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.