What is LIFE like in India?

WHAT is it really like in India??Elephant Riding in Jaipur at the Old Fort- City Palace

Some of the Children of India @ Taj Mahal in Agra Sweet Talkin' Vendor trying to sell me something I probably don't need

June 12, 2011 – Sunday

I’ve seen so many things and experienced so much that it will be difficult for me to describe it. I’m overloaded with all I have seen and yet its breathtaking to me. Three days and I’m sold! I love INDIA.

There’s so much here that I know you won’t experience elsewhere and that is what makes India so beautiful to me. Tell me where else do you fight for road space with not only cars, Motos and autos, but cows, elephants and camels?

The dusty mountains look at us majestically, boasting of a different era and expertly constructed fort or palace.

The children stare and smile at us with only the knowing look that we are different somehow.

It is sad to see some of them living through such hardship with the sparkle of hope still in their eyes as they trek through life’s rough road. Others are so cute you just want to pick them up, take them home and give them everything.

I saw a child today whose mother was begging us for food and money. This child was sleeping but behind its closed eyes I saw the pain of a burnt face and hunger.

Another noticeable thing in India are the vendors. Talk about motivation and dedication- these vendors will stop at nothing to convince you that you need what they are selling. This includes following you several miles to your next destination not even knowing what car you came in, in the first place..crazy! As tempting as it may be, you have to refrain from buying because these guys know that where you are is a tourist hot spot and they will charge you much higher for things you can find in much better quality for much cheaper in a smaller town. Not to mention that half of this stuff is completely useless and you will wake up in five years finding yourself questioning the motive behind buying that huge brass jar with the funny designs on it. But I have gotten a few things from fixed pricing stores. You see in India, there are rarely ever fixed prices, things can be bargained upon so that something that originally cost 500 rupees, costs 250 with a little of your sweet talk.

Till next blog...
Priyanka

Daring Adventures in Delhi

So I am in Delhi, India. I arrived late last night around 9 p.m. and got my taste of India when I walked outside the airport and the immense heat hit me like a tidal wave. It wasn't that hot (around 90 degrees and today is expected to be in the 100's!) But it is hotter than what I am used to, even being from Florida.
My journey to our hotel Mable Arch was a interesting albeit scary one. Imagine, honking horns, four cars next to you, in front of you, behind you, closer than bumper to bumper, make one wrong turn and your car gets scratched. People on motorcycles weaving in and out of the crowded cars and the many people walking the dusty streets of India everywhere. When we got to my hotel, my Dad's family and friends met me up there and took me to find some food or drink, but interestingly enough there is no 24 hours open joint here. Everything closes at like 10 or 11. It was still an exciting journey for me to see the street vendors cooking on metal scraps, the stray dogs posted up at every street corner, and the many makeshift beds out in the open where the impoverished lay their heads at night. The poverty is immense and it can break your heart to see.
When I came back to the hotel, I hung out with my group a little longer. We have already started bonding and getting close. Three of us were lucky enough to share the same flight in the same area on the plane. We all kind of randomly ended up in India this summer but we are definitely excited about being here. Rahul, our program director, is very reliable and makes sure we are taken care of. He will be showing us the city in the daylight today. Last night, I must admit I and my newly formed companions did do a little exploring in the nearby streets of Delhi. Today we are visiting Humayan's Tomb, Lodhi Gardens and a few other places of touristy interest.
The day has already started off well with some Mango juice, chai tea (India's specialty), and omelet with bread. Afterwards I got some chocolate biscuits from my Dad's Auntie who stopped by before work and then I went up to my room to hang with my friends before our excursions. They are actually all taking a nap due to the lag of jet lag. For some reason I am not that tired, but I am certain it will catch up with me soon.

Communicating with people back home is probably the only challenging part here, because right now its almost noon here and almost three am there.

More to come soon, including pictures; I have already taken 13 and I haven't even been here 13 hours. I tend to take thousands upon thousands of pictures when visiting places so I am sure I will collect a few hundred by the end of this week.

Priyanka

Getting Ready

Meri Jindagi means My life. And this blog will be the chronicles of my life and experiences in India over the next couple weeks as I learn the culture, the language, develop myself professionally with health care experiences/internship, and just have the time of meri jindagi- my life.


A glance at the picture above gives you an idea of the sites and cultural excursions I will get to take part in over this summer. I will be visiting the Golden Triangle (Delhi, Agra, Jaipur), and then flying to Hyderabad for studies. The Taj Mahal is located in Agra.

So pre-departure feelings are a mix of sitting in the front seat of a rollercoaster that is about to go down the steepest incline you have ever gone and taking a sip of the sweetest coldest lemonade on a hot summer day. I guess you could say I am excited, anxious, nervous, and happy about visiting half of my heritage.

I recently went to Hungary, Romania and England this past winter vacation where I got to see relatives and one side of my complex ethnicity. After being able to reconnect or connect for the first time rather, with people who understood my upbringing and could appreciate the hungarian delicacies I so often make at home with my grandmother, I was inspired to explore the other half; Indian.

Currently I stand amidst a giant Himalaya mountain of clothes trying to sort out what exactly to wear. The climate is hotter and the dress must be a little more conservative than America's daily fashion styles, from advice I have heard. I have had to take a million shots for the world's deadliest diseases of malaria, typhoid, japanese encephalitis, polio. I have been looking through travel guides at books a million discerning the right amount of sunsreen and mosquito repellant to take.

I am excited about my group of fellow ISA (International Studies Abroad program) students who I am partaking this journey with. They are American, but we will not only be interacting with each other, we will also be taking classes with international students and indian students who are enrolled in this Studies in India program at the University of Hyderabad.

We have a guy from VA Tech who has just about as much school spirit as I do (CANE for life), a dancer from Luther College and Iowa, and a Beta Chi Theta brother from University of Minnesota. I mention the fraternity because it is a south asian oriented fraternity and I recently had the opportunity of founding a South Asian interest sorority, Delta Phi Omega, on my campus with four other lovely young ladies. So I have already started talking and reaching out to my future BFF's for life and studyabroad buddies. I am sure we are going to all have a BLAST. Each of us, from what I have observed, have wanted to go to India for some time and this truly is a dream come true.

Well off to my packing and preparations. The door bell just rang with the UPS man who is bringing me the newest version of the Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary and I want to get started on practicing. My father is going to be victim this summer as I practice my speech and writing skills with him. He grew up in India speaking English, Telegu, and Hindi so he will be my study partner in Beginning Hindi.

Priyanka