So last night I went to the hospital for the second time while I've been here in India. This time I got stitches from a little accident on my commute home from work. I'm fine, and in this video I recount the events. It is obvious the adrenaline of the situation is still running through me! Haha
Showing posts with label India. Show all posts
Showing posts with label India. Show all posts
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
The Milking of the Cow!
Wow. What to say about this one? My technique is horrible- feel free to comment. Regardless, it was a great time, and something I will always remember. Thanks to all the kids from Navram Society for a great Sunday, and teaching me how to play sattodiya and cricket! It was a great weekend, and reminded me a lot of the block games we used to play as "The Noyes Street Kids!" Small world.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
My first Vlog... :-/
Here is my first video, as per request my brother Sean. The quality is pretty horrible, but hey, you got to start somewhere. Also, I don't think the sound and the visual match up, so I give you permission to laugh at how funny I look :-)
- Your CV
Lauren
- Your CV
Lauren
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
In it to win it!
It is Wednesday morning at 6:11 am and I have just woken up from sleeping for 10 and a half hours. I pretty much hit the sack right after arriving home and did not even “take dinner” as it is called here. My shirt is cold and damp from sweat, and my back feels like it is being pulled in a million different directions. It seems that all I do in my day here is try to survive work and make it till 6pm without feeling sick, and then get back home to get as much sleep as I can. I’ll be honest when I say I’m at a point where I feel bad health will plague me the rest of my trip, but hopefully that will not be the case and all I will have to do is stay positive.
So yesterday started off well. When I woke I felt a lot better than the day before when I experienced heat exhaustion, and I was very excited to give work another try now that my bosses would be in. In the three long hours in the morning between when I wake up at 6:30 and when I go to work at 9:30, I did some yoga enthusiastically, apparently too enthusiastically because I pulled my lower and mid back and am now paying for it. After another sweet bike ride, the workday started again with a prayer and a presentation, and this time it was translated to me. The summarized version of the story goes as follows:
A man gets angry all the time, so his father says every time you get angry, drive a nail into a plank. He does this and finally after the plank is full, the son does not get angry any more. He feels he is cured so he tells his father that he now knows how to divert his anger and not become so upset anymore. After hearing that his father replies that from now on, whenever he would have gotten angry and does not, he needs to go to the plank and pull out one of the nails. The son obliges and after a while, all the nails are out of the plank and all that remains is a plank littered with holes. He goes to his father again to tell him the news and his father replies, “ Son, every time you get angry, the damage will not leave you. It will create a hole in you, so do not get angry.”
After the story, everyone is supposed to provide feedback. They asked me what I thought. I said that in my life at home it is easy to get stressed over the little things, but I have to remember what’s important. Looking back, I can say that without a doubt I have had trouble with this concept and that my health is a key indicator of this. It is very obvious that right now I am littered with holes that will never go away- once you live unhealthily you cannot get that time back. What I can do is promise myself that I am going to stop drilling nails into myself, stop creating holes, and stop being unhealthy. I don’t know what it will take for me to get that balance into my life, but it will definitely start with losing my perfectionist attitude. I need to be more understanding of myself, and that a little of everything is better than having all my eggs in one basket.
Anyway, back to my day. After the presentation I was then served breakfast and chai and able to connect with people on the Internet. Around 11am I had a great meeting with Ranvir to discuss what I was going to do during my stay. His office is air-conditioned and feels really good. What doesn’t feel good is leaving it. It is only at that point that I do realize how hot the room I’m working in is. It has fans moving around the air, but it does not really cool things down much. In the afternoon when it gets hotter, they usually turn on their air conditioner, but it is not very powerful. After I left that meeting I again felt sick. I drank two liters of water and had gone to the bathroom like five times that day- I was afraid of being seen as a weirdo, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
At lunch I could not eat a lot, and my co-workers kept offering me food and I kept trying to respectfully decline. At three I had another meeting with Ranvir and I started to feel better again once in his office. I had prepared my expectations for both my professional development as well as personal, and we had a great time coming up with what I am going to do. After the meeting I began working with a co-worker, whose name is slipping my memory, on writing for their new website. They were very shocked to see I use office 1997 and thy want me to upgrade myself into the 21st century. I will have that done this morning.
As the day wounded down, I gave my home a call on Skype. My seven-year-old sister Grace, very unemotionally answered, and after taking the message that they should read my blog cut me off and said, “Thanks for calling, I’ll pass on the message, goodbye!” Ok, Miss Independent, I’m sorry your sister half way around the world is interrupting your morning cartoons! As funny as she is, I am happy that it was not an emotional conversation and that she did encourage me to feel homesick emotions that are counterproductive. Regardless, I hope when I get to work today I have an email from home.
-Your CV,
Lauren
So yesterday started off well. When I woke I felt a lot better than the day before when I experienced heat exhaustion, and I was very excited to give work another try now that my bosses would be in. In the three long hours in the morning between when I wake up at 6:30 and when I go to work at 9:30, I did some yoga enthusiastically, apparently too enthusiastically because I pulled my lower and mid back and am now paying for it. After another sweet bike ride, the workday started again with a prayer and a presentation, and this time it was translated to me. The summarized version of the story goes as follows:
A man gets angry all the time, so his father says every time you get angry, drive a nail into a plank. He does this and finally after the plank is full, the son does not get angry any more. He feels he is cured so he tells his father that he now knows how to divert his anger and not become so upset anymore. After hearing that his father replies that from now on, whenever he would have gotten angry and does not, he needs to go to the plank and pull out one of the nails. The son obliges and after a while, all the nails are out of the plank and all that remains is a plank littered with holes. He goes to his father again to tell him the news and his father replies, “ Son, every time you get angry, the damage will not leave you. It will create a hole in you, so do not get angry.”
After the story, everyone is supposed to provide feedback. They asked me what I thought. I said that in my life at home it is easy to get stressed over the little things, but I have to remember what’s important. Looking back, I can say that without a doubt I have had trouble with this concept and that my health is a key indicator of this. It is very obvious that right now I am littered with holes that will never go away- once you live unhealthily you cannot get that time back. What I can do is promise myself that I am going to stop drilling nails into myself, stop creating holes, and stop being unhealthy. I don’t know what it will take for me to get that balance into my life, but it will definitely start with losing my perfectionist attitude. I need to be more understanding of myself, and that a little of everything is better than having all my eggs in one basket.
Anyway, back to my day. After the presentation I was then served breakfast and chai and able to connect with people on the Internet. Around 11am I had a great meeting with Ranvir to discuss what I was going to do during my stay. His office is air-conditioned and feels really good. What doesn’t feel good is leaving it. It is only at that point that I do realize how hot the room I’m working in is. It has fans moving around the air, but it does not really cool things down much. In the afternoon when it gets hotter, they usually turn on their air conditioner, but it is not very powerful. After I left that meeting I again felt sick. I drank two liters of water and had gone to the bathroom like five times that day- I was afraid of being seen as a weirdo, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
At lunch I could not eat a lot, and my co-workers kept offering me food and I kept trying to respectfully decline. At three I had another meeting with Ranvir and I started to feel better again once in his office. I had prepared my expectations for both my professional development as well as personal, and we had a great time coming up with what I am going to do. After the meeting I began working with a co-worker, whose name is slipping my memory, on writing for their new website. They were very shocked to see I use office 1997 and thy want me to upgrade myself into the 21st century. I will have that done this morning.
As the day wounded down, I gave my home a call on Skype. My seven-year-old sister Grace, very unemotionally answered, and after taking the message that they should read my blog cut me off and said, “Thanks for calling, I’ll pass on the message, goodbye!” Ok, Miss Independent, I’m sorry your sister half way around the world is interrupting your morning cartoons! As funny as she is, I am happy that it was not an emotional conversation and that she did encourage me to feel homesick emotions that are counterproductive. Regardless, I hope when I get to work today I have an email from home.
-Your CV,
Lauren
Monday, June 21, 2010
First day!
Wow. I have just finished cleaning all the files on my computer! It was a gigantic task- because it is three years of my disorganization needing undoing. Luckily, I was able to do it today, because Sunday is a holiday in India, and I had very little other obligations.
Now, back to the fact that I am living in India! So today I was pretty much left alone to manage- I did not have anyone holding my hand throughout my day. I am living on the top floor of a family’s home and currently sharing the room with Dharmistah. We are getting along very well, and she has invited me to go to her home with her after her exams and meet her family. Unfortunately, I don’t know if I will be able to take off work, and I am sad she will not be my roommate all summer. As for where she lives, I could not tell you because it is very hard for me to understand people saying Hindi words because they say it so fast for my ear. Other observations that I have had is that when wearing my gold costume jewelry today, I felt very self-conscious because I realized that most likely their jewelry is real gold from special gifts. The fact that I am wearing large jewelry would appear that I would have lots of money to afford so much gold- obviously I know I got this cheap a** s*** at Claire’s but I need to be careful because I don’t want to give off a pretentious message. Another interesting thing about living here is something that I would never imagine myself doing in my wildest dreams- and that is that throwing out your trash simply means that literarily, you throw your trash out your window. Trash is everywhere in these urban settings, and in my mind it is unfortunate that they do not do something more organized with their disposal for both aesthetic as well as sanitation reasons. Since I have toured the Rumpke dump, I find it interesting that we complained that it was in our “back yard” when referencing the dump being within miles away. That definition has completely new meaning here because your trash really is in your back yard, as well s on your doorstep, on your way to work, in your meeting spaces- everywhere! The issues with dumping is very much more visible here, but it is interesting to note that Rumpke still has environmental issues, and just because it is more hidden does not make it better. I find India’s authenticity refreshing.
On another note, drinking water has become a minor issue. I am not sure whether or not the water that I am drinking out of bottles is in fact bottle water, or tap water bottled. In terms of recycling, it is great that Indians reuse things- something Americans have failed to learn- but in terms of my health, which is vital for the success of this trip is that I need water that my body is used to. Unfortunately that separated me from native Indians- creates a slight barrier, and makes for me to seem rude when I have to turn it down. I have explained to Dharma, and will to the family when the time is right. Hopefully that should clear up any miscommunications.
Another thing is that I am constantly served more food than I can eat. Since I am trying to cut back this summer, it is even more difficult because it probably seems confusing when I say I love India food, yet I do not finish half of what I am given. Regardless, I am enjoying the food very much and the spiciness has not been a problem. I hope to learn how to make some foods. When I went downstairs to get water, I saw my host mother and Monika making chapatti and it smelled like spicy pancakes. Reminded me of home- but not really the spicy part. My mom hates spice.
For most of the day I have been in my light, pale pink room that has textured water stained walls, lizard guests, open windows with horizontal bars and balcony with ornate design handrail. The ceiling fan sounds like there is constant rain on a tin roof, but there has not been any rain so far in my stay. While I have not left the house today, I feel it is nice because my room opens up nicely to the out of doors.
I was invited downstairs two times throughout the day to meet my host family. There is a grandmother and two children, two spouses, and two grandchildren living here. They are the Thavrani surname. Later in the day another son, his wife and two grandchildren along with a great niece and great uncle came by. They all live in Dahod in other homes. Everyone sits around and talks and enjoys their day off. It is very lovely to see such a close, friendly and welcoming family who is so proud of each other. Only the grandson who is probably 24 and studying medicine in University speaks variable English. They all learn English in school and do their studies in it, but they are not as strong conversationally. Plus my accent throws them off a little bit since I am not from the UK. Some funny things that occurred during the time I spent with them was that I was not from Germany. For some reason that is where they were told I was from. Next, was that they couldn’t believe I was 20. Everyone thought I was thirty or something. We laughed that Indians look young for their age too. Another coincidence is that Monika and I have the same birthday and she is 18. We are practicing English conversation for her and Gujarati for me. Dharmistah is also helping me. Tomorrow at 8pm I will meet with Dumah Thavrani to teach her English and practice conversation. Indians have a very strong ethic to learn and value education. Most Indians that I am meeting have advanced degrees such as masters, and likely more.
I am very excited to start work tomorrow, and I know it will bring many challenges. Things like using the bathroom in a crouched position, showering with a bucket, chucking my trash out the window, and eating with my hands have been a difficult to adapt to, and not knowing what is going on in conversations in Hindi or English, but as I know this is about unlearning old habits, and learning a new way of life. It is the ultimate test of survival. I can do it. Also, I am looking forward to emailing my family and friends tomorrow and will be very disappointed if I do not get the chance to do that. It is difficult not having any way to contact them over the past two days. Even though we are not together physically, I am reliant on technology to connect me to them. After all, my roommate is always texting or calling her friends that are far away. It would be a lot less painful if I was able to do that, but I know that this is not about having a pain free experience. In a sick way, that is what I am after, so I can grow the most.
-Your CV,
Lauren
Now, back to the fact that I am living in India! So today I was pretty much left alone to manage- I did not have anyone holding my hand throughout my day. I am living on the top floor of a family’s home and currently sharing the room with Dharmistah. We are getting along very well, and she has invited me to go to her home with her after her exams and meet her family. Unfortunately, I don’t know if I will be able to take off work, and I am sad she will not be my roommate all summer. As for where she lives, I could not tell you because it is very hard for me to understand people saying Hindi words because they say it so fast for my ear. Other observations that I have had is that when wearing my gold costume jewelry today, I felt very self-conscious because I realized that most likely their jewelry is real gold from special gifts. The fact that I am wearing large jewelry would appear that I would have lots of money to afford so much gold- obviously I know I got this cheap a** s*** at Claire’s but I need to be careful because I don’t want to give off a pretentious message. Another interesting thing about living here is something that I would never imagine myself doing in my wildest dreams- and that is that throwing out your trash simply means that literarily, you throw your trash out your window. Trash is everywhere in these urban settings, and in my mind it is unfortunate that they do not do something more organized with their disposal for both aesthetic as well as sanitation reasons. Since I have toured the Rumpke dump, I find it interesting that we complained that it was in our “back yard” when referencing the dump being within miles away. That definition has completely new meaning here because your trash really is in your back yard, as well s on your doorstep, on your way to work, in your meeting spaces- everywhere! The issues with dumping is very much more visible here, but it is interesting to note that Rumpke still has environmental issues, and just because it is more hidden does not make it better. I find India’s authenticity refreshing.
On another note, drinking water has become a minor issue. I am not sure whether or not the water that I am drinking out of bottles is in fact bottle water, or tap water bottled. In terms of recycling, it is great that Indians reuse things- something Americans have failed to learn- but in terms of my health, which is vital for the success of this trip is that I need water that my body is used to. Unfortunately that separated me from native Indians- creates a slight barrier, and makes for me to seem rude when I have to turn it down. I have explained to Dharma, and will to the family when the time is right. Hopefully that should clear up any miscommunications.
Another thing is that I am constantly served more food than I can eat. Since I am trying to cut back this summer, it is even more difficult because it probably seems confusing when I say I love India food, yet I do not finish half of what I am given. Regardless, I am enjoying the food very much and the spiciness has not been a problem. I hope to learn how to make some foods. When I went downstairs to get water, I saw my host mother and Monika making chapatti and it smelled like spicy pancakes. Reminded me of home- but not really the spicy part. My mom hates spice.
For most of the day I have been in my light, pale pink room that has textured water stained walls, lizard guests, open windows with horizontal bars and balcony with ornate design handrail. The ceiling fan sounds like there is constant rain on a tin roof, but there has not been any rain so far in my stay. While I have not left the house today, I feel it is nice because my room opens up nicely to the out of doors.
I was invited downstairs two times throughout the day to meet my host family. There is a grandmother and two children, two spouses, and two grandchildren living here. They are the Thavrani surname. Later in the day another son, his wife and two grandchildren along with a great niece and great uncle came by. They all live in Dahod in other homes. Everyone sits around and talks and enjoys their day off. It is very lovely to see such a close, friendly and welcoming family who is so proud of each other. Only the grandson who is probably 24 and studying medicine in University speaks variable English. They all learn English in school and do their studies in it, but they are not as strong conversationally. Plus my accent throws them off a little bit since I am not from the UK. Some funny things that occurred during the time I spent with them was that I was not from Germany. For some reason that is where they were told I was from. Next, was that they couldn’t believe I was 20. Everyone thought I was thirty or something. We laughed that Indians look young for their age too. Another coincidence is that Monika and I have the same birthday and she is 18. We are practicing English conversation for her and Gujarati for me. Dharmistah is also helping me. Tomorrow at 8pm I will meet with Dumah Thavrani to teach her English and practice conversation. Indians have a very strong ethic to learn and value education. Most Indians that I am meeting have advanced degrees such as masters, and likely more.
I am very excited to start work tomorrow, and I know it will bring many challenges. Things like using the bathroom in a crouched position, showering with a bucket, chucking my trash out the window, and eating with my hands have been a difficult to adapt to, and not knowing what is going on in conversations in Hindi or English, but as I know this is about unlearning old habits, and learning a new way of life. It is the ultimate test of survival. I can do it. Also, I am looking forward to emailing my family and friends tomorrow and will be very disappointed if I do not get the chance to do that. It is difficult not having any way to contact them over the past two days. Even though we are not together physically, I am reliant on technology to connect me to them. After all, my roommate is always texting or calling her friends that are far away. It would be a lot less painful if I was able to do that, but I know that this is not about having a pain free experience. In a sick way, that is what I am after, so I can grow the most.
-Your CV,
Lauren
Adventure of a lifetime!
If adventure is what I traveled to India for, then I have surely gotten what I want out of this experience. It has been a memorable past couple of days- I’m not sure I can classify them as days- just stringed together groupings of hours. When I arrived in Istanbul I had little time to catch my next plane, and I was frustrated that I could not get Internet. I hopped onto the Mumbai flight and was happy when I arrived six hours later. It is at this point in my journey that my strength was tested. There were three things I was nervous about coming into the travel component of the trip, and I had to overcome all three of them. I still have a great sense of happiness about this trip, and feel very accomplished to have managed these. The first is that my checked bag did not make it to Mumbai- this means that some of my clothes, toiletries, and my precious yoga mat will not make it to me until tomorrow. As long as my bag comes soon I do not foresee this to be a big deal since I packed all my necessities in my carry-on. One point for me. Next, when I tried to transfer from the Mumbai International airport to the domestic one, which are both zoos, I was told I could not go on the complimentary shuttle because I did not have my boarding pass. I had my e-ticket on my phone, but of course the pile of papers I left at home had that included. This meant that I had to take a taxi in Mumbai to get there! Would I make it in time? Would I make it alive? Mumbai is a big crazy place, and I was afraid it’d swallow me right up. Luckily, I saw a long cue in front of the prepaid taxi line, so I realized that would be the best option. I probably got ripped off; I paid 150 rupees, or around three American dollars to go ten minutes. Of course it takes a lot longer because he makes stops to see his friends, the petrol station, and the administration building where he gets his pay. Overall it went fine and I got there with plenty of time. I was confused about tipping protocol, but since I already paid him a hefty sum, I wasn’t worried about not tipping- still; I need to get the breakdown from Jabeen on that matter. Lastly on my list of fears was not having anyone meet me when I got out of the airport in Ahmedabad. You guessed it, no one was there. I paced up and down the pick up line a couple to times to double check, then I waited for a few minutes. My plane was delayed so I didn’t think it could be that they were running late, so I tried to go back inside the airport to use the pay phones. When I was trying to get past security back into the building, a woman who said she runs an NGO offered me her phone. SO NICE! We called the numbers I had a couple of times, and no luck. We found another woman to help me that had a land line in the administration building, and I ended up being like a lost kid at the museum- hanging out in the airport manager’s office, chatting with all the managers, getting served chai, and trying to figure out how I was going to get to Dahod. Luckily, Jabeen, my boss, was also coming into the airport from Mumbai, so I just had to wait 20 min for her arrival and then another 20 minutes for Ranvir and our car. Speaking of Jabeen, I love her! I am very comforted by the fact that she is my boss! She is a beautiful tall woman who wore jeans and a maroon corto and muted gold scarf- an outfit I could totally see myself wearing. I remembered her from the party back in December, and it was nice to connect a face to the messages I have been having over the past three months. On to Ranvir, he is also so nice! He is the one that gave us the tour of Sahaj back at my last visit, and he has been so friendly and inviting. After we all met up, we went on the road to go to Ahmedabad to have a meeting with sanitation NGO Environmental Sanitation Institute. It was very nice, and I should have brought my camera. It is very similar to Sadguru in that it is a campus training facility, and it is very beautiful too. Sahaj and an offshoot of ESI want to form a partnership for income generation crafts for women. They are planning an exhibition for October. I got to take a nice nap while they all had a meeting about details. There is a lot more Hindi/Gujarati spoken than I would have anticipated. I need to start learning now. On our way back we stopped at a McDonalds to meet someone- I got a coke and it woke me up just enough to have a great conversation with Jabeen about preconceptions of India and the U.S. and how they are developing and the difference in the way of life. It was really great making that connection with her, and realizing we are on the same page in terms of the pros and cons of development. I realize that while I have a love for India and its culture, I also have a very naïve perspective from my last trip because we were sheltered and stayed in Chosala. Now, I’m living in town and will lead the life of a typical Indian- or at least will try (I do not have a cell phone yet, and that is an Indian staple. They are ALWAYS on their phone; way more than Americans if you can believe it!) The car dropped off Ranvir then Jabeen, and I was taken last to my house. I live on the top floor of a family’s home, and there is one bedroom and a water closet. The family is so kind and have three or four generations living here. I currently share my room with Dharmi, who is an engineering student taking her finals this week and temporarily leasing the space. She will be gone in a week, and I wonder if I will get a new roommate or live alone all summer. I am told I get my meals provided for me, and I get a ride to and from work every day. I am excited to meet everyone from Sahaj; my hope is that I can live a balanced life here, have friends that I socialize with, and that I can do good work for Sahaj. It is important to note that coming here is like erasing all my experience with social norms and living with universal humanity to count on and instinctive survival skills. There is no doubt that I will learn a ton on this trip- I am living a completely different life than I would at home. This experience- to be able to see the world in new light- will be amazing. I can’t wait! Oh, and I can’t wait to get used to the toilets, or holes in the ground. I have not perfected my technique yet.
-Your CV,
Lauren
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Peace out Amurica!
The sun is quickly disappearing into the horizon here in Toronto. The sky has been the most notable aspects of the start of my journey- it has foreshadowed what is to come, as well as made me realize the sweetness of what I am leaving behind. The sky, which is usually something we view as having limitations, will be my constant in my trip- if you think about it, the sky is always the same no matter where you are in the world. The sky today also provided me with the most beautiful view of my hometown, Evanston, Illinois, that I have ever seen. When I was up in the little plane on the way to Toronto from O'hare, I could see the Chicago land area with the utmost clarity. It was like I had a complete understanding of my hometown- literally from all angles, that I am inspired to seek out a new land, a new people, and a new way of life.
With this gun-ho attitude I am currently in route to my three month co-op (aka internship for school credit) in Dahod, India. I am working for the NGO Sahaj, whose vision is "To empower tribal women through art and craft based activities, providing them opportunities and wider choices in life towards an equitable society." It will surely be a great learning experience. I am not totally sure of what I am doing, but I am excited by the opportunity to try something new. Hopefully, there will be a mutual exchange where I can help Sahaj, and Sahaj can help me.
I have completed my first leg of my journey with my arrival in Toronto, and will soon be boarding to go to Istanbul. After that is Mumbai, then Ahmadabad, and lastly Dahod. The solitude of the travels thus far have been nice, but I am interested to see how long I can be my own best friend. I'll be sure to keep you updated. Stay tuned.
-Your CV,
Lauren
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)