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Published: March 31st 2007
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One thing a year in Taiwan has taught me is to abandon all grammatically correct ways of speaking. Of course, it's always easier to communicate with someone with little knowledge of English when you speak in a way they can identify with.
India, i keep forgetting, is an English speaking country as most children who attend school will automatically learn it. And here, most (if not all) signs are written in English. A huge change for me.
About a week ago, a few friends and I met a little girl at the train station. It went like this: Firstly, her dad (in true dad form) was noticed pushing his daughter over to us to "practice her English" and then the conversation proceeded. We were so focused on making sure the girl understood us, felt comfortable...etc.
"what is your name?"
i am .... (insert her 14 letter name here) "what is your age?"
i am 11 years old "you go to what school?"
i go to school there (points to brown
building) "you wear uniform?"
yes, in fact, we do. The colours are black and
off-white. Alright then.
I don't even think i knew that off-white
was a colour until i was like 17...but anyways, right then and there my bubble was burst and i realized i can't speak like Tarzan to the locals anymore if i ever want them to believe i was brought up in captivity...let alone Canada.
India is really full of very kind and interesting people. It's quite common to be asked really detailed (and by North American standards, "invasive") questions during small talk. So far, the top five things asked have been:
5. "What is your EXACT address in India (hold on, let me get a pen..)"
4. "Where is your 'motherland' "
3. "What is your name...and surname?"
2. "What are you doing here?"
1. "Do you like George Bush?"
It's very funny.
Like yesterday on the train - Katie and i met a young guy after he asked if he could drink my water (not uncommon to share among strangers).
When he learned that she was from the states, he gave us the 20-questions-for-approval-for-north-american-tourists, starting (quite appropriately, of course?!) with a few questions regarding our opinions of Che Gueverra. Next were our thoughts on George Bush (or as he put it..."that bloody bitch"), Voltaire, Martin Luther
King and some poet that i couldn't make out the name of.
It was honestly a little nerve racking - i felt like if we didn't give the right answer he would push us off, or worse...but, in the end, we seemed to have 'passed his test' and he went on his way, and us on ours.
Oh, but he never got our address.
Back home, no one would dare to ask these questions - and they would never give out any sort of information about themselves...but somehow, the Indian people can get away with asking these things and it just works here. That's what i love - no questions asked.
Already, i have a place to stay in Bangladesh if i ever go....just because a woman i walked by on the street just happened to also take the same train as me later that afternoon. She recognized me and now, is willing to take me into her home. Faaaantastic! (Bangladesh, 2010 anyone?)
Another man (when we took the train from Kolkata to Bodhgaya this past weekend) gave me everything including his mobile + land-line numbers, two email addresses and full mailing address...all because we shared the same
train-car. Incredible!
Speaking of Bodhgaya, what an amazing place.
It's actually the most important place of pilgrimmage for Buddhists in the world as it's the site where Buddha was first enlightened under the famous Bodhi tree (which, for the small price of 20 Rupees, you can purchase a leaf from).
Phil, Julia, Blossom and I took a 16 hour (aka: 19.5 hour) train overnight... and spent two days wandering around the various temples from around the world.
It was really the first time i have experienced multiculturalism here in India - many Tibetan, Thai, Chinese and Indian monks roaming around and meditating.
For a few days, it was the perfect getaway....no noise, not as much traffic (ie: we could walk in a straight-ish line for more than 10 seconds without having to dodge anything) and cooler weather.
I really felt good there - and i really envied all those monks who could sit cross-legged and meditate for hours on end.
Later the second day, we found an old and incredibly beautiful cemetary to sit in and enjoy some peace for ourselves...i thought it would be the perfect chance to 'be at one' with the place and try
"Come to our Picture"
Three of the five listed questions were asked here...(see text) to be silent and concentrate on nothing but the silence...just like the monks do.
OK...here i go.
Sitting (legs crossed)...eyes closed...no, open -
OK
concentrate...
concentrate...(god, that mosquito bite kills)
...concentrate...(i can't forget to go back to that bead shop where i saw that great silver ring..)
...OK, gotta concentrate harder ....
birds chirping...chanting from the temple...nice...thinking 'holy thoughts'...good...
Aaaand i just heard a man do a number two directly behind me.
Rebecca's medidation session terminated.
So much for being holy.
That night, after eating great food (as usual) and doing some last minute shopping, we headed back to the train station and onto the 6 hour 'fast' train back to Kolkata.
Home sweet home.
My conclusions on Bodhgaya:
a) It is worth the trip for sure, especially if you know something about or want to know more on Buddhism
b) If you aren't too Buddha savvy, two days is sufficient
c) Bring earplugs
Alright, that's it for now - this weekend i am laying low and staying around Kolkata because next weekend, Phil and Julia and I are heading up to Darjeeling and into Sikkim for five days of hiking in the
mountains, wearing hats and drinking tea. I'm really looking forward to it!
Love,
R
ps: if anyone has questions about the volunteer organization i am working with, please let me know! I just realized i have not posted anything about it yet. Sorry to those who have asked!
Here's the website:
"tata" (Bengali for goodbye)
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Kathy Weber
non-member comment
Hi Rebecca--It's great to hear that you still have your sense of humour intact. I loved your attempt at meditation. Have you tried again? We're off to the traditional Ottawa Easter next week. We'll miss you! Be safe and enjoy! love Kathy