Reflections

It's been approximately a week since I landed at Newark airport. How does it feel to be back? Weird, strange, surreal. Am I happy to be back? Yes. But do I wish I could go back? A thousand times over- yes.

It's impossible to describe the last 4 months. This blog, nor my pictures, do any of it justice. The one thing that scares me is that over these next few weeks, I will slowly start to forget- the memories, the faces of the many people I met, the hundreds of stories I listened to, the many places I discovered through hours of exploration.. and so much more. I still haven't had enough time to process it all. Yet all I can do is move forward. I've learned a lot- more than I ever have to be honest. Not just about my mother country, but about myself. I needed these lessons, and am so grateful for every person that had a role in showing me what I needed to see, hear, and understand.

I met a lot of people in my program who knew they wanted to come to India for their study abroad destination for a very long time. I on the other hand, chose to go there spontaneously- and am so glad I did. A few of you know that I am headed to Argentina in about 2 months, and I know my time in India will serve to bolster every single experience that lies ahead next semester.

Argentina, see you soon.
India, it may be months, or it may even be years. But I'll be seeing you too- I know this for certain. 

Thoughts from a Coffee Shop

I'm currently sitting at Costa Coffee (my favorite in Pune), sipping on a latte and thinking about how I only have 11 days left in India. Really, I should be working on my final paper that is due in just 3 days as well as my presentation that is in just 5 days. But what's good work without some major procrastination, right?

A few hours ago, a Canadian woman asked if she could sit near me and read her book. Of course, me being the obnoxious person I am, I introduced myself to her and asked where she was from. She, like me, is studying a variety of courses relating to Indian culture and politics at a university nearby- but unlike me, she's here until April (so a full year study). She was amazed to know how little time I had left in India and that led us to have a discussion on just how incredible this country is. The sheer magnitude of the beauty that exists here is incredibly hard to show or describe to others. Even in the poorest parts of the city of the slums I have been working in, the spirit of the people is enormous- there's so much dynamism everywhere. In every essence, India truly is chaotic and absolutely 100% crazy- but if it wasn't, it wouldn't be the India I have come to know and love. It's hard to imagine that I will be leaving soon and though I wish I wasn't, I know I will be back. In the past 4 months, I've been exposed to just a glimpse of how enormous our world truly is- it has driven me even more, to see as much of it as I possibly can.

In the coming days, I will be finishing work, last minute shopping, mailing out postcards I should've mailed out 1-2 months back (sorry), eating at least 3 ice cream softy cones a day (not kidding), indulging in street food at least twice a day (again, not kidding), and drinking as much sugarcane and mango juice as I can. But for now, in the coming hours, I'll be working on my paper that badly needs some attention.

Good luck to everyone in their end-of-the-year work. I'll be seeing some of you soon hopefully!

Love,

Sai 

Internship madness

As great as my trip to Hyderabad was, I was almost immediately thrown back into the chaos of school, work, and Pune. Oh, Pune…. I wish I could say I missed it a lot but I’ll be honest when I say Hyderabad was a lot better. There might be a little bit of bias thrown into that statement, but hey, it’s my blog.

ANYWAY, no sooner than the new week began, I learned I could officially start work for my internship- rather than simple visits I had been doing for the month of October. To briefly explain what my internship is, I work for a microfinance organization called Parvati Swayamrojgar that has 7 branches all over Pune. Each branch is located in the middle of a slum. My main task is to assess Parvati’s financial literacy training sessions- if they’re effective- if they can improve, etc.

2 and a half weeks later… I can officially say I love my work. I love what I do. I love the people I work with. Before officially beginning my internship, I had to develop a questionnaire to interview women on what they think of these training sessions. I went in with the goal of interviewing at least 70 women (10 from each branch)— I’ve thus far been able to interview 80 women! It has been nothing short of an incredible experience. Everyday, I travel to a slum, attend the training session, and then go forth with the task of interviewing at least 5-10 women. Since I was told to spend as much time ‘in the field’ as possible, I have been interviewing these women inside of their own homes. These homes are almost always miniscule, roofless, have no toilets, and sometimes do not even have a door. Up to 6-7 people live inside of these homes. And yet no matter how destitute some of these womens’ conditions seem, every single woman I’ve encountered so far has always gone out of her way to offer water, chai, or some type of food. In addition to talking to them about the training sessions and the importance of saving, I have also had the opportunity of listening to their views and their problems.

I’ve been to the homes of women who are mess hall workers, maids, garland makers, vegetable sellers, street sweepers, street food vendors, handcart sellers, tailors, and a variety of other occupations. While one may find it easy to subjugate some of these women as ‘lower class individuals,’ they are some of the most beautiful, most inspiring, and most hard working individuals I have ever met. And in my book, that makes them high class. They’re also hilarious, which makes it a bonus for me to talk to them J And if anyone is wondering how exactly I talk to them—I have an interpreter (and she’s awesome by the way)! Since I cannot speak mahrati, she asks them the questions and then translates what they say. But I’ve actually started picking up on some of the vocab (because of the fact that I interview at least 5-10 each day), and am sometimes able to gage what they are saying in response… which is amazing! And even more awesome, I have actually met a few families that speak Telugu so I have been able to speak to them directly, without the use of my interpreter. When this happens, she’s able to take a break for a while :P

In regards to the people I work with-- each of the 7 branches has a great office staff and the man who runs the training sessions, Mr. Kawalle, has honestly become my best friend. You think I'm kidding, I'm not. I see him every day for about 5 hours and he's almost become a mentor of sorts! But everyone has been so friendly and willing to help regardless of how busy they are. I think I definitely lucked out with the organization I was assigned to. 

I have about 2 and a half more weeks of my internship left—this coming week I am going to be doing in-depth interviews regarding my academic paper topic. I am writing mine on slum eradication- what’s been done in the past, what is happening currently in the 7 slums I work in, and what I think the future will be based on my research. Thus, these in-depth interviews will be on what those in the slums think- how they think slum rehabilitation and slum redevelopment should happen (if they agree with participatory development). The week after, I will be talking to a variety of local NGOs and Pune’s government officials to see what their particular views are. It’s definitely going to be a busy two weeks but I am looking forward to it!

I also have to mention that I have started taking the bus to each of the branches instead of rickshaws because it’s faster and cheaper. And that’s definitely been an experience. Jumping onto a running bus, or jumping off of a running bus, being shoved and pushed, and almost being hurled out of the bus due to the crazy driver’s braking are definitely frustrating—but mostly funny. I’m laughing thinking back on all of my experiences so far. All in all, my days have been tiring, but they’ve been so worthwhile at the same time.

OK so I hope that makes me all caught up on my blog posts! I am so sorry for anyone that actually read all of this- but hopefully my next post will be shorter!  

HAPPY (late) DIWALI!

I know this post is extremely late but better late than never, right? For those of you that don’t know what Diwali is, it’s the festival of lights- it’s the biggest festivals here in India. It signifies a new beginning, and is spent with family. It’s also best known for the use of fireworks and firecrackers. Essentially, it’s awesome. Refer to some of my facebook pictures if need be :)

So on October 21^st, I frantically turned in all sorts of papers/assignments/paperwork and got in a rickshaw to go to the Pune Airport. I was told it was extremely far away, and yet I got there within 25 minutes -_- And me being me, I got there about 4 hours before my flight even arrived… so I spent the time doing lots of people-watching, making new friends, and trying airport food- time well spent if you ask me. Once I was on the plane is when I realized I was heading back to a home I hadn’t been to in years. I wasn’t really sure what to expect considering I had not seen in Hyderabad in so long.

The first few days in Hyderabad were spent at my aunt’s house while the last few days were spent at my other aunt’s house. Looking back, I can’t believe how the 9 days went by so fast… but to summarize all of what I did while there, I saw family I haven’t seen in years- on both my mom’s and dad’s side. More important than simply seeing my family, I was able to talk to them, connect with them on a somewhat higher level considering I was no longer half a world away from them. It was incredible to see everyone. I felt so much love the entire time I was there- and it was great to see that everyone still felt the same way despite not having seen me for so many years.

 I was also able to see the 4 homes in which my parents and I lived in Hyderabad before moving to the US.  As I walked down all the little alleyways and roads, all I could think about was “wow I actually grew up here.” And for this reason, I am 100% glad I went to Hyderabad for Diwali break. One of the main reasons why I came to India was to reconnect to my roots—and I was able to do exactly this. In addition to seeing my family, I was reminded of my past- of where I come from—and ultimately it made me realize how far my parents and I have come. Moreover, it made me realize how much my parents sacrificed so I could have a better life. They left their families, their homes, the only worlds they knew to start entirely from scratch. It’s absolutely mind blowing to reflect on how much all three of us have grown up over the last 10 years. It’s even more mind blowing to think about all the experiences I’ve had, all the people I’ve encountered, and all the opportunities I’ve been presented with. There’s much more I could say but I’d go on for pages and that would just be painful for everyone, so I think I’ll stop here and say: I’m incredibly lucky. And no amount of words in the world are enough to thank those who have helped me get to where I am today (including every single family member). 

Onto the next post regarding the weeks afterwards in Pune! 

Travels to Mumbai

At 6am on Wednesday morning, I left the apartment in order to go find a rickshaw- which I was told would be hard because there wouldn’t too many on the road. However, I quickly found a man who was willing to drive me to Pune Railway Station. It took about 25 minutes and once there, I was immediately overwhelmed by the smells of delicious foods, the perfume of some of the women walking by covered in Burkas, as well as the smell of urine and so much more. Our train was supposed to leave at 710am but like all things in India, of course there was a delay and we didn’t really end up leaving until about 740. I wish I could say it was a great train ride but we were in the AC section- which meant the oddly tinted windows had be shut the entire way. But as a bonus, we received omelettes for breakfast which were SUPER yummy!

We reached Mumbai by 11am and my first impression was- wow. We were in the old part of Mumbai- the very southern tip. So all of the architecture was from the colonial period and the scenery was just breathtaking. Another thing that caught my attention right away was the amount of pollution. What some people believed to be fog or mist covering Mumbai’s skyline as we drove by- was actually pollution- our first glimpse of the many problems that plague the growing city of Mumbai.

We quickly dropped off our bags at the hotel- which was a very nice hotel might I add. It even had showers! I happily enjoyed my first overhead shower since August and reveled in it J We then went to Manibhavan- where Gandhi lived from 1917 to 1934. It was an odd feeling to be walking around and looking at all of the books that he read during his lifetime, and viewing some of the letters he wrote to people such as Hitler.

From here, we went to the Bombay High Court. We were given the opportunity to enter a few of the rooms where there were active cases going on. What I liked most while I was there was the fact that the lawyers have an ongoing conversation with the judge(s)- there is no jury. From what I could tell, it really gave the judge the opportunity to use his expertise and experience to challenge the lawyer- while giving the lawyer an opportunity to show the courtroom his skill in arguing the judge. Though I could not understand what most of the cases were about (due to the time limit), it was a really neat experience to be inside of the high court. Unfortunately, I have no pictures- as we were not allowed to bring our cameras in!

The next day, we listened to two different speakers. One, Ms. Neera Adarker, spoke about the transition of Mumbai from Mills to Malls, while the other, Matias (from Switzerland) spoke of his study on ‘neighborhoods’ (not slums, I’ll explain later) around the world- from Tokyo to Mumbai. He has a background in economics and urban planning. I cannot explain how much I liked him and what he had to say in a few words. But I’ll try to sum up what he said. Essentially, the government is trying to ‘redevelop’ slum areas by tearing down the structures in place, and constructing high rise buildings in order to move people into ‘better lives.’ What the government is not realizing is that these people move into the high rise structures, don’t really know how to live in it because they aren’t given any type of aid or maintenance help, and so they immediately move out back into another slum area. As Tokyo did many years back (and now known to be one of the best cities in the world), Matias believes that the government here should allow the slums to be in a constant state of development. In his words, “dynamism is important- as is allowing this development in the presence of vernacular forms.” He also told us that the people of these neighborhoods are incredibly skilled- with a variety of businesses.

And boy, are they skilled. After Matias’s lecture, we went to Dharavi, mistakenly known as Asia’s largest slum. This is where Slumdog Millionaire was filmed. Apparently, there are larger slums in Mumbai than Dharavi, but people simply refuse to look into the matter before putting a label on it. However, we were given the opportunity to visit a recycling unit as well as a potter’s business. My group had a tour guide by the name of Raiz Khan, who lives in Dharavi. Just looking at him, I could tell he was a genuine man. He carefully took us through the alleyways and brought us to various destinations, one being the recycling unit. Here, people cut up different plastic materials, sift through them, then pick out the various colors and organize the pieces. Some of these colorful pieces are then used as beads while other materials are used for other purposes. As we looked on to the people going about their business, we realized that they had no protective gear. There were no safety measures taken- and yet they went about laughing and going on with their work. Next, we were brought to a potter’s business. He was such a jolly man who made perfect pots without even looking! And as we walked to various locations in the areas, we looked inside some of the homes- at what all the people were doing. Many homes were not simply homes- but also places of businesses for things such as tailoring etc. I remember talking to a few of my friends while walking through the alleyways and we spoke of how skilled these people were- how knowledgeable they were. I’ll use Raiz as an example. Despite being a tailor, he also works as a journalist and an activist- and yet his life is confined to such constraints where he is unable to move up the social ladder.

When we asked a few individuals here what they wanted most from the government, they said that rather than the ‘redevelopment’ projects that Matias spoke to us about earlier, they wanted incorporation of their businesses and lives into the development plans. Simply destroying their homes and areas of businesses, and relocating them into high rise structures is not going to make their lives better by any means. They not only lose shelter, but they also lose employment- as well as a sense of dignity, from what I could tell anyway.

Dharavi was incredibly eye opening and I am lucky to have received the opportunity to see it- outside of a movie or a textbook. It made me even more excited for my internship- where I will actually be working in seven slums all across Pune. I am interested in talking to the people more than anything, and besides that, I am going into it with zero expectations. By no means do I hope to enter into their homes as some type of ‘liberator’ that is set on opening their eyes to a better way of life. Rather, I hope to listen, and learn from them. As Matias said, it is highly important for us as individuals to recognize, understand, engage, and THEN go about intervening with what you think is the best route.

Sorry for the incredibly long post… I’ll try to cut back next time, haha. Anyway, this past weekend after Mumbai has been very quiet. I’m actually really sick right now but I’m hoping this lemongrass chai I keep drinking will help. I have a lot of upcoming papers and presentations to be working on, but I figured I’d get this blogpost out of the way first! I can’t believe that I leave for Hyderabad in less than a week—or the fact that it’ll be November upon my return to Pune.

In other news, I saw a parrot today on the terrace! That might not be exciting news for anyone- but I lovelovelove parrots, and getting to see one made my day, as well as the jasmine flowers that I picked off the bush (also on the terrace). Parrots, jasmine flowers, lemongrass chai, overlooking the view from the terrace, and breathing in fresh air I think was exactly what I needed after a hectic few days.

Hope everyone that still reads this thing has a good upcoming week!

Love,

Sai 

Mahabaleshwar- An Amazing Weekend

This past weekend, my environmental class headed to Mahabaleshwar for a 2 day field trip. We were given essentially no information about where we were going, what we’d be doing, or where we were staying (you know, all the important stuff). Our professor did this intentionally because he wanted us to have no expectations before we went. So the entire class was pretty much highly skeptical of the trip. I know I definitely was. But let me just say, it was by far one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen.

We left Pune at around 7am on Saturday morning. The ride there was short (2.5 hours), compared to the 7 hour journey we had to the tribal village. We dropped our stuff off at the place we were going to be staying. I don’t even know how to describe it except for that it was AMAZING. It is a little lodge-type house run by a Zoroastrian couple. I will have to add pictures because my words do not do it justice. We met the man that runs the place, Peter. Peter is practically blind but he is one of the most intelligent, vivacious, and funniest men I have ever met. He used to be a teacher but now exclusively works on maintaining the lodge for those who stay there.

A part of the house is this cool porch area 

After our introductions with Peter, we went to see the Western Ghat mountains up close. It was extremely foggy but it was surreal to be standing there… I felt like I was walking on clouds. I took a lot of photos but I can honestly say that I don’t think any of them capture the beauty that I was surrounded by. While there, we listened to our professor speak to us about the environment in Mahabaleshwar- how it came to be, and what is being done to protect it. It was declared an eco-sensitive zone a couple of years back and because of this, many businesses and corporations are restricted from coming to the area.

The Western Ghat mountain range

I also got my first street corn on the cob here! Sadly however, I was attacked by a baby monkey and he got to eat half of my cob. I thought it was hysterical and I was impressed by how high the monkey was able to jump :P Oh, and the half that I was able to taste of my cob was DELICIOUS- sprinkled with masala and lime J

We then went to an ancient Krishna temple- the temple was built because the location was the origin of the Krishna river (temples are built at all originating places of rivers).  As we sat there listening to our professor speak about how the temple was 2,000 years old- I was left in awe by the scenery around me. We also meditated and chanted OM together, with our professor leading us along. It was incredibly serene and peaceful. I am starting to like and understand my professor a lot more- though he seems to be insane at times… he’s definitely growing on me!

Afterwards, we had a delicious lunch AND we had strawberries and cream!!! Mahabaleshwar is known for its JAMS (like the kind you put on bread) and strawberry everything! It was so so so so good. Dinner was also good. We had a typical Zoroastrian meal- and since it was my first time having it, I was excited to try it! And I’m not surprised I loved it. Despite the fact that I was exhausted by the time dinner was over, I ended up staying up past midnight, playing Mafia with the rest of my classmates. It was an awesome time.

The next morning, we awoke real early! We had a tour of Peter’s farm and I was amazed at how well kept it was. There were medicinal plants, lime trees, guava trees, mango trees, lots of flowers, and lots of crops. The women who work at Peter’s lodge actually use these crops to make all of the food. We had a chance to taste all of this at the ginormous breakfast we had after the tour. I don’t think my stomach has ever been happier at any breakfast I’ve had. We had lots of bread with homemade strawberry jam (mmmm!), and Indian style scrambled eggs, as well as fresh fruit. SO GOOD.

After stuffing our stomachs, we got ready to go on a 4 hour trek up the mountains to a destination known as Wilson point, from which we were able to see everything. It was a really nice trek- and a great work out. I also have to mention the fact that Peter came with us the entire way- and may I remind you that he is pretty much entirely blind. Seeing him and hearing him speak really inspired me. He has so much motivation and is just an all around great person. Along the way, we saw some little critters- I held a baby toad and a baby crab! Once we reached the top, we meditated again with our professor and then headed for lunch. It was another delicious meal with grilled cheese & veggie sandwiches and Indian style pizza. I feel like I talk about food so much in my posts but honestly… I can’t describe how AWESOME it is! We dropped Peter off after lunch and then headed back to Pune.

The view from Wilson Point

It became stormy right as we were leaving

No one wanted our weekend to end. It was by far the best trip I’ve had in India so far. Nothing felt rushed or stressful. We were simply able to breathe, relax, and take in the environment around us. It was amazing.

Since the trip however, reality has slapped me in the face as I am presented with more deadlines about lots of papers. We were also informed about our internships, and I actually had my first visit to the organization I am interning for today.

Beginning soon, I will be interning at an organization called Parvati Swayamrojgar. It is a microfinance institution that lends out loans to the urban poor. The organization has 7 branches all throughout Pune. I learned today that my job will be to assess their financial literacy training program. Every individual who applies for a loan from Parvati has to undergo this training program. My job will be to figure out what type of impact the program has had on them. Thus, I was told that I will have to visit all 7 branches, every week, throughout the course of my internship. I will have to develop a questionnaire and then interview the slum dwellers myself (with an interpreter alongside). So I will be doing fieldwork, which is exactly what I wanted to do! It sounds as though it will be a lot of work, but I was told that if I plan ahead and really invest a lot of time and effort into it, I will come out with a much greater perspective on how the urban poor function- and how we can come up with ways to help them in the future. The only downside is that all of the branches are pretty far away from where I live. The rickshaw rides will be super long, but I think it will all be worthwhile in the end.  I’m super excited to start, especially because the one of the current debates in India is about the poverty line estimation. It is said that the urban poor can live on 32 rupees a day while those in the rural area can live on 26 rupees a day. This is being contested to a great extent, and it will be interesting to see what happens. I think, for my final paper, I am going to do a comparative analysis on how Parvati’s financial literacy program has impacted those below the poverty line & above the poverty line.  Also, I will add that 86% of the institution’s loan borrowers are women!! So this organization has done a lot towards the area of women empowerment- which is beyond exciting and I can’t wait to get an up close glimpse of that.

But enough rambling. I will definitely write later about the internship as I visit the organization/branches more throughout the month of October! We have to spend this month familiarizing ourselves with the staff and writing a proposal on the type of work we would like to do. Then the real work begins!

Love,

Sai

Typical Friday

So after posting something about the tribal village visit, I thought maybe posting about what a typical Friday here is like would help understand what I'm up to here in India!

I wake up every day at 5am (don't ask me why... I've just gotten used to it, even if I end up sleeping at 130am)

I take my time getting ready. Turning the bath water on and waiting for it to get hot, as well as for the bucket to fill up takes a total of 15 minutes. After taking my bath, I settle down with some chai and do last minute homework or reading.

I leave the apartment at 750am. Unlike other people, I live SUPER close to where the program center and classes are so it's about a 5 minute walk for me. Once I get there, I have breakfast with all the other students.

At 8:15am I have to speed walk over to my first class at 830- environmental perspectives. This professor hates people being late so we literally have to race the professor to class (not joking).

Straight from environmental, I head over to Development Economics at 10:15am. This is my 2nd favorite class and it always seems as though the time goes by super quick. Today, our professor ended the lecture about a half hour early so we could spend the rest of the time talking about food, music, and movies-- he gives the BEST recommendations for restaurants and other places to go to around Pune- for which we are very thankful!

From Development Economics, I head straight to my Social Justice class which ends at 1:30.

Normally we have lunch at this time. Today, however, we had birthday celebrations! On the last day of every month, my study abroad program celebrates all the birthdays in that month together. 6 mini cakes are bought and people take turns cutting them. We then had a delicious lunch- also bought by the program center. We had parathas, biryani, raitha & wait for it... a CADBY. What is a cadby you may ask? Well, the GREATEST chocolate shake I have ever had... sprinkled with oreo type pieces all throughout... it filled me right up. Glorious, I tell you.

After lunch on most Fridays, people go their separate ways and meet up later to go out and celebrate the start of the weekend. Today, we heard about an exhibition being hosted by 20 NGOs so a group of us decided to head over. After going on a mini shopping spree on the road where my college campus is, we went to the exhibition.

Though I was expecting a lot more people to be there, I had a good time walking around and seeing all the different types of work that local NGOs around here do. A lot of the NGOs present at the exhibition did some work relating to helping those that were physically and mentally disabled. The entire thing was put on by a woman named Veena, who I had the opportunity to meet. I asked her what inspired her to do all of this. And she told me that she does it all for her daughter, that she sadly lost one year ago. Puriva, her daughter, was a physically and mentally challenged child, who fought hard for her life, but ultimately lost the battle. Through this process, Veena was introduced to several organizations who worked with fighting disabilities and as a result, realized that these organizations were not reaching the common people. For this reason, she decided to create a platform to bring these NGOs together so that the people could truly see their work. After talking more with Veena, I walked around a bit more and found a small booth that was selling mini bags and decorations made by HIV positive women and children. I couldn't resist buying a beautiful blue bag & one of my friends got the prettiest peacock decorations :)

Then, I headed over to my yoga class that I have 3 times a week. Let me just say, I am so happy I am taking yoga with the instructor I have. She is extremely laid back but so on top of her stuff as well. Yoga is calming for me but is also a work out. I definitely am sweating by the end of the session. But it's an amazing feeling! At 615 I start walking back towards my apartment.

The walk back home is well lit and once it becomes dark, ALL the college students come out and start their weekend festivities and shopping also! This means it's the busiest time for all the street vendors. So my walk home is definitely not a boring one. I always stop to snoop around the little shops and take a closer look at all the beautiful little knick knacks I often see as I rush to class, my yoga class, or other meetings etc. I think perhaps my favorite thing about walking home is crossing the street-- not even joking. I've had some near death experiences seeing as how crossing the street here in India is an artform, but it's awesome weaving through all the two wheelers and cars and bike riders etc. Love it. I'm weird, I know.

So it's 730pm and now I'm home! Normally, I would be doing something with friends. However, I have to be up at 5am tomorrow for a environmental perspectives field trip to a national park. I will be staying there overnight and we have no idea as to what we are doing. Our professor insists on not giving us any information because he claims it will be a better experience that way. Thus, here I am, about to begin the midterm exam and essay I have due on Monday- as I will have no time to do them over the weekend. It's unfortunate, but I am strangely looking forward to this field trip. My environment professor is one of the most amusing individuals I have ever known- and he's also brilliant. It takes a little bit of time to understand what he's saying most of the time... but he's growing on me, as well as his class. He told us to be prepared to see snakes. And if we do see a snake, he told us to look it straight in the eye and smile. Once the snake sees our genuineness in our eyes, it won't do anything, apparently. In fact, according to the professor, any animal who can look into the eyes of a human and see that they are good will not harm them. Every animal except for a mosquito. And for this reason, he told us to bring our mosquito repellent. Hahah.

Sorry for two long posts! I will write an update on how the weekend trip went- and hopefully I will have lots of stories :)

Love,
Sai

Tribal Village

This past week, we were told that we would be going on a tribal village visit. We weren’t given many details but let me just say that I was completely prepared to spend the few days outside, immersed into ‘village life.’ I am highly disappointed to say that this did not happen, but I would be lying if I said I did not come out with a slightly better understanding of the India around me.

Firstly, it was odd to roll into the small tribal village in 6 giant SUVs. Secondly, we had to stay about a half hour from the actual village in a hostel type room. 20 girls were put into one room with bunk beds, and the guys in the other. There was tight space, and there were two squat toilets for all of us… as well as some lovely brown water coming out of the tap in the sink. It was definitely one of the most interesting experiences I have had thus far- and most definitely some amusing moments to remember far into the future, haha.

The very next day, we were whisked away to an organic farm where were able to speak to representatives from an NGO called BAIF. This organization, over the years, has helped local farmers start the process of organic farming, and as a result, the NGO has helped the lives of many farmer families to improve (well, from what they said anyway). It was interesting to see the type of work BAIF did but I was really curious to know what actual farmers had to say—and again, I was disappointed that we could not talk to them and see how their lives had truly been affected- how they’ve changed- how they’ve improved or not improved- what BAIF could do better, etc.

We then headed over to the primary health care center, which was about the size of a small house with 4 tiny rooms. We briefly learned about the lack of quality care as well as the lack of qualified doctors to take care of the villagers in the area. Here, again, we simply got a tour of the facility and learned of the major problems. There was no interaction with any of the people that were there at the time- or even the main doctor unfortunately. However, we were able to visit a ‘sub-center’ being run by a nurse. I was completely inspired by this woman. Having been affected by polio from a young age, she made it her life mission to make sure that other children would be prevented from ever being infected with such an awful disease. Despite her disability, we learned that her sub center is considered to be an IDEAL one- and she runs it all by herself. We were told she came from an extremely poor family, where the members herded the cattle of other families to make money. And yet, with hard work, she was able to follow the path she wanted in order to make her dream come true. Even though we spent a total of 30 minutes with her, I could tell how sincere and genuine she was- just from her demeanor- no explanation was needed. Her story stuck with me, and will continue to stick with me for a long time to come.

The next day, we were able to go inside of an actual tribal village in order to visit two artists- one who was a warli painter (a type of tribal village artwork), as well as a woman who makes sculptures out of paper maché. We were invited into the home of the woman and were able to watch her as she effortlessly (she did it with such ease but it seemed super difficult to me) created a beautiful turtle sculpture! During our short time in the village, were able to get the closest glimpse to what the lives of the villagers were like- simply from observation of course. I am sad to say that I was not able to interact with any of them and find out about the course of their actual lives but yet, as I look back, I am simply grateful for having at least been exposed to it all.

A few days ago, I learned from one of the directors of my program that many villagers, across all villages in India (not just the one we visited) begin their days at about 5am and work late until about 7pm at night. They then come home to do chores and eat a meager dinner and then sleep before they have to rise again. At most, they make anywhere from about 50-200 rupees a day. For them, every day is about survival. Yet having learned this, I was surprised to see that an overwhelming majority of the huts that we passed by had small satellite TV dishes attached to them. It helped me link to what I had been learning in my development economics course; even the rural poor want to move up along the ladder, but they are willing to spend the little money they make on luxuries such as TVs and mobiles rather than spending it on food. But then there are the many families who can’t even afford shelter and resort to begging every day. Disparities even among the poorest of the poor… it’s hard to take it all in sometimes.

I go on trips like the village visit, and I am astounded to see what I read about in my economics textbook come to life. As one of my classmates said a few weeks ago, I fully realized that the people in these villages aren’t ‘test subjects’ in experimentations. Rather, they are people. They have a hard life, a different life. But it’s not to say they are entirely miserable. They have their own lives, their own families. They smile and they laugh. They make the best of what they have, or so it seemed to me. However, by no means are they content with where they are. Many of them or even all of them want to move up in life- make sure their children have better lives etc.

The more I see, the more curious I become. I want to talk to these families and these individuals- where do they come from, what are their aspirations, what motivates them, what frustrates them. Yes, I was sad that this did not happen on my trip to Jawhar (the village I went to), but I was able to open my eyes and soak in what I could. I found out about my internship today and discovered that I will actually have the chance to interact with these same types of individuals here in Pune.

And on a personal level, I realized how minuscule my every day worries and stresses are in the grand scheme of things. I am not able to turn a blind eye to what I see, ever. I make sure to look at every little thing around me, including the poverty- regardless of whether I am in the city or I am in a village- and let it all seep in. I’m taking it day by day- not trying to rush through anything, for fear of missing the tiniest bit of information, or the smallest observation.

Each day, the list of questions I have grows. But I am receiving answers as well. And little by little, I am beginning to understand the complexities of this great India…

To end on a quote, for those who may, like me, forget how insignificant their worries can be:

“is everything as urgent as your stress would imply?” 

1 month!

It's been over a month since I've been here- weird! I can't describe the feeling of waking up every morning and walking down the street to breakfast or my classes. Firstly, it's great that I blend in and no one really ever looks at me as if I'm out of the ordinary. But beyond that, walking by the man who sells chai and samosas on the corner of my road, as well as the same shoe polisher a little ways down and realizing that they recognize me and acknowledge me with a smile or a nod-- it's an awesome feeling. I've never really stopped and talked to them but we seem to have some type of odd friendship and I can't help but smile each time I walk past.

India's really starting to become incredible and it's been a great feeling to finally have a routine here. But October is a couple days away and that's when things start to become super hectic. The first weekend of October, I'm going to a national park and 'roughing it' (according to my professor) with my environmental perspectives class (I feel like there'll be stories to tell after this). Then the entire group is going to Mumbai about a week and a half later. And just a week later after that, I'm off to Hyderabad for travel week! By the time I come back, it'll be November.

In other news, this past week on Tuesday, my environmental class went to the Bhaja caves about 1.5 hours outside of Pune. These were Buddhist caves from 2nd century B.C. Back in the day, these caves were a major stopping point for Greeks who came to get their wives pretty jewelry and silk! The caves were also along a very important trade route that started from the Arabian sea, which is why they were of such great importance.

The caves up close!

My environmental professor- being himself

On Thursday, we had the opportunity to meet with the head of the Corporate Social Responsibility sector from the 5th largest wind energy company in the world- Suzlon. I have to admit it was pretty bizarre seeing a GORGEOUS building smack dab in the middle of an area that had slums and shacks off to the side. And so a lot of people thought that it was ridiculously wasteful. However, I also have to say that for a company that has set their standards high and wants to make an international footprint, making a good impression for the outside world is a must. Also, as another student pointed out, if any of us had seen this type of building in the U.S. or in Europe, we wouldn't have thought twice about it. I completely agree with this point. The woman we met with told us a lot about various projects that Suzlon has started all over India in hopes of 'giving back' to the community. Hearing about all of them and seeing what type of work they have been doing impressed me a lot. I haven't seen this type of thinking very much in India thus far and from what I have heard- the idea of 'giving back' doesn't really exist for a lot of corporations here. However, Suzlon has taken several steps to ensure that the communities they are erecting wind turbines in aren't completely devastated as a result of their actions. For example, in Rajasthan (which is essentially a very windy and desert land), Suzlon has helped local villagers start the process of tree plantation. Through this process, there are now 85,000 surviving trees in Rajasthan & the growth of these trees are monitored daily. In Madhya Pradesh, Suzlon started a self help group of all women, in which the women are taught how to be strong and independent. They are given a voice and ultimately, they too, learn that they can do things on their own and not have to rely on others. In various states across India, Suzlon has also started a total of 446 schools in which young students are taught about the environment around them- what it is, why it's important, how to preserve it, etc. After hearing all of this and making sure that it's actually all true, I have to say I really enjoyed the opportunity of visiting the headquarters and learning things I had no clue about before.


Other than that, I did a ton of essay writing this past week, as well as errand-running. I finally set up a regular yoga time with an instructor. And today, after a long week, I went to a silk exhibition with a few friends and I am SO happy I went! The types of things that were being sold were absolutely gorgeous- from silk scarves, tops, kurtas, bags, jewelry, cooking utensils, decorations and soooo much more. The colors and beauty of it all was honestly overwhelming but I have to say I came out with some pretty awesome stuff-- all things I bargained for too! I also had a great time bonding with some of the vendors over the most random things. I realized that they are not all out to get the most money from you-- some of them are actually super friendly and love to talk about the things they do in their lives. For example, I met an awesome guy who, although is India, lived in Jamacia for 6 years. He told me about the amazing jerk chicken and how he was sadly, not able to find anything like it here (no surprise there). A few vendors, such as this man, really made me smile today and if it wasn't for them, I don't think today would have been such a great day.


The hot chai that I'm currently having as I type this is also helping, I must say. Tomorrow, all of us are headed to a tribal village about 8 hours away from Pune. There, we will be talking to the villagers, visiting their public health center as well as doing some other things we haven't really been told about yet (I've stopped asking questions and am just kind of rolling with it). But I'm sure that after my 3 days there, I will have lots of stories to tell. 


Til next time! Love to whoever actually continues to read this thing :) 


<3 Sai

The Indian Postal Service: It's an Experience.

In all seriousness, the experiences I've had thus far with the postal system here have been frustrating and yet so amusing all in one.

First, I went to the post office a few weeks back- which is about a 10 minute walk from where I take classes, so I thought.. not bad, I'll just get a few stamps and envelopes and mail out my letters. Little did I know I would be there for about a half hour- lost in translation- with the lady at the counter. I asked for 3 stamps to the US... she gave me 4. I then tried to ask her the process in which one actually mails out letters to the US and she just waved her hands at me and became angry that I could not speak Mahrati or Hindi. Lady was real angry. She essentially thought since I looked as though I was from the state of Maharashtra, I was simply refusing to speak the language, when in fact, I can't actually speak it! Now as many of you know- I never turn red but let me just say, my ears and face were bright red and I became extremely flustered as I was trying to get my questions across in a polite way. I then was able to explain to her how I wanted to mail two letters to the US and I FINALLY realized that it takes a total of one 10rupee and one 15rupee stamp for each letter you want to mail (25rupees total). In that moment I acknowledged that if I actually wanted to send out both letters there I was going to be stuck for another half hour, again, lost in translation. So I grabbed my stamps and left. Thanks to the staff back at the program center I was able to learn the actual process in how to go about mailing things (I really think they should have a lesson on this at orientation..) annnd I was able to learn a helpful phrase that I have been using:

"Hindi, Mahrati nahi.. Telugu ati hai" <- This means, I don't speak Hindi or Mahrati but I can speak Telugu, which is the language that is spoken in the state of India I was born in- Andhra Pradesh. The program staff told me that when I say this phrase they will know that this is the only reason why I speak English to them, so they won't feel the need to think as though I'm deliberately not speaking Mahrati. So yes, the language barrier is still pretty challenging here despite many knowing English. Most of the people I have encountered- such as restaurant workers, street vendors, rickshaw drivers don't really know English quite well so it's super helpful to pick up on certain Hindi and Mahrati phrases... working on it!

And then today, after an awesome day of just hanging out at a local coffee shop with some friends doing homework, I headed home after feeling productive. By the way, I had the greatest hazlenut cappuccino thanks to the suggestion of Megan ;) & it made me miss the dav SO much. Anyway, on the way home, I got a phone call from a man who claimed to have a package for me. He continued to speak in Hindi for about 5 minutes until I was finally able to get across to him that I could not speak the language. After mumbling something he hung up. I called him back and he magically began speaking Telugu... a language I actually know! He told me he would drop it off for me at my house. All packages sent to Alliance students go straight to the program center... so when he said house, I got confused. I proceeded to go to the program center and ask the guard if a parcel was dropped off. Here, again, no English so I had to stick to hand gestures and simplified words. No package. I then called back the same man who called me and weirdly enough, it was a different man, who just kept saying house, over and over. So again, frustrated, I decided to walk back towards my apartment and forget the whole thing. On the way, I got yet another call and as I passed by a man on a scooter, I realized it was him that was calling me! He pointed to me and with the little english he knew, he told me to get on the back of his scooter and he'd take me to my package.

At this point, I was real confused. But I got on the back of the two wheeler and once I did, it dawned on me-- what if this isn't the mailman?? I mean, he didn't look like it at all, he looked like any other regular man would. But in fact, it was him! He took me to my apartment and he clarified that yes, my package was dropped off at the architect's office who works next door to my apartment. After saying many thank yous, I picked up my package and brought it inside.

What was it? A dasara (an Indian holiday that is coming in about 2 weeks) gift from my wonderful parents of sweets, drinks, and roses :)

Productivity and presents. Good day? I think so.

<3 Sai 

Take a Deep Breath

So it's almost the end of another week- my 4th week here actually... crazy, right?!

We've been told this is when the 'honeymoon phase' of study abroad is over and the stress starts to pile on. Luckily, I haven't seen too much of this but I can already see how it can happen if I don't plan out my papers, field visits, and travel plans now. Amid all of this, I'm STILL trying to get my spring semester plans finalized.. which is proving to be the most frustrating thing of all time.

But after a great conversation about destressing with a friend here on the trip, I realized the importance of the phrase 'take a deep breath.' There are times here, on the walk to the program center, on the walk to class... or even just walking to get an ice cream cone where I have to remind myself: I'm in INDIA! It's really easy to lose sight of the important things and become fixated on the most minute details but while I'm here I'm making a huge effort to stop doing exactly this. Everything will work out in the end, and if it doesn't, it's not the end.

On the bright side...

• On Tuesday our Social Justice class saw a film on Ambedkar. It was extremely long.. but taught me a lot about the Dalit Movement here in India. It also gave me a lot of background knowledge (that I desperately needed) about many of the social justice movements of the past that are still continuing to this day. Although the acting was pretty... bad... the film was incredibly informative so I was thankful for that! 
• Today, we went to a bollywood/bhangra fusion class!!! It was awesome, and I can tell it's going to be a workout but that I'm going to love it nonetheless. I'm pretty sure that we were all laughing the entire hour and a half we were there :) We are currently learning how to dance to one of the songs from Om Shanti Om- this is a movie I have yet to see.. but it's definitely going on my to do list. 
• In addition to the delicious foods I have here on a daily basis, I've also made friends with the local ice cream store man (fyi there are about 50 ice cream stores just on the road that my college is on) - and am getting an ice cream cone every day. Thanks to my mom's suggestion, I'm testing out different flavors every day... hahah so far, my favorite has definitely been mango! So yeah, it's been great to incorporate ice cream into my daily diet. Fantastic, to be more accurate :P 
• I found a drink called "Mango Chill" (can you tell I'm obsessed with mango) at one of the nearby coffee shops and it's probably on the top 5 tastiest drinks I've ever had thus far. 
• I'm going shopping tomorrow with a few friends! Funky colored pants here I come 
• I bought PENS today!! That might sound crazy to some of you but I'm obsessed with Indian pens-- they write super well and so of course I got like 10 all at once today (all different colors of course). I am most likely going to not leave the country without buying at least 50 more... you think I'm kidding- I'm not. 
• I'm starting yoga at some point next week- finally
• Last but definitely not least-- my tickets for Hyderabad are officially booked! It's been years and years since I've been back and I'm excited to spend celebrate an authentic Diwali with family. For those of you who may not be aware, Diwali is a HUGE festival here in India. I think I can best describe it in pictures so you'll have to wait until the end of October for that! 

So that was just a small update but I'll definitely be posting again in a few days :) I'm using this weekend to catch up on a ton of work. But for now, sleep awaits me.

Love,

Sai 

Ganpati Bappa Morya!

My title says: Jai Lord Ganesha!

Who is Ganesha? One of the most popular Gods in Hinduism. Many of you may know this God as the 'elephant headed God.' The past 10 days have been devoted to Ganesh- who is known to be a God of prosperity and overcoming any type of hardships. Many Hindus pray or think of this God at the start of anything new- whether it be a journey, a job, or even school (including myself). It varies from family to family whether the festival is celebrated for all 10 days or just 2 days. My host mom celebrated it for about 2 days- beginning with a pooja on the first day.

On the first day, there is a small get up done in each home that celebrates in which a Ganesh idol is placed in an alter-type set up. The idol is decorated with all sorts of jewelry, flowers, colorful lights and lamps etc. When the decorations are done, a pooja is performed. I was fortunately able to participate in this and am very grateful for that. My host mom read out loud all the chants/mantras from a variety of books while I did aarthi (which is light from wicks soaked in ghee- which is then offered to the God). Since my host mom is still recovering from her open heart surgery, I was able to do more actions! For one, besides the main idol in all the homes that celebrate, when the pooja is done- there is a smaller Ganesh idol put on top of a plate that sits at the bottom of the main altar. As you read out all the chants from the book(s), you also have to bathe the tinier idol with a mix of water and milk while offering small flowers. The entire pooja took about 45 minutes and sometimes it can take way longer- especially if priests are invited inside of the home. However, my host mom decided to keep it simple and so we were done relatively early. Once the pooja is done, the food that has been prepared for the day (including modak- Ganesh's favorite sweet) has to be offered to the God first- so the plate of food is placed in front of the idol and after that, lunch can be eaten :)

This is the altar we set up (my host mom and I)- the plate at the bottom with the fire in it is the plate used to do the aarthi)

This is a close up of the main Ganesh idol we used-- this picture was taken AFTER the pooja which is why you see flowers at the front. Flowers are offered during the pooja itself. 

We had a delicious meal in fact and I was left incredibly full. We did the same thing as above before dinner and again for dinner on the 2nd day of the festival as well. Once a family is done celebrating the festival, the Ganpati idol is usually submerged into water- usually a river or a sea. My host mom, however, is ecofriendly and for this reason, she uses the same Ganpati idol every year and instead submerges the idol into a bucket of water for about 5 minutes and then brings it back out. She doesn't think it's very respectful to put the idol into water that is often polluted with sewage and other garbage. So despite people such as her, I do know (and have seen) that other families continue to practice the submersion of the idol into rivers/seas- which is pretty interesting to me, because I find what my host mom said to be incredibly true.

Today was the last day of the festival (the 10th day) and I got up early this morning to head over to Lakshmi Road with a few of the other people from the program. We were able to watch the procession of HUNDREDS of people go by as the cities 5 main idols were carried through the streets, over a course of 5 or so hours. We were only there from about 12-330 but I know that the processions that began early this morning go overnight until 8am TOMORROW... crazy! It was awesome watching everyone dance and sing. We ourselves were able to participate as well- so you bet we went out and danced with all the other people there! Flowers were thrown and people started throwing red powder EVERYWHERE (red is Ganesh's favorite color by the way) and so of course I went from brown to red in .5 seconds.. it was great. A lot of people were sad about missing Holi here but in a way, we got to experience what that would've been like (even though it was nothing in comparison).

A few of us after all the powder was thrown-- towards the end of our day

After a long day we walked back and I headed home.

As I type this, I have to say that I also realize that today is in fact, 9/11. A lot of us discussed how there was so much celebration here while in our minds, we acknowledged what a somber day this was for many back home. I thought back to where I was when 9/11 happened, how old I was, how little I knew, and how much suffering I saw in the aftermath of it all. Thoughts go out to every single person that was affected by this awful tragedy, as well as those who continue to fight in our nation's defense every single day. And at the end of the day, despite the fact that I am Indian, I am also American and am incredibly proud to call myself that & am so grateful for the freedom I'm able to exercise on a daily basis. I hope everyone back in the US stays safe and alert today- love to you all.

-Sai 

"When the huts are not happy, the palace is not happy"

Before I begin explaining the title of this post, I must apologize for not posting as much as I would have liked to in the past week. After a day of having internet, my computer's keyboard decided to break... so it's been in the repair shop all this time! Luckily however, it was finished today and I was able to go pick it up. But without my computer I was able to do a ton of reading and sleep a lot :P Yet now that it's back, I'm excited to add my photos and start recalling all the experiences I've had so far. First I have to mention my classes--

I am in love with my Contemporary India & Development Economics classes- the professors are by far some of the smartest individuals I have ever encountered. I feel truly grateful and am soaking in every bit that I'm learning each day. However, some of the other classes are a little frustrating for most of us as students. Very few of us have come in with knowledge regarding India's complicated history (seriously, complicated is an understatement). I'm slowly beginning to realize that things aren't black and white here- there are many, many contradictions but it's all about taking the time to learn the history and the culture- and learning that things can exist simultaneously; it doesn't have to be one or the other, especially here in this country. So I strongly believe that things will come a little more easy to me in the coming days and months but it'll just take some extra work now in these present days.

And in regards to the title of this post:

Today, we went on a field trip for our Contemporary India class. We visited the MIT School of Government- which is essentially a one year masters program for those getting a degree in political science. The MIT SOG is the first institute of its kind in India, and in fact, all of Asia as well; it serves to train future political leaders of India and is extremely rigorous. We were fortunate enough to meet the 7th batch, that will actually be inaugurated tomorrow by the chief of the BJP. These students are some of the best and the brightest, and it was truly phenomenal to see the passion they had for going into the field of politics. When asked what one of the biggest problems they hoped to tackle in the coming years, one student from Madya Pradesh responded with the quote I have used as my title. In explaining it, he went on to talk about the problem of corruption in India, how the education system needs to be improved, and how the agricultural population of India- rural India, and the poorest parts of India- need to be included in the political system. Without them, the entire nation as a whole suffers, which is what my title refers to. He went on to talk about how maternal healthcare and child healthcare need to be improved as well, and how if the youth, which is the biggest part of India's population today, is strong- then the entire nation will become strong.

Listening to him really brought a lot of things to the surface. In the past few months here in India, there have been many protests regarding Anna Hazare's demands for a corruption-free government and throughout the 3 weeks we have been here, we have gotten a variety of perspectives on them. Some believe that the Anna Hazare movement is being exaggerated, seeing as how some parts of India have been comparing him to God Ganpati (with the festival occurring presently). Others however, and most that we met at MIT today, seemed to believe that this was an extremely important movement in India. Many noted that actual common people were involved in the protests and that is something that has made this movement so distinct from others. And by and large, the idea seems to be that everyone here in India wants to see corruption gone- it pervades almost every aspect of the political system, despite being the world's largest democracy.

Beyond this, we also got to hear where each of the students came from (what state in India they were from) and just their thoughts on what they wanted to do once they finished the masters program. There were many that spoke of returning to their villages/districts and improving the conditions there while educating others and raising awareness. It was absolutely incredible listening to each and every one of them. It was strange and exciting to think that I was sitting in a room with students that could potentially solve future conflicts and become world leaders in the coming decades. And it was fascinating learning about all of the different parts of India- there were students from all over including Punjab, Gujarat, Sikkim, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and more. It just once again, reinforced for me, the vastness of India and the immense amount of diversity that exists here.

All in all, today was an extremely enlightening day for me. I had contemporary India in the morning and then the field trip later on and from start to finish, I can say I learned so much. I look forward to how my perceptions and opinions will change over the coming months as I learn even more & I'll end this by including another quote said by one of the students:

"It's all about humanity- politics is not beyond humanity" 


Oh and this Sunday is the last day of the Ganpati festival so once that's over I will be writing a post explaining ALL about it :)

Namaskar

So it has officially been one week since I have arrived in India-- 

We spent a total of one night in Mumbai before we headed over to a retreat location in Durshet- which was about a 3 hour bus ride. For the next 3 days, we underwent orientation at a forest lodge. It was interesting to say the least, just because I've never really been camping or anything, but I saw a ton of unique insects and slimy creatures... took some pictures, so I'll add them as soon as I can! 

During orientation, we became introduced to the types of foods that we would be eating for the next 4 months, we went over things like culture shock & cultural sensitivity, etc. Beyond that, we also went on a hike up a mountain to visit two tribal villages. It was eye-opening seeing how the women of the village started their early mornings with all of the work they had for the day- including getting water from the well, washing their clothes and dishes in the rainwater, and preparing for the multitude of tasks that lay ahead of them. The trek was also filled with beautiful views of the scenery surrounding us, and LOTS of slips and falls. It is currently rainy season here, so there is intense rain pretty much every day. It's taking a lot to get used to but apparently it is supposed to end by the beginning of October... so I am looking forward to that!

After a long 3 days, we got on the bus and headed to PUNE! Once there, we were paired off into groups of 2 and each group was given an Indian buddy to show us around- where to eat, where to run errands & where to get stuff done. Later into the evening, we were dropped off at our homestays :)


I live with a 53 year old woman who is absolutely wonderful. Her son is a practicing lawyer in the Mumbai high courts & thus lives in Mumbai with his wife. I haven't met him yet but hopefully in the coming months I will have a chance to. As I have spent the last week or so getting to know my host mother, I have come to realize how lucky I was in being placed here. She had heart surgery in July so her health is not the greatest at the moment but she's incredibly strong & loves to talk and laugh. She has her own terrace and in her free time she loves to look after her plants and flowers. She uses some of these in her cooking as well! She uses her own mangoes to make sweet mango pickle (which is super yummy by the way), she uses her own garlic, and much more. I think my favorite though, is the fact that I am able to go up onto her terrace and pick myself some jasmine flowers... which is BY FAR my favorite flower, and smell. I'll have to get some pictures up asap :)

I am also super lucky to be living about a 5 minute walk from where the program center & classes are. So every morning I am able to leave the house at 750am, get to the program center at 8am, eat some yummy breakfast and then head over to classes at around 820! Unfortunately most others have about a 10-15 minute auto/rickshaw ride as they live a little whiles away from the main road that we are on.

Classes began on Monday and I'm taking: Environmental Perspectives, Development Economics, Social Justice, and Contemporary India. I like all of them so far and the professors seem to be great- especially for environmental perspectives. He's got an amazing sense of humor and is extremely witty- which I am definitely a fan of. My internship doesn't start until November but I think I like the way the program has set it up. I will have classes for the first 2 months (Sept & Oct) and the month of November is focused entirely on our internship- we will be working 6hrs a day, 5 days a week right up to the week we leave.

All in all, it has been anything but boring so far, here in Pune. I definitely miss AU and everyone in the states (a lot a lot) but I'm excited for what the coming weeks and months have in store for me... and of course, I'll be updating this blog now that I finally have some internet connection of my own. Stay tuned! :)

Love,

Sai

P.S.- Today is a holiday here in India known as Ganpati (for Lord Ganesh) so there are no classes. I did a puja with my host mom & even helped cook some food (yeah, for some of you reading this, shocked?) BUT I'm saving all this for another blog entry. Don't want to make this one too long ;)

2 days.

By 8pm on Sunday, just two days from now, I will be boarding a flight to Mumabi, India. I will be studying in Pune until mid December. But even as I type all of this out, it still hasn't hit me yet. To be honest, I don't think it will until I'm on the plane in mid air. 

So why India? It's true, I was born and raised in India for about 8 years of my life so as a few friends and strangers have asked... why would I want to spend an entire semester going back to the place I'm from? Here's why:

1.) I'm studying international relations and economics. I am more specifically interested in looking at economic inequality. India is not only rising as one of the top economies in the world, but also has a large amount of disparity. I myself grew up in a small area so I remember seeing all of this on a daily basis. However, now that I have taken so many classes regarding these topics, I feel I can gain a more profound understanding of what the real issues are in India- rather than just reading about them in a textbook. I will have the ability to explore and inquire, which is absolutely thrilling to me.

2.) The Alliance for Global Education seems to be fantastic. It combines everything so well & is development focused. The classes sound awesome & I will also have an internship that I will not find out about for a few more weeks. I have heard that a lot of students who have done this program in the past usually end up interning for an NGO of some kind. But there is really no way of knowing until I am there. And I'll be in a homestay- which is a component that I found to be extremely attractive. For these reasons (the classes/the internship/everything I have heard about this program in general), I thought the Pune program would be the perfect choice. 

3.) I moved to the middle of suburbia, United States at a young age, where I thought that in order to fit in, I had to push away my culture. I came here when I was just beginning to understand things and then had to go through a process of adjusting to an entirely new world and people- so somewhere amid all of that, the little understanding and comprehension I had was lost. I haven't been back in years and I'm ready to return to my roots, it's about time. Over these next few months, it's going to be just me and mother India- I've got a lot of catching up to do so I hope she still remembers me :)

4.) Lastly, I'm incredibly interested in comparing/contrasting economic policies between India and South America. If all goes well, I will be in South America for spring semester and currently I am in the process of petitioning AU abroad for a program that I am IN LOVE with. Some of you may know how obsessed I am with the program (it's through SIT.. look it up! because I'm positive others would love it as well). Ideally, going from studying a semester in India straight into studying a semester in South America would be AMAZING. But nothing is guaranteed so I've really got my fingers crossed on this one. Plus I would finally, finally become better with my Spanish and immerse myself into a culture I have been enamored with for years and years.

So with that, I'll end my first post! I'll mention that I am super nervous for what lies ahead and am not prepared whatsoever to not see family/friends for the next 4 months... Still not really sure what I'll do without the hughes front desk staff or the DAV staff (meep) but I'm so very excited at the same time. I look forward to updating this next from India... !!