August 14th 2014

I really didn’t like Lucknow. I questioned many times if I had made the right decision in coming back to India this summer. North India probably isn’t the most “fun” place to spend a summer. Besides this, Lucknow is only modern on the surface. It has more malls, more washing machines, than other North Indian cities, but the fact is that this is not a tourist city. When I made my first trip to a village when I came to India in 2012, I was shocked by the way people looked at me, and how many people looked at me, like they had never seen someone like me before. It’s normal to get those looks here all the time and everywhere, and that’s confusing to me especially with the backdrops of nicer hotels and infrastructure in general. It was a frustrating contrast at first.

And now I’m sitting in my room, next to all of my stuff (surprise, I’m packed) in a house that I’ve become so comfortable in. The disclaimer here is that the only reason I’m packed ahead of time is that our check-in bags are being sent to Delhi ahead of us today. I’m sad to leave this city.

I’m especially sad to leave my host family. I got incredibly lucky. They weren’t just nice to me, but they treated me like a member of the family, and that’s how I feel now. I spent most of my time in this house (probably most of my time in Lucknow) in my host parent’s room, hanging out, watching serials, eating, and I always felt welcome. It helped that whenever they had a guest over, my host dad would tell them that I was their Urdu-speaking American daughter, and when they looked surprised he would say “Don’t we look alike?!?” But it was mostly just the way they made me feel like I wasn’t just in a house that I was staying in with a family that I was living with. They made me feel like I was in a house I belonged to, with a family I was a part of.

I am happy with my Urdu; I didn’t think it would get to this point. I’m proud of what I’ve learned, and my comfort level in speaking, reading, and writing. The thing that holds me back the most are the idioms. “Make a rope into a snake,” meaning “to exaggerate;” “to be like the moon of Eid,” meaning “to be seen rarely;" ”to put one’s hands in the flowing Ganga river,” meaning “to take advantage of what is provided.” If it were up to me, I would delete idioms from every language (just kidding, mostly). There are always going to be things that don’t translate, and the way that I’ll find that out is by saying things that sound good in English in my head, and getting laughed at when I try to say them in Urdu.

I am sad to leave but very much ready. I’ve turned in my final exam, taken my last Oral Proficiency Interview, bought the last of the souvenirs, I’ve learned how to get around Lucknow, I got to know this city and some of the people in a way that is making me sad to leave, but I think that’s a good thing. I am so excited to go home and see my family and the ocean. We’re leaving India at 2:30 AM on Saturday.

Love, 

Ada

Here are some Eid photos: 

August 5th 2014

I've been under the impression that every time it's rained I've been witnessing "the monsson." But yesterday, when I decided to walk home from school, I had to roll my pants up above my knees. Probably the most skin I've shown thus far in this country. The road in front of school and the roads leading to my house were completely washed out. I was knee-deep in water for a good portion of the walk home. It was kind of fun. Now I have a revised idea of what "monsoon" means.

I've been back to Benares twice now. I'm here to learn Urdu, but one of the most important things for me during this trip was to go back to Benares. I thought it would be weird going back. It was weird coming back to India. But it was easy going back to Benares. As soon as we exited the train station, everything seemed familiar. I recognized my bike routes to work, I recognized stores, and finally, I recognized people who recognized me. The sense of familiarity was comforting Visiting people, catching up with my old host family, teachers, and friends, was easy. Seeing my smiley students and the other kids at Guria just made me happy. Goodbyes were easy this time as well. I don't expect myself to come back soon, but it's a given that I will come back. (Added bonus, I got to see two of my  best friends in Benares who have been traveling around North India, so that was great.)

Eid was celebrated last week on Tuesday. The night before, I went into the Old City and went to the house of friends in the program and watched fireworks explode around the city from their rooftop. And then we added to the display with our own fireworks. Fun fact: not too many fireworks regulations around here. The city was busier than I've ever seen it during the daytime, and this was after 11:00 pm. When I came home, I stayed up for another couple of hours, getting henna done with the girls in my host family. The next day, the day of Eid, consisted of getting dressed up, eating food, visiting people, having people visit, eating more food, and taking a lot of ictues. Everyone looked great, in my host family, and in my group. They were making food in my house starting early in the morning. By around 8:30 pm, people started coming into my house at a steady pace, to visit for Eid. And by 9:00 pm, my host family's prior claims of "we have a lot of friends that come on Eid," and the cooking that started at 7 am was justified. My house was packed. People in their new clothing were talking, eating, giving Eidi (small amounts of money to kids), taking pictures. It was great.

This last weekend we took a trip to Agra. See that group of 30 Americans moving through the train station in a slow-moving mass? Yes, that was us. The taj was beautiful, once again. I was happy to feel the same sense of appreciation for how impressive it is, that I felt the first time I saw it. We also toured the Agra fort and akbar's tomb. My least favorite thing about Agra is the harrassment. You'll try to take a group picture, and all of the sudden, in addition to your friend who's taking the picture, there is a small cluster of Indian men with their cameras, taking pictures as well. The amount if "ma'am ek photo," "photo please," "snap, snap with me" requests that I and the others in our group got was ridiculous. I said "no" to all of them, if you're curious. My only regret is not trying to charge people for pictures with me (just kidding).

We are all working in our final projects now. I am making "She,a The Man" into a Bollywood movie. Instead of soccer, she plays cricket. Instead of forced debutante participation, she is being forced into an arranged marriage. The story practically writes itself.

That's about it for now.

Lots of love,
Ada

July 24th 2014

I can’t help but do the countdown math. There is this coming weekend, I’m going back to Varanasi, there is the weekend after that, we are going on a group trip to Agra, and then there is the weekend after that. And that’s it, no more weekends.

I want to be really excited to go home, but as soon as I go home there is so little time before I go back to school. And then there’s the whole “living in the moment” thing.

Every day I get a little more comfortable speaking Urdu, and every day I say something that makes absolutely no sense. Sometimes the sentences come easily but more often than not I find myself running in circles around the point I am trying to make, tripping over tenses, and butchering the pronunciation with my American accent. It’s a shame that the words for “big,” “brown,” “bad,” and “elderly person” all sound exactly the same when I say them.

Whenever my family tries to serve me more food (which happens every single night) I react by blocking my plate with my hands and say “Nahin, nahin, mein theek houn” (No, no, I’m okay), which if I remember correctly is a normal polite response for “No I don’t want any more food” in English. But every time I’ve said this, they’ve looked at each other and laughed. About a week ago they decided to tell me that this was a very strange response for me to give, because they were not asking me how I was, but instead trying to serve me more food. I explained to them that “Mein theek houn” was me saying no. They reasoned that “Meni kharab houn” (I am bad) should mean “yes” if “Mein theek houn” means “no.” So whenever I’m around, if anyone wants to say yes, they say “mein kharab houn.”

This past weekend I went to visit Varanasi where I spent most of the year right after high school and before college, from September of 2012 to May of 2013. As usual, I  hated the train ride, but as soon as we got out of the station, I felt like I had come back, maybe not home, but to a kind of home.  As the rickshaw took us from the station to Assi Ghat, I recognized the roads that I used to ride my bike down every day, on my way to and from work. And from there the familiarity increased: the street food stalls, the mango smoothie stands, the shops, the restaurants, the temples. I still know Varanasi, and that’s a good feeling.

More importantly, I still know the people in Varanasi, and they were the real reason I felt I needed to go back. Spending time with Dolly Ji, my host parents, my host sister, Virendra Ji,  Tom, Ajeet Ji, Manju Ji, and with the Guria kids made my trip. Somehow, everything worked out extremely well, and I was able to not only spend time with everyone I wanted to see, but also to show my friends that travelled with me around a little bit. I feel thankful that Varanasi has become a place that I can easily come back to, walk along the ghats, get lost in the gullies, and spend time with people I love without it seeming like the last time I was there was two years ago.

Other updates: The monsoon rains have begun—though they come and go sporadically. Eid is quickly approaching, it will probably be on this coming Tuesday. My family has assured me that they throw the best Eid in town. I’ve done more and more exploring, the other day my language partner took me shopping, she held my hand as she led me through the masses of Eid shoppers. She helped me bargain down gifts for people at home, and a birthday present for my host mom. The old city, the predominantly Muslim area, is crowded with people, animals, clothing shops, book shops, every kind of shop, and is my favorite place in Lucknow. Even when the shop keepers told us it was a fixed price, she wouldn’t take “no bargaining” for an answer. I’m still running, watching serials, eating mangos, loving my host family, learning Urdu, running, and getting stared at.

Okay that’s it for now. Love from India,

Ada 

Aadaab, Asaalam alaikam, Namaste

The pollution, the heat, and the humidity, seems much stronger after spending a couple of days away from it. I visited Nani Tol, a hill station in the foothills of the Himalayas, with a group of friends this weekend. We went by car, passing through villages, and open spaces, until finally the land formed into hills, and then mountains. Before long, we were making our way up the mountains on the sharp and weaving roads, cringing every couple of minutes as we nearly missed buses, motorcycles, and pedestrians. The mountains were shrouded in trees and mist, and surrounded a lake. If you were wondering, the answer is yes, we were those foreigners that decided to go swimming in the lake. And if you are worried, don’t be, because it’s not nearly as dirty as the Ganga. We also went to a Bollywood dance party because we heard the music from across the lake—when in India.

The week before this, I started doing something extremely exciting: I started running. I’ve been waking up early and walking to a somewhat closed-off neighborhood, and running there. The heat, humidity, staring, and looks of utter bewilderment are still a lot at this time and in this area, but it’s better than it would be at any other time or in any other place. And since I’ve started running, I’ve started to feel a lot happier here.

I am now able to find my way to several places on foot, which I take as a sign that I am getting to know the city. It’s comforting to know that I don’t have to take a rickshaw to all of the places that I want to go, and it’s a lot less of a hassle.

I’ve continued to break fast with my family every night around 7:00 pm, and it’s become one of my favorite traditions. My host family has also become one of my favorite parts of this program.

I’m also still learning Urdu. As my vocabulary has (slowly) expanded, my range of conversation topics has as well. I have recently been able to talk to my family about what they think about Hindu-Muslim relations in India, Nirendra Modi, Pakistan, and politics and general. That’s why I wanted to do this program in the first place—I wanted to be able to have important conversations with people in a different language. I like hearing people talk about their lives and their opinions, and I like that Urdu enables me to access these kinds of things from a large group of people that I wouldn’t get to really hear from if I only had English.

Last update, I’m going to Varanasi this weekend and I’m excited.

Lots of love,

Ada

July 1st 2014

I had a mango for breakfast yesterday, and the day before, and the day before. My host family makes mango shakes and smoothies regularly. Since my first day in Lucknow, I haven’t gone a day without eating at least one mango. That’s what happens when you’re in India during mango season; I’m living the dream.

I’ve had at least one, on average four, cups of chai a day. Even with the heat, chai is the best drink around (except perhaps for the mango shakes).  

I’m not just eating mangoes and drinking chai. I’ve been speaking and learning a lot of Urdu. Wake up, Urdu. Go to school, Urdu. Negotiate a rickshaw, Urdu. Go home and talk to family, Urdu. Go upstairs and do homework, in Urdu. I can feel my English deteriorating.

Every day we have four classes. The four classes could be vocabulary, newspaper reading, sight reading, magazine reading, listening comprehension, conversation, personal tutorials, etc. etc. My classes are challenging, and it takes a lot of work to keep up in them because my classmates speak Urdu very well. I am constantly reminded of the fact that there are so many words I don’t know.

I’ve only been here for a full week, so my schedule is just starting to work itself out. We are all assigned “language partners” who are people, our age, that essentially just talk to us for three hours every week (surprise) in Urdu. My language partner is a girl named Huda who is 18 years old, and one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. We both like shopping, and she’s great at keeping up the conversation, even when what I’m saying probably makes no sense.

My host family is such a big part of my experience here already. My host dad likes to play this game where whenever guests come in the house, stare at me confusedly, he asks them to ask me in Urdu who my host dad is and who my host mom is. So the guest will, still confusedly, point to my host mom and host dad and ask who they are. It is then my job to reply “Yah mere validan hain” (These are my parents), to which the guest reacts even more confusedly, my host dad laughs and laughs, and then says “Ham malte jalte hai, na?!” (We look alike, don’t we?). They’ve made me feel like I’m actually part of the family, they talk to me, they include me, they feed me (too much), and I feel very lucky to have been placed with them.

Lucknow is very different from what “my India”---Varanasi---was. I’ve found myself very frustrated at times, recently. The staring is annoying. Always getting ripped off is annoying. And most of all, I don’t like that being a girl drastically limits everything I want to do. I want to travel outside of the city, but I can’t alone. I want to go from one place to another within the city, but finding a rickshaw is difficult, and finding one that will charge me a somewhat fair price is even more difficult. It’s not safe for me to be outside when it’s dark, and even if I’m in a group, my host family (understandably) has a before-sunset curfew. And most of all, I just want to exercise. I can’t run or exercise during the middle of the day or after school, physically, because it’s over 115 degrees (and I have to be fully covered, no shorts allowed). I’ve been doing as much as I can in my own room, but I’ve devised a plan to wake up when the sun rises and start running in a safe looking park, otherwise I’m going to go crazy.

Besides all of that, I can feel my Urdu improving. Conversations have become easier. I feel like I’m getting to know people through my Urdu conversations with them, so I’m pretty happy about that.

Last but not least, yesterday was the first day of Ramzan. Thirty days of fasting (no food and water) while the sun is shining, and then a huge celebration called Eid on the last day.  The first night was a lot of fun, breaking the fast with my family, eating a lot of different food that you usually don’t eat (though I didn’t fast, but I will try to soon).

That’s about it. I’m trying to explore as much as possible. And right now I’m trying to plan trips outside of Lucknow during my free weekends. Also, if you’re looking to watch a really well thought out Bollywood movie, with a solid plot line, and without unnecessary violence, don’t watch “Ek Villain.”

Love from India,

Ada 

June 23rd 2014

Delhi to Lucknow

We arrived in Delhi on the 21^st and flew to Lucknow later that day. We had a brief 7 hour layover in Frankfort, so a group of us ventured from the airport into the city. It was nice to take in the clean air, eat delicious pretzels, feel the cool air, and get my passport stamped (really the only thing I wanted out of the layover).

As we drove away from the Delhi airport and towards our hotel, I was hit by waves of déjà vu and nostalgia. I couldn’t help but think about when I arrived in India for the first time in September 2012 and how intense I thought everything was. I’d like to think that I held in all my emotions pretty well, but I distinctly remember being completely overwhelmed by the humidity, the fact that I knew I wasn’t leaving anytime soon, and upon seeing the mangy dogs and the people sleeping all over the place outside. This time, I was pretty calm, but I couldn’t help but think “What am I getting myself into?”

It’s hard for me to say much about Lucknow thus far, or about what I’ll be doing. We just took our placement tests today, so I won’t know what my class schedule is until tomorrow. But I can talk a bit about my host family. I moved in yesterday. My house is only about a 5 minute walk from the Institute where I will take all of my classes. I walked into the house and was escorted into my host mother’s room. She was reading from a huge Urdu newspaper, which she hastily put down and told me to sit on her bed. We talked in Urdu for a while. She told me she knows Arabic, and reads from the Quran and watches TV serials every day. She was very nice and insisted that she is my mother and her house is my house.

After unpacking my things, I fell asleep for a while, and when I woke up I met one of my three host brothers. Shah Rukh is the youngest, and is probably around 25 years old. He, his two brothers, and my host father run “the best” optometrist businesses in town. Everyone in the family wears very nice glasses. My host brother drove his friend and I all around Lucknow to give me a tour. We walked through Ambedkar Park, the massive Park created by Mayawati with tons of state money filled with statues of herself, the Buddha, Dr. Ambedkar, and elephants. It was beautiful. I was surprised by how many people were outside walking around after dark, but I guess when it’s over 110 degrees Farenheit during the day, you’ll take whatever chance you get to be outside. Lucknow at night is beautiful, and I was lucky to get a tour by car at night.

I met my host father when we got home. “Do you know who I am?” He asked me (in Urdu). “No…” “I am the father. This is my wife. We are not aunty ji and uncle ji we are your dad and your mom.” He was so welcoming to me and I talked to him, my host mom, and Shah Rukh for a while and watched a Bollywood awards show. I feel very welcomed in their home, and I couldn’t be happier so far with my family. Another bonus is they make great chai.

Love from India,

Ada

P.S. I’ll try to post photos soon. 

June 16th 2014

Back to India

I feel like it’s unfair to neglect the fact that a little over a year ago, when I was still in India, I said I’d “write when I got home.” But technically, I’m doing that now.

Before now, this was my “Bridge Year” blog, where I stream-of-consciously documented my 9 months in India (in other words, kept my parents sane). From now on, this is going to be my travel blog (in other words, a way to keep my parents sane when I’m not in the United States). And if I’m ever motivated enough in the future, it might become an all-purpose blog.

I will be going back to India (again, yes, I know) this summer on June 19^th, and will come back to the United States on August 16^th (hint: a day before my birthday). I will be doing a program called CLS (more info found here, Urdu specific info here).

In short, it is a language learning program. I will be living with a host family in Lucknow, learning Urdu, drinking chai, and doing “cultural excursion” activities.

To answer some questions I get a lot, here is a link explaining what Urdu is, and a picture of a map showing where Lucknow is.

What is Urdu?! http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/other/urdu/guide/facts.shtml

What is Lucknow?!

I’m excited to be going back to India. I always knew after Bridge Year that I’d have to go back at some point to visit Varanasi and all of the people I love there, and hopefully I will be able to do that this time. I really wanted to participate in a CLS program, and when I had the opportunity to do it, I couldn’t say no. Right now I am going back because of CLS, and so my main focus is learning Urdu.

Urdu is the official language of Pakistan, and is very similar to Hindi, but is written in what is essentially the Arabic script. I started learning Urdu in September at school, and since then, have become more interested in Pakistan, and the Middle East in general.

I am home for about two weeks before I go to Washington D.C. for a couple of days, and then to India on the 19^th. I am spending as much time as possible with my family and friends from home, and at the beach. (It’s arguably the perfect amount of time to be home because my parents can get just annoyed enough with me before I leave, and they feel guilty about making me do chores.)

I’ve just started packing. Who knew I would be breaking out my old kurtas so soon? I’m leaving as much room as possible so I can bring back as many bangles and sari tops as possible (and souvenirs, write me e-mails I’ll bring you something because as much as I trust the Indian Postal Service I don’t).

One of the most immediate goals I have upon arriving in Lucknow is finding a not-too-sketchy restaurant/chai stand/something with a TV that will show the world cup.

Another goal is to blog regularly. I’ll do my best I promise.

The following posts based on my 2 months in Lucknow with CLS reflect my own experiences and views. They are not based on official Department of State, CLS Program, American Councils, or the American Institute for Indian Studies information and views.

Lots of love,

Ada

P.S. If you want to see something really fun, click on this link!! It’s the weather report for the next 10 days in Lucknow. So temperate.