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Published: September 9th 2008
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It has been a week now since landing in New Delhi. I couldn’t feel more right about where I am and what I am doing here.
The plane ride from O’Haire airport to New Delhi was quite pleasant. Before boarding I was able to spot the rest of the crowd that was heading off to India via the MSID program. It was comforting to know that I was not alone in my adventure. I sat next to a Guatemalan biologist who studies coral snakes all over the world. He gave me advice on how to avoid getting bitten by the snakes while in India—simply avoid sleeping in the abandoned rock caves outside Mumbai and never approach one out of your own curiosity. Oh…and that saying “Red on yellow, kill a fellow. Red on black, your ok jack” only applies for coral snakes within the U.S. So don’t think you’re safe when you see a “red-on-black” on your Amazon or Subsahara adventures.
We landed in New Delhi around 8:30pm their time. Picked up by a man holding an MSID sign, we headed for the hotel where we would spend the next two nights growing accustomed to our surroundings and one another. There
are 23 students participating in the semester long MSID program of which there are three guys and twenty girls, while only three of us will be staying for the entire academic year. Orientation started after our first night’s rest. There we met the staff that will be taking care of us over the months to come. It didn’t take long to feel I was in good hands. In general everyone on staff is so attuned to our needs that I could not feel more comfortable and well taken care of. And certainly with them there is always another place to explore, experience to have and lesson to be learned.
After spending two nights in New Delhi, we were taken to a hotel just outside of Jaipur to finish our orientation. The drive was interesting to say the very least. Already one of my "must sees" was taken off the list when we passed the phone-bank complexes where US and other foreign companies are outsourcing their phone soliciting and helplines. It brought me back to the days of my computer struggles. Along the way we also ran into two semi tip-overs, one of which left the truck sprawled across the entire
road, blocking all traffic going in that direction. Lunch was had at McDonalds. I played it safe by ordering the Chicken McGrill, although I was tempted to go for the Maharaja Mac (the equivalent of the Big Mac). It was the strangest McDonalds food I have ever tasted. My favorite part about the experience was the clear drop off box for any unused ketchup packages. Where we stayed for the next three days was more of a palace than a hotel and overlooked the mountains that divide eastern and western Rajasthan. The gardens surrounding the “mahal” were immaculate—I felt like princess Jasmine from Aladdin. The orientation itself was thorough and left me feeling increasingly excited about the program and my internship.
Now on to Jaipur—a city richer in history than any other place I have visited so far. Driving in for the first time was a magical experience in itself. We wove along the mountainside enjoying the scenery until, out of nowhere, the ancient metropolis revealed itself to us amid the peaks. It is absolutely beautiful with a three hundred year old palace/fort complex that covers the mountains around the pink walls of the city--truly breathtaking experience. For those of
sikh temple in New Delhi
we had our first temple visit at the sikh temple newxt to our hotel you who may not know, Jaipur is known as the “Pink City” because it is comprised of pink sandstone buildings that are three hundred years old. I couldn’t resist imagining myself walking through the streets of Jaipur so many years ago in the hustle and bustle of it all. There was something very serial in thinking that the tradesman ship and bartering of that time was still taking place to this day.
Our first drive through Jaipur came to an end as we arrived at the MSID office. We had a quick look at the classroom building (which was lovely by the way) before being taken to our host families. The classrooms and sitting areas are very comfortable and the balcony overlooks a mountaintop fort by the Name of Moti Dogri. Fantastic! For Amy (my roommate in the house) and I, the journey from the office is literally a hop, skip and a jump away. All we have to do is exit the door of our study room and walk up the stairs and we’re in class. Our host family is very nice and is comprised of an older man (Papa-ji) who is rather lively for his age. If one
phone-bank complex
this is where all the magic happens thing is for sure, he enjoys a good laugh. Along with Papa-ji live his son (Pankaj) and daughter-in-law (Navita) who have two children-- Anusha and Aman who are four and five. Already the little ones have taken quite the liking to us and speak in mixed English and Hindi. I have a feeling they will be a helpful asset in learning Hindi. They’ve already taught us the parts of the face and how to count to ten. Pankaj and Navita are both very sweet and see to it that everything is comfortable and to our liking. Something I always feel strange about when living with another family because I really hate feeling like everyone is trying to please me all the time when I just want to fit in. Nevertheless it's a kind gesture of hospitality—already I feel well at home. Pankaj has already made a list of places we need to visit while in Rajastan including a rat temple and a tiger sanctuary, while Navita has impressed us with her choices of cuisine time and time again.
Already I have learned so much and am in the process of refining: how to.... eat with only my right hand,
speak Hindi, walk along the street without getting hit by a rickshaw or motorcycle, brush my teeth with bottled water, bucket bathe, remember the names of all the food I am eating and people I meet, read Hindi script, live by the sun and not the watch, navigate Jaipur, and understand the caste system, arranged marriages and astrology, bobble my head like a good Indian, withstand the hot hot heat of the day, figure out how to work my new cell phone….. the list goes on.....
One last note: it hasn’t taken me long to figure out that everything in India holds symbolic significance. Whether it is the jewelry that's worn, the way in which greetings are made, or the rules that are followed, there is meaning to it all.
Although I have so much still to tell, I think I’ll leave the rest for another blog. If nothing else, details on the people I am sharing this experience with are soon to come.
namaste dost!
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