Varanasi and Sarnath

Since we arrived about three hours late to Varanasi we started the sight seeing right away. We saw the Durga Temple (The Monkey Temple) which was painted in bright red. It was build to honor Mother Durga which is a goddess who resembles women's empowerment by riding a tiger and carrying warrior weapons. We also visited Bharat Hindu University's museum which had many interesting statues (some of Vishnu portrayed as a midget?) and lost of paintings of Krishna wooing women. We also got to see how silk is made with crazy complicated looms. We saw Vishwanath temple which is the oldest temple in Varanasi, and went to Bharat Matta Temple - the only temple dedicated to Mother India. It had a huge topographical map of India and the Himalayas.

We walked to the ghats to go get in our boat on the Ganga and it started pouring rain. We saw the spot where people burn the dead bodies and dump their ashes into the river and then went to see the Aarti ceremony. This Aarti Ceremony was very special even though it was cold and we were soaked. Thankfully I got to guard the cameras with an umbrella. The ceremony was delayed, but five men enthusiastically started ringing bells and waving incense along with music. They progressed to smoking goblets and finally huge flaming snake goblets. It was really cool to watch. The rain and the mist made the boat ride back really eerie. We passed by a ancient abandoned palace that was very spooky in the dark.We desperately tried to light our flowers in the rain and wind which failed. Only a few of ours worked.

The next day we traveled to Sarnath which is located on the outskirts of Varanasi. This is where Buddhism was created. We visited the Dharmarajika Stupa ruins which were built by King Ashoka to worship Buddha as an Idol. This is a place where the first idol worshiping of Buddha took place. Buddha never considered himself god and never wanted to be worshiped, but this happened because the people who began following Buddhism were Hindus who were used to idol worshiping. This lead to the creation of Buddha statues and idol worship of his philosophy of life. There were a lot of signs telling people to stop covering the ruins foil which was interesting.  I suppose people try to decorate holy things. The Sanchi Museum contained all of the statues found in the stupa. This was interesting to see because there were even stone carvings that included Hindu gods as well as Buddha. I had also previously believed Buddha to be a round, fat, jolly man instead of a thin man with curly hair. The fat laughing Buddha is what Buddha was transformed into when Buddhism was banished from India and carried to North East Asia. This was something I had never known about that I found quite interesting. We found shelter at the ruins from the rain where teenagers were exchanging expensive American looking birthday gifts on one side and three beggar children sat on the other side. It was sort of depressing to see two totally different sides of this country sitting under one roof seeking shelter from the rain. There were some poor starving dogs shivering in the cold, but I stopped myself from feeling sorry for them when there are humans right next to them starving and shivering as well. Those poor baby girls.
We hurried through the rain to see the spot that Buddha preached his first sermon and where the supposed 'Tree' was located.

After our rain soaked weekend we boarded the night train back to Delhi. Our train was delayed by 8 hours because of the massive power outage in the city. We had to skip class because we arrived at 2pm instead of 5am. Other than the train ride, everything is ok and I am safe and sound back home with electricity.

Let it Rain let it Pour!

The monsoon has finally come to Delhi and boy does it have great timing. I was trying to get home to pack for Varanasi before my yoga class when it started to pour. My rickshaw broke down 5 times on the way to my house because of the roads flooding. The city's filth multiplies by about 10 times in the rain. At least you can dodge the sidewalks, that are often used as toilets, when the weather is dry. Wading through a foot of water mixed with feces and trash to get to my apartment was really really fun. I hurriedly packed, after discovering my drying laundry had been poured on and slipped down a muddy fight of stairs to try to find another rickshaw willing to drive in the rain and traffic for me. Miraculously I made it to yoga only 5 minuets late wet and splattered in mud. Got to love Monsoon season.

Before the monsoon hit this week I got to enjoy being sick this whole week. My stomach can't handle this spicy food. When we went to Sangeea's again to cook she and her friend were suggesting herbal medications to help me. Saurabh has been feeding me yogurt, bananas and mint pills. I got a little better, but now I am taking heavy American antibiotics. I hope I'll be better soon. It's really difficult to find non-spicy food here and I'm getting sick of rice and bananas.

Besides being sick and wet the week has been good. We cooked idli and jelli belis with Sangeea, went on a tour through the streets of Old Delhi, and me and Sophia ventured out to a mosque called Hazzamuddin mosque to listen to some Sufi singing. That was quite a hectic experience. Apparently since it was Ramadan the mosque gave free food and prayer. It was so unbeleivably crowded. I ripped my pants in 3 places trying to sit down. We sat for about 2 hours and watched people fighting like animals over food. A lot of food was wasted because people were ripping it apart to get some. Me and Sophia ended up giving a lot of our food away to people who were collecting it in bags to take home. There was a 3 yr old boy who was chasing a guy who was distributing bread. He chased him up and down two rows of people asking for bread. When I tried to give him my bread he was so busy bothering the bread man he didn't realize I was giving him some. I will never forget his face when he got that bread. :) Generally the women we say with were very nice except when they were fighting over the food we were giving away. We waited two hours in the gender segregated packed mosque for the food to be passed out and the call for prayer to break the daily fast. After eating they prayed and bowed for 15 minuets. We decided to leave before the singing because it was so crowded and crazy. It was cool to experience nevertheless.

The Ones Who Make a Difference

I finally know what my project is! I have been struggling over the last few weeks to find something that I could write my ethnography on until we visited SunEnterprises.
This NGO was founded by an incredible man, Kuku, who has essentially adopted 160 kids from the slums. This organization started when he had his son and began comparing his son to the kids begging on the streets. His son had a chance in this world, when the beggar kids would only ever know a life filled with drunken fathers, beaten mothers, and no opportunity. A particular 2 year old girl pulled at his heart. Her name was Roshni which means 'light' in Hindi. She was born without an arm which gave her father an excuse to send her to beg. Everyday Kuku gave her something on his way to work until one day she wasn't there. When searching for her, he found that Roshni's father was sending his 2 yr old daughter across town to beg at a new cinema complex. Infuriated Kuku went to her father and told him that he would take care of Roshni and get her into school to get her off the streets. The father refused his offer saying 'What good is that to me. When she begs I get all the money she brings back. I get nothing if she goes to school.' it wasn't until Kuku offered to take care of his two older sons and send them to school as well that the father agreed.
Somehow Kuku's act of goodwill turned into this NGO that supports 160 kids by feeding, clothing, bathing, and sending them to school. These kids now have a chance in this world! Their intelligence would have been lost in the slums if they weren't given a chance. It has been a challenge for Kuku. He has had to pay bribes to the inspector and landlord as well as the school principals. Society doesn't want people from the slums to be educated because more money can be made off of the poor by people who hold power. On top of the bribes, parents aren't so eager for education either. Fathers who drink miss the money their children made to buy them booze. They are always threatening Kuku for taking their children away and sadly don't see the amazing opportunity he has given to the kids.

We got to go talk to the kids and pass out candy. :) I was having a hard time not crying when I saw how bright and sweet the children were. Some of the older children knew French, English, and German. They were so proud to show me their notebooks. Any time I complemented their name or clothing, they beamed with pride. One little girl was an amazing artist. She drew so many animals in her notebook. :) it's was truly incredible to see such a transformation in these children who were once wasted souls in the streets.
I hope to be visiting again to visit the kids and interview Kuku. I want to find out why the government is absolutely no help in situations dealing with the poverty of this country. I want to know why NPOs and NGOs are so rare and how hard it is to start one without any help from the government. Im not sure how many answers I will get, but it disgusts me to know that India has so much money to its name and blatantly ignores the economic issues that are swallowing the country. It's is really great to know that there are people out there that are making a difference on their own like Kuku and Sangeea. They give me inspiration to somehow try to make a difference in this world myself.

Check out this amazing work on  facebook https://www.facebook.com/sunshineprojectnewdelhi/info?v=info or this website! http://www.sunshineproject-delhi.org/
There should be links for donations if you like. No pressure, I just think this amazing work needs to be shared and supported. :)

The Holy Ganga and Hippies

We are leaving Rishikesh with a much nicer train ride than what we arrived in. The journey started with a sleepless night on an overnight sleeper train with open windows, and crowds of people. The ticket workers were bribed to overbook, so people slept on the floors underneath the seats. I didn't mind not having air conditioning as much as the noise of the railway tracks. I was really glad I brought earplugs, but I was glad to have the experience.
We started our groggy morning with a steep 3 hour hike in the Himalayas to called Neel Khant. Even with all the beautiful wildlife and view of the Ganga valley, the view was littered with trash along the whole mountain. Even if the government tried to help clean up this country, it's not important enough to the people for it to make a difference. There were lots of monkeys to watch! Beautiful silver moneys and their baby's were everywhere.
The people were great to watch along the way. Many children were painted as gods along the trail to get money. There were also many people on a pilgrimage dressed in orange( holy color) chanting and singing to keep moral high on the hike. We saw a few men doing their walks in a special way in order to gain help from the gods on something important in their lives. They promised to hike the whole way by setting a small rock on the trail, kneeling down and stretching their entire body out. The rock is moved to the tip of their body span and they get up and continue. This looked pretty difficult. We also saw men called Sadhus who were painted gray and stood in shifts of a few hours on one leg to please to gods. This came from an old tradition when they used to do this for months at a time. We ate at Chottiwalla for lunch since the food at the Ashram was bland. There were bald men dressed as chottiwallas with painted pink faces ringing bells outside the restaurant.
The whole city of Rishikesh is full of cows! Some were pretty healthy and had calves, but a lot were starving. I saw one with a large tumor an it barely had skin on its bones.
The Parmarth Niketan Ashram we are staying in is amazingly peaceful. I could live here for a good amount of time. It is the biggest Ashram in Rishikesh and has its own Ghat inn the Ganga river. There are many hippies staying here to practice yoga and meditation. Many of them were Americans living the zen lifestyle here. The Ashram offers yoga, meditation, and many prayer ceremonies.
At night there was an Aarti ceremony where people sit on the steps of the Ghat and sing prayers as the sun sets behind a giant Lord Shiva statue. When the sun sets everyone lights little candles inside bowls filled with colorfully flowers and sends them on the Ganges into the night. They are meant to bless your ancestors. Sophia, a German girl in my group, and I bought some to send off. It was quite a special night.
I can now say that I have bathed in the holy Ganga as well. Sophia and I woke up to catch the sunrise on the river, but we were a little late. People were still bathing when we arrived to go in the Ghat fully clothed and white as ever to perform a holy ritual meant for Hindus. A woman encouraged us further into the freezing dirty water splashing water on our backs. We held hands and plunged 13 times into the frigid cold saying 'Om Nama Shivai' a prayer to Lord Shiva. I said I wouldn't go in this river, but I was there and had to try for the sake of being there. Now I can say that I swam in the Ganga, the filthiest/holiest river in the world.

Masala masala!

I have been enjoying many different activities that are included in my classes here! They are really teaching me a lot about the culture and lifestyle here. We attended a cooking class at Grihasthi, an NPO in the village where I am attending school. We learned how to make bottle gourd, gheer, daal mekhani, karela, japati, rotti, and paneer parantha. The food was great, and I learned that masala is a blend of seven basic spices. They are altered for certain dishes and tea. The woman who runs the organization, Sandhya, was quite inspiring. This organization is a woman's empowerment NPO that teaches women how to cook and see. They are able to make money from their goods and help their family with food or clothing. Sandhya was telling us about the lack of health education and it's effects on many people of lower castes. A woman came to sew a shirt for her son while we were there. Her young son clearly had Rickets, but his mother sees nothing wrong with her child. Sandhya's next goal is to feed a certain number of children in the village each day with her kitchen, and help family's become aware of health issues.
We also went on a tour of Delhi! I got so see the labor workshops right in the village I go to school. Big designers for weddings have their workshops here. The workers are extremely talented in sewing, beading, and dying beautiful designs on wedding saris. The poor workers are only paid about 100 US dollars a month and work long days in bad conditions. After the sad tour of the local working conditions, we went to do tourist like things. We went to the Lodhi Gardens to see the ruins of the Lodhi Dynasty. This was quite a nice walk through beautiful greenery and tombs. Many couple come to these gardens to have time away from the bustle of life in this city. Our guide asked me if people express their love through gardens in the US. I laughed and said only by giving flowers I suppose. People are so passionate and emotional here! There are so many words for happiness and laughter. Loyalty and passion for people, religion and animals can be seen everywhere in the language and actions of the everyday person. Human interactions can be surprisingly genuine in contrast to the many scams found in Delhi.

We decided to explore the nightlife in Delhi on Thursday at a modern club in Greater Kailash 1 called Urban Pind. I really should have brought more western clothes considering most people were foreigners who dressed quite stylishly. Women got everything free which was nice. There were images from the Kama Sutra all over the walls and they played Techno House American remixed music. It was a lot of fun, it seems as though house music is the new hip music here although it is way old news in the US. I was trying to show so Dubstep music to Raghu (our coordinator four our school) and his friend on the way home. :)

To end off the week before boarding a train to Rishikesh, we had a relaxing yet painful yoga session. I had previously believed I was a flexible person, but found myself in pain with many of the poses. This was a beginners class...perhaps I will get better with the next session. This week has been tiering, but very filled with excitement and adventures.

Transportation Issues

It has been quite a feat to try to get to and from my school every day because of the lack of information available in this city. There are barely any road signs and there is no information about the bus system. In general there are three common methods to travel: rickshsaw, bus and metro.

Rickshaw is by far the easiest, but still hard to deal with. First you have to find one. They must know of where you want to go and charge a reasonable price. They always charge white women more. It is nearly impossible even without rush hour in full swing to find these standards. Lots of times the driver will scam you and drop you some where completely wrong and you get to wander around lost for a while. This has happened to me. They will also tell you they know your destination but they are lying.

The second option is the bus. There is no guide to which numbers head to which stations, so you get to ask a bunch of people if they know. I was sent on a wild goose chase for three hours doing this. I got sent to 2 stations and got on a bus which took me to the airport. I had to get another bus back. These busses are extremely packed as well. People have to fight to get in and people are packed like sardines in this hot sweaty weather. Women also get to enjoy a lovely trip full of groping. I'm not sure I want to take the bus again, even though it may be cheaper.

The last way is the metro. I have only taken it once because it is a 2 km walk from my apartment. When I did ride, it was also insanely packed.

I have given up. I just want to rent a camel for the month.

Holy Cow!

Unfortunately I have had very little time to write this blog anymore. I am in class from 9:30 to about 7 every night. It usually takes an hour to get home, and I have been to exhausted to write. My flat is very comfortable, and my roommates Saurabh and Jen have been helping me navigate the city and lifestyle of the people. Saurabh took me to the Lotus Temple which is a Baha i temple where people come to pray in peace. There is no structure but worship through peace and praying. Perhaps it was the impressive architecture of the place, but it felt surprisingly peaceful.

Hindi classes have proved to be the biggest educational challenge for me. Perhaps it is because American people do not learn other languages often or pronounce things with a European accent. The other 2 students I am with are German and already pronounce Hindi words correctly. Europeans are also used to learning multiple languages, which makes it hard for me to keep up with. I am constantly getting frustrated because I am usually a quick learner, and apply a lot of pressure on myself in school. Applying the same pressure and still not retaining the words I am learning in class is very difficult. I am trying to use the phrases I learn on the street, but often forget what the words are.

We had a lecture on diversity from a man named Sohail Hashmi. This was much more interesting and I could remember the information better. He made connecting of the travel of people and customs through the 1600 some languages that are here and many religions. These can also be seen in the architecture of the ruins around India. You can actually identify who made it what religion they were and who it was built for and what religion they were. It's amazing to make these connections with my archeology classes.
Sohail also told us the amazing story why cows are holy. The Arians brought cows with them into India as domestic herders. Cows were regularly sacrificed to the gods for blessings to help people with decisions and missions. There was an agriculture boom shortly after and cows produced bullocks to plow fields. Cows were needed for farming so to try to stop the sacrifice of cows, killing them was illegal. People worshiped cows who gave them the bullocks to farm. Now some of the country still kills cows for food and such, but many states put people in prison for 3 years for killing a cow.
This is why many cows are roaming around. It is illegal to kill them, so if someone can't afford to take care of their cow, they let them roam.
There is actually illegal smuggling of these cows through the boarder to Pakistan now. Pakistan gets most of of their beef from India through people heading stray cows off the boarder and paying off the guards. So that is the story behind the Holy cow. :)