelsea to speak with her informant, and after finding another for Lisa, Lisa and I continued in search for a last informant, with very little success. Through our search I experienced entering a mosque, an awkward conversation with a Sikh man, and finally experienced worship in a Hindu Temple. As Lisa and I were walking passed the temple, we heard chanting, singing and musical instrument playing. Deciding to enter, we met two young girls who spoke perfect English (later to find out that they are the daughters of our Hindi instructor) and asked permission to enter. They assured us we could attend the event, and so we took off our shoes and entered. When we entered we were met by the eyes and singing of thirty to forty women seated on the matted floor. We then decided to try and be as little intrusive as possible, and followed the route the two girls we met were taking. On this route we entered opened rooms with statues of Hindu gods meeting us. We then proceeded to ring a bell, continued on the path to see a lingam, and finally exited the row of rooms to witness a statue I was able to identify as Durga. Deciding we should then leave (in part because we thought it would not be appropriate to accept offerings) we exited with our backs not facing the assembled women and room. We lastly thanked our two youthful guides, and made our way to find our last informant.

I first felt, on our mission to seek an informant, discouraged as finding an appropriate informant proved more difficult than I thought. There was either a language barrier, an issue of lack of interest in talking, or a lack of prior knowledge to actually be able to identify possible informants. It was the latter that led to the awkward conversation with the Sikh man. Before entering the Hindu temple, I was over taken by curiosity. Although we were assured by the two girls that we could enter, Lisa and I still felt apprehensive and were worried that we would somehow offend someone. This is why we decided to follow the movements of the girls. Witnessing the gaze of the first statue I stared at its eyes, my focus slowly moving to its other features. We wanted to participate somehow and decided to ring a bell, only to feel horrible that it rang so loudly. Witnessing the lingam brought a wave of excitement that I was actually able to witness one in person. Similar feelings arose when I identified Durga; I felt a sense of completion that I had the chance to witness that which I’ve studied a country away. We never actually got over our awkward feelings, especially because we did not know proper protocol, which is why we walked out of the temple backwards.
-Handwritten September 12, 2009

A day in the town

Today I went on my first photography walk around, traveling an hour into Mussoorie's hilly body. Although there were amazing sites and buildings, and markets, and people to see, one building in particular stood out for its dilapidating beauty. It was thanks to my guide, Cynthia, that I was able to photograph and enter the architectural beauty. Walking some more we stopped at a cafe for some chai and sweets. New Delhi was amazing, but for now I think my heart is being stolen by Mussoorie.

- Entry handwritten September 11, 2009

Sorry for the wait, but time flies when you're in India

More than 7,000 feet of winding road above sea level and I have arrived in Mussoorie. The ride from New Delhi (which was said to take 8 hours) took fourteen hours of time spent feeling fascinated by the passing sites. True, it was long, but I could hardly take my eyes off of what India offers. From huge statues of Hindu gods, bustling markets, and tons of people to wave to (as I have found that I and the group I'm traveling with are quite the spectacle), the 14-hour-trip sped by like a trip from NYC to SLU (maybe even feeling a little faster, and with more to see). The actual road up the "foothills" of the Himalayas, although dangerous as we almost crashed, was, at the risk of sounding sentimental, almost indescribable. I have never witnessed anything like this and only wish my family could see it. Above the clouds, above creation, we traveled, and I have arrived.
- Entry handwritten September 10, 2009.

Let's see what happens....

So I've been reading up as part of my academic preparation for India. Currently, I'm working on In Spite of The Gods and I have already read Freedom at Midnight. I guess I should first recommend these books! Seriously. I just finished this one chapter, and maybe I'm just naive, but some of the stuff really hit me. The passage was about corruption in the Indian government (not to get all political, but where isn't there corruption), and some of the cases mention were just so... raw. Things just really seem to be put into perspective through my Indian experiences, although I'm not actually in India yet. I've been told over and over how students who go to India come back different. I guess I kind of just brushed it off. I guess its time to put that to the test.

The Technicalities of Readiness

First, I applied for my passport a few months ago in preparation for studying abroad; I received it. Then I applied for my school's study abroad program in India; I got in. I applied for my Tanner Fellowship, and was granted it this past semester. I bought my air ticket, got completely vaccinated, even got my travel back pack (thanks to an oh-so-cool Jo). Now, after checking my mail just a few days ago, I can now FINALLY say that I am ready (at least with all the technicalities) to travel to India. I don't think there's something I can do so that will help me be ready for my future Indian experiences. I RECEIEVD MY VISA!!! See added image for my reaction to the news!

Here we go!

So... this is my first official blog post. True, I'm not technically in India yet, let alone Mussoorie, but I thought getting started wouldn't hurt ;) .

As you can guess from what I just said, I'm traveling to India this Fall. While there, I will spend a week in a hill town station, Mussoorie, where I will be working on a photography project. I want my project to be huge, amazing, a project incomparable to anything I've done in the past; part of it is what I'm doing here, in this blog. While in India I want to document my experiences through mixed digital media, of which includes blogging. This blog will be my way of connecting myself verbally (how I feel, what I'm doing, what's going through my head, etc.) to everyone else.

If interested in seeing any of my previous work, visit http://harlequintheory.deviantart.com/ . My past work is mainly photo-manipulations. Enjoy and/or comment (hopefully both).

There's a ton of people I want to thank for helping me get this far, but for now I'll spotlight Cathy, Carole, the Tanner Fellowship, and everyone else who has supported me thus far.

I'll be blogging randomly until I get to India, where then I will try to have less sporadic, more definite posts. There's still a bunch of things I have to do before leaving for India (I just finished applying for my visa =) ), so I'll have topics to cover until I leave.

Random thought about my trip of the day: My airplane meal is going to be vegetarian; I can't wait to fly to India!!!!!!

Tah tah for now.