Temples, Kings, and Tiger Dancing, oh my!

Sorry it’s been awhile…those first two weeks were pretty nuts, but way fun. So here’s the update!

We visited the special needs school, Lebenshilfe, where Christian and I will be volunteering and conducting most of our research and it was AMAZING! The woman who started it, Saraswathi Devi is a really dynamic lady who has a very “go get ‘em” attitude. She went to Boston for college on a Rotary scholarship to study special education, then did more practicum type things at a university in Germany. A few years later, she started Lebenshilfe as an NGO in a few thatched huts on the outskirts of Vizag. Throughout the years, she received multiple grants and donations from individuals and charity organizations so she could pay the staff, provide meals and housing, etc. She was given a bunch of buildings a few years ago and she’s done an amazing job in helping the school to grow and run well. When we met with Saraswathi Devi, the first thing she said was that she believes very strongly in the power of love and affection as a means of teaching children and helping them to reach their potential.

Done. I’m sold. I love this woman already.

She took us around and showed us the classrooms on the ground floor where one teacher sits in the center of a long, u-shaped table, with children with varying types of disabilities sit around her, practicing things like hand-eye coordination and concentration (by threading beads onto a string, etc), numbers, colors, and the like. The older children are upstairs in the vocational and academic classrooms…. Saraswathi Devi explained that their focus is largely on social and life skills, with the end goal of helping the student develop enough skills so that they can obtain jobs. As such, they have a carpentry classroom (they practice sanding and painting household decorations), a sewing room, crochet and knitting, cleaning (so that they might be hired as maids or washermen, etc)….all very culture-appropriate. The outlying buildings have all of the different therapy rooms: raga (classical Indian music) therapy, dance therapy (they performed a tiger dance as well as a dance telling a story from the life of Krishna), yoga therapy, and meditation therapy. They had a sensory room as well, where the walls were covered with different colors and textures, there were lots of stuffed animals, even a fish tank…. They even had a table that they called a “vibration table”…..they had one of those vibrating tone bowls that you hit with a mallet and let it ring....she had me lay down on it and she placed the bowl on the table next to me, making the whole thing vibrate underneath me….it was surprisingly relaxing and thought it was a really cool addition for a sensory room.

SUPER cool. I’m so excited to work there. We went today to start officially volunteering and I think it will be really interesting to examine their methods for assessment and evaluation….The school psychologist does all of the initial assessment and he told me that they place students in classrooms according to their behaviors first, then all of the teachers and therapists meet together with him to discuss the child’s progress and their apparent cognitive ability. India is pretty much the definition of organized chaos, so it’ll be an interesting challenge to turn my observations into a structured analysis, but everyone I’ve met so far is SO ready and willing to help.

Indians in general are just so kind. So helpful. I love them!

We visited a bunch of other temples with Dr. Nuckolls and Dr. Krishnayya, performing a pujas (religious rituals to show respect for the deity) at each one. Normally the pujas involve telling your name to the priest, having him pray for you to the deity, receiving a blessed flower from the priest, briefly holding your fingers to a flame that he hold out and touching your eyes 3 times, then receiving holy water in your hand….you’re supposed to drink it and put any residue on your head, but I’m never quite sure where the water has come from…..giardia doesn’t quite appeal to me, so I usually put it all on my head….which can result in a very soggy Allison if we visit multiple temples in a day….one day, we visited 3 different temples (Indra, the sun god, a tortoise incarnation of a god, and Hanuman, the monkey general), so my hair was pretty damp all day….but the Hanuman temple was tricky because they apparently use coconut water instead of normal water…I felt pretty sticky all the way home. It also takes a bit of skill to get all of the water on your head….the first time I did it, I tipped my hand too early and had puja water all over my face....They will also sometimes give you a handful of rice that they call “tiger rice”…it’s really good, but pretty spicy and kicks me in the throat on the first bite….every time!

The temples were really beautiful and really amazing! We are SO blessed that we get to visit so many!

We also visited a goddess temple which was quite a trip…there are dozens of statues of goddesses (or, according to Dr. Nuckolls---who we now refer to affectionately at Chuckles ….Charles Nuckolls…..get it?—one man’s vision of what the goddesses should look like) that were all  depicted doing different things…taking care of children, riding cobras, being protected by cobras, praying while riding dolphins, etc. Most of the statues were pretty graphic, so we wanted to steer Christian clear of most of them….but we did get to go up to the inner sanctum of that temple compound and watch a priestess teach some foreigners to perform the puja to the goddess. There was lots of incense and flower petals involved….it was a really interesting experience. The Hanuman temple was crazy though, because we went on the biggest holiday of the year, so EVERYONE was there…it was super crowded and WAY hot inside… we didn’t get to see very much because we were rushed to the front to perform the puja and then rushed back to the car so we wouldn’t get mobbed…but my friend mysteriously lost a toe ring anyway….I’m glad that was our only casualty!

Being a foreigner here is a pretty big deal. We constantly have people asking us if they can “take a snap” with us, shaking hands or saying “sister! How are you? I’m fine! Happy birthday!” We have received very strict instructions to limit our interaction with the opposite sex because our interpretation of friendliness is seen very differently in Indian culture, so it’s hard because we feel very rude for brushing off so many seemingly innocent advances….but I trust Dr. Nuckolls’ and Dr. Krishnayya’s wisdom, especially in this area. Flirting in other countries has only brought trouble in the past, anyway. We make up for our rudeness to the men by being extra friendly to women and children, though. 

people hand us their babies so they can take a picture of them with us.

And they’re so stinkin’ cute!

Dutch/British cemetery...reportedly, ghosts of foreigners are really aggressive, so there are plenty of ghost stories about this place. 

Madhu (one of our translators), Dr. Nuckolls, and Dr. Krishnayya

Ninos!

Christian, Me, Eva (baldy), Kelly, Mackenzie, Lauren

We walked around old Visakhapatnam one day and some little kids took us to the roof of their apartment building to overlook the old Dutch (it’s actually British) graveyard. 

marketplace and clocktower

Queen Victoria statue....behind the chilluns

They were so sweet and taught us how to say brother and sister in Telugu…..heck if I can remember now. We also visited a few catholic churches, a statue of Queen Victoria, and the old marketplace clocktower. All of it was really cool and it was so fun to be in someplace that just screams India….That happened to be the  first day that I wore a sari so we kept getting comments about how nice it is that we are trying to adopt customs and respect the culture….one old man was just telling us as much when two teenage Indian girls walked by in jeans and t-shirts (not a very common sight in Vizag) and the old man started chastising them for abandoning the traditions that we foreigners were trying to keep alive. Incidentally, our Telugu teacher had taught us a traditional hymn/poem to the goddess of wisdom (named Saraswathi….go figure) the day before, so Dr. Krishnayya had Eva sing it for him. He was so delighted and kept smiling and bowing to us with his hands together in the customary “Namaste” greeting position as we left. So cool J. I had kind of hoped to get a picture with the girls to show the funny juxtaposition (I didn’t understand at the time that the man was scolding them for just that), but they gave a pretty intense stink-eye, so it was a no-go……understandable, I guess.

One day we visited a local Ayurvedic doctor out in the countryside (which is SO beautiful, BTW) and he told us a bit about the family business of ayurvedic medicine…I still don’t really understand it, but he did show us some really amazing records and recipes that were written on palm leaves and bound into books in bamboo covers . He said that they have been in his family for at least 4 generations. Dr. Nuckolls was almost beside himself with joy and amazement; he said that the doctor’s collection is worth millions of dollars. The doctor still uses them every day for his patients. It was really cool to see the old Telugu etched into the leaves.

The old palace

Also, we visited the king!! He doesn’t actually rule anymore, of course, and most the property and possessions his family did have were given away by his socialist father….the traditional fort and palace have been made into a children’s school and a women’s college, so the palace they live in now looks more like an old beach cabana. Dr. Nuckolls described it as someone just turned off the lights in 1949 and hasn’t bothered to keep it up…so the walls of the fort and palaces are faded and cracking, and there are weeds growing all over the fort and big palace grounds…the little palace (where the king and his fam live)  has really pretty grounds and it’s full of really beautiful gifts that have been brought by various 

the fort

With the queen, her sister, and the king's doctor's wife

visiting dignitaries throughout the years (Chinese vases, ivory boxes….. there’s even a letter from Queen Victoria to his great grandfather)…Anyway, the king lives in a city about 2 hours away, called Vizianagram with his wife and 14 year old daughter. We visited with them for a while and mostly listened to his conversation with Dr. Nuckolls and Krishnayya, and it was really cool to hear his take on local politics and social dynamics. Nuckolls and Krishnayya are currently working on a project, interviewing Burmese refugees (a bunch of Indians had moved to Burma in the 1800s to work, but moved back in the mid-1900s to escape political turmoil and such), so they asked the king a lot of questions about the Burmese refugee population in Vizianagram. The king has the most regal-sounding voice I’ve ever heard, so it made their conversation much more intriguing. He love the gifts we brought him! I was a little bummed that he didn’t look at the sand painting, but he seemed excited to hang it in his office, nonetheless. There is a big emphasis on gift-giving in this culture, it almost seems like “it’s the thought that counts” reigns supreme….and re-gifting is totally kosher. So…..a part of me is a little nervous that he’ll just re-gift it…..I hope he likes it well enough! Jo, thank you thank you thank you for getting it. It really is a lovely sand painting! My roommate Lauren brought a nice silver and coral ring for his wife, but we were to present all of our gifts to the king first, and he liked it so much that it went straight onto HIS pinky. A similar thing happened with the silver kokopelli pin I brought for his daughter….he pinned it to his shirt right away. Well, at least it will get some mileage! J

The king (left), Nuckolls, and the king's doctor (right)

Letter from Queen Victoria

Dr. Nuckolls left last Saturday, so our vacationing is over for now and we’re starting to get into our research. We have Telugu classes Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 8-10, then starting Feb 1, we’ll have a dance class from 10 to 11…Christian and I will work at Lebenshilfe in the afternoon on those days, then all day Tuesday and Thursdays, with some time in the afternoons to explore the town and go gift shopping for family and friends at home. We have spring break at the end of February (right after a few Indian weddings we’ve been invited to!!!! :)JJJ) so we’re thinking about staying in an ashram outside of Kolkata for a few days, then exploring Kolkata for the rest of the week.

Really, whatever we do will be awesome.

We’re in India, for crying out loud!!

A few more things: I seem to have been incredibly blessed because mosquitoes 1)don’t like me very much 2) don’t affect me very severely. I itch a bit when I first get a bite, but then it goes away really quickly. Whoever has been praying for me in that regard, thank you!! Please keep it up J

Saris are SUPER comfortable but really complicated to put on.

Church here is really cool…..they don’t have a building of their own, so they meet in an office building with frequent power outages. The members are 90% recent converts, so there are interesting remnants of Hindu, Catholic, Pentecostal, and otherwise Protestant beliefs that manifest themselves in comments during classes. Services are 50% English, 50% Telugu, and they’ve already commandeered us to help teach primary and to sing at baptisms and in sacrament meeting. It’s awesome! The primary president was begging Mackenzie to help her learn how to be a better member in her calling….she said “Discipline in Indian culture is sharp and sometimes hurtful, whereas the gospel teaches us that we must lead by example, with love and gentleness. Will you help me know how to discipline the children that way?” But man, all the members here are AMAZING. They are SO faithful and they LOVE the Savior so so much. It’s really beautiful to see how excited they are to learn more and to grow in their relationships with a loving Heavenly Father.

Okay, I think that’s all for tonight.

I love you more than gulab jamun and musk melon juice combined! (which is saying a lot),

Allison

Driving in India

My roommate Lauren found this, and I died laughing while I read it. En serio. I'm dead.....in heaven....still laughing.

Driving Regulations in India are as follows:
Article I: The assumption of immortality is required of all road users at all times.
Article II: Indian traffic tends to work on something resembling the olde caste system. The following precedence must be accorded at all times.  In descending order, give way to:  cows (do not mess with these ever), elephants, heavy trucks, buses, official cars, camels, light trucks, buffalo, jeeps, ox-carts, private cars, motorcycles, scooters, auto-rickshaws (you), pigs, pedal-rickshaws, goats, bicycles (goods carrying), handcarts, bicycles (passenger carrying), dogs, pedestrians, gap year students.
Article III: All wheeled vehicles shall be driven in accordance with the maxim: “To slow is to falter, to brake is to fail, to stop is defeat.”  This is the Indian driver’s mantra.
Article IV: Use of Horn:
(IV, A-C): Cars:

• Short Blasts (urgent): Indicate supremacy, ie. in clearing dogs, rickshaws and pedestrians from path, and meaning “Im late home for my tea - the wife won’t be happy”.
• Long Blasts (desperate): Denote supplication, i.e.  oncoming truck “I am going too fast to stop, so unless you slow down we shall both die”
• Single Blasts (casual): “I have seen someone out of India’s 1.2 billion whom I recognise”; “There is a bird in the road ahead”, “My word, I had an epiphany” or simply and most commonly “I have not blown my horn for several minutes”. 

(IV, 2A): Trucks and buses:

• All horn signals have the same meaning, viz, “I have an all up weight of approximately 12 tons and have no intention of stopping, even if I could”.  This signal may be emphasised by the use of headlamps (full beam is usually preferred here). Be aware that many truck drivers rest bricks on the accelerator and take up a cross-legged seating position. They will not touch the brake, ever.

(Article IV is subject at all times to the provisions of Order of Precedence in Article II above.)
Article V: All manoeuvres, use of horn and evasive action shall be left until the last possible moment. If the manoeuvre is left until too late then the horn should be used again.
Article VI: In the absence of seat-belts (which there is), passengers shall wear garlands of marigolds. These should be fastened at all times. In the absence of marigolds passengers shall close their eyes.
Article VII: Right of way: Traffic entering a road from the left has priority. So does traffic from the right, and also traffic in the middle.

(VII.I):

• Lane discipline: All Indian traffic at all times, and irrespective of the direction of travel, shall occupy the left, the right and the centre of the road. If the road is full to capacity, the occupation of the hard-shoulder is more than acceptable.

Article VIII: Roundabouts:  These are fondly known as circles in India. Circles in the middle of crossroads have no traffic management function.  Any other impression should be ignored. If in doubt use your horn and close your eyes.
Article IX: Overtaking:  is mandatory. Every moving vehicle is required to try to overtake every other moving vehicle, irrespective of whether it has just overtaken you.  Overtaking should only be attempted in suitable locations, such as in the face of oncoming traffic, on blind bends, at junctions and in the middle of villages / city centres.  No more than 2 inches should be allowed between your vehicle and the one you are passing – one inch in the case of bicycles or pedestrians. When overtaking is not possible then undertaking is just as good (sometimes better)
Article X: Nirvana may be obtained through the head-on crash, alternatively, you may find it whilst squatting at the side of the road, emptying your bowels of that ‘bad idea curry’ you had the previous night.
Article XI: Reversing is no longer applicable, since no vehicle in India uses their reverse gear.
Article XII: The 10th incarnation of God was an articulated tanker.
Article XIII: The state of the road is non-negotiable. If there is a road you should think yourselves lucky.

(found on http://www.theadventurists.com/the-jibber/rules-of-the-indian-roads)

Life as an Honorary Man

Dr. Nuckolls told us when we were back in Provo that we would enjoy a great deal of special treatment thanks in part to the connections and friendships that he and Dr. Krinshnayya have carefully maintained over the last 40 years, and in part to our foreignness…when we discusses the caste system, Dr. Nuckolls told us that foreigners tend to have their very own caste…we usually eat meat, so that places us lower than Brahmins, but the novelty of BEING foreign counts for a whole heck of a lot. This puts us girls in an even more interesting position of being, in Dr. Nuckolls’ terms “honorary men.” Because of our connections with Dr. Krishnayya, the king, the doctor, and other uppity ups, we are permitted to eat at the same time as all the men, enter temples with them, etc. …..Nice.

The first few days have felt like a lifetime because each experience is so saturated with newness that we have to drink in every detail, making each minute seem a thousand times longer…

Ok so… On Tuesday, Jan 8^th, we took a trip a few miles north to the Simhachalam Temple with the king of Viziagaram’s personal Ayurvedic doctor (the king really doesn’t have any political power anymore, but he call still pull some very handy VIP status perks).

sorry...I'm struggling with the rotate function on my camera...

He showed us around the grounds at first and took us to a beautiful tree he claimed was 15,000 years old with really interesting carvings representing various Hindu deities. According to the doctor, if someone has any zodiac troubles (for example, if they were born under an unfortunate zodiac sign and they were unable to marry, have children, have healthy children), they could reverse these troublesome situations by walking around the tree 21 times, wrapping a thread around it as they went.

Immediately after, we went to the Taunchering Hall where people make a vow to God and fulfill their part of the covenant by sacrificing a portion of their vanity (their hair). It was kind of dark and cold, and there were a bunch of crying babies (parents often have their babies’ heads taunchered to secure blessings for them), so it was initially sort of an uncomfortable, but Eva had heard about this opportunity before we left and determined that she would get her head shaved. It didn’t take long at all for the barber/priest to cut off her locks, and it was actually an interesting spiritual experience for her…She hadn’t originally intended to shave her head for spiritual purposes, but she was attracted to the idea of having that sort of liberating experience and she told us later that from this experience, she realized that there really is truth in all religions.

Ever since then, Indians see that she has shaved her noggin, figure that she made a vow at
, then respect us all the more because we are trying to really experience their culture and understand.

Hoorah for instant Hindu street cred.

Because she had been touched by a barber (more caste distinction?), Eva was instructed to go wash her head in the natural springs on the side of the temple. They’ve carved these really beautiful lion heads into the rockface and the spring water comes straight out of the lions’ mouths and people come to bathe in the “sacred water.”

She is one lovely baldy

Dr. Nuckolls also told us that in prior years, a fisherman caste called the Jalaris (Dr. Nuckolls has worked very closely with this group for years and years) used to make annual chicken sacrifices on top of the structure that sits just above the spring, right above where the Brahmins would hold some of their sacred rituals….Reportedly, a journalist got a picture of these two rituals at the same time not long afterward, the Jalaris’ activities were moved someplace far away….oh man, I think I’m getting a little dry… I’ve found that I’m beginning to sound like Dr. Nuckolls….I certainly wouldn’t mind the endless wealth of knowledge and perfect diction, but …..I think I’ll pass….Also, he has the most uncanny ability to happen to step into ANY photo you would ever want to take. It doesn't matter where he just was....he'll be in your picture with his flourescent orange BYU hat and suspenders.

Anyway, because of our supa sweet hook ups, we got to skip a huge long line that leads past the door of the inner sanctum of the temple and actually go INSIDE. We stood on one side of the alcove housing the deity and the priests reached through to us to present plates filled with candles and marigolds, which we were to touch briefly and then tap our eyes, apparently conferring a blessing. Both Dr. Nuckolls and Dr. Krishnayya received strips of embroidered fabric that had previously been placed around the deity, which is apparently a very great honor, reserved for kings, presidents, and other dignitaries. We also had a private performance by the temple musicians who played sitar, table (drums), and flute for us. It was really cool to see the rituals, the art, the sculptures (Narasimha is the lion-man incarnation of Vishnu and one of the more famous accounts of his life is his disemboweling of a demon child….so the sculptures are impressive but sometimes unnerving)

, and to have such exclusive access, but my favorite part of it was watching the household staff who had come along as they performed the rituals and such. It gave me a really cool perspective on how sacred it is for them.

At one point during our tour around Simhachalam, we placed little votive candles around a shrine to Krishna and a man was standing by, apparently helping everyone put them in the right place. When one of the girls, Lauren, finished placing her candle, he reached down, rubbed her feet, then touched his eyes, as if he were praying or making obeisance to her/ her feet. The best Dr. Nuckolls and Krishnayya could figure was that the man thought she must be an incarnation of some goddess. Kind of weird, but hey, at least it’s a free foot rub.

Background and Arriving

Ah, tropical paradise with a side of 3^rd world country, how I love you. It’s been really interesting to see how much India reminds me of Ecuador….the thatched huts, burning garbage, incredible food, intense heat, traffic conditions like a perpetual game of chicken….but India is a different flavor of exotic that is absolutely awe-inspiring and a complete assault on the senses.

So maybe I should back up.

India. Why India?

Why not?

It’s amazing. It’s the last field study option BYU has left and I can use a research opportunity to learn a ton. It’s an incredible experience with even more amazing people. The idea is to receive a few classes from local professors on the local history, culture, and language to qualify as our 12 credits for school, and then each student in the program is to conduct research in some specific area of study: accounting, history, linguistics, etc, so I’ll be working primarily at a special needs school, Lebenshilfe, doing a research project comparing speech therapy assessment in India versus the US. Our program director will be with us for the first few weeks, but a site coordinator, who has been doing this for 30 years will be in charge of us and make sure that we have all that we need. On Friday morning of the 4^th, I flew to San Francisco and met up with 3 other girls in our group: Mackenzie, Eva, and Kelly. We took a 15 hour flight to Hong Kong and arrived (by virtue of a time-space continuum warp….or just time changes) at about 5 on Sunday morning. Can I just say….I am in love with Singapore Air.  Everything from the  flight attendants to the dim sum breakfast to the movie selection was classy and impressive….well…actually, some of the movies were kind of sketchy. (I started watching a Japanese/ German movie called “I Phone You; the cover is a guy and a girl dressed up as strawberries looking lovingly at one another….innocent, right? Huge, resounding FALSE). 

Anyway, Hong Kong was good, but very foggy and since it was early morning, we really didn’t get to see much. Four hours later we arrived in Singapore (THE most beautiful airport, P.S…..Hong Kong is nice, but Singapore seems so friendly, plus it’s stinkin’ GORGEOUS. There’s even a butterfly emporium inside! We also got our first view of a squatty-potty, which will be our new norm for the next few months…), where Daniel and Joan picked us up (Daniel is my best friend from high school who lives/works in Singapore). True to form, he saw me first and the only thing I was aware of was a slightly-larger-than-your-average-Asian figure in pink skinny jeans hurtling toward me. Holy cow I missed him! Since he’s been living in Asia for so long, he’s developed the most endearing, stilted accent where he rolls “r”s inappropriately, puts interesting tones on all the vowels, and drops pronouns willy-nilly. Daniel and Joan were so so sweet and SO generous with us. 

We visited their totally Ikea apartment, complete with black cat and funny Singapore toilet and then visited some really amazing temples in Chinatown and got some delicious food in the downtown area. We also visited this incredible hotel, right across from the Lion/mermaid fountain. The hotel has I don’t even know how many floors, and on top of the roof (which is maybe slightly smaller than a football field), there is a beautiful garden with an enormous pool, which looks down on the other side of the hotel, where there are amazing botanical gardens. Off to one side of the gardens (towards the bay), they’ve built two half-ellipse shaped greenhouses (Biosphere style), one that houses a mini rainforest, the other contains a small desert environment. So cool. But then in the MIDDLE of the botanic gardens, there are huge man made trees that tower over everything and look like they came right out of some sci-fi movie. (Let’s face it, all of Singapore feels and looks like it popped out of a futuristic sci-fi movie). Daniel told me that the tops of the structures are to gather rain to water the whole botanic garden, but then at night, they light up and it’s incredibly beautiful.  There are multiple bridges crossing between the trunks of the “trees,” so it’s got a really cool Avatar flair (the blue avatars, not the little boy one). 

  Even though it was super hot and sticky, we all fell in love with Singapore and, after having enjoyed the very best of the city,  leaving felt almost like a punishment. Also, the flight was not quite so comfortable. Dr. Krishnayya (the site coordinator) and Dr. Nuckolls (the program director) picked us up from the Visakhapatnam airport late Sunday night and drove us to Lawson’s Bay Colony, a very nice suburb a few blocks from the beach. The ladies that work at the house, Sailaja (who is about 21 and just the cutest person on the planet), Gowri, and Durga greeted us and helped us carry our luggage where we needed to go…I had borrowed an old suitcase that had already seen quite a bit of travel battle, and I’m very relieved to say that it arrived, and more so to report that the contents were intact. Both of the handles were ripped off, a corner is severely crunched, and one of the wheels is entirely missing. Poor gimpy suitcase. BUT! The gifts that I brought in that suitcase are still all in one piece, so I’m over the moon.

They’ve rented two houses on the same block for the program, so we girls are living at the main house (the green house) and our only boy, Christian, is living a couple doors down at the program house with Durga, her husband Raju (who does all the washing), and their little son, Siddu. The green house is apparently quite the meeting place. Dr. Krishnayya,

 who had taught philosophy and religion at the local university for many years, always has old friends stopping by to wish him well, bestow some sweet gift, and make small talk, or just sit in silence and smile kindly at us and bobble their heads every now and again. (We’re told that a head bobble is like saying “I see” or “I understand” or a vague positive indication, whereas a nod is a very specific yes…having so many friends stop by has been really cool…so far we’ve met a former president of two universities in Andhra Pradesh, multiple professors at the local university, and an anthropologist from Cambridge whose studies focus on possessive shamanism in a hill tribe in the bordering state of Orissa…he’s got the perfect documentary-narrating voice, it’s amazing!). Dr. Krishnayya is one of the coolest men I have ever met. He is extremely gracious, very attentive, and is always looking for ways to help people feel comfortable and to help us drink in the rich experience that is India. Although the people who work at the house are from a lower caste than he is (they are from the washerman caste, and he is technically a part of the shepherd caste), he treats them all as his own children and takes a very personal interest in their lives and happiness. We have two translators who will be helping us throughout the semester, a former elementary school teacher named Raja Lakshmi, and a young man named Madu. They’ve been so so patient with us and I’m very grateful, especially for their bargaining skills….Raja Lakshmi took us shopping for clothes on our first day (we aren’t allowed to wear typical American clothes so that we show respect towards the culture and help establish a good reputation for the program), and I’m certain she saved us from having to pay an arm and a leg.

These first two weeks will be chock-full of adventures because Dr. Nuckolls will be here to escort us around, so I’ll do my best to share specifically what happens these first two weeks, but then I expect that a day-to-day account won’t be quite so exciting as schedules are established and we really start to work on our projects. Check back for more to come!!