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….