7/31/10 5pm
We had an incredibly busy day yesterday and I didn't get home until fairly late- and by then I was both exhausted and relaxed- so that's why I didn't get around to posting an update.
Yesterday was quite an exciting day! We were granted leave from our regular KV host schools to visit a school run by Deepalaya, an NGO that has a number of projects and initiatives going to empower people and communities in India. The organization has been around for over 30 years and their school was a really wonderful place. It seemed to me like the Indian equivalent of a charter school (except it was run without any public funding). They receive their funds from the NGO and from donors and grants, and charge very nominal fees to the students; when students' families have a difficult time paying, the organization helps their families find gainful employment so that they can not only pay their expenses, but become self-sufficient in a sustainable way. I really liked their philosophy, and I wish I could have learned more. Thankfully, we were given information packets by the Principal plus I hear they have an excellent website- so whenever I get around to looking at that, I'm sure I'll be ready to make a donation- and so will you!
Anyway, we spent a good amount of time with the principal, had a tour of the school, met one of the founders, and most important, taught demonstration lessons in teams to classes of actual students. Our lesson was on poetry, and there were three of us working together to read, interpret, and respond to poetry. I won't bore you with the details, but it was an enlightening experience to hear the students' interpretation of the poem. The math teachers and the science teachers had equally successful lessons. Given that we didn't know much about the students or their prior knowledge before walking into the classroom, I think we did admirably- and this is great practice for me because in just over a month I'll be getting acquainted with the Class of 2014!
I definitely noticed some similarities between my host school and the NGO school. Not having spent much time in either school I can't say whether one was more effective than the other. But I suppose comparing KV No. 2 to Deepalaya School would be like comparing apples to oranges, as each school has a vastly different mission and caters to a vastly different community. Either way, it is an invaluable experience to see that just as in America, there is no such thing as a "typical Indian school"- each has its own personality. Next week we'll be visiting another school to teach another demo lesson, and that will undoubtedly give me an even better picture of the variety within the Indian educational system. I'm really thankful to have all these opportunities!
We spent the afternoon touring the Presidential Palace- the Indian version of the White House. One of our group members, David, works with someone who has great connections, so we were able to get an invite. Only 200-500 people visit the palace each day, and there are tour guides that take each group around. The palace was built during the British Raj when the rest of New Delhi was constructed. It is quite impressive and conveys a sense of power and prestige without being opulent or posh. We saw life-size portraits of all the British folks who held important posts during the Raj, gifts given to India by other countries (a wide variety!), old photographs, paintings of important historical events, and a couple contemporary works by Indian artists. We also saw the ballroom, which had a stunning ceiling mural of animals, people, and flowers- words can't describe it. We saw the place where Indian independence was declared at midnight on August 15, 1947, and we also saw the dining room which is decorated with swords and more paintings of dignitaries, and has a table that seats 104 people. The British Prime Minister was just there, and there were people bustling around cleaning up the place as we walked through. Finally, we saw the Mughal Gardens, which were more French/British in style than Indian. It was sort of like Versailles, on a smaller scale. We weren't able to bring in cameras, unfortunately.
As soon as we got back to the hotel, some of us decided that it was high time for a visit to the Taj Mahal hotel for a swim. I hadn't been there yet, so I was delighted to go. Because our hotel doesn't have a pool itself, we are allowed to take a free car over there (it's about 5-10 minutes away) to use the facilities. And boy, we did. The pool is enormous and luxurious, and they also have a spa area with a jacuzzi, steam room, and sauna. Plus really nice showers. We ordered some poolside cocktails and had dinner there as well- kinda pricey but why not? I really felt like I was on vacation! It was such a relaxing way to spend an evening after a day of having to be on point, and it's something I will repeat as much as I can before I go back to the good old USA!
This morning, it was up early for a day at school. Yes, many schools in India run 6 days a week! The teachers are always quick to remind you that they have the second Saturday of each month off and work fewer hours each day- but still! I don't think I could handle that schedule. Because the students are in the middle of exams (Philly teachers: think Benchmarks… in every class… and the teachers have to grade them all by hand!) the class schedule was not the normal one, so I didn't actually end up teaching any classes. However, I spent some time talking with the teachers about cultural differences between India and America, and got some reading done. I also watched the teachers do the monthly reconciliation of their roll books, which is something quite familiar to us in Philadelphia! I'm telling you, once you get over the initial superficial differences there is so much alike between my home school and my host school!
Just as students were being dismissed, the power went out and the school was plunged into darkness for about 45 minutes. There was a pretty serious thunderstorm going on with very strong rains and winds and it was very dark outside. Exciting!!! I was glad it happened during the day and when I was safe inside, and it was over soon enough. By the time I left school a couple hours later it was only raining lightly, and now a few hours later it has stopped completely. So far this has been our third big rainstorm in as many weeks, and the rainstorms are quite a spectacle to behold! I hope for a couple more before we head back to the states.
After the official school day was over, I attended the staff meeting. Staff meetings in India are a little bit different (assuming this one was a typical meeting) in that it was just administrators talking about certain problems at the school and other issues, without input or questions from the staff. At SOTF, all we do during staff meetings (sometimes) is debate- so this was quite a different experience! The whole thing was in Hindi, so I understood not a word of it- luckily my cooperating teacher was next to me taking notes in English so I peeked over her shoulder every now and then to see what they were talking about.
Then there was a series of speeches and songs from teachers to honor a teacher who is retiring. In India, teachers retire when they turn 60, and so this was a very special day. This teacher, Mrs. Thakur, is very sweet and wonderful and kind and loving, and I will never forget that she took care of me at school one day when I wasn't feeling well by giving me a banana that settled my stomach right away. Her three children and two grandchildren were there to participate in the festivities, and I was able to talk to them a bit and let them know how many wonderful things their mom had to say about them, and how nicely she treated me during my time at the school. Unfortunately, all of the farewell speeches and songs were in Hindi, so I really had no idea what people were saying, but I could get sort of an idea from the periodic translations from my cooperating teacher plus people's facial expressions.
After the lunch, I came back to the hotel and was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the hours of Hindi I had just endured. I went over to the market after a short nap to buy some books, and unless something else comes up I plan to spend some time reading this evening. I may or may not go out, we'll see, and as tomorrow is my only day off this week I will savor the opportunity to sleep past 6am!
The days are really flying by, and I'm thankful to be experiencing so many interesting and exciting things. I'm not sure what tomorrow will bring, but I'm sure it'll be a blast.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Pictures!
Click here to see all the pictures I've taken so far- it looks like I've figured out how to sort them so they should be in the correct chronological order. I haven't gotten around to captioning them yet because it's kind of a pain with Picasa (which I thought would be easy).
Tomorrow we're teaching demonstration lessons at another local school, by subject group. I'll be working with the two other English teachers in our group to teach a lesson about poetry!
For those folks too lazy to click, here is one picture of me at the Taj Mahal. I took it myself:
Tomorrow we're teaching demonstration lessons at another local school, by subject group. I'll be working with the two other English teachers in our group to teach a lesson about poetry!
For those folks too lazy to click, here is one picture of me at the Taj Mahal. I took it myself:
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
The Taj Mahal etc.
7/28/10 5pm
A disjointed description of our trip to Agra follows:
First and foremost, the Taj Mahal. It's going to sound like a cliché to say this, but there really aren't words to describe how beautiful and magnificent it is. And pictures don't capture it, at all. But I took lots of them anyway because when I look at them, I'll be able to remember in my mind's eye what I saw. I don't remember feeling in such awe of it when I saw it in 2000, so I suppose I'm now older and wiser!
The full moon viewing was really neat. Security was quite tight- a couple sets of metal detectors and full-body patdowns, and we weren't able to take ANYTHING in except our cameras- and the tickets were issued specially in our names only. We could only go inside the gate- about 200 yards from the Taj itself. There were armed guards everywhere and they only allow 30 to a group, for 30 minutes at a time. So it is a privilege to get tickets, and I am thankful we could! Unfortunately… I didn't get to see moonlight glistening off the marble domes- it was a bit cloudy- but what a rare treat to be there when it was completely empty and quiet! The Taj Mahal itself loomed off in the distance, lit only by the moon, almost a ghostly presence. As I gazed at it, I pictured what it might have looked like if it had been a clear sky. I pictured the full moon gleaming off the clouds, the stars above, and glistening marble. Very breathtaking!
Then we went back to the Taj in the morning. We left the hotel at 5:30 so we could be there at 6 when the Taj opens. This served three great purposes: the heat wasn't so bad, it wasn't crowded, and best of all, the light was wonderful. As the sun rose higher in the sky, the color of the Taj Mahal changes. It went from a cool gray, to a buttery yellow, to a gleaming white. I was so lucky to be able to witness this! Again, words don't really describe it. Anyway, we walked around the grounds, took a lot of pictures, made comments about the wardrobes of all the tourists there. Apparently MC Hammer pants are a big trend amongst the European backpackers. Should I try to score a pair?
The other sightseeing component of the trip was an excursion to Fatehpur Sikri. It's basically an abandoned palace and mosque complex that was built and inhabited a couple hundred years ago by one of the Mughals. It was distinctly different from the other monuments I've seen so far- it reminded me a lot of the Forbidden City in Beijing (which I also visited in 2000) and there were lots of interesting nooks and crannies to explore, and our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the purposes of the various areas we went through. Additionally, we went to the mosque area which also has Chittri's tomb. The inside of the tomb was quite spectacularly painted with flowers and the marble had gorgeous inlay- if it looks this beautiful in 2010 I can't even imagine how it must have looked when it was first built. Anyway- there's a tradition at the tomb to tie a thread around the marble lattice that serves as a window into the tomb, and make a wish. I am a sucker for things like this so naturally, I got some thread from the guy there and made my wish very earnestly. (If you want to learn more about Fatehpur Sikri just check out this Wikipedia page as a starting point: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatehpur_Sikri).
Also, the hotel was really nice, and instead of doing some more sightseeing I opted to stay back and get a spa treatment. My treatment was called a Spice Rub. It consisted of about 30 minutes of me being vigorously scrubbed with warm oil mixed with spices, followed by about 15 minutes wrapped in warm towels soaking it all in. The spices used were things like cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, things like that. It was relaxing and invigorating at the same time, and afterwards I felt wonderful! What am I going to do when I get back to the US and can't afford these frequent luxurious beauty treatments? Well, maybe I can get enough of them while I'm here that I get sick of them? Think that will work?
But perhaps the most interesting part of the trip was the drive there and back. It was about 6 hours each way, in a very luxurious and spacious mini-bus that had great air conditioning. Like I said in my earlier entry, it was totally different than taking a road trip in the US in that it was all on what you would consider back roads or rural/state/county highways. We passed by numerous Dhabas- outdoor restaurants with attached inns- and through many small towns. We also saw a bit of rural life: cows, pigs, goats, and people in the fields. Every stretch of road had something new and exciting to see, and in between little catnaps I just looked out the window trying to take it all in. I saw and elephant and a camel, even.
You know how there is that stereotype about cows being everywhere in India? Well, outside the cities it's basically true. Families keep cows for a certain number of years (until they can no longer produce milk) and then let them go, at which point they essentially become stray animals because it is illegal in India to kill a cow. Fortunately, within the Circle of Life that is India, the cows still serve a purpose: since there's no formal organized garbage collection in most of India, the cows (and pigs, and other stray animals) take care of consuming things like food scraps, and their dung is a great fuel. Not the system we are used to in the US- but a system nonetheless!
Anyway, now I am back to my normal routine of school in the morning followed by miscellaneous stuff in the afternoon and an early bedtime. Today I actually had to do errands: take laundry to the cleaners, pick up my new Salwar Kameez, and go to the ATM. I also went to the gym. So I am maintaining a pretty busy schedule I guess- and the time is flying by. In just over two weeks I'll be on my way home- hard to believe! There are still a couple places I would like to visit, but, now that I have seen the Taj Mahal (again) it seems like everything else would just pale in comparison. I plan to visit Jantar Mantar (an observatory, which is supposed to be really cool) and hoping to make it to Akshardham Temple. Both of these places have been highly recommended to me by guidebooks, people, and the students at my host school, so I know they are well worth the time and effort! The other place I plan to check out is a crafts bazaar called Dilli Haat. You know, for gifts.
Well I've just spent over an hour writing this blog entry and still have so much to say- but I will have to leave that for another time, as my internet time is almost up.
A disjointed description of our trip to Agra follows:
First and foremost, the Taj Mahal. It's going to sound like a cliché to say this, but there really aren't words to describe how beautiful and magnificent it is. And pictures don't capture it, at all. But I took lots of them anyway because when I look at them, I'll be able to remember in my mind's eye what I saw. I don't remember feeling in such awe of it when I saw it in 2000, so I suppose I'm now older and wiser!
The full moon viewing was really neat. Security was quite tight- a couple sets of metal detectors and full-body patdowns, and we weren't able to take ANYTHING in except our cameras- and the tickets were issued specially in our names only. We could only go inside the gate- about 200 yards from the Taj itself. There were armed guards everywhere and they only allow 30 to a group, for 30 minutes at a time. So it is a privilege to get tickets, and I am thankful we could! Unfortunately… I didn't get to see moonlight glistening off the marble domes- it was a bit cloudy- but what a rare treat to be there when it was completely empty and quiet! The Taj Mahal itself loomed off in the distance, lit only by the moon, almost a ghostly presence. As I gazed at it, I pictured what it might have looked like if it had been a clear sky. I pictured the full moon gleaming off the clouds, the stars above, and glistening marble. Very breathtaking!
Then we went back to the Taj in the morning. We left the hotel at 5:30 so we could be there at 6 when the Taj opens. This served three great purposes: the heat wasn't so bad, it wasn't crowded, and best of all, the light was wonderful. As the sun rose higher in the sky, the color of the Taj Mahal changes. It went from a cool gray, to a buttery yellow, to a gleaming white. I was so lucky to be able to witness this! Again, words don't really describe it. Anyway, we walked around the grounds, took a lot of pictures, made comments about the wardrobes of all the tourists there. Apparently MC Hammer pants are a big trend amongst the European backpackers. Should I try to score a pair?
The other sightseeing component of the trip was an excursion to Fatehpur Sikri. It's basically an abandoned palace and mosque complex that was built and inhabited a couple hundred years ago by one of the Mughals. It was distinctly different from the other monuments I've seen so far- it reminded me a lot of the Forbidden City in Beijing (which I also visited in 2000) and there were lots of interesting nooks and crannies to explore, and our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the purposes of the various areas we went through. Additionally, we went to the mosque area which also has Chittri's tomb. The inside of the tomb was quite spectacularly painted with flowers and the marble had gorgeous inlay- if it looks this beautiful in 2010 I can't even imagine how it must have looked when it was first built. Anyway- there's a tradition at the tomb to tie a thread around the marble lattice that serves as a window into the tomb, and make a wish. I am a sucker for things like this so naturally, I got some thread from the guy there and made my wish very earnestly. (If you want to learn more about Fatehpur Sikri just check out this Wikipedia page as a starting point: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatehpur_Sikri).
Also, the hotel was really nice, and instead of doing some more sightseeing I opted to stay back and get a spa treatment. My treatment was called a Spice Rub. It consisted of about 30 minutes of me being vigorously scrubbed with warm oil mixed with spices, followed by about 15 minutes wrapped in warm towels soaking it all in. The spices used were things like cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, things like that. It was relaxing and invigorating at the same time, and afterwards I felt wonderful! What am I going to do when I get back to the US and can't afford these frequent luxurious beauty treatments? Well, maybe I can get enough of them while I'm here that I get sick of them? Think that will work?
But perhaps the most interesting part of the trip was the drive there and back. It was about 6 hours each way, in a very luxurious and spacious mini-bus that had great air conditioning. Like I said in my earlier entry, it was totally different than taking a road trip in the US in that it was all on what you would consider back roads or rural/state/county highways. We passed by numerous Dhabas- outdoor restaurants with attached inns- and through many small towns. We also saw a bit of rural life: cows, pigs, goats, and people in the fields. Every stretch of road had something new and exciting to see, and in between little catnaps I just looked out the window trying to take it all in. I saw and elephant and a camel, even.
You know how there is that stereotype about cows being everywhere in India? Well, outside the cities it's basically true. Families keep cows for a certain number of years (until they can no longer produce milk) and then let them go, at which point they essentially become stray animals because it is illegal in India to kill a cow. Fortunately, within the Circle of Life that is India, the cows still serve a purpose: since there's no formal organized garbage collection in most of India, the cows (and pigs, and other stray animals) take care of consuming things like food scraps, and their dung is a great fuel. Not the system we are used to in the US- but a system nonetheless!
Anyway, now I am back to my normal routine of school in the morning followed by miscellaneous stuff in the afternoon and an early bedtime. Today I actually had to do errands: take laundry to the cleaners, pick up my new Salwar Kameez, and go to the ATM. I also went to the gym. So I am maintaining a pretty busy schedule I guess- and the time is flying by. In just over two weeks I'll be on my way home- hard to believe! There are still a couple places I would like to visit, but, now that I have seen the Taj Mahal (again) it seems like everything else would just pale in comparison. I plan to visit Jantar Mantar (an observatory, which is supposed to be really cool) and hoping to make it to Akshardham Temple. Both of these places have been highly recommended to me by guidebooks, people, and the students at my host school, so I know they are well worth the time and effort! The other place I plan to check out is a crafts bazaar called Dilli Haat. You know, for gifts.
Well I've just spent over an hour writing this blog entry and still have so much to say- but I will have to leave that for another time, as my internet time is almost up.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Back from Agra
So in the past hour I have either spoken with or g-chatted with about 6 people who have said that they love reading my blog! This is wonderful to hear. I really miss everybody I left behind when I came to India, so knowing that people read this blog helps me feel connected to the folks on the other side of the world.
Anyway, I am completely exhausted (and probably incoherent) from the trip to Agra, and will probably go to bed early tonight, but let me tell you that the excursion was amazing and I will definitely write a more detailed post tomorrow.
The Taj Mahal was absolutely gorgeous and awe-inspiring. There is no way anybody could take a picture or put into words what it is actually like to be there and experience it with your own eyes. We saw it at night, and then again just after sunrise, and though I have already been there (on Semester at Sea, in October 2000) it was still just as amazing, or perhaps more so, the second time around.
But the most interesting part of the trip was the 6 hour drive between Delhi and Agra. Sitting in the comfort of an air-conditioned and quite roomy bus, I watched the countryside go by, passing through small towns and rural villages. It's not like in the States where everywhere you go is on an expressway and it all looks the same... there were interesting things to look at the ENTIRE way.
India is such a land of interesting contrasts. There are the wealthy, and there are the extremely poor. No violence towards cows is allowed, but literally every day I open the Times of India to read stories about honor killings. And this is how things are here. The list goes on and on. It is absolutely fascinating and thought-provoking.
But right now I am way too tired to think- and it's back to school tomorrow! Pictures coming soon! I miss you all!
Anyway, I am completely exhausted (and probably incoherent) from the trip to Agra, and will probably go to bed early tonight, but let me tell you that the excursion was amazing and I will definitely write a more detailed post tomorrow.
The Taj Mahal was absolutely gorgeous and awe-inspiring. There is no way anybody could take a picture or put into words what it is actually like to be there and experience it with your own eyes. We saw it at night, and then again just after sunrise, and though I have already been there (on Semester at Sea, in October 2000) it was still just as amazing, or perhaps more so, the second time around.
But the most interesting part of the trip was the 6 hour drive between Delhi and Agra. Sitting in the comfort of an air-conditioned and quite roomy bus, I watched the countryside go by, passing through small towns and rural villages. It's not like in the States where everywhere you go is on an expressway and it all looks the same... there were interesting things to look at the ENTIRE way.
India is such a land of interesting contrasts. There are the wealthy, and there are the extremely poor. No violence towards cows is allowed, but literally every day I open the Times of India to read stories about honor killings. And this is how things are here. The list goes on and on. It is absolutely fascinating and thought-provoking.
But right now I am way too tired to think- and it's back to school tomorrow! Pictures coming soon! I miss you all!
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Long post about the second half of my weekend
7/25/10 9pm
As I sit here Sunday evening while enjoying my room service dinner (swanky, I know, but I'm exhausted and busy packing for my trip) I can't believe we've come to the end of the third weekend of this wonderful journey. I know I sound like a broken record when I say that every moment of the day I'm learning something new about all sorts of things- but it's the truth. I thought I was going to write a long entry tonight and post it, but I figured I would treat myself to another hour of internet access because, why not.
The second half of my weekend was quite interesting. Beth and I met up with Akshat, a friend of a friend of a friend (something like that) and HIS friend for what turned out to be an evening full of adventure! Akshat is a doctor, and he is busy working for the anti-doping branch of the upcoming Commonwealth Games. So basically his job is to inform athletes that they are going to be drug-tested and then usher them through the process. Sounds like quite an exciting job, right? His friend, whose name I never caught, is the assistant to some top brass guy in the Indian Army. He has spent time in a bunch of different locations: Iraq, Israel, and more, and is currently stationed in Delhi. These two guys have known each other since they were little kids in school, and throughout the evening it was wonderful to see the affection and high regard they have for each other. They were also very friendly and hospitable- but then, aren't all the Indian people I've met?
We started off the evening with coffee, spent some time trying to figure out where to eat, and then abandoned the idea of dinner altogether to go for drinks at this nightclub called RPM, located in the "hip" Vasant Vihar neighborhood of New Delhi. Guys, you know me- you know that going to loud clubs with DJ music is not my cup of tea- so I embraced the opportunity to do something I don't ordinarily do. The DJ was great and played a good variety of songs that are apparently popular in India plus songs that are apparently popular in the US. There were people dancing like crazy. It was almost like being in the middle of a Bollywood video, I guess that's the only way to describe it to someone who has never set foot in an Indian nightclub. When I got home after 1am, after quite an exciting drive through the quiet night-time streets of the city, I was totally beat. Beth and the guys got a bite to eat at our hotel's 24 hour restaurant but I didn't think I would be able to stay awake through that!
Which brings us to today. I woke up wondering what I would do and thinking that it would be fun to try some solo sightseeing because I hadn't done that yet. I took a look at my map of Delhi and decided I'd be able to see a couple temples in one shot: the Lotus Temple and the ISKCON Temple. Outside the hotel gates, I was lucky to encounter Mr. Kumar, who ended up being my tour guide for a couple hours- and this was great!
He did the thing that a lot of auto drivers and taxi drivers like to do, which is to take you to places where you can shop in addition to the stops you have already specified. So the first place we went was a higher-end textiles and crafts market, where I purchased some gifts for folks at home. The prices were higher than what I have grown used to paying, but nonetheless I still feel like I got some good deals! Salespeople in India are so funny- always unabashedly trying to talk you into buying multiple items or things you have not expressed interest in. They will literally show you every single item in their store unless you draw the line! Americans, I think, are used to being very polite and saying "I'm not interested" in indirect ways, and I have found this does not work in India. You have to know what you want, and get in and out and be firm without being rude. Otherwise, you'll end up over budget, or buying multiple items because you feel indecisive, which is what happened to me at this particular store. So, be firm, that is my shopping tip for India.
After my first shopping stop, Mr. Kumar took me to the Lotus Temple. The Lotus Temple is a beautiful landmark of New Delhi, on a nicely maintained landscaped campus- the building is actually shaped like a giant lotus and it's one of the world centers of the Baha'I faith. Inside the temple are simple benches you can sit on, and there is no talking allowed inside, just sitting and thinking. It was peaceful and serene. On the way out I got a brochure about Baha'I but I haven't read it yet, so I guess if you want to know more about Baha'I you'll have to find out yourself.
Then, another shopping trip. This time I actually limited myself to things that have been on my gift list, plus one thing I have been planning to get for the house (not telling!!!!). I was in and out of there in about ten minutes and then finally got to visit the ISKCON Temple! Unfortunately Mr. Kumar said we could only stay 30 minutes because of some kind of parking situation, and at that point I didn't want to argue because it was getting to be the heat of the day. I regret not being more insistent on staying because I could have spent hours there! It's in a beautiful complex that contains the Vedic Expo (which to my knowledge is a multimedia show, complete with a talking robot, about the Hare Krishna philosophy) plus there's a restaurant and a book and gift shop. I went into the temple room to see the deities, which were supposed to be out according to the information I had looked up, but unfortunately they were not. However, there were some devotees chanting and it was a pleasant atmosphere so I enjoyed it for as long as possible before hopping back into the auto rickshaw and coming back to the hotel.
I thought I was in for the day, but after the heat of the day passed, Beth and I ended up going over to Jama Masjid in Old Delhi. Jama Masjid is a mosque built a few hundred years ago and it sort of looks like the Taj Mahal but made out of sandstone and on a much smaller scale.
But I should back up and describe our ride there. So, the auto drivers… sometimes they are not as nice as Mr. Kumar. Sometimes they do not speak a lick of English. And sometimes they decide that they suddenly need to refill their CNG canister (CNG is compressed natural gas- it's how a lot of vehicles in India are running these days and let me tell you, way less pollution!) in the middle of taking you somewhere. So we got into this long line of about 30-40 autos… and had no idea what was going on. Anyway, that was interesting. I knew it would happen at some point, I just wasn’t sure when, and I was hoping that it wouldn’t be at a time where I actually had some place to be.
So Jama Masjid. We wore our Indian gear so as not to be hassled by the people who run the mosque, and I'm glad we did because all the other non-Indian people there ended up having to put on these incredibly strange looking hospital gown type getups because they were believed to be inappropriately dressed. Just after we arrived we heard the muezzin and watched the people do their prayers and afterwards we were able to go into the mosque itself. We walked around a bit, took a bunch of pictures, people-watched, and sat on the outside steps before leaving to watch the sky full of kites being flown by kids standing on rooftops. I couldn't tell whether the pictures I took captured the kites in the sky, but it was an image I won't soon forget.
Anyway, it was exciting to see Old Delhi. And by exciting, I mean, it was a completely insane place. Old Delhi is kind of what you think of India as being like. Narrow crowded streets with people, bicycle rickshaws, motorbikes, auto rickshaws, and carts, all trying to push past each other. Total chaos and a strange mixture of the most pleasant, and the most unpleasant, smells. Stalls lining the alleys selling things like kebabs and books. Lots and lots of live animals (we saw chickens, other birds, roosters, and a giant goat) and lots and lots of dead animals (um, the head of a goat, just to give one example) covered in flies either before or after cooking. I'm pretty sure that sight would turn anybody vegetarian. We weren't even there for that long but I was completely fascinated by everything I saw. I'm not sure if I have the guts to spend more time exploring Old Delhi, but if I do I can be sure that it will be quite an adventure.
So that was my weekend- action packed and full of memorable experiences, all of which are documented photographically. When I get back from the Taj I'll do another picture post (hopefully Picasa won't confuse me so much this time around) so all the wonderful people who are following my blog can share the wonder.
Well, it's about time for me to finish packing and get to bed early, as I have some more action-packed days ahead. Also, Titanic is on. Until next time!
As I sit here Sunday evening while enjoying my room service dinner (swanky, I know, but I'm exhausted and busy packing for my trip) I can't believe we've come to the end of the third weekend of this wonderful journey. I know I sound like a broken record when I say that every moment of the day I'm learning something new about all sorts of things- but it's the truth. I thought I was going to write a long entry tonight and post it, but I figured I would treat myself to another hour of internet access because, why not.
The second half of my weekend was quite interesting. Beth and I met up with Akshat, a friend of a friend of a friend (something like that) and HIS friend for what turned out to be an evening full of adventure! Akshat is a doctor, and he is busy working for the anti-doping branch of the upcoming Commonwealth Games. So basically his job is to inform athletes that they are going to be drug-tested and then usher them through the process. Sounds like quite an exciting job, right? His friend, whose name I never caught, is the assistant to some top brass guy in the Indian Army. He has spent time in a bunch of different locations: Iraq, Israel, and more, and is currently stationed in Delhi. These two guys have known each other since they were little kids in school, and throughout the evening it was wonderful to see the affection and high regard they have for each other. They were also very friendly and hospitable- but then, aren't all the Indian people I've met?
We started off the evening with coffee, spent some time trying to figure out where to eat, and then abandoned the idea of dinner altogether to go for drinks at this nightclub called RPM, located in the "hip" Vasant Vihar neighborhood of New Delhi. Guys, you know me- you know that going to loud clubs with DJ music is not my cup of tea- so I embraced the opportunity to do something I don't ordinarily do. The DJ was great and played a good variety of songs that are apparently popular in India plus songs that are apparently popular in the US. There were people dancing like crazy. It was almost like being in the middle of a Bollywood video, I guess that's the only way to describe it to someone who has never set foot in an Indian nightclub. When I got home after 1am, after quite an exciting drive through the quiet night-time streets of the city, I was totally beat. Beth and the guys got a bite to eat at our hotel's 24 hour restaurant but I didn't think I would be able to stay awake through that!
Which brings us to today. I woke up wondering what I would do and thinking that it would be fun to try some solo sightseeing because I hadn't done that yet. I took a look at my map of Delhi and decided I'd be able to see a couple temples in one shot: the Lotus Temple and the ISKCON Temple. Outside the hotel gates, I was lucky to encounter Mr. Kumar, who ended up being my tour guide for a couple hours- and this was great!
He did the thing that a lot of auto drivers and taxi drivers like to do, which is to take you to places where you can shop in addition to the stops you have already specified. So the first place we went was a higher-end textiles and crafts market, where I purchased some gifts for folks at home. The prices were higher than what I have grown used to paying, but nonetheless I still feel like I got some good deals! Salespeople in India are so funny- always unabashedly trying to talk you into buying multiple items or things you have not expressed interest in. They will literally show you every single item in their store unless you draw the line! Americans, I think, are used to being very polite and saying "I'm not interested" in indirect ways, and I have found this does not work in India. You have to know what you want, and get in and out and be firm without being rude. Otherwise, you'll end up over budget, or buying multiple items because you feel indecisive, which is what happened to me at this particular store. So, be firm, that is my shopping tip for India.
After my first shopping stop, Mr. Kumar took me to the Lotus Temple. The Lotus Temple is a beautiful landmark of New Delhi, on a nicely maintained landscaped campus- the building is actually shaped like a giant lotus and it's one of the world centers of the Baha'I faith. Inside the temple are simple benches you can sit on, and there is no talking allowed inside, just sitting and thinking. It was peaceful and serene. On the way out I got a brochure about Baha'I but I haven't read it yet, so I guess if you want to know more about Baha'I you'll have to find out yourself.
Then, another shopping trip. This time I actually limited myself to things that have been on my gift list, plus one thing I have been planning to get for the house (not telling!!!!). I was in and out of there in about ten minutes and then finally got to visit the ISKCON Temple! Unfortunately Mr. Kumar said we could only stay 30 minutes because of some kind of parking situation, and at that point I didn't want to argue because it was getting to be the heat of the day. I regret not being more insistent on staying because I could have spent hours there! It's in a beautiful complex that contains the Vedic Expo (which to my knowledge is a multimedia show, complete with a talking robot, about the Hare Krishna philosophy) plus there's a restaurant and a book and gift shop. I went into the temple room to see the deities, which were supposed to be out according to the information I had looked up, but unfortunately they were not. However, there were some devotees chanting and it was a pleasant atmosphere so I enjoyed it for as long as possible before hopping back into the auto rickshaw and coming back to the hotel.
I thought I was in for the day, but after the heat of the day passed, Beth and I ended up going over to Jama Masjid in Old Delhi. Jama Masjid is a mosque built a few hundred years ago and it sort of looks like the Taj Mahal but made out of sandstone and on a much smaller scale.
But I should back up and describe our ride there. So, the auto drivers… sometimes they are not as nice as Mr. Kumar. Sometimes they do not speak a lick of English. And sometimes they decide that they suddenly need to refill their CNG canister (CNG is compressed natural gas- it's how a lot of vehicles in India are running these days and let me tell you, way less pollution!) in the middle of taking you somewhere. So we got into this long line of about 30-40 autos… and had no idea what was going on. Anyway, that was interesting. I knew it would happen at some point, I just wasn’t sure when, and I was hoping that it wouldn’t be at a time where I actually had some place to be.
So Jama Masjid. We wore our Indian gear so as not to be hassled by the people who run the mosque, and I'm glad we did because all the other non-Indian people there ended up having to put on these incredibly strange looking hospital gown type getups because they were believed to be inappropriately dressed. Just after we arrived we heard the muezzin and watched the people do their prayers and afterwards we were able to go into the mosque itself. We walked around a bit, took a bunch of pictures, people-watched, and sat on the outside steps before leaving to watch the sky full of kites being flown by kids standing on rooftops. I couldn't tell whether the pictures I took captured the kites in the sky, but it was an image I won't soon forget.
Anyway, it was exciting to see Old Delhi. And by exciting, I mean, it was a completely insane place. Old Delhi is kind of what you think of India as being like. Narrow crowded streets with people, bicycle rickshaws, motorbikes, auto rickshaws, and carts, all trying to push past each other. Total chaos and a strange mixture of the most pleasant, and the most unpleasant, smells. Stalls lining the alleys selling things like kebabs and books. Lots and lots of live animals (we saw chickens, other birds, roosters, and a giant goat) and lots and lots of dead animals (um, the head of a goat, just to give one example) covered in flies either before or after cooking. I'm pretty sure that sight would turn anybody vegetarian. We weren't even there for that long but I was completely fascinated by everything I saw. I'm not sure if I have the guts to spend more time exploring Old Delhi, but if I do I can be sure that it will be quite an adventure.
So that was my weekend- action packed and full of memorable experiences, all of which are documented photographically. When I get back from the Taj I'll do another picture post (hopefully Picasa won't confuse me so much this time around) so all the wonderful people who are following my blog can share the wonder.
Well, it's about time for me to finish packing and get to bed early, as I have some more action-packed days ahead. Also, Titanic is on. Until next time!
What a whirlwind!
7/25/10- 3:30pm
I'll write more later and post it on Tuesday when I get back from the Taj Mahal- but- last night Beth and I went to an Indian night club. In the email I just wrote to Jason I described it as "a hoot" but I don't think that does it justice. I had a really great time!
Today, some solo sightseeing in an auto rickshaw: a couple higher-end craft emporiums (finally found something my dad and brother will like) plus the Lotus Temple (Baha'i) and the ISKCON Temple (Hare Krishnas). I would really like to go back to the Hare Krishna temple because I've heard they have a delicious restaurant there, and considering I used to visit the Philly temple on a weekly basis it's something I would love to do.
In a little while I'm gonna go check out Jama Masjid (a mosque... I guess I am hitting every faith today) and head in early for the night to wash some clothes, pack, and rest up for our excursion. We leave at 6:30am tomorrow!!!
I'll write more later and post it on Tuesday when I get back from the Taj Mahal- but- last night Beth and I went to an Indian night club. In the email I just wrote to Jason I described it as "a hoot" but I don't think that does it justice. I had a really great time!
Today, some solo sightseeing in an auto rickshaw: a couple higher-end craft emporiums (finally found something my dad and brother will like) plus the Lotus Temple (Baha'i) and the ISKCON Temple (Hare Krishnas). I would really like to go back to the Hare Krishna temple because I've heard they have a delicious restaurant there, and considering I used to visit the Philly temple on a weekly basis it's something I would love to do.
In a little while I'm gonna go check out Jama Masjid (a mosque... I guess I am hitting every faith today) and head in early for the night to wash some clothes, pack, and rest up for our excursion. We leave at 6:30am tomorrow!!!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Thanks Ex-pats!
7/24/10- 5:30pm
Another Saturday in India, another day of shopping and beauty treatments! My new favorite thing is called a head massage. You get oil (this time it was olive, I'm not sure what they used last time) rubbed all over your hair and scalp and then get a scalp, face, shoulder, arm, neck, and upper back massage. It is completely heavenly! Afterwards, you get a nice shampoo and a second scalp massage to go along with it. During my massage I was wondering if this sort of thing is available in the states, and then I realized that even if it was, I probably wouldn't be able to afford it. Better "stock up" on head massages while I'm here!
But, perhaps more interesting, last night, our group was invited to the Fulbright director's house for some nice ex-pat hospitality. Adam Grotsky lives in an absolutely gorgeous apartment on the top floor of the Fulbright House, which (from what I recall from what Adam told us) was built in the 1920s or 1930s by the British to house the contractors who were building what we know as New Delhi: the wide tree-lined avenues, roundabouts, bungalows, etc. Anyway, it turns out Adam is originally from Harrisburg and went to Penn for undergrad- it was really nice to chat with somebody who's familiar with where I'm from! Well, we were over at Adam's for a few hours, and by the time we got back to the hotel I was pretty exhausted. Was it ever nice to go to sleep.
We sat around and had delicious food and Kingfisher beer, and there were a couple other Fulbrighters who happened to be in town too, so we had a great time talking to them and hearing about their work and their impressions of India. It was also a welcome change to spend time with other Americans- other than the people in our group, we have been dealing exclusively with Indian citizens, and sometimes the language difficulty (it's not quite a barrier) can get a little tedious. They have a hard time understanding our accents, and we have a hard time understanding theirs, and my Hindi is pretty much nonexistent. In my normal daily life I take for granted that I can readily understand people and they can readily understand me, so it has been a change to have to put in extra effort towards making sure the person I am speaking to can understand me. I would hate for them to have an idea about Americans that we speak quickly and unintelligibly! It really gives me a lot of empathy to people who are learning new languages or living in completely foreign lands- I don't think I could handle the frustration that would come along with being in a place where I don't speak the language at all- but Indian English, I can handle reasonably well.
Which brings us to today. After all the running around of the past 2+ weeks, I just wanted to sit around for a while and do nothing- so that's what I did for the first half of the day. Then Beth and I went over to Khan Market for a couple hours. In addition to the aforementioned beauty treatments and shopping, we also had some really delicious kebabs there from a little Afghan stand that usually has a long line of customers- I had some kind of spinach and onion thingy wrapped in some extremely thin bread. It sure was tasty! In a little while we're going out with one of her friend's friends (something like that) for cocktails and snacks.
What's on my mind the most lately (when I'm not thinking about how I can make the most of my experience here) is how excited I am to be getting back home on August 14. The fact that I am having a blast here, enjoying new experiences, learning a lot, having adventures, and all that, doesn't take away from the fact that at heart I love being home. It's kind of a complicated set of conflicting feelings to sort out. For me, missing home doesn't mean that I'm regretting my decision to come on this trip or that I would hop on the next plane home if I could. I am happy to have three more weeks here to experience and learn all I can, because I know my work here has barely begun. But I know with 100% certainty that by the time August 14 rolls around, I'm going to be beside myself with excitement because I'll get to go home!
Another Saturday in India, another day of shopping and beauty treatments! My new favorite thing is called a head massage. You get oil (this time it was olive, I'm not sure what they used last time) rubbed all over your hair and scalp and then get a scalp, face, shoulder, arm, neck, and upper back massage. It is completely heavenly! Afterwards, you get a nice shampoo and a second scalp massage to go along with it. During my massage I was wondering if this sort of thing is available in the states, and then I realized that even if it was, I probably wouldn't be able to afford it. Better "stock up" on head massages while I'm here!
But, perhaps more interesting, last night, our group was invited to the Fulbright director's house for some nice ex-pat hospitality. Adam Grotsky lives in an absolutely gorgeous apartment on the top floor of the Fulbright House, which (from what I recall from what Adam told us) was built in the 1920s or 1930s by the British to house the contractors who were building what we know as New Delhi: the wide tree-lined avenues, roundabouts, bungalows, etc. Anyway, it turns out Adam is originally from Harrisburg and went to Penn for undergrad- it was really nice to chat with somebody who's familiar with where I'm from! Well, we were over at Adam's for a few hours, and by the time we got back to the hotel I was pretty exhausted. Was it ever nice to go to sleep.
We sat around and had delicious food and Kingfisher beer, and there were a couple other Fulbrighters who happened to be in town too, so we had a great time talking to them and hearing about their work and their impressions of India. It was also a welcome change to spend time with other Americans- other than the people in our group, we have been dealing exclusively with Indian citizens, and sometimes the language difficulty (it's not quite a barrier) can get a little tedious. They have a hard time understanding our accents, and we have a hard time understanding theirs, and my Hindi is pretty much nonexistent. In my normal daily life I take for granted that I can readily understand people and they can readily understand me, so it has been a change to have to put in extra effort towards making sure the person I am speaking to can understand me. I would hate for them to have an idea about Americans that we speak quickly and unintelligibly! It really gives me a lot of empathy to people who are learning new languages or living in completely foreign lands- I don't think I could handle the frustration that would come along with being in a place where I don't speak the language at all- but Indian English, I can handle reasonably well.
Which brings us to today. After all the running around of the past 2+ weeks, I just wanted to sit around for a while and do nothing- so that's what I did for the first half of the day. Then Beth and I went over to Khan Market for a couple hours. In addition to the aforementioned beauty treatments and shopping, we also had some really delicious kebabs there from a little Afghan stand that usually has a long line of customers- I had some kind of spinach and onion thingy wrapped in some extremely thin bread. It sure was tasty! In a little while we're going out with one of her friend's friends (something like that) for cocktails and snacks.
What's on my mind the most lately (when I'm not thinking about how I can make the most of my experience here) is how excited I am to be getting back home on August 14. The fact that I am having a blast here, enjoying new experiences, learning a lot, having adventures, and all that, doesn't take away from the fact that at heart I love being home. It's kind of a complicated set of conflicting feelings to sort out. For me, missing home doesn't mean that I'm regretting my decision to come on this trip or that I would hop on the next plane home if I could. I am happy to have three more weeks here to experience and learn all I can, because I know my work here has barely begun. But I know with 100% certainty that by the time August 14 rolls around, I'm going to be beside myself with excitement because I'll get to go home!
Friday, July 23, 2010
"You look like Punjabi girl!"
7/23/10 4pm
It's now been two full weeks since I left Philadelphia, and as of tomorrow, it'll be three weeks until I return home. And even though I've been at my school for over a week, I still get the red carpet treatment from all the students, and that gives me a very happy feeling.
At my school, and I'm assuming in most Indian schools, the schedule varies day by day. I teach 4-6 classes per day, but don't see the same groups of kids at the same time every day. Some classes meet twice a day on certain days, other classes meet just one or two periods a week. So while I've completely taken over two English classes and a couple sections of Spoken English, each day is a different schedule with different free periods. This has been an interesting experience. It can get confusing for someone not accustomed to it, and I have to admit I still feel jumbled each day as I have to constantly refer to my notebook to figure out where I am supposed to be!
Invariably, when I'm in the hallways between classes, groups of students come up to me and ask me if I can visit their classes. Sometimes I don't have anywhere to be, so I can go, but some kids have been asking me to visit for 2-3 days in a row and I haven't been able to make it. But when I can, it's a ton of fun. I get asked for my autograph still, and the kids like to hear about what it's like to live in America. They are all curious, attentive, and sweet… and sometimes they give me handmade cards or other gifts to welcome me to their school.
Yesterday one of the teachers at my school, Dharitri, said that she doesn't think of me as American anymore, she thinks of me as Indian. Moreover, with my complexion and how I dress, she said "You look like Punjabi girl!" I've heard the Punjabi girl thing a lot over the past few days… and I get a kick out of it every time, because I don't think I look remotely Indian!
I have time to read the newspaper every day- The Times of India- and let me tell you, it's quite different from any American paper. The articles are much more opinionated and lively than anything you read in America. I've been cutting out articles that are particularly interesting or funny, to bring back to show people when I return. Indian politics are a big topic in the papers, but the thing that people are writing about most is whether Delhi is prepared to host the Commonwealth Games in October and whether the Delhi Metro will ever be completed. Apparently everything is over budget and behind schedule, and the papers are not shy about expressing their collective frustration.
It's true, there is construction EVERYWHERE, which is not only ugly but creates a lot of dust and noise. We went to Connaught Place last week, and it was nearly impossible to walk anywhere without worrying you were going to fall into a trench or trip over a pile of loose bricks. When everything is finished, Delhi will be absolutely gorgeous- it's just a shame I won't be here to see it.
I'm really excited about our trip to the Taj Mahal, which will be Monday and Tuesday. I went to the Taj when I was on Semester at Sea, but this time around we will get to see it twice: on certain full moons, they open up at night for moonlight viewings; tickets are hard to come by but our group was able to get them! Then we'll go back the next day, before heading back to Delhi. It's a six hour drive each way, and while that wouldn't ordinarily be something I look forward to, I'm excited to see the Indian countryside, since up until this point I haven't left New Delhi! I promise, I'll take a lot of pictures.
It's now been two full weeks since I left Philadelphia, and as of tomorrow, it'll be three weeks until I return home. And even though I've been at my school for over a week, I still get the red carpet treatment from all the students, and that gives me a very happy feeling.
At my school, and I'm assuming in most Indian schools, the schedule varies day by day. I teach 4-6 classes per day, but don't see the same groups of kids at the same time every day. Some classes meet twice a day on certain days, other classes meet just one or two periods a week. So while I've completely taken over two English classes and a couple sections of Spoken English, each day is a different schedule with different free periods. This has been an interesting experience. It can get confusing for someone not accustomed to it, and I have to admit I still feel jumbled each day as I have to constantly refer to my notebook to figure out where I am supposed to be!
Invariably, when I'm in the hallways between classes, groups of students come up to me and ask me if I can visit their classes. Sometimes I don't have anywhere to be, so I can go, but some kids have been asking me to visit for 2-3 days in a row and I haven't been able to make it. But when I can, it's a ton of fun. I get asked for my autograph still, and the kids like to hear about what it's like to live in America. They are all curious, attentive, and sweet… and sometimes they give me handmade cards or other gifts to welcome me to their school.
Yesterday one of the teachers at my school, Dharitri, said that she doesn't think of me as American anymore, she thinks of me as Indian. Moreover, with my complexion and how I dress, she said "You look like Punjabi girl!" I've heard the Punjabi girl thing a lot over the past few days… and I get a kick out of it every time, because I don't think I look remotely Indian!
I have time to read the newspaper every day- The Times of India- and let me tell you, it's quite different from any American paper. The articles are much more opinionated and lively than anything you read in America. I've been cutting out articles that are particularly interesting or funny, to bring back to show people when I return. Indian politics are a big topic in the papers, but the thing that people are writing about most is whether Delhi is prepared to host the Commonwealth Games in October and whether the Delhi Metro will ever be completed. Apparently everything is over budget and behind schedule, and the papers are not shy about expressing their collective frustration.
It's true, there is construction EVERYWHERE, which is not only ugly but creates a lot of dust and noise. We went to Connaught Place last week, and it was nearly impossible to walk anywhere without worrying you were going to fall into a trench or trip over a pile of loose bricks. When everything is finished, Delhi will be absolutely gorgeous- it's just a shame I won't be here to see it.
I'm really excited about our trip to the Taj Mahal, which will be Monday and Tuesday. I went to the Taj when I was on Semester at Sea, but this time around we will get to see it twice: on certain full moons, they open up at night for moonlight viewings; tickets are hard to come by but our group was able to get them! Then we'll go back the next day, before heading back to Delhi. It's a six hour drive each way, and while that wouldn't ordinarily be something I look forward to, I'm excited to see the Indian countryside, since up until this point I haven't left New Delhi! I promise, I'll take a lot of pictures.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Bangle-Wallah
7/22/10- 5:15pm
If clothes and jewelry were as fun to shop for (and as inexpensive) in the U.S. as they are in India, I would be in huge trouble. Today in less than two hours I did some major damage (although not to my wallet) and ended up with aching arms from carrying it all around. Some things were for myself, but many will be given as gifts once I get home.
I did buy a few dozen sets of bangles, making me (un?)-officially a bangle-wallah. ("-Wallah" is the Hindi suffix added to someone who sells or is an expert regarding something: for example, our school has a couple chai-wallahs who sell chai to the staff; people who know their way around Delhi are Delhi-wallahs; and being that I now own a few pounds of glass and metal sparkly bangles, I dub myself a bangle-wallah.)
School was, as usual, great today. I spent most of the day teaching the KV schools curriculum, which is highly standardized and possible to implement as-is without any "extras." I thought it would be all lectures and rote exercises, but I was pleased to see a variety of activities that involve group discussion and independent thinking, along with the fill-in-the-blank grammar exercises I had assumed would be there. I like that my host teachers trust my abilities enough to be able to leave me alone in the classroom to help prepare the kids for their "benchmark" exams- which are next week!
Anyway, I am trying to teach the Indian curriculum in the way that I would teach content in the States (without all the technology of course!) and I'm enjoying the feeling of having a break from the laptops and getting back to the basics. Of course, I miss choosing my own materials, planning my own projects, and trying to push the boundaries of what can or cannot be done in a classroom… but this is a really nice change of pace. The kids are open to trying new things, though they are a tad reluctant to think outside the box in some instances- but it's cute, as soon as I say "So this is how we do things in America…" their little ears prick up!
But like I was saying to Jason today, every time I pick up on a difference between American and Indian schools, I also notice a similarity. I expected to find more differences than similarities, but I'm finding out that they're about equal. I only wish I understood Hindi so I knew what the teachers are saying in the staff room!
Indian hospitality is still a wonderful thing to experience, and considering the dust and chaos of New Delhi the hotel has become a welcome oasis. Last night the hotel manager had invited us all to cocktails at the hotel bar (which I plan to frequent) which ended up being cocktails AND fabulous finger foods, meaning I didn't have to worry about getting dinner. Corey Flintoff from NPR was also there, but as he was talking shop with our resident journalism teacher, I didn't want to intrude with my questions about Afghanistan! The red carpet that has been laid out for us is wonderful and I have to say, I'm getting used to having my room straightened up twice a day and having fresh fruit brought to me every afternoon- these things will be hard to give up, but one cannot live like royalty forever, alas...
If clothes and jewelry were as fun to shop for (and as inexpensive) in the U.S. as they are in India, I would be in huge trouble. Today in less than two hours I did some major damage (although not to my wallet) and ended up with aching arms from carrying it all around. Some things were for myself, but many will be given as gifts once I get home.
I did buy a few dozen sets of bangles, making me (un?)-officially a bangle-wallah. ("-Wallah" is the Hindi suffix added to someone who sells or is an expert regarding something: for example, our school has a couple chai-wallahs who sell chai to the staff; people who know their way around Delhi are Delhi-wallahs; and being that I now own a few pounds of glass and metal sparkly bangles, I dub myself a bangle-wallah.)
School was, as usual, great today. I spent most of the day teaching the KV schools curriculum, which is highly standardized and possible to implement as-is without any "extras." I thought it would be all lectures and rote exercises, but I was pleased to see a variety of activities that involve group discussion and independent thinking, along with the fill-in-the-blank grammar exercises I had assumed would be there. I like that my host teachers trust my abilities enough to be able to leave me alone in the classroom to help prepare the kids for their "benchmark" exams- which are next week!
Anyway, I am trying to teach the Indian curriculum in the way that I would teach content in the States (without all the technology of course!) and I'm enjoying the feeling of having a break from the laptops and getting back to the basics. Of course, I miss choosing my own materials, planning my own projects, and trying to push the boundaries of what can or cannot be done in a classroom… but this is a really nice change of pace. The kids are open to trying new things, though they are a tad reluctant to think outside the box in some instances- but it's cute, as soon as I say "So this is how we do things in America…" their little ears prick up!
But like I was saying to Jason today, every time I pick up on a difference between American and Indian schools, I also notice a similarity. I expected to find more differences than similarities, but I'm finding out that they're about equal. I only wish I understood Hindi so I knew what the teachers are saying in the staff room!
Indian hospitality is still a wonderful thing to experience, and considering the dust and chaos of New Delhi the hotel has become a welcome oasis. Last night the hotel manager had invited us all to cocktails at the hotel bar (which I plan to frequent) which ended up being cocktails AND fabulous finger foods, meaning I didn't have to worry about getting dinner. Corey Flintoff from NPR was also there, but as he was talking shop with our resident journalism teacher, I didn't want to intrude with my questions about Afghanistan! The red carpet that has been laid out for us is wonderful and I have to say, I'm getting used to having my room straightened up twice a day and having fresh fruit brought to me every afternoon- these things will be hard to give up, but one cannot live like royalty forever, alas...
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Visit from a magician
7/21/10 - 3:30pm
As I mentioned before, schools in India typically have a morning assembly which consists of attendance, prayer, the national anthem, announcements, and other assorted tasks. Today a magician came to perform for the kids as a special treat! Although it was all in Hindi (a language I know about 6 words of) it seemed pretty similar to an American magic show. The guy wore a cape, turned handkerchiefs different colors, etc. The students, whether or not they had a good view, were very attentive and polite the entire time.
I thought the excitement of the day was over after the magician finished his show, and that the rest of the day would be fairly ordinary. However, halfway through the morning an announcement came over the loudspeaker (in Hindi, of course) that informed everyone in the school that a monkey was on the loose and that all the students should stay in their classrooms and teachers should be careful. It was sort of like a monkey lockdown. The students found it pretty funny, and when I got back to the staff room later in the day, there was much talk about who saw the monkey.
The ladies at school have all begun bringing in food for me to eat during the morning snack break, and it is absolutely wonderful to have home cooking instead of restaurant food. Plus, they are all excellent cooks! I think they were hesitant at first because they didn't know whether I found Indian food too spicy. I don't know many Americans who dislike spicy food so I think it's just some kind of stereotype, maybe?
The kids at school had more interesting questions for me today. Many wanted to know about what shopping was like in the states. They were interested to hear about shopping malls and supermarkets, but I also let them know that there were plenty of small "corner stores" in America just like there are in India. One 8th grader (!!!) also asked me if I thought Barack Obama deserved the Nobel Peace Prize. Another asked me what my opinion was about George W. Bush vs. Barack Obama. I thought it was interesting to see how knowledgeable they are about current events- let alone events happening in other countries!
Anyway, I think I'm going to attempt to visit the Laxminarayan Temple, which is pretty close to the hotel (although sadly not within walking distance). Followed by a meeting at the hotel, cocktails, and then it's early to bed again for me- Just as I was getting over my heat exhaustion from the other day, I seem to have picked up a cold, no doubt from a kid at school. I guess students are agents of disease in all corners of the globe….
As I mentioned before, schools in India typically have a morning assembly which consists of attendance, prayer, the national anthem, announcements, and other assorted tasks. Today a magician came to perform for the kids as a special treat! Although it was all in Hindi (a language I know about 6 words of) it seemed pretty similar to an American magic show. The guy wore a cape, turned handkerchiefs different colors, etc. The students, whether or not they had a good view, were very attentive and polite the entire time.
I thought the excitement of the day was over after the magician finished his show, and that the rest of the day would be fairly ordinary. However, halfway through the morning an announcement came over the loudspeaker (in Hindi, of course) that informed everyone in the school that a monkey was on the loose and that all the students should stay in their classrooms and teachers should be careful. It was sort of like a monkey lockdown. The students found it pretty funny, and when I got back to the staff room later in the day, there was much talk about who saw the monkey.
The ladies at school have all begun bringing in food for me to eat during the morning snack break, and it is absolutely wonderful to have home cooking instead of restaurant food. Plus, they are all excellent cooks! I think they were hesitant at first because they didn't know whether I found Indian food too spicy. I don't know many Americans who dislike spicy food so I think it's just some kind of stereotype, maybe?
The kids at school had more interesting questions for me today. Many wanted to know about what shopping was like in the states. They were interested to hear about shopping malls and supermarkets, but I also let them know that there were plenty of small "corner stores" in America just like there are in India. One 8th grader (!!!) also asked me if I thought Barack Obama deserved the Nobel Peace Prize. Another asked me what my opinion was about George W. Bush vs. Barack Obama. I thought it was interesting to see how knowledgeable they are about current events- let alone events happening in other countries!
Anyway, I think I'm going to attempt to visit the Laxminarayan Temple, which is pretty close to the hotel (although sadly not within walking distance). Followed by a meeting at the hotel, cocktails, and then it's early to bed again for me- Just as I was getting over my heat exhaustion from the other day, I seem to have picked up a cold, no doubt from a kid at school. I guess students are agents of disease in all corners of the globe….
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Rainy Day
7/20/10 - 5pm
I got lucky today with the monsoons. When I woke up at 5:45 this morning, it was raining a little… thank goodness the torrential downpour waited to pick up in earnest until I was safely inside the school building! It absolutely poured for most of the morning but it slowed down around noon, so when I left school around 1pm I barely needed my umbrella. And by 3pm the sun was back out, just in time for me to meander around Khan Market for a while, with the added bonus of the heat and humidity being bearable. A good deal altogether.
I went to Khan Market on a mission to find a tailor who will make Jason a custom suit. There are two tailors inside the hotel (for some reason) and I found their estimates to be a little high, perhaps, so I thought I'd walk around to find something. Well, I didn't find any men's tailors, but I did find a shop where I could get a custom made Salwar Kameez (what Indian ladies here call "suits") and I'm gonna pick it up in a few days! Normally, I would not get anything custom made- but the fabric plus the labor only cost about $35- how can I pass that up? I can't wait to rock my custom suit- here in India and also when I get back home!
On the walk back from the market I spotted a dog literally sleeping in the middle of the road. There are stray dogs all over the place here. I've only seen one or two stray cats, and from what I have gleaned from my students people don't keep dogs as pets here… so I have no idea where these dogs came from or what their deal is. Some of them are extremely cute and appear to be well-fed but there is no way I would go near one- who knows what kind of bugs they are carrying.
School was very nice today. I am lucky to have such a wonderful cooperating teacher, Mrs. Wilma Kumar (aka Wilma Mam), to take me around the school and introduce me to all the people, to guide me through Indian school etiquette kindly and patiently, to rescue me from a lost taxi driver, to then draw a map so it didn't happen again, to translate the Hindi conversations in the ladies' staff room into English for me, to offer to bring me a tiffin for lunch each day, and on the whole, to make my experience so wonderful. At one of our many trainings before we left for India, it was said that the Indian people, as a matter of course, offer acts of kindness to others that cannot be repaid. Well, the kindness Wilma has shown to me, just in the past few days... there is no way I could ever pay it back or pay it forward.
The thing that Indian kids seem to enjoy (other than saying "good morning mam" whenever they see me) is getting my autograph. One kid in a class asks for an autograph and then the other 46 want one and they want it NOW. So the class rushes me and keeps shoving notebooks in my face. It is really cute, yet at the same time kind of odd. But I think they think I'm famous- one kid asked me today if I knew Miley Cyrus.
So, it's almost dinner time and I am going to try to get some Chinese food tonight, considering I haven't had a proper dinner for 2 days due to not feeling well. The usual evening agenda has lately involved reading, watching TV, and writing with an early bedtime, and that suits me just fine. The big excitement is that the manager of our hotel invited our group to cocktails tomorrow at the hotel's bar- I'm looking forward to more of that good Indian hospitality!
I got lucky today with the monsoons. When I woke up at 5:45 this morning, it was raining a little… thank goodness the torrential downpour waited to pick up in earnest until I was safely inside the school building! It absolutely poured for most of the morning but it slowed down around noon, so when I left school around 1pm I barely needed my umbrella. And by 3pm the sun was back out, just in time for me to meander around Khan Market for a while, with the added bonus of the heat and humidity being bearable. A good deal altogether.
I went to Khan Market on a mission to find a tailor who will make Jason a custom suit. There are two tailors inside the hotel (for some reason) and I found their estimates to be a little high, perhaps, so I thought I'd walk around to find something. Well, I didn't find any men's tailors, but I did find a shop where I could get a custom made Salwar Kameez (what Indian ladies here call "suits") and I'm gonna pick it up in a few days! Normally, I would not get anything custom made- but the fabric plus the labor only cost about $35- how can I pass that up? I can't wait to rock my custom suit- here in India and also when I get back home!
On the walk back from the market I spotted a dog literally sleeping in the middle of the road. There are stray dogs all over the place here. I've only seen one or two stray cats, and from what I have gleaned from my students people don't keep dogs as pets here… so I have no idea where these dogs came from or what their deal is. Some of them are extremely cute and appear to be well-fed but there is no way I would go near one- who knows what kind of bugs they are carrying.
School was very nice today. I am lucky to have such a wonderful cooperating teacher, Mrs. Wilma Kumar (aka Wilma Mam), to take me around the school and introduce me to all the people, to guide me through Indian school etiquette kindly and patiently, to rescue me from a lost taxi driver, to then draw a map so it didn't happen again, to translate the Hindi conversations in the ladies' staff room into English for me, to offer to bring me a tiffin for lunch each day, and on the whole, to make my experience so wonderful. At one of our many trainings before we left for India, it was said that the Indian people, as a matter of course, offer acts of kindness to others that cannot be repaid. Well, the kindness Wilma has shown to me, just in the past few days... there is no way I could ever pay it back or pay it forward.
The thing that Indian kids seem to enjoy (other than saying "good morning mam" whenever they see me) is getting my autograph. One kid in a class asks for an autograph and then the other 46 want one and they want it NOW. So the class rushes me and keeps shoving notebooks in my face. It is really cute, yet at the same time kind of odd. But I think they think I'm famous- one kid asked me today if I knew Miley Cyrus.
So, it's almost dinner time and I am going to try to get some Chinese food tonight, considering I haven't had a proper dinner for 2 days due to not feeling well. The usual evening agenda has lately involved reading, watching TV, and writing with an early bedtime, and that suits me just fine. The big excitement is that the manager of our hotel invited our group to cocktails tomorrow at the hotel's bar- I'm looking forward to more of that good Indian hospitality!
Monday, July 19, 2010
Riding in taxis
7/19/10 - 4pm
I don’t know why I thought this, but I had assumed that Delhi was a fairly dense city where it would be easy to walk pretty much anywhere I needed to go. Wrong! It's actually quite spread out and confusing to navigate with many traffic circles and streets that seem to go off at strange angles. The area near my hotel is all beautiful tree-lined streets and wide boulevards. It is always wonderful to go for a taxi ride and see the world passing by!
My school is in the military base area of New Delhi, called Delhi Cantt (short for Cantonment). On my ride to and from work, after a few minutes on the expressway, I pass by all kinds of battalions, mess halls, army hospitals, etc. before going through an area where there are a couple missionary schools. After that we make a right onto a dirt road and pass by a bunch of cows eating scraps of food that have been left out for them. Then we go around a bend and we're at my school. It is quite different from my drive to SOTF every day, that's for sure! There is always something new and exciting to see just around the bend.
The "Elisabeth M'am" novelty hasn't worn off at my school, and today I got to visit a couple of classrooms who had been begging their teachers to make arrangements to speak with me. The kids want to know all about life in America, my students, my school… I have gotten all sorts of questions! Even better, a couple of the girls made me really sweet cards and drawings to welcome me to their school. I could tell how much thought and effort went into these and I will treasure them forever!
Today has been sort of a quiet day because a couple of the people in our group are under the weather, myself included (although I'm doing pretty well in comparison, considering I was able to go to school today and others had to call out sick!). The heat yesterday really did a number on me, however, I am mostly better after some resting, sleeping (yes- both resting AND sleeping), lots of water and fruit, and a little bit of exercise today at the hotel's fitness center. I should be good as new by tomorrow, and am looking forward to the possibility of doing a bit of sightseeing on my way home from work, as long as it hasn't started raining by then. The forecast keeps calling for rain, but it hasn't actually rained in a week.
There's not a whole lot of specific news to report, but I realized today (now that I've been here in India for a full week) that I am really learning a lot about myself, the world, and my place in it. That being said, I have to confess I get a little homesick at times, but this is to be expected. After all, I am literally on the other side of the planet!
I don’t know why I thought this, but I had assumed that Delhi was a fairly dense city where it would be easy to walk pretty much anywhere I needed to go. Wrong! It's actually quite spread out and confusing to navigate with many traffic circles and streets that seem to go off at strange angles. The area near my hotel is all beautiful tree-lined streets and wide boulevards. It is always wonderful to go for a taxi ride and see the world passing by!
My school is in the military base area of New Delhi, called Delhi Cantt (short for Cantonment). On my ride to and from work, after a few minutes on the expressway, I pass by all kinds of battalions, mess halls, army hospitals, etc. before going through an area where there are a couple missionary schools. After that we make a right onto a dirt road and pass by a bunch of cows eating scraps of food that have been left out for them. Then we go around a bend and we're at my school. It is quite different from my drive to SOTF every day, that's for sure! There is always something new and exciting to see just around the bend.
The "Elisabeth M'am" novelty hasn't worn off at my school, and today I got to visit a couple of classrooms who had been begging their teachers to make arrangements to speak with me. The kids want to know all about life in America, my students, my school… I have gotten all sorts of questions! Even better, a couple of the girls made me really sweet cards and drawings to welcome me to their school. I could tell how much thought and effort went into these and I will treasure them forever!
Today has been sort of a quiet day because a couple of the people in our group are under the weather, myself included (although I'm doing pretty well in comparison, considering I was able to go to school today and others had to call out sick!). The heat yesterday really did a number on me, however, I am mostly better after some resting, sleeping (yes- both resting AND sleeping), lots of water and fruit, and a little bit of exercise today at the hotel's fitness center. I should be good as new by tomorrow, and am looking forward to the possibility of doing a bit of sightseeing on my way home from work, as long as it hasn't started raining by then. The forecast keeps calling for rain, but it hasn't actually rained in a week.
There's not a whole lot of specific news to report, but I realized today (now that I've been here in India for a full week) that I am really learning a lot about myself, the world, and my place in it. That being said, I have to confess I get a little homesick at times, but this is to be expected. After all, I am literally on the other side of the planet!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Day of Sightseeing
7/18/10 - 7pm
Qutab Minar and Safdarjung's Tomb have been on my list of Delhi attractions to visit, and I got to see both today, plus an art museum and a crafts market. I got a lot of great pictures, which I will upload to the Picasa album soon, but, as you can imagine, it was extremely hot and humid and most of the day I was dripping sweat. Until then, if you want to see pictures of the places I visited today or to learn more, you can just visit the links at the bottom of this entry.
Now, back at the air-conditioned hotel, I am still feeling exhausted and don't know how much longer I'll wait before going to bed! (After all, I have a really early morning tomorrow as I go back to my second-favorite school in the world, KV no. 2.) The heat really takes it out of you here- I normally dislike but tolerate the heat, but today was just too much.
Anyway, Qutab Minar is shorthand for the huge minaret and the complex surrounding it, made up of mosques and tombs and a school. It was built around the 1200s, if I recall correctly, and the minaret itself is enormous and beautiful! Unfortunately, a lot of the complex is in ruins, but there is still enough to see that you can get an idea of what it must have looked like in its heyday. It must have been mindblowingly spectacular to see such a tall tower crafted so beautifully out of red and white stone.
Safdarjung's tomb is the building on which the Taj Mahal was based. When you see it, you get the sense that Shah Jehan (the guy who built the Taj for his wife) wanted to take the design and improve upon it, and make it on a much grander scale. Like the Qutab Minar complex buildings, it's red stone, and very pretty. The grounds (as far as I could see anyway) are shaped like a giant "plus" sign, with the actual tomb right in the middle. The "arms" of the plus sign are reflecting pools, and the whole thing is surrounded by a wall. Again, it would have been amazing to see the building when it was first constructed, with the reflecting pools glistening in the sun or the fountains going.
We also stopped at an art museum, Sanskriti Kendra, which hosts visiting artists from around the world and displays a collection of Indian terra cotta, textiles, and "everyday objects" from times past. It was amazing to see the variety of objects in the museum, and best of all, we were the only people there!
If you would like to learn more about Safdarjung's tomb please visit this site as a jumping-off point: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safdarjung%27s_Tomb
If you would like to learn more about Qutab Minar please visit this site as a jumping-off point:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qutab_Minar
If you would like to learn more about Sanskriti Kendra please visit this site:
http://www.sanskritifoundation.org/
But so sorry to say, the day wore me out and I lack the energy to go out for dinner with my pals, although I might order some room service (swanky!) later if I'm not asleep. Let's hope I haven't come down with a case of "Delhi Belly"!!!!
Qutab Minar and Safdarjung's Tomb have been on my list of Delhi attractions to visit, and I got to see both today, plus an art museum and a crafts market. I got a lot of great pictures, which I will upload to the Picasa album soon, but, as you can imagine, it was extremely hot and humid and most of the day I was dripping sweat. Until then, if you want to see pictures of the places I visited today or to learn more, you can just visit the links at the bottom of this entry.
Now, back at the air-conditioned hotel, I am still feeling exhausted and don't know how much longer I'll wait before going to bed! (After all, I have a really early morning tomorrow as I go back to my second-favorite school in the world, KV no. 2.) The heat really takes it out of you here- I normally dislike but tolerate the heat, but today was just too much.
Anyway, Qutab Minar is shorthand for the huge minaret and the complex surrounding it, made up of mosques and tombs and a school. It was built around the 1200s, if I recall correctly, and the minaret itself is enormous and beautiful! Unfortunately, a lot of the complex is in ruins, but there is still enough to see that you can get an idea of what it must have looked like in its heyday. It must have been mindblowingly spectacular to see such a tall tower crafted so beautifully out of red and white stone.
Safdarjung's tomb is the building on which the Taj Mahal was based. When you see it, you get the sense that Shah Jehan (the guy who built the Taj for his wife) wanted to take the design and improve upon it, and make it on a much grander scale. Like the Qutab Minar complex buildings, it's red stone, and very pretty. The grounds (as far as I could see anyway) are shaped like a giant "plus" sign, with the actual tomb right in the middle. The "arms" of the plus sign are reflecting pools, and the whole thing is surrounded by a wall. Again, it would have been amazing to see the building when it was first constructed, with the reflecting pools glistening in the sun or the fountains going.
We also stopped at an art museum, Sanskriti Kendra, which hosts visiting artists from around the world and displays a collection of Indian terra cotta, textiles, and "everyday objects" from times past. It was amazing to see the variety of objects in the museum, and best of all, we were the only people there!
If you would like to learn more about Safdarjung's tomb please visit this site as a jumping-off point: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safdarjung%27s_Tomb
If you would like to learn more about Qutab Minar please visit this site as a jumping-off point:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qutab_Minar
If you would like to learn more about Sanskriti Kendra please visit this site:
http://www.sanskritifoundation.org/
But so sorry to say, the day wore me out and I lack the energy to go out for dinner with my pals, although I might order some room service (swanky!) later if I'm not asleep. Let's hope I haven't come down with a case of "Delhi Belly"!!!!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Day of Beauty
7/17/10 - 8:30pm
We had a nice relaxing day in the neighborhood today- for once, no taxis or autos!
After sleeping in and having a leisurely hotel breakfast, a couple of us headed over to Lodhi Gardens. This is a large park well within walking distance of the hotel, which contains a couple buildings that are about 500 years old! It was very lush and green, but VERY HOT. We saw some interesting birds (including a Kingfisher) and explored the beautiful old stone buildings: there's a mosque, a couple tombs, and some stuff that we weren't exactly sure about. It was nice to do something a little touristy, but like I said, it was incredibly hot and humid and we were dripping sweat just walking around.
The heat and humidity here… it's a constant presence as long as the sun is up. I've begun to adjust, but it makes it difficult to do anything that's not absolutely necessary. It is nearly unbearable- the thing that keeps me going is that there are so many wonderful things to see and do here in India.
Anyway, on the way back from Lodhi Gardens we stopped at Fabindia which is pretty much the best store ever. It has "trendy" traditional Indian clothing and housewares too. I bought some more clothes to wear to school (and beyond). I tried to limit myself, because I know I'll want to go back at a later date for more!
Some of the ladies in the group (myself included) then spent the afternoon at a salon having a day of beauty. I got a head massage and an Ayurvedic facial, and had my eyebrows threaded. The head massage is something I've never heard of and I am hoping to enjoy several before I go back to the states. They put oil all over your scalp and then give your whole head, shoulders, arms, and neck a vigorous massage. Afterwards, they allow the oil to soak into your hair and scalp before shampooing it out. I don't think I can put into words how invigorating and wonderful this felt! Ditto with the facial. And my eyebrows have never looked better. Beauty treatments like this are quite affordable in India… further proof that I am living like a queen over here!
Pizza for dinner, and then we stopped at the store next to the hotel to talk to Gaurav. Gaurav is becoming one of my favorite people here. He runs the store which is in the same building as our hotel- it's basically an Indian version of a Bodega. Anyway, Gaurav is our key to success because he can special-order stuff for us if we need it, plus (and this is totally crucial) he is helping us coordinate transportation to our schools since he is pals with the taxi drivers in the neighborhood. Knowing people who can help you out is super important when you're a stranger in a strange land, and luckily for us, Indian people seem to take a lot of pride in helping and protecting foreigners. So, Gaurav is happy to help us negotiate with taxi drivers for transportation to and from school, and thus we are happy to buy snacks at Gaurav's store and chat him up once or twice a day.
OH! I almost forgot to mention that I ate at McDonald's yesterday. I know this sounds insane, but McDonald's in India, like every other food establishment, is super vegetarian friendly. I had the McVeggie, fries, and a soda. This is not something I would ordinarily do at home- being that nearly everything at McDonald's has some kind of beef product in it- but how could I pass it up?
The heat really wears you out, and we had a day of excitement, so now I'm back at the hotel watching TV, reading the paper, and drinking a huge bottle of water. I'll probably go to bed soon! It's my brother Ben's 29th birthday- HAPPY BIRTHDAY BENJ!!!!- so I tried to call him, but ended up leaving him a voice mail. I talked to my dad for a little while, and now my prepaid phone is almost out and I won't be able to add minutes until tomorrow. I guess this puts a damper on my plan to call Jason!
Tomorrow we'll be doing some sightseeing- going to the Qutab Minar complex and who knows, maybe somewhere else too- and I hope that this coming week I'll be able to get out one or two afternoons to check out some attractions that are nearer to the hotel. I want to squeeze in as much as I can while I'm here!
I'll post some pictures tomorrow!
We had a nice relaxing day in the neighborhood today- for once, no taxis or autos!
After sleeping in and having a leisurely hotel breakfast, a couple of us headed over to Lodhi Gardens. This is a large park well within walking distance of the hotel, which contains a couple buildings that are about 500 years old! It was very lush and green, but VERY HOT. We saw some interesting birds (including a Kingfisher) and explored the beautiful old stone buildings: there's a mosque, a couple tombs, and some stuff that we weren't exactly sure about. It was nice to do something a little touristy, but like I said, it was incredibly hot and humid and we were dripping sweat just walking around.
The heat and humidity here… it's a constant presence as long as the sun is up. I've begun to adjust, but it makes it difficult to do anything that's not absolutely necessary. It is nearly unbearable- the thing that keeps me going is that there are so many wonderful things to see and do here in India.
Anyway, on the way back from Lodhi Gardens we stopped at Fabindia which is pretty much the best store ever. It has "trendy" traditional Indian clothing and housewares too. I bought some more clothes to wear to school (and beyond). I tried to limit myself, because I know I'll want to go back at a later date for more!
Some of the ladies in the group (myself included) then spent the afternoon at a salon having a day of beauty. I got a head massage and an Ayurvedic facial, and had my eyebrows threaded. The head massage is something I've never heard of and I am hoping to enjoy several before I go back to the states. They put oil all over your scalp and then give your whole head, shoulders, arms, and neck a vigorous massage. Afterwards, they allow the oil to soak into your hair and scalp before shampooing it out. I don't think I can put into words how invigorating and wonderful this felt! Ditto with the facial. And my eyebrows have never looked better. Beauty treatments like this are quite affordable in India… further proof that I am living like a queen over here!
Pizza for dinner, and then we stopped at the store next to the hotel to talk to Gaurav. Gaurav is becoming one of my favorite people here. He runs the store which is in the same building as our hotel- it's basically an Indian version of a Bodega. Anyway, Gaurav is our key to success because he can special-order stuff for us if we need it, plus (and this is totally crucial) he is helping us coordinate transportation to our schools since he is pals with the taxi drivers in the neighborhood. Knowing people who can help you out is super important when you're a stranger in a strange land, and luckily for us, Indian people seem to take a lot of pride in helping and protecting foreigners. So, Gaurav is happy to help us negotiate with taxi drivers for transportation to and from school, and thus we are happy to buy snacks at Gaurav's store and chat him up once or twice a day.
OH! I almost forgot to mention that I ate at McDonald's yesterday. I know this sounds insane, but McDonald's in India, like every other food establishment, is super vegetarian friendly. I had the McVeggie, fries, and a soda. This is not something I would ordinarily do at home- being that nearly everything at McDonald's has some kind of beef product in it- but how could I pass it up?
The heat really wears you out, and we had a day of excitement, so now I'm back at the hotel watching TV, reading the paper, and drinking a huge bottle of water. I'll probably go to bed soon! It's my brother Ben's 29th birthday- HAPPY BIRTHDAY BENJ!!!!- so I tried to call him, but ended up leaving him a voice mail. I talked to my dad for a little while, and now my prepaid phone is almost out and I won't be able to add minutes until tomorrow. I guess this puts a damper on my plan to call Jason!
Tomorrow we'll be doing some sightseeing- going to the Qutab Minar complex and who knows, maybe somewhere else too- and I hope that this coming week I'll be able to get out one or two afternoons to check out some attractions that are nearer to the hotel. I want to squeeze in as much as I can while I'm here!
I'll post some pictures tomorrow!
Friday, July 16, 2010
The Sari Incident
7/16/10 - 4pm
This morning I wore my sari to school. A lot of the teachers at school were surprised to know that I had a sari and they encouraged me to wear it today so I did. I put it on the best I could and figured that if I had made a mistake the women would fix it. Well, I got to school and they immediately went into a frenzy around me. First, they were excited to see me wearing a sari and then they not-so-gently broke the news that I was wearing it all wrong. So right in the middle of the ladies' staff lounge they took the entire sari off and put it on for me correctly. I was given a bindi to wear and my cooperating teacher lent me her necklace… and there was some confusion about why I wasn't wearing earrings… I am guessing jewelry is a mandatory accessory in India!
In India, schools have something called morning assembly. It is approximately 15 minutes long, and during that time the students have prayer, the teacher takes attendance, everybody sings the national anthem, and announcements are made, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Yesterday I was supposed to have my official welcome during morning assembly, but unfortunately our taxi driver got completely lost and I was about 45 minutes late to school. So today, I got my official welcome. It was very exciting! I got some lovely flowers and I made a short speech to all the students- there are a couple thousand!- and everybody afterwards said I did a great job.
Now that my presence is known at my school, I am in high demand. All day I had groups of kids coming up to me and saying "Good morning ma'am, are you free now to come to visit our class?" And if I am, I go along… and if not I tell them to keep trying to find me. It is very sweet and heartwarming that they are so curious and excited to get to know me. I feel very lucky to be put in a position where I am treated so nicely, and for no real reason other than I'm a guest and I’m American. It really makes me feel very optimistic about the fate of the human race, the kindness that people are showing towards me in India.
I spent quite a long time today answering questions about America and my school. Kind of like what I did yesterday, but way more of it. The main point I am trying to drive home to the students is that when comparing India and America, neither is "better" or "worse," we are just different. And if one person prefers India to America, or has a preference for certain aspects of either culture, that is just their personal opinion.
Now it's the weekend- in a little while we're going over to Connaught Place, one of the big commerce areas of New Delhi. There, we'll pick up copies of the KV textbooks to use while we're here and take home to show our home schools. Of course there will be other shopping as well, and then we'll probably have dinner over there before… who knows? But the best part of the weekend will surely be sleeping in and having breakfast at the hotel. I've been having takeout breakfast, which is a few pieces of fruit and a croissant, but NO COFFEE! I don't know how I'm surviving! (OH WAIT- THE CHAI!!)
Also, I'm looking forward to seeing more of Delhi this weekend- we're going to a bunch of sites tomorrow on a tour that's being arranged for us so I will be taking lots of pictures! There are lots of places I'd love to see- Delhi is such a fascinating city with so much history, tracing its roots back to Ancient Indian mythology and encompassing so many different cultures- I am so excited to actually see these places that I've read so much about.
The good times keep on coming!
This morning I wore my sari to school. A lot of the teachers at school were surprised to know that I had a sari and they encouraged me to wear it today so I did. I put it on the best I could and figured that if I had made a mistake the women would fix it. Well, I got to school and they immediately went into a frenzy around me. First, they were excited to see me wearing a sari and then they not-so-gently broke the news that I was wearing it all wrong. So right in the middle of the ladies' staff lounge they took the entire sari off and put it on for me correctly. I was given a bindi to wear and my cooperating teacher lent me her necklace… and there was some confusion about why I wasn't wearing earrings… I am guessing jewelry is a mandatory accessory in India!
In India, schools have something called morning assembly. It is approximately 15 minutes long, and during that time the students have prayer, the teacher takes attendance, everybody sings the national anthem, and announcements are made, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Yesterday I was supposed to have my official welcome during morning assembly, but unfortunately our taxi driver got completely lost and I was about 45 minutes late to school. So today, I got my official welcome. It was very exciting! I got some lovely flowers and I made a short speech to all the students- there are a couple thousand!- and everybody afterwards said I did a great job.
Now that my presence is known at my school, I am in high demand. All day I had groups of kids coming up to me and saying "Good morning ma'am, are you free now to come to visit our class?" And if I am, I go along… and if not I tell them to keep trying to find me. It is very sweet and heartwarming that they are so curious and excited to get to know me. I feel very lucky to be put in a position where I am treated so nicely, and for no real reason other than I'm a guest and I’m American. It really makes me feel very optimistic about the fate of the human race, the kindness that people are showing towards me in India.
I spent quite a long time today answering questions about America and my school. Kind of like what I did yesterday, but way more of it. The main point I am trying to drive home to the students is that when comparing India and America, neither is "better" or "worse," we are just different. And if one person prefers India to America, or has a preference for certain aspects of either culture, that is just their personal opinion.
Now it's the weekend- in a little while we're going over to Connaught Place, one of the big commerce areas of New Delhi. There, we'll pick up copies of the KV textbooks to use while we're here and take home to show our home schools. Of course there will be other shopping as well, and then we'll probably have dinner over there before… who knows? But the best part of the weekend will surely be sleeping in and having breakfast at the hotel. I've been having takeout breakfast, which is a few pieces of fruit and a croissant, but NO COFFEE! I don't know how I'm surviving! (OH WAIT- THE CHAI!!)
Also, I'm looking forward to seeing more of Delhi this weekend- we're going to a bunch of sites tomorrow on a tour that's being arranged for us so I will be taking lots of pictures! There are lots of places I'd love to see- Delhi is such a fascinating city with so much history, tracing its roots back to Ancient Indian mythology and encompassing so many different cultures- I am so excited to actually see these places that I've read so much about.
The good times keep on coming!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Monkeys!
7/15/10 - 4:30pm
Last night, we went to the Delhi interpretation of a hip and cool bar/restaurant, known as a Resto-Bar. It was a blast, and would have been way more fun had I not been COMPLETELY exhausted. I had a delicious meal and a Diet Coke (Diet Coke is never as good abroad as it is in the States, unfortunately) for about US $8. Then, for the first time since arriving here in India, I got a good night's sleep! Success!
So, today was my second day at KV No. 2, and it was another set of interesting and enlightening experiences.
Socializing is a big part of life in India. I am finding that people like to sit and talk and get to know you before getting down to business. It is very roundabout, but highly enjoyable, and while I can understand that it would be frustrating for some people, I have embraced it wholeheartedly! The first question everybody asks you is, "Did you have breakfast?" and the second is "Would you like some tea?". The correct answer to both of these questions is always "yes" because even if you've eaten, they will give you more food, and the tea is utterly delicious! Complete food overload- luckily for me, I have enough time to get in a good workout each afternoon- otherwise I would probably end up needing a seatbelt extender on the flight home.
In getting to know me, teachers have a lot of questions about my life and what it's like to teach in the U.S. and they also want to know whether I like India and if I think it's too hot here. The smartest thing I did to prepare for the trip was to bring a small photo album along with me. It contains pictures of SOTF, my learners, my neighborhood, my house, and a couple other randoms, like a picture of my family and a picture of Jason's niece Sarah, a picture I took of Citizens Bank Park and a picture of me and Jason with the World Series trophy.
Although everybody speaks English, there is definitely a language barrier. I have a hard time understanding them, they have a hard time understanding me. I have taken to speaking very slowly and very clearly, and that helps a ton, and the folks I am talking to are happy to repeat or rephrase if I tell them I don't understand. (Related: many American movies and TV shows that air here in India have English subtitles.)
I got to teach a couple classes today, which was great. The KV schools have a class called "Spoken English" to improve their students' speaking skills, as very few families speak English at home. At my school, most students speak Hindi at home, but in other parts of India families speak other languages. Anyway, I have been given free reign over the Spoken English class for the time I am here, and there is no set curriculum. Today I had the kids ask me questions: they wanted to know what my hobbies are, whether I saw "Paranormal Activity," what TV shows I like, how old I am, whether I am married, what kinds of foods I like, what I hope to gain by spending time in India, etc. All great questions!
But you might be wondering why I titled this entry "monkeys" and that is because there was a MONKEY IN MY SCHOOL TODAY. And it was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. I assumed this was a regular occurrence, but it's not- if I'd known that I would have gotten out my camera to take some video. Anyway- this monkey showed up in the hallway (the hallways are open-air so it had probably gotten in by climbing up a tree or something) and everybody totally went into a tizzy. The monkey was going here and there, it climbed down the stairs and into an area where there were some display cases of student projects and it started eating somebody's paper project! Monkeys are quite dangerous, so nobody could get that close to it, but somehow it eventually climbed over the edge of the hallway and into the courtyard, and up over the roof. For the life of me I could not stop laughing because I don't really think of monkeys as animals so much as I see them as little mischievous people, and this monkey was just like, "Oh! A geometry project! I think I'll eat it! And now I think I'll climb around and let these stupid humans chase me!"
I should also mention the fact that drivers in Delhi are totally insane compared to Americans. The overall speed is much slower- but although there are lane lines painted on the road, the concept of a "lane" is totally foreign. There are the buses and trucks, there are the cars and taxis, and there are auto rickshaws ("autos") and motorbikes that squeeze through small spaces. Spaces so small that I'm pretty sure that auto drivers must have the ability to bend the laws of physics because I'm sitting in an auto thinking "There is no way he can fit between those two buses" and then… he does. Riding in an auto is like the best adventure you will ever have.
So, monkeys… magic autos… delicious food… the "Indian way" of doing business… custom-made clothes… excellent hospitality… helpful, friendly, wonderful, kind people everywhere… I love it all!
Last night, we went to the Delhi interpretation of a hip and cool bar/restaurant, known as a Resto-Bar. It was a blast, and would have been way more fun had I not been COMPLETELY exhausted. I had a delicious meal and a Diet Coke (Diet Coke is never as good abroad as it is in the States, unfortunately) for about US $8. Then, for the first time since arriving here in India, I got a good night's sleep! Success!
So, today was my second day at KV No. 2, and it was another set of interesting and enlightening experiences.
Socializing is a big part of life in India. I am finding that people like to sit and talk and get to know you before getting down to business. It is very roundabout, but highly enjoyable, and while I can understand that it would be frustrating for some people, I have embraced it wholeheartedly! The first question everybody asks you is, "Did you have breakfast?" and the second is "Would you like some tea?". The correct answer to both of these questions is always "yes" because even if you've eaten, they will give you more food, and the tea is utterly delicious! Complete food overload- luckily for me, I have enough time to get in a good workout each afternoon- otherwise I would probably end up needing a seatbelt extender on the flight home.
In getting to know me, teachers have a lot of questions about my life and what it's like to teach in the U.S. and they also want to know whether I like India and if I think it's too hot here. The smartest thing I did to prepare for the trip was to bring a small photo album along with me. It contains pictures of SOTF, my learners, my neighborhood, my house, and a couple other randoms, like a picture of my family and a picture of Jason's niece Sarah, a picture I took of Citizens Bank Park and a picture of me and Jason with the World Series trophy.
Although everybody speaks English, there is definitely a language barrier. I have a hard time understanding them, they have a hard time understanding me. I have taken to speaking very slowly and very clearly, and that helps a ton, and the folks I am talking to are happy to repeat or rephrase if I tell them I don't understand. (Related: many American movies and TV shows that air here in India have English subtitles.)
I got to teach a couple classes today, which was great. The KV schools have a class called "Spoken English" to improve their students' speaking skills, as very few families speak English at home. At my school, most students speak Hindi at home, but in other parts of India families speak other languages. Anyway, I have been given free reign over the Spoken English class for the time I am here, and there is no set curriculum. Today I had the kids ask me questions: they wanted to know what my hobbies are, whether I saw "Paranormal Activity," what TV shows I like, how old I am, whether I am married, what kinds of foods I like, what I hope to gain by spending time in India, etc. All great questions!
But you might be wondering why I titled this entry "monkeys" and that is because there was a MONKEY IN MY SCHOOL TODAY. And it was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. I assumed this was a regular occurrence, but it's not- if I'd known that I would have gotten out my camera to take some video. Anyway- this monkey showed up in the hallway (the hallways are open-air so it had probably gotten in by climbing up a tree or something) and everybody totally went into a tizzy. The monkey was going here and there, it climbed down the stairs and into an area where there were some display cases of student projects and it started eating somebody's paper project! Monkeys are quite dangerous, so nobody could get that close to it, but somehow it eventually climbed over the edge of the hallway and into the courtyard, and up over the roof. For the life of me I could not stop laughing because I don't really think of monkeys as animals so much as I see them as little mischievous people, and this monkey was just like, "Oh! A geometry project! I think I'll eat it! And now I think I'll climb around and let these stupid humans chase me!"
I should also mention the fact that drivers in Delhi are totally insane compared to Americans. The overall speed is much slower- but although there are lane lines painted on the road, the concept of a "lane" is totally foreign. There are the buses and trucks, there are the cars and taxis, and there are auto rickshaws ("autos") and motorbikes that squeeze through small spaces. Spaces so small that I'm pretty sure that auto drivers must have the ability to bend the laws of physics because I'm sitting in an auto thinking "There is no way he can fit between those two buses" and then… he does. Riding in an auto is like the best adventure you will ever have.
So, monkeys… magic autos… delicious food… the "Indian way" of doing business… custom-made clothes… excellent hospitality… helpful, friendly, wonderful, kind people everywhere… I love it all!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
First day at my host school!
7/14/2010 - 5:30pm
Today was the first day for me at KV no. 2, Delhi Cantt, which is located a pretty far distance from the hotel (luckily there are others working at schools nearby, so we can share transportation!) and it was A GREAT DAY!
First of all, in case you were wondering, Indian schools are VERY DIFFERENT from American schools! I could give you a chronological summary of how my day went, but it makes more sense to just focus on the differences between the schools I am used to learning/teaching at, and the school where I'll be spending the next month.
Difference #1: Gender segregation
-Just after picking me up from the principal's office, Mrs. Kumar took me into the Ladies' Staff Lounge and introduced me to some of the other female teachers and explained how my day would go.
-Boys and girls sit on either side of the room, at double-desks. Boys do NOT share the double desks with girls!
Difference #2: Snacks
-There's a kid at the school whose sole job seems to be to bring samosas and other snacks, as well as piping hot delicious chai, to any teacher who asks. And the teachers ask a lot. Whenever I was taken into a sit-down with faculty, chai and samosas were offered to me. I had to end up turning down the samosas because I was too full! And anybody who knows me knows I could eat samosas all day long.
-After students were dismissed, teachers had to stick around to do grading or other duties. The ladies all have lunch in the staff room and I was offered some of everybody's food. A cracker here, a cookie there, dal, etc. Again, I was TOO FULL!
Difference #3: Setup
-There are several classes of kids who stay in the same room all day while the teachers rotate. There is a science room and a computer lab for the older kids, so they get to see some movement, but the vast majority stay in the same spot all day.
-The school is NOT air conditioned. There is plenty of ventilation due to the open plan of the school, and in a normal size room there are 6-8 ceiling fans running. So although I was hot, I was not totally uncomfortable.
-The classes are very short: 30-35min long. As is the school day: 7am-noonish.
-The classes are very big: about 40 students per class.
Difference #4: Manners
-Students stand whenever a teacher enters or leaves a room, and say "Good morning sir/ma'am" or "Thank you sir/ma'am" to the teacher as well.
-Students are incredibly well-behaved and polite otherwise!
Difference #5: Planning
-KV schools have a centralized curriculum which is pretty much scripted but nobody seems to complain about the scriptedness of it. There are standardized exams every few weeks, containing material that is covered in the curriculum.
-Teachers aren't expected to really create their own instructional materials. There's a textbook, a copybook where they respond to reading comprehension questions and take notes, and some classes have a secondary resource textbook. Every so often the teachers collect copybooks and grade the work, then hand the copybooks back.
-Teachers don't have to produce weekly lesson plans (as far as I can tell) and are responsible for making sure the material is covered in the time given before an exam.
Overall, a huge learning experience and a great day. I am really looking forward to working more with the kids and getting to know them better. I will be taking an 8th grade English class, a 9th grade English class, and a spoken English class. The spoken English doesn't have a curriculum I have to follow, so I'll get to do what I want; the other 2 classes will be taught from the curriculum but I hope to do some other fun activities too, to give the kids an experience of what American teaching is like (while still preparing them for their standardized exams!)
Tomorrow morning I will be addressing the school during their morning assembly. I am introducing myself and saying a little bit about what I'll be doing at the school. I'll be speaking to a few hundred kids, maybe even 1,000 (the school is huge!) so I am a little nervous.
So right now I'm exhausted… I'm going to play around on the internet for a bit before dinner and then hopefully get to bed nice and early. I'll be getting up very early here in India- the upside to this is that I'll have afternoons basically free to do what I want.
But before I wind up this entry, some funny things from today:
-I got asked for my autograph by a student, and then THE ENTIRE CLASS wanted my autograph in their notebooks. Or on a hand. Or on both hands.
-I asked the kids to guess my age and they guessed right :(
-A student asked me to sing a song (in case you were wondering, I chose "Happy Birthday" because it was the first song that came to mind)
-A teacher came in and yelled at one of the classes for chewing gum and leaving it under the desks… some things are global, right?
Today was the first day for me at KV no. 2, Delhi Cantt, which is located a pretty far distance from the hotel (luckily there are others working at schools nearby, so we can share transportation!) and it was A GREAT DAY!
First of all, in case you were wondering, Indian schools are VERY DIFFERENT from American schools! I could give you a chronological summary of how my day went, but it makes more sense to just focus on the differences between the schools I am used to learning/teaching at, and the school where I'll be spending the next month.
Difference #1: Gender segregation
-Just after picking me up from the principal's office, Mrs. Kumar took me into the Ladies' Staff Lounge and introduced me to some of the other female teachers and explained how my day would go.
-Boys and girls sit on either side of the room, at double-desks. Boys do NOT share the double desks with girls!
Difference #2: Snacks
-There's a kid at the school whose sole job seems to be to bring samosas and other snacks, as well as piping hot delicious chai, to any teacher who asks. And the teachers ask a lot. Whenever I was taken into a sit-down with faculty, chai and samosas were offered to me. I had to end up turning down the samosas because I was too full! And anybody who knows me knows I could eat samosas all day long.
-After students were dismissed, teachers had to stick around to do grading or other duties. The ladies all have lunch in the staff room and I was offered some of everybody's food. A cracker here, a cookie there, dal, etc. Again, I was TOO FULL!
Difference #3: Setup
-There are several classes of kids who stay in the same room all day while the teachers rotate. There is a science room and a computer lab for the older kids, so they get to see some movement, but the vast majority stay in the same spot all day.
-The school is NOT air conditioned. There is plenty of ventilation due to the open plan of the school, and in a normal size room there are 6-8 ceiling fans running. So although I was hot, I was not totally uncomfortable.
-The classes are very short: 30-35min long. As is the school day: 7am-noonish.
-The classes are very big: about 40 students per class.
Difference #4: Manners
-Students stand whenever a teacher enters or leaves a room, and say "Good morning sir/ma'am" or "Thank you sir/ma'am" to the teacher as well.
-Students are incredibly well-behaved and polite otherwise!
Difference #5: Planning
-KV schools have a centralized curriculum which is pretty much scripted but nobody seems to complain about the scriptedness of it. There are standardized exams every few weeks, containing material that is covered in the curriculum.
-Teachers aren't expected to really create their own instructional materials. There's a textbook, a copybook where they respond to reading comprehension questions and take notes, and some classes have a secondary resource textbook. Every so often the teachers collect copybooks and grade the work, then hand the copybooks back.
-Teachers don't have to produce weekly lesson plans (as far as I can tell) and are responsible for making sure the material is covered in the time given before an exam.
Overall, a huge learning experience and a great day. I am really looking forward to working more with the kids and getting to know them better. I will be taking an 8th grade English class, a 9th grade English class, and a spoken English class. The spoken English doesn't have a curriculum I have to follow, so I'll get to do what I want; the other 2 classes will be taught from the curriculum but I hope to do some other fun activities too, to give the kids an experience of what American teaching is like (while still preparing them for their standardized exams!)
Tomorrow morning I will be addressing the school during their morning assembly. I am introducing myself and saying a little bit about what I'll be doing at the school. I'll be speaking to a few hundred kids, maybe even 1,000 (the school is huge!) so I am a little nervous.
So right now I'm exhausted… I'm going to play around on the internet for a bit before dinner and then hopefully get to bed nice and early. I'll be getting up very early here in India- the upside to this is that I'll have afternoons basically free to do what I want.
But before I wind up this entry, some funny things from today:
-I got asked for my autograph by a student, and then THE ENTIRE CLASS wanted my autograph in their notebooks. Or on a hand. Or on both hands.
-I asked the kids to guess my age and they guessed right :(
-A student asked me to sing a song (in case you were wondering, I chose "Happy Birthday" because it was the first song that came to mind)
-A teacher came in and yelled at one of the classes for chewing gum and leaving it under the desks… some things are global, right?
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
MOMOS!
7/13/10 - 5:45pm
I just got back from an awesome shopping experience! I'm normally not one who likes to shop for clothes because I hate trying them on, but in India it's different because you purchase an item and they alter it according to your measurements right on the spot. So I bought a Salwar Kameez (a three piece suit consisting of a long shirt/dress, loose fitting pants, and a scarf) to wear to our dinner tonight- it was only about $25 including the custom fit. In India, you walk into a sari shop and everything is on shelves folded up… the proprietors of the shop have you sit down and they pull everything out and overwhelm you with beautiful fabrics. It's hard to make a choice but there is such good variety around that there's something for every taste.
Walking around the market was quite an experience- way better than Khan Market because everything was out in the open and there was so much to see. In addition to the Salwar Kameez, I bought a couple other blouses and a scarf and some hankies to wipe off all the sweat.
Most important- I got to try Momos, something I've been hearing about since my DC orientation. They are basically, steamed dumplings with quasi-Indian seasoning. SO GOOD. They were everything I hoped for and more.
I can't wait to post all the pictures I took- I have to find out a way to do that!
Anyway, Prakash from the hotel just showed up with some lovely afternoon fruit… just as I was typing this entry!
I am having a blast- too bad I have to actually work tomorrow :(
I just got back from an awesome shopping experience! I'm normally not one who likes to shop for clothes because I hate trying them on, but in India it's different because you purchase an item and they alter it according to your measurements right on the spot. So I bought a Salwar Kameez (a three piece suit consisting of a long shirt/dress, loose fitting pants, and a scarf) to wear to our dinner tonight- it was only about $25 including the custom fit. In India, you walk into a sari shop and everything is on shelves folded up… the proprietors of the shop have you sit down and they pull everything out and overwhelm you with beautiful fabrics. It's hard to make a choice but there is such good variety around that there's something for every taste.
Walking around the market was quite an experience- way better than Khan Market because everything was out in the open and there was so much to see. In addition to the Salwar Kameez, I bought a couple other blouses and a scarf and some hankies to wipe off all the sweat.
Most important- I got to try Momos, something I've been hearing about since my DC orientation. They are basically, steamed dumplings with quasi-Indian seasoning. SO GOOD. They were everything I hoped for and more.
I can't wait to post all the pictures I took- I have to find out a way to do that!
Anyway, Prakash from the hotel just showed up with some lovely afternoon fruit… just as I was typing this entry!
I am having a blast- too bad I have to actually work tomorrow :(
FRRO: Not for the faint of heart
7/13/10 - noonish
Three of us just got back from registering as foreign visitors. It was a lot of waiting in line and there was some confusion/stress about some of the paperwork we needed, but we had Vikas from Fulbright there to help us get everything straightened out. We only spent about 2 1/2 hours there- which I know seems like a whole lot of time, but isn't by Indian bureaucracy standards.
The FRRO was actually kind of cool. There were all different types of people there: American missionaries, Afghan refugees, Iraqi students, Russian families… it definitely made for some great people-watching. Plus, the Ratha-Yatra parade was playing on the TV there for a few minutes! Great to see.
It seems like in the Indian government, there are a lot of rules, and these rules are heavily influenced by one's interpretation of them. Which explains why only three of us had to register as foreign visitors even though there are 8 of us here all doing the same thing and all on the same visa type. It's all very fascinating to me.
After we got back, Susan and I went to the Khan market, which is right around the corner. I had a delicious lunch for about $1, and then we looked in some clothing stores before deciding that it was too hot to be outside. I'm chilling at the hotel for the next hour, where I plan to use my daily internet hour- I need a fix!
Three of us just got back from registering as foreign visitors. It was a lot of waiting in line and there was some confusion/stress about some of the paperwork we needed, but we had Vikas from Fulbright there to help us get everything straightened out. We only spent about 2 1/2 hours there- which I know seems like a whole lot of time, but isn't by Indian bureaucracy standards.
The FRRO was actually kind of cool. There were all different types of people there: American missionaries, Afghan refugees, Iraqi students, Russian families… it definitely made for some great people-watching. Plus, the Ratha-Yatra parade was playing on the TV there for a few minutes! Great to see.
It seems like in the Indian government, there are a lot of rules, and these rules are heavily influenced by one's interpretation of them. Which explains why only three of us had to register as foreign visitors even though there are 8 of us here all doing the same thing and all on the same visa type. It's all very fascinating to me.
After we got back, Susan and I went to the Khan market, which is right around the corner. I had a delicious lunch for about $1, and then we looked in some clothing stores before deciding that it was too hot to be outside. I'm chilling at the hotel for the next hour, where I plan to use my daily internet hour- I need a fix!
A thought about waiting
7/13/10 - 6am
I think I spoke too soon when I made the statement that I would be adjusted to the time difference by today, because at 4:30am I was wide awake and could not for the life of me fall asleep! So I got up and wrote in my journal for a while, and now it's about 5:45 and I have some time to kill before I go to breakfast, which doesn't start until 7.
One thing I noticed about India is… you do a lot of waiting. I'm a very impatient person, even by East Coast standards, so waiting for several minutes for my change at the restaurant last night (to use one of many examples) was, I'll admit, annoying to me.
But like I was saying in my earlier entries, the level of hospitality here is second to none, so there has to be another explanation for the waiting. My hypothesis is that it's a different way of showing guests respect. To go with the example of waiting an eternity for my change, instead of thinking "What are these people doing taking so long, they are wasting my time, don't they know it's 10pm and I am exhausted and want to go to bed?" I should have realized that I was being shown respect because they were taking the time to make sure my change was correct and that I would be satisfied. I'm not sure if this is a correct interpretation, but given what I have experienced so far, it makes sense.
Speaking of waiting, I'm going to be doing a lot of it today when I go over to register as a foreigner. I'm not sure why this is necessary, considering I filled out paperwork and went through customs and immigration when I got here, but I have already learned not to question the intricacies of Indian bureaucracy. I'm just thankful that USIEF is sending someone along with us to help in the process. When I was having difficulties with my visa I remember how much of a difference it made when I had someone to help me out, so I am glad we will have that provided for us.
And speaking of being patient, I'm going to give myself another day to adjust to the time difference...
I think I spoke too soon when I made the statement that I would be adjusted to the time difference by today, because at 4:30am I was wide awake and could not for the life of me fall asleep! So I got up and wrote in my journal for a while, and now it's about 5:45 and I have some time to kill before I go to breakfast, which doesn't start until 7.
One thing I noticed about India is… you do a lot of waiting. I'm a very impatient person, even by East Coast standards, so waiting for several minutes for my change at the restaurant last night (to use one of many examples) was, I'll admit, annoying to me.
But like I was saying in my earlier entries, the level of hospitality here is second to none, so there has to be another explanation for the waiting. My hypothesis is that it's a different way of showing guests respect. To go with the example of waiting an eternity for my change, instead of thinking "What are these people doing taking so long, they are wasting my time, don't they know it's 10pm and I am exhausted and want to go to bed?" I should have realized that I was being shown respect because they were taking the time to make sure my change was correct and that I would be satisfied. I'm not sure if this is a correct interpretation, but given what I have experienced so far, it makes sense.
Speaking of waiting, I'm going to be doing a lot of it today when I go over to register as a foreigner. I'm not sure why this is necessary, considering I filled out paperwork and went through customs and immigration when I got here, but I have already learned not to question the intricacies of Indian bureaucracy. I'm just thankful that USIEF is sending someone along with us to help in the process. When I was having difficulties with my visa I remember how much of a difference it made when I had someone to help me out, so I am glad we will have that provided for us.
And speaking of being patient, I'm going to give myself another day to adjust to the time difference...
Monsoon Madness!
7/12/10 - 10:30pm
So the wireless situation here at the hotel is great- but we're only given one opportunity to login for free per day, so I'm trying to economize (and break myself of the Facebook habit) by only posting blog entries once a day. As I write this, it's about 10:30 at night and we just got back from a very long and drawn-out dinner at the hotel's Chinese restaurant, which I believe is called Larry's China. Chinese food in India, I know, go figure, but there was a ridiculous rainstorm outside (more on that later) so we decided not to venture out for dinner!
Our first full day in Delhi was quite eventful. Early in the morning, around 7:30, I checked out the hotel's fitness center, which is nicer than the gym I belong to at home, then found my way down to the hotel's delicious breakfast, where I bumped into some of my compatriots.
I have to pause here to say something about Indian hospitality. I don't remember whether I wrote about this earlier, and I think I did, but words cannot express how helpful and wonderful everybody has been so far. Especially the folks here at the Taj Ambassador. They really go out of their way for you over here to make you feel like royalty! For example, I got back to the hotel after our meetings with USIEF to find that my room had been cleaned and all the junk I had left out in the bathroom was neatly rearranged into rows and piles. My shoes (which were all stashed underneath a bench) were all in a row. It's the little things! Then tonight at dinner, Britta couldn't finish most of her entrée… and instead of just packing it up for her when she asked, the waiter said "Ma'am you didn't like it? Too spicy? Let us make you something else!" and was hard pressed to take no for an answer.
Anyway. So after breakfast I took a nap, and then we went to USIEF's offices for lunch and more orientation/training. More on the educational system, including a very interesting Q&A with an administrator and a math teacher! We also learned some Hindi phrases, and the teacher was really great, but I think the only thing I remember is "Namaskar" and "Bas." Namaskar is a formal greeting, and Bas is what I will say to the auto-rickshaw driver when I need him to stop. Thank goodness for handouts!
Then the fun part of the evening started, when we decided to go over to the Khan Market (just next to our hotel) to get cell phones. Not long after we arrived at the cell phone stall it started to POUR. As in, within minutes the water on the street was ankle-deep and there were downed trees all up and down the road. We ran back to the hotel as quickly as we could, but got pretty soaked. I washed my feet as soon as I got back but I have convinced myself that I've picked up schistosomiasis and whatever other parasites burrow through one's feet when one is running through several inches of sewage-laced rainwater in Delhi. So, there's that.
OH, and we had quite the celebrity encounter! While waiting for some of our group members to go to the Khan Market, some of us struck up a conversation with a friendly middle-aged American guy who was also standing outside the hotel. I asked him what he was doing here in New Delhi and he said he was a journalist here on assignment. That he works for NPR. His voice sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place it, and thought maybe I was mistaken. BUT- turns out it's Corey Flintoff, whose reports I often enjoy listening to! He said that he just got back from Afghanistan, at which point I mentioned that I am teaching a unit on Afghanistan next year and would he possibly like to get together to talk about Afghanistan, and he said he would be delighted to. I'm not sure how long he will be staying at the hotel, but I really hope this pans out!
My favorite part of the day, though, was finally getting my hands on a cell phone so that I could call Jason and my parents!!!!
So then after we got dried off we went to dinner, which took forever (but I have to mention that there is a karaoke bar at our hotel and we heard some very bad singing- "Every Breath You Take"- coming from it on our way out of the restaurant… this bears some investigation, perhaps with a video camera). Now I'm back and ready to get some well-deserved shut-eye. I think by the time I wake up tomorrow, I'll be acclimated to the huge time difference.
Tomorrow the plan is to go to the foreign visitors office and register. This is going to be an extremely entertaining experience, I've been told, and unlike my trip to the Consulate in June I won't be alone. I might have to wait for hours in line, but what can you do… the Indian bureaucracy is about as spectacular as Indian hospitality… just in a different way. Shopping in the afternoon, and then we'll be meeting our principals and cooperating teachers for dinner at USIEF's HQ.
Good night from India!
So the wireless situation here at the hotel is great- but we're only given one opportunity to login for free per day, so I'm trying to economize (and break myself of the Facebook habit) by only posting blog entries once a day. As I write this, it's about 10:30 at night and we just got back from a very long and drawn-out dinner at the hotel's Chinese restaurant, which I believe is called Larry's China. Chinese food in India, I know, go figure, but there was a ridiculous rainstorm outside (more on that later) so we decided not to venture out for dinner!
Our first full day in Delhi was quite eventful. Early in the morning, around 7:30, I checked out the hotel's fitness center, which is nicer than the gym I belong to at home, then found my way down to the hotel's delicious breakfast, where I bumped into some of my compatriots.
I have to pause here to say something about Indian hospitality. I don't remember whether I wrote about this earlier, and I think I did, but words cannot express how helpful and wonderful everybody has been so far. Especially the folks here at the Taj Ambassador. They really go out of their way for you over here to make you feel like royalty! For example, I got back to the hotel after our meetings with USIEF to find that my room had been cleaned and all the junk I had left out in the bathroom was neatly rearranged into rows and piles. My shoes (which were all stashed underneath a bench) were all in a row. It's the little things! Then tonight at dinner, Britta couldn't finish most of her entrée… and instead of just packing it up for her when she asked, the waiter said "Ma'am you didn't like it? Too spicy? Let us make you something else!" and was hard pressed to take no for an answer.
Anyway. So after breakfast I took a nap, and then we went to USIEF's offices for lunch and more orientation/training. More on the educational system, including a very interesting Q&A with an administrator and a math teacher! We also learned some Hindi phrases, and the teacher was really great, but I think the only thing I remember is "Namaskar" and "Bas." Namaskar is a formal greeting, and Bas is what I will say to the auto-rickshaw driver when I need him to stop. Thank goodness for handouts!
Then the fun part of the evening started, when we decided to go over to the Khan Market (just next to our hotel) to get cell phones. Not long after we arrived at the cell phone stall it started to POUR. As in, within minutes the water on the street was ankle-deep and there were downed trees all up and down the road. We ran back to the hotel as quickly as we could, but got pretty soaked. I washed my feet as soon as I got back but I have convinced myself that I've picked up schistosomiasis and whatever other parasites burrow through one's feet when one is running through several inches of sewage-laced rainwater in Delhi. So, there's that.
OH, and we had quite the celebrity encounter! While waiting for some of our group members to go to the Khan Market, some of us struck up a conversation with a friendly middle-aged American guy who was also standing outside the hotel. I asked him what he was doing here in New Delhi and he said he was a journalist here on assignment. That he works for NPR. His voice sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place it, and thought maybe I was mistaken. BUT- turns out it's Corey Flintoff, whose reports I often enjoy listening to! He said that he just got back from Afghanistan, at which point I mentioned that I am teaching a unit on Afghanistan next year and would he possibly like to get together to talk about Afghanistan, and he said he would be delighted to. I'm not sure how long he will be staying at the hotel, but I really hope this pans out!
My favorite part of the day, though, was finally getting my hands on a cell phone so that I could call Jason and my parents!!!!
So then after we got dried off we went to dinner, which took forever (but I have to mention that there is a karaoke bar at our hotel and we heard some very bad singing- "Every Breath You Take"- coming from it on our way out of the restaurant… this bears some investigation, perhaps with a video camera). Now I'm back and ready to get some well-deserved shut-eye. I think by the time I wake up tomorrow, I'll be acclimated to the huge time difference.
Tomorrow the plan is to go to the foreign visitors office and register. This is going to be an extremely entertaining experience, I've been told, and unlike my trip to the Consulate in June I won't be alone. I might have to wait for hours in line, but what can you do… the Indian bureaucracy is about as spectacular as Indian hospitality… just in a different way. Shopping in the afternoon, and then we'll be meeting our principals and cooperating teachers for dinner at USIEF's HQ.
Good night from India!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Arriving to India
Just a short note, as I'm about to run out of wireless time and I think I'm going to try to go back to sleep in a few minutes.
I'm in my very comfortable bed at our very comfortable hotel as I type this, and it's about 5am India time (but 7:30pm Philly time, which explains why I'm having a hard time sleeping but will probably be completely exhausted just in time for the meetings planned later today!) and, well, I'm glad to finally be here.
Indian hospitality is great! We had some folks at the airport to pick us up, and the hotel staff was bright and chipper at 2am, handing us glasses of fresh watermelon juice and bringing our bags up to our rooms for us. When I got into my room, there were two gorgeous fresh mangoes and bottled water waiting for me, and the shower has amazing water pressure- perfect to refresh me after all those hours of sitting in airplanes!
I feel very lucky to be treated so well, and to be given this opportunity... yet there is so much unknown! How sick will I get? What will my school be like? What challenges will I run into as I attempt to communicate with people of a completely different culture? And, being that I'm the type of person who constantly tries to find out as much as I can in anticipation of whatever's on the horizon, what I don't know right now is making my head spin!
Well- the hotel has great wireless, so hopefully I'll have some time to update the blog often. I'm going to try to get some shuteye. And hope that the unknowns become knowns, and soon!
I'm in my very comfortable bed at our very comfortable hotel as I type this, and it's about 5am India time (but 7:30pm Philly time, which explains why I'm having a hard time sleeping but will probably be completely exhausted just in time for the meetings planned later today!) and, well, I'm glad to finally be here.
Indian hospitality is great! We had some folks at the airport to pick us up, and the hotel staff was bright and chipper at 2am, handing us glasses of fresh watermelon juice and bringing our bags up to our rooms for us. When I got into my room, there were two gorgeous fresh mangoes and bottled water waiting for me, and the shower has amazing water pressure- perfect to refresh me after all those hours of sitting in airplanes!
I feel very lucky to be treated so well, and to be given this opportunity... yet there is so much unknown! How sick will I get? What will my school be like? What challenges will I run into as I attempt to communicate with people of a completely different culture? And, being that I'm the type of person who constantly tries to find out as much as I can in anticipation of whatever's on the horizon, what I don't know right now is making my head spin!
Well- the hotel has great wireless, so hopefully I'll have some time to update the blog often. I'm going to try to get some shuteye. And hope that the unknowns become knowns, and soon!
Written at the Frankfurt Airport
7/11/10 - Frankfurt
I don't think I'll be able to access wireless until we get to India, but welcome to the first entry of my blog!
As I type this entry, I'm in the Frankfurt airport (learners: Frankfurt is in Germany.) Although the clock on my computer reads 6:26am, it's 12:26pm here and our flight will board in about an hour. The Frankfurt airport is interesting. There are people riding bikes and a lady behind me is taking up a whole row of seats, snoring loudly. I don't blame her!
I left Philadelphia what seems like centuries ago, took a short flight to Washington DC, and met up with the rest of my group. Britta, Christopher and I met up at the airport and shared a taxi from Dulles to our hotel. Britta teaches science and art in Seattle, and Christopher teaches journalism in California. We got to know each other a little bit on the long taxi ride, and then we checked in at the hotel.
We met up with the rest of our group and with the wonderful folks from American Councils, the organization that put together our Educational Seminar. They took us (the 8 of us traveling to India, plus a small group of principals about to go to Thailand) to a delicious dinner, and then we had a nighttime tour of some DC monuments. Though I'd been to the monuments before, I don't recall ever having visited them at night, and I was very much looking for something to occupy me and expend some nervous energy so I could get a good night's sleep… mission accomplished!
Saturday was a blur of presentations and information. We learned about communication difficulties to anticipate as we attempt to interact with a different culture; we learned more about daily life in Delhi; we learned more about what to expect out of our experience at our host school; we got information to think about regarding post-trip grants we can take advantage of after we return. It was a whole lot to take in! Although all that information is now a blur to me as I sit here in the middle of Germany, I know that once I get to Delhi it'll all come back to me.
After training wrapped up we went to the airport and after a nice long wait in various security lines and at the gate, hopped on the plane… I slept for maybe 3-4 hours, I tried to read, I watched a couple episodes of Mad Men (my favorite show!), I drank 2 cans of seltzer, 1 water bottle, and 1 can of ginger ale and ate "dinner" and a "snack". Pretty standard for a 7+ hour flight, I guess?
What's next? Another long flight to Delhi, waiting in line at immigration, then meeting up with the folks from USIEF, who will drive us to our hotel, the beautiful Taj Ambassador in New Delhi. We'll have a few hours to rest and then more training and meetings… if I recall correctly, we'll be starting our experience with a couple days of observation at our host school before we actually start doing any teaching.
Right now, I'm feeling tired and like I could use a shower- it's been about 24 hours since my last one, and it'll probably be 10-12 more until I'll have the privilege- seems like forever! Apart from worldly concerns like showers and naps, I'm excited about what lies ahead, but nervous too. It seems like so long ago that I found out I would be participating in this program, and now that it's finally here I can't believe it's happening! I'm looking forward to acclimating myself to India (even if it means getting sick from the food!) and serving my host school to the best of my abilities.
I'm looking forward to documenting my adventures, too, through this blog- hope folks at home will enjoy reading it as much as I'll enjoy writing it.
I don't think I'll be able to access wireless until we get to India, but welcome to the first entry of my blog!
As I type this entry, I'm in the Frankfurt airport (learners: Frankfurt is in Germany.) Although the clock on my computer reads 6:26am, it's 12:26pm here and our flight will board in about an hour. The Frankfurt airport is interesting. There are people riding bikes and a lady behind me is taking up a whole row of seats, snoring loudly. I don't blame her!
I left Philadelphia what seems like centuries ago, took a short flight to Washington DC, and met up with the rest of my group. Britta, Christopher and I met up at the airport and shared a taxi from Dulles to our hotel. Britta teaches science and art in Seattle, and Christopher teaches journalism in California. We got to know each other a little bit on the long taxi ride, and then we checked in at the hotel.
We met up with the rest of our group and with the wonderful folks from American Councils, the organization that put together our Educational Seminar. They took us (the 8 of us traveling to India, plus a small group of principals about to go to Thailand) to a delicious dinner, and then we had a nighttime tour of some DC monuments. Though I'd been to the monuments before, I don't recall ever having visited them at night, and I was very much looking for something to occupy me and expend some nervous energy so I could get a good night's sleep… mission accomplished!
Saturday was a blur of presentations and information. We learned about communication difficulties to anticipate as we attempt to interact with a different culture; we learned more about daily life in Delhi; we learned more about what to expect out of our experience at our host school; we got information to think about regarding post-trip grants we can take advantage of after we return. It was a whole lot to take in! Although all that information is now a blur to me as I sit here in the middle of Germany, I know that once I get to Delhi it'll all come back to me.
After training wrapped up we went to the airport and after a nice long wait in various security lines and at the gate, hopped on the plane… I slept for maybe 3-4 hours, I tried to read, I watched a couple episodes of Mad Men (my favorite show!), I drank 2 cans of seltzer, 1 water bottle, and 1 can of ginger ale and ate "dinner" and a "snack". Pretty standard for a 7+ hour flight, I guess?
What's next? Another long flight to Delhi, waiting in line at immigration, then meeting up with the folks from USIEF, who will drive us to our hotel, the beautiful Taj Ambassador in New Delhi. We'll have a few hours to rest and then more training and meetings… if I recall correctly, we'll be starting our experience with a couple days of observation at our host school before we actually start doing any teaching.
Right now, I'm feeling tired and like I could use a shower- it's been about 24 hours since my last one, and it'll probably be 10-12 more until I'll have the privilege- seems like forever! Apart from worldly concerns like showers and naps, I'm excited about what lies ahead, but nervous too. It seems like so long ago that I found out I would be participating in this program, and now that it's finally here I can't believe it's happening! I'm looking forward to acclimating myself to India (even if it means getting sick from the food!) and serving my host school to the best of my abilities.
I'm looking forward to documenting my adventures, too, through this blog- hope folks at home will enjoy reading it as much as I'll enjoy writing it.
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