1. Patience is the mother of all virtues. It is a lesson I keep on learning. In Zanskar, things happen on their own time, at their own pace. Need to send an important email? Well first you have to wait a few weeks for tourist season to actually begin. When it finally begins, then you have to wait full weeks at a time before getting to use twenty expensive minutes of slow WiFi. Then you have to wait in Padum all…
I am a musician, and I always will be, no matter where I am in the world. This week was loaded with musical opportunities left and right, and my musician self could not have asked for any better. This week, I started one of the most exciting parts of my internship: taking lessons in Indian classical music. In my first two lessons, I became a little bit more comfortable with Sargam, or Indian solfège. Learning to sing using syllables Sa-Ri-Ga-Ma-Pa-Dha-Ni-Sa…
I am a musician, and I always will be, no matter where I am in the world. This week was loaded with musical opportunities left and right, and my musician self could not have asked for any better. This week, I started one of the most exciting parts of my internship: taking lessons in Indian classical music. In my first two lessons, I became a little bit more comfortable with Sargam, or Indian solfège. Learning to sing using syllables Sa-Ri-Ga-Ma-Pa-Dha-Ni-Sa…
After a wonderful 10 days with my first hosts, Charchit and Bikram, I decided that I was pushing the envelope for couch surfing so I looked for a new home. I arrived as Mr. Singh’s house late at night on a Thursday. This was what I had imagined. The decorative vases, table cloths, and functional air conditioning units of Charchit and Bikram’s were replaced with cramped living spaces, spotty electrical work, and harsh lighting, what remained, monolithic, was the Indian…
After a wonderful 10 days with my first hosts, Charchit and Bikram, I decided that I was pushing the envelope for couch surfing so I looked for a new home. I arrived as Mr. Singh’s house late at night on a Thursday. This was what I had imagined. The decorative vases, table cloths, and functional air conditioning units of Charchit and Bikram’s were replaced with cramped living spaces, spotty electrical work, and harsh lighting, what remained, monolithic, was the Indian…
June 27, Monday A new leaf Awaking amidst the roaches and rats that plague most train stations I have visited I boarded a train around the stroke of midnight and rode in a small cabin with 5 men as we tried to sleep. Around 5 hours later we pulled into the New Delhi train station and I squinted through bleary eyes as dawn lit up India’s biggest city in front of me. I was soon picked up by a taxi…
June 27, Monday A new leaf Awaking amidst the roaches and rats that plague most train stations I have visited I boarded a train around the stroke of midnight and rode in a small cabin with 5 men as we tried to sleep. Around 5 hours later we pulled into the New Delhi train station and I squinted through bleary eyes as dawn lit up India’s biggest city in front of me. I was soon picked up by a taxi…
The past week had two holidays in a row, from both Hindu and Muslim traditions. This past Wednesday was Rath Yatra, in which the chariot strolls around the city to celebrate Lord Krishna and his brothers; then, on Thursday, Muslims celebrated Eid al-Fitr, the last day of Ramadan. Since school was closed to observe these holidays, I was invited to visit a nearby city of Lucknow, capital of Uttar Pradesh state. Lucknow is a hidden gem for tourists. Many tourists…
The past week had two holidays in a row, from both Hindu and Muslim traditions. This past Wednesday was Rath Yatra, in which the chariot strolls around the city to celebrate Lord Krishna and his brothers; then, on Thursday, Muslims celebrated Eid al-Fitr, the last day of Ramadan. Since school was closed to observe these holidays, I was invited to visit a nearby city of Lucknow, capital of Uttar Pradesh state. Lucknow is a hidden gem for tourists. Many tourists…
My neighbor and I used to play this game where we would spin in circles as fast as we could until one of us fell. I lost often and I can recall the sensation of laying on the damp grass in the humid Michigan sun and feeling my world spin in circles around me. My final week in India felt like that. I was suddenly down to a mere 7 days and I still had all of these things that…
