Hebbal vs. Mysore - Getting to know the place

Well, the first week is done and I'm happy to say we're off to a good start. Everybody in the group seems to get along, and I don't think it's too painful for Mark, the only guy with us, to be surrounded by 12 young women (who seem to be so giddy for being here we often act like a group of young girls).

We started classes immediately after arriving, with an orientation session on Sunday, and regular classes through the week. Our day starts at 6am with yoga (which is optional), breakfast at 7am to 8am, then we have an hour before class starts at 9am.
Classes are an hour each, with a 30 minute tea break between them, and lunch is at 1pm. our core classes are Gender and Change, Culture and Civilization, and Science and Technology and Sustainable Development (what a mouthful!) I'm also taking a class in Hindi which runs for an hour from 2pm-3pm and then I'm done for the day. Some of us are taking dance or cooking classes too, and the cooking class starts today at 4pm, but it's only twice a week.

So the first week was full of getting to know our way around and digesting a lot of information from classes. These courses are pretty intense and it'll be good practice to keep up with the work, but because it's the same 3 courses at the same time, for 5 days in a row, we cover a lot of material without feeling too overwhelmed, which is nice.

The school we are at is a Non-Profit organization that usually caters to Indian students studying their Masters in Non-Profit Management, so they're training youth to manage NGO's and Development projects. There are a few Masters' students at the hostel we're staying at, and they're friendly and come out with us on excursions so we have someone with us who knows their way around and speaks the language. One of them is Jyothi pictured here:

Divya is also another student who comes out with us, I couldn't get a picture of her this week, but I will soon! I'm sure she'll be mentioned a bunch, she's a sweetheart! (and told me the equivalent of my name in Hindi is Meghana, which means 'cloud')

This Hostel and school we are at is in a smaller, more comfortable, district of Mysore called Hebbal. Most people in Hebbal are used to having western students around, so there's much less hassling of us, we're treated less like tourists, and people smile and wave and ask to be in photos with us. Hebbal is small and beautiful, though the city centre of Mysore has all the attractions like Mysore Palace and Devaraja market, it can be very intimidating, and there tends to be a lot more people that hassle you if you look like you're new here - yesterday a lady followed us with her baby and her young child saying "Ma" over and over again trying to get our attention, it's apparently a scam to get you distracted so you're an easier target for pickpockets... She's mostly harmless and it's best to just ignore her, but some of the girls were really uncomfortable until she left - which is completely understandable.

Hebbal on the other hand doesn't have any of those problems, it's about a 10 minute walk away and is quaint and relatively tidy, considering it's India. There's a vegetable and fruit market where the women sit under a canopy and sell their produce, they're beautiful, a man was sitting at a booth stringing Jasmine together when I walked by and he gave me a small string. I think I'll go back later and actually buy some from him. Indian women wear strings of Jasmine in their hair, practically everyday.

And there are lots of other people on the street selling their wares, produce, or woven mats, or fabric for saris or salwar kameezes (two traditional types of dress for Indian women)...


It's also got a supermarket called More. and several "Druggists" or pharmacies. I picked up a tube of toothpaste for 31 rupees, roughly 62 cents, made by Colgate, with the reverse label having Colgate spelled in Hindi letters! NEAT!

So this first week has been great, but there's so much more to learn. I'm looking forward to keeping everyone updated on the rest of the trip, and hopefully I'll get the opportunity to post more often than once a week. I'll update soon about this past weekend and all the amazing things we saw!

Bye for now.

First Impressions: Transportation

So I've been in India since yesterday after 51 hours of air transit, and a 4 hour bus ride. We arrived in the district of Hebbal, Mysore, Karnataka, India at about 12:30pm yesterday. Phew!

Since we missed the connecting flight from NY to Doha and had to spend 24 hours at JFK airport, our itinerary from NY underwent some changes, we were supposed to fly to Doha, then Bangalore, and bus to Mysore from Bangalore.. instead we flew to Doha, then Mumbai, then Bangalore, but Mumbai was an experience I'll remember for a while.

Since Qatar Airways doesn't run a flight from Mumbai to Bangalore we had to fly Air India, which meant we had to go through customs, pick up our bags and get to the domestic terminal, get our boarding passes and check-in, go through security and catch our flight. We had 3 hours to do everything, and in the end we would up having about 2 minutes to catch our breath before boarding our 5th and final flight to Bangalore.

Customs went well and we all got our bags, surprisingly, considering the mix up at JFK, but we had to find the Air India counter and it was in the other terminal, which the airport did not have a shuttle for, we had to hire an auto-rickshaw and taxi-van to bring us to the domestic terminal, 3 people crammed into the auto-rickshaw and 4 in the bus... I was the last one left, my suitcase was on top of the van (not strapped down) and there wasn't any room for me to sit. Talk about your panicked feeling. I ended up cramming in the back with 3 other people on our crazy Indian ride through Mumbai... and crazy it was! Did I mention this was just after 3am in Mumbai? I spent the taxi ride wincing over every bump and tight turn, hoping my suitcase stayed on top of the rack!

Indian drivers break every driving rule I've ever heard of! and they honk their horns ALL THE TIME! Buses and transport trucks have "Horn OK Please" or "Horn ON Please" painted on their bumpers. I assume they use it to let other drivers know you're there, but it almost becomes background noise because it's all you hear while you wind through traffic narrowly missing rickshaws, cows, motorcyclists, scooters, trucks and more. I think the only "rules of the road" per say, are 1) honk all the time, and 2) avoid everything bigger than you. We got a ride into the centre of Mysore today and saw a woman on a motorbike have a slow speed accident right beside us with another motorbike who just sped off... she looked okay, I think she was fine.

I've had a lot of people tell me about how badly India smells, and I think it's a double-edged sword. Mumbai was really stinky on our ride to the other terminal, but Bangalore was bearable and Mysore is pleasant, even enticing in some regard when you walk past a booth selling spices and chilies, or smell the sweet smell of jasmine as you drive by the markets. I've been told it's one of the cleaner cities in India, and it seems that way. There's still a lot of dust and dirt, but it's not completely filthy, though you do have to watch your step to avoid any cow-pies in the middle of the road!

So far India has been invigorating and frightening all at the same time. It's hard to explain the traffic, you have to see it to believe it. The next chance I get I think I'll make a video of some crazy indian driving. For now here's a picture of an auto rickshaw!!

Missed Connections

Holy cow what a mess we're in.

Yesterday I headed to Halifax to catch my flight to India, routed Halifax-NY-Doha-Bangalore, but the first flight from Halifax got cancelled completely. The group of us still showed at the airport to be re-routed in order to catch our flight to NY. The new rerouting was Halifax-Boston-NY-Doha-Bangalore, but our flight from Boston ran late, then got stuck on the tarmac at NY for 2 hours. We missed our connection to Doha. There was bad weather and apparently we were one of about 10 Delta flights that were cancelled, so the hotels were completely full, and we have been stuck at the airport since 11pm (NY local time) last night.

We're trying to make sure we get on the flight to Doha tonight in order to head to Bangalore tomorrow, but there's some trouble getting ahold of Qatar Airways to have those flights updated, and Delta Airways has offered to get us to Bangalore, but the flight goes NY-Paris-Doha-Bangalore and it leaves at 7:30pm. Apparently the Doha counter agents don't show up until 7:00pm, which doesn't really work if we want to get re-routed to Paris by Delta.

Sleeping in the airport last night sucked. Why is it that airports always have notoriously uncomfortable seating when 9 times out of 10 passengers get stuck in situations like these where they've got to be held over at the airport? Delta was nice enough to give us each $12 of food vouchers for the day, but that doesn't really help us out.

Also, turns out a group of 3 that got rerouted through Montreal to NY, made the flight to Doha, but missed the connection to Bangalore. So Qatar airways are putting those three up in a hotel in Doha for the night, and we'll meet up with them tomorrow after our flight and catch the one for Bangalore... that's the PLAN anyway..

Here is a photo of some of us waiting to get on our flight to NY in Boston. Pretty smiley, not too shabby, eh?



And here's what we looked like at about 2am trying to find a place to rest for the night... not so fun, still a little smiley though, amazingly. Sorry girls, had to do it.

I leave in just over a week

8 days, that's all the time I have left to get everything in order before I head off to the other side of the world for 2 months. I won't lie, the anxiety is starting to settle in, what if I don't enjoy myself as much as I hope to? What if India scares the crap out of me? Oh, hahaha, see what I did there?

I still have to pack, I still need to get my traveller's cheques, I still need to fill my malaria prescription... I have so much still to do!

I'm worried about leaving my dog behind, and my boyfriend... the cat will be fine, though, I'm sure. PJ has set a few things to do for himself in the time that I'm away though, and I'm glad. He's booked a flight to visit his cousin Paul in Ottawa for Canada Day weekend. I have to admit I'm jealous a little bit; Ottawa is my favourite city, and Ottawa on Canada Day is a blast.

Two weeks later he's going to a Metallica concert in Halifax, and the very next day he's taking a flight to Saskatoon to see his friend get married. He's buying a suit for that wedding too, and as a mechanic, I never get to see him in a suit, so I'm a little disappointed I'll be missing it - but I guess he's disappointed that he can't come with me to India, so we're even.

I'm working right up until the day before I leave, money is tight, so I'm hoping to squeeze out every cent that I can from work. Had I been smart I would have worked somewhere part-time too, just to be sure, but full-time work will do. Mom and Dad have both decided to pitch in with some spending money, which is definitely appreciated and it'll probably go toward some culturally appropriate clothing and cooking/dance/yoga lessons. I'd love to be able to come back and cook an authentic indian dish for friends and family.

This upcoming weekend is a holiday weekend in Canada. Victoria Day celebrates the Queen's birthday (May 24th) on the Monday before the 24th every year. Lot of people refer to it as May two-four, making a reference to a case of beer... I have some friends coming to visit to see me before I leave, and we're making plans to camp out, if the weather holds out. My boyfriend's parents have invited us over for some sort of get-together, I'm excited.

For now I'm just going to review my packing list and make a shopping list of the last few things I need, and I'll probably snuggle up with my dog for a nap while I can.

Can you blame me? He's just so snuggly!

It's been a while...

I think I started this blog a little early, because I haven't had much to say recently and I was really busy with classwork so there wasn't much updating to do with regards to pre-trip stuff.

But I'm back, and I leave in a month. Did you read that? I LEAVE FOR INDIA IN A MONTH! I finished exams and papers and take homes and I'm all done my winter semester and I'm back to work, and now there's nothing to focus on except India. I still get weird comments about going. More good-natured excitement than anything, though, really. It's nice. All my coworkers are really happy that I'm going, even if that means I'm cutting into the time when they'll be able to take holidays. Everyone is mostly excited for me. Funny though, I had one of my supervisors tell me I'm "brave" for going to India for two months. Huh? I don't get what's so "brave" about it. Maybe adventurous or something but not brave. Bravery is something I think of when I think of people in the military, or firemen, or the kid that dives into a freezing cold river to save his friend from drowning - THAT's bravery. Going to India? That's adventure, or at least I think so.

We had a meeting at the beginning of April with everyone that's going, three girls that are going with us go to universities in Halifax, and they were in the middle of exam season, so instead of them driving up for 2.5 hours and having to drive back and all that nonsense we skyped with them! That was so cool! There were lots of technological issues to overcome but in the end we had a laptop set up with a webcam that the girls could see whoever was speaking, and their webcam feed was transmitted to a projector and the sound system in the classroom. Talk about technology! We had Caroline Whidden talk to us about the trip as she went last year, and Dr. Majithia (a Philosophy professor at Mt. Allison, who is originally from India) and Dr. Craig (an English professor from Mt. Allison who went on the trip before) discuss safe practices, and what to expect, and all that usual stuff. A group of Indian students at Mt. A showed up to talk to us about the differences between Canadian and Indian culture, and we all snacked on vegetarian samosas and mango chutney (YUMMY!)

I'm getting longwinded now, so I'll try and cut this short - the meeting was great, it's nice to get comfortable with everyone who's going a little bit ahead of time, and I really can't wait to go on this adventure with everyone. For now though I just have to work and get things together to go, I was reminded today that I really need to get a power outlet converter/adapter! OOPS! The packing list is quite extensive! Wish me luck!

The Countdown Begins

I've been quite busy lately getting things in order to go; the visa application is sent off, the flight deposit had been paid, my first vaccine appointment was completed, and I now know my flight routing. The next step is to attend the pre-departure meeting on April 9 and after that it's a waiting game.

The problem is managing all of this at the same time as trying to finish up my last semester at Mt. A. It's proving a little difficult, but manageable. I'm also worrying about if I'll have enough money to go away with so I've been talking to my employer from last summer, and it looks like they're willing to hire me back for the 6 weeks before I head off. But before all that I've got final papers and exams to worry about.

The vaccine appointment was interesting, I can say that. It ended up costing me $425 to get vaccinated for Japanese Encephalitis, Polio, and Hepatitis A. I have to go back again in April to get another Japanese Encephalitis vaccine, and two others. The Japanese Encephalitis vaccine is the most expensive; $270 each, and you need 2 of them 28 days apart. Malaria medication is going to be expensive too, I was quoted over $300 for a 9 week supply. But it's one of those things you can't go without.

The flight routing was emailed to us from Robin Walker, Mt. A's international studies coordinator, and after a quick search through some online flight booking sites I was able to see the whole itinerary of my departing flight. I might not be entirely correct, but this gives me a realistic idea of what to expect on May 27:

Depart Halifax 4:35pm to arrive New York 6:15pm
(duration 2hr 40min)

Depart New York 11:50pm to arrive Doha, Qatar 7:10pm + 1 day
(duration 12hr 20min)

Depart Doha, Qatar 8:15pm to arrive Bangalore, India 3:05am + 1 day
(duration 4hr 20min)

Total duration 19hr 20min (26hr with connections!)

It will be the longest flight I have ever taken as an adult but I'm not too worried, I deal fairly well with long travel and I really love traveling by air - call me crazy. Today is Wednesday, March 30 and I leave Friday, May 27 ...in 58 days!

Why India?

When explaining to friends and family the reason I'm deciding to take part in this program it's easy to pick the practical reasons:

• I get to travel internationally with a safety-net of peers and faculty members
• I get to finish my degree in less time
• I get to do both of these things for less money than it would cost to do both separately

But it's also important to consider the less-practical reasons, and specifically why I would choose to go to India. On first mention of the idea of travelling to India my mother, step-father, father, and boyfriend were floored. Why in the world would I want to go somewhere like India? I think their reactions are related to a number of things, but mostly I think there are a lot of misconceptions that people have of the subcontinent and that would be the source of much of their concern.

My father's a military man, and has been deployed on many occasions to places like Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Iraq. He's fairly knowledgeable about international travel and has been my source of information on vaccines, travel insurance, and safe travel practices. His concerns don't go unfounded; the Canadian government website voyages.gc.ca posts travel advisories for Canadian citizens and warns against unnecessary travel in Northern India due to the ongoing conflict along the Pakistan border. I won't be in northern India for this trip, we're sticking to the southern state of Karnataka, and mostly in Mysore - the same website says to "excercise a high degree of caution" when travelling in southern India - but I would argue that's no different than travelling to any other country halfway across the world.

My mother, step-father, and boyfriend are all from small towns, and don't have much contact with Indian culture as a whole so it's their concerns that worry me because they're largely based on misconceptions or mistaking Indian culture for something entirely different. They aren't alone. I've had people ask me if I have to wear a burka or hijab while I'm there, or how I'm going to get along because I don't speak 'Indian.' I try to be polite in correcting those errors, because it really is just about educating people. Some don't know enough world history to know that many Indians are fluent in English because of the history of British colonial rule. Others confuse India for other middle eastern states and states that are currently experiencing violent conflicts. Someone asked me if the conflict in Libya will affect my time in India, again that's about education - Libya is in North Africa, and India is in the Asian subcontinent - the two are separated by the Arabian peninsula. If you look at the map above you can see that Libya borders Egypt to the West.

But socially there have been some misconceptions related to the status of women in India - some thinking that Indian women are oppressed and not respected, when in reality it's a lot more complex. I'm taking a course on gender and change while I'm there so I'll be more able to explain the whole picture, but the status of women in India can't be entirely negative; 11% of the seats in national parliament are held by women and India has had a female Prime Minister. Indira Ghandi held office from 1980 to 1984 - that's better than Canada's only female Prime Minister Kim Campbell who held office in Canada for a mere four and a half months in 1993.

Just for fun here are some World Databank numbers on India:

• Population (2009): 1,155,347,678
• GDP per capita ($US): 1134
• GDP growth (Annual): 8%
• Trade: 46% GDP
• Life Expectancy, at birth: 64
• International Tourism, number of arrivals (2008): 5,367,000

And to compare with Canada:

• Population (2009): 33,739,900
• GDP per capital($US): 39,599
• GDP growth (Annual): -2%
• Trade: 59% GDP
• Life Expectancy, at birth: 81
• International Tourism, number of arrivals (2008): 17,142,000

But the numbers don't tell the whole story. There's a vast disparity of wealth in India where dhobi wallahs struggle to make ends meet by washing laundry and tech gurus carry smart phones for business. The streets are shared by cows, auto-rickshaws, taxis, and luxury cars and the country is growing rapidly in some sectors while struggling to pull the others along with them. I think that will be the most interesting part of studying India - seeing the social stratification and all the old mixed with new. It all connects with my history studies at Mt. A, right now I'm working on papers for two classes discussing Indian history in terms of European and British history - it'll be great to learn it from the Indian perspective and contrast it with modern development in India. Wish me luck!