Chennai

This weekend, my friends Johanna, Bridgid and I took the six hour train ride from Bangalore to Chennai. Through a friend of grandmother’s, David Rajan, we were able to stay three nights in a fairly quiet residential area of the city called Anna Nagar. After three months of trying to figure out the loopholes and quagmires of Indian transportation and navigation alone in strange cities, it was refreshing to be shown around by someone acutely familiar with the city and fluent in both English and Tamil, the local language. 

David took us to two of his mission centers, both in rural towns a few hours outside of Chennai. The first is a Christian school and we were able to interact with the children. Fortunately for them, their classroom conditions and level of instruction is far superior to what the kids in my school are used to.

The second sight is currently under construction. We got to witness the grueling process of constructing a building, help cook the meal for the workers, go on a tour through the nearby village, and take a boat ride to see the fishing villages from the water. 

As we drove through the Indian country side, I was struck by how unexpectedly beautiful India is. It’s a far cry from Maryland’s abundant rivers, deciduous tress, and manicured lawns. It’s wild, lush, and is characterized by a vivid green only found in the jungle. The liquid rice paddies backdropped by the palm trees and blazing sun are entirely dissimilar from what I conventionally understand to be beautiful. This is just one example of the lesson I have been learning. Most of the things that irritated me about India were things that were simply different from what I was used to. They didn’t make sense to me because I was unfamiliar with the habits, behaviors, thought processes, and beliefs in India. But now I realize that this fact does’t necessarily make those things wrong. It takes a lot of perseverance and humility to allow your preconceived ideas to take a back seat, but refusing to do that means sacrificing the ability to truly see a place for what it is and not what you want it to be. 

“I recollect it was settled by general consent that India was quite a misrepresented country, and had nothing objectionable in it, but a tiger or two, and a little heat in the warm part of the day.” 

David Copperfield, Charles Dickens

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Week 5 & 6

Week 7

I Dare You to Move

Hampi is an ancient town that was the center of the largest Hindu empire from the 14th to 17th centuries. It was conquered by neighboring Muslim empires in 1565, leaving behind nothing but the rubble that makes Hampi so remarkable today. The mountains of rocks still exude a majesty they must have possessed in their former lives in the shapes of palaces, temples and forts. 

We spent most of our time across the Tungabhadra River in on an island of small villages. With only two short days here, we avoided breaking our necks to hit the touristy spots and instead opted to try and break our necks any other way. We rented motorbikes (strictly forbidden by FSL due to India’s lax traffic rules and lack of basic safety equipment, like helmets) and cruised around Anagundi and the surrounding villages. After some minor mishaps, we maneuvered like pros through the ancient stone structures, warm breeze and mellowing sun rays inviting us to be as reckless as we pleased.

As if the adrenaline needed any more encouragement, we discovered a lake, some cliffs in the distance, and a boat driver willing to transport us. We hopped in his unusual boat, which made me think of an upside down sombrero, and paddled to the overhanging rocks. As we alternately climbed the rocks and jumped into the water several times, the thought “My mother would kill me if she knew what I was doing right now,” briefly flitted through my conscience, as it has done several times since arriving in India. But my spirit of adventure and invincibility overruled my conscience with the truth I find in this quote:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do 

than by the ones you did. 

So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

Jurassic Park?

not too shabby

ride or die

More Taj

The Taj Mahal was constructed after Shah Jahan’s, a Mughal emperor, third wife died during the birth of their 14th child (way too many). Construction began in 1632 to commemorate his great love for her and his inconsolable grief after she died. The mausoleum was finished in 1648 and includes Persian and Mughal architecture. It’s white marble facade is one of the most imposing things I have seen and the sheer immensity is beyond impressive. Soon after it was completed, one of Shah Jahan’s greedy sons imprisoned him nearby. However, his captor generously (or maliciously) allowed his only window to face the Taj. 

Indira Ghandi

While in New Delhi, I visited Indira Ghandi’s old home which has now been turned into a museum to commemorate her and her family. She was the four time Prime Minister of India during the 1970’s and 80’s. Her accomplishments were grand, due to her political astuteness and love of India. She encouraged the progress of science, space exploration, the nationalization of banks, and turned a food shortage into a surplus. Despite her motivation to improve India, she attained many enemies. After invading a Sikh temple to suppress insurgents in 1984, she was murdered on October 31, 1984 by her Sikh body guards. I found her story intriguing because of the extreme love and severe hatred she generated in people.

This marks her last steps. The glass part is where she fell after being shot

The Tale of Two Weddings

The customs involved in a traditional Hindu Indian wedding are complicated, unique, lavish, and abundant. I had read about a few of the traditions in a novel and ever since I have hoped that one day I would get to see one first hand. Well, through India’s boundless generosity and desperate desire to adhere to my every wish, I was invited to not one but TWO Indian weddings. On the same day. And the best part... I didn’t realize they were two different weddings until I had been at the first one for two hours. As soon as this discovery was made, my friends and I immediately departed and took three buses in three hours to arrive just in time for the second wedding to end. Therefore, I was unable to witness a full Hindu ceremony at either wedding. If the situation wasn’t so hysterically ironic I would have been really disappointed. I was also finally able to wear my Indian sari, and I ate the most spectacular Indian meal, so the day wasn’t a total loss.

Surrendering to India

       India and I have a very clearly divided love/hate relationship. My previous blogs have shown both the vexing and euphoric moments that manifest in my life and the sharp contrast that defines India. I live for the sights, smells, and sounds that I know only India can provide. But then the more frustrating incidents, combined with my somewhat neurotic love of efficiency and order, radically alter my feelings toward my temporary country of residence at the drop of a hat. 

With only another month to go, I am adamantly trying to release my preconceived ideas about the right way to do things or say things and convince myself that just because an action or belief is different doesn’t necessarily mean it’s wrong. Getting annoyed, angry, or disheartened about something is a waste of time, and time is scarce. This is so much easier to altruistically type than to actual believe. My latest book/obsession, Shantaram, has been opening my eyes, one chapter at a time, to how futile it is to adhere to my western mentality while living here and expect to get through one day without screaming. India has existed for over 5,000 years and will most likely not change to suit my preferences. And it shouldn’t change, because that would also mean altering the characteristics that I find irresistible. Shantaram indirectly offers advice on how to cope with the subtle nuances as well as the gaping disparities between India and my comfortable life at home.  The incentives for accepting this advice, as well as for accepting the beautiful mess that is India, are plentiful and supreme.

“Try to relax completely, and go with the experience. Just... let yourself go. 

Sometimes, in India, you have to surrender before you win.”

Shantaram, Gregory David Roberts

the antithesis of order and efficiency 

one of the many incentives - Taj Mahal in Agra

India's Gate in Delhi