Our Final Week in India

Surprise! We didn’t go to Varanasi after all and ended up staying in Rishikesh for another week. We were unable to get the train tickets to Varanasi for the time we wanted so we decided to alter our plans a bit.

With us no longer going to Varanasi, we had to consider the best option for getting to our next destination, the NGO in Nepal (NCDC). NCDC is in Ilam, Nepal which is on the eastern border of Nepal with India. Instead of taking 44 hours worth of train and bus rides to get there from Rishikesh, we decided it would be a better investment to pay a bit more for a flight from Delhi to Bagdogra, India (close to the eastern border of Nepal) and then only travel about 90 km to get to NCDC. Overall, this will be a much smoother ride and will make our travels a lot easier.

Our time with NCDC does not begin until October 12 so we still had about a week’s worth of time to kill before we had to be in Nepal. We also had no desire to travel anywhere else in India and had no desire to be in a crazy Indian city again. So we simply decided to stay in Rishikesh for another week until our flight left.

 

Rishikesh Activities

Since deciding to stay in Rishikesh a week longer, we’ve continued to have a lovely time. We decided to go back to the ashram we stayed at for one yoga session with our friends Hannah and Brooks on Saturday; Steph saw a music performance with Hannah and Valentina (I wasn’t feeling well) on Sunday; we went rafting again with Hannah and Valentina and had to say goodbye to Valentina on Monday; and then we hung out on a white sandy beach on Tuesday. Wednesday however, we weren’t very active and actually stayed at one café/restaurant, Nirvana, for 13 hours. I was quite productive though and was able to get a lot of logistical things figured out so I still felt accomplished. Thursday countered Wednesday’s laziness where we shopped for necessities for Nepal, said goodbye to Martin (sadly), went to the beach and tried two new cafés, one of which was a café in a tree house.

***This is where I would add pictures of us rafting, hanging on the beach and other sites of Rishikesh however the internet is too slow right now and I don't have the patience to even upload one picture. Maybe I'll be able to go back and add them later. Or you'll be able to see them on my Facebook page at some point.***
 

Even though Varanasi is a fascinatingly old, holy city that is considered one of the “go-to” places of India, I am happy we ended up not going to this city. I think I am tired of being in busy and chaotic Indian cities and I’m ready to move on to Nepal. In addition, I still feel a bit caught by Rishikesh because this place is timeless and brings much calmness to both Stephanie and I. I will be ready to leave though once it’s time to leave for the NGO on October 11.

 

Recent Thoughts

Since being in Rishikesh, one of the most valuable things I have learned is the importance and the benefit of “being in the present” and not allowing the past and future to become a heavy weight. While I have made great progresses in trying to stay in the present, which helps my mind stay clear, I also sometimes can’t help but think about the future. Of course, most of these thoughts are relating to my own life such as which professional career I should pursue, where I should go to graduate school, where I will live, etc.

Other thoughts that creep in my mind, however, are regarding the future for this earth and more specifically, how humanity will proceed to live from here. Especially after being in China for about a month and India for about two months, I have thought a lot about the way humans have developed differently across the world and how it has shaped the world we know today. For example, throughout the last century we have seen much of the Western World develop into an incredibly consumptive society. More recently, we are now seeing larger countries, such as China and India, try to morph their own culture into a consumerist, consumptive society which may be increasing the global economy, but is also straining the earth’s natural resources. In addition, it has also created a huge waste problem throughout the world, especially in India and China, where it is increasingly becoming more difficult to manage the amount of waste we produce.

These are the sorts of issues I worry about regarding humanity’s future on earth. Earth’s resources and the waste that we leave here even as our population continues to increase exponentially.

We have seen a “green wave” pass over the world, where “sustainable” and “eco-friendly” have become required buzzwords in new projects these days. But I do not believe we will change the world’s consumptive patterns until we are able to alter the behavior of individuals. While it is good that there are people out there that will buy the green-labeled things rather than the non-green things, there is still a bigger mindset that needs to be changed.

Instead of having the central question for a consumer be, “which product should I buy next?” I suggest it should rather be a two-part question “how can I reuse what I already have?” and “how much do I really need of a new product?”

Furthermore, I suggest that before these central questions can become a priority among all consumers, an increased sense of community accountability is required across the world. I believe this has to start at the local level and now I’ll go on a Utopian-like rant. Neighbors caring about neighbors can lead to a neighborhood taking responsibility in the health of their local surroundings.  Neighborhoods could then develop pride not only for their own land but also for the land that future generations will have. They could then collectively create a set of agreements such as having a limited amount of trash and set energy consumption limits. The key is that there is a sense of community accountability where there is mutual respect and awareness among all community members.

And now this is where my worries for the earth as a whole come back to me and my future career. As of now, I would like to contribute to community-building projects in my future career as an engineer. I know this is a rather broad statement and I would like to say “community-building only in developing countries” but there is also plenty of work that is needed in the US and other Western countries. I feel like this isn’t a common thought or goal for many engineers today, but I do think I can be some sort of valuable link in future work. I hope to spend my future work with a variety of professionals because I also believe that collaborative work from a variety of ideas will produce the best results.

I know this future career idea is quite vague, but I think I like it that way. As long as I have a general sense of where I want to go, I don’t have to have to be confined by my own or other people’s expectations. I also think I’m stuck with this “community-building” idea because I never knew my neighbors growing up and I wish I did. My parents knew their neighbors and so did my grandparents, but my generation has witnessed a lack of community awareness and this bothers me quite a bit.

As most are aware, we as humans have great potential to change the world in a variety of ways. My greatest hope is that my generation will come together, from a variety of professions, and try to leave the world in better shape than we entered it when we were born.

I know what I just wrote isn’t incredibly clear and has a few holes missing, but it is all that I’m willing to write right now. It took long enough to try to develop those thoughts in a somewhat clear way and now I’m tired of fussing with it. So (kindly) take it or leave it! I also bash consumerism quite a bit in this section and I do sound like a bit of a hypocrite because I'm not the best example of a completely sustainable, green, eco-friendly blah blah blah but I am trying to move along this path little by little.

Here’s a video I saw that made me want to start writing this section. I think it’s a bit dramatic but still makes people stop and think a bit.

http://www.upworthy.com/everything-wrong-with-the-world-in-25-minutes-sorry-if-this-offends-you?g=3

 

Various Comments

·         The weather in Rishikesh has been perfect. It’s slightly chilly in the early morning and late evenings where it’s cozy to wear a light sweater and the rest of the day is sunny with a clear sky most every day. Basically my dream weather.

·         I never realized how much I enjoy be near water until I came here. I knew I liked it, but here I realized that it is a trigger that sparks some sort of internal happiness. Especially when I cross the pedestrian bridges, I love feeling the breeze over the water and looking at the view on both sides of the bridge.

·         So long, India. Sometimes you swallow foreigners up (which happened to me last year), sometimes you bring out the best in people. I’m happy to say that this year, I feel like I’m leaving India a more joyful person than I was two months ago.

·         Nepal, here I come! I’m so excited to see your incredible beauty and be with your beautiful people!

 

Caroline’s Song of the Day

1-Oct Diablo Rojo by Rodrigo y Gabriela

2-Oct Faust Arp by Radiohead

3-Oct The Good Times Are Killing Me by Modest Mouse

4-Oct Holst: The Planets, Op. 32, H 125 - Neptune, The Mystic by Leonard Bernstein: New York Philharmonic Orchestra

5-Oct Homecoming Heroes by the Head and the Heart

6-Oct Strawberry Bubblegum by Justin Timberlake

7-Oct All About That Bass by Megan Trainor

8-Oct All Star by Smash Mouth

9-Oct Hot Like Sauce by Pretty Lights

Rishikesh: A Very Special Place

A Prayer from Rishikesh

May the realizations made here carry me through this life

As I continue through eternity.

May I flow with life rather than fight it

So I can experience the divine that exists within me.

May I not see myself as a body nor a mind

But as a witness to the Whole.

May I constantly express my true nature

To be blissful, playful and fearless.

May my experiences of temporal human suffering be brief

As if they are mere ripples of a pond.

May I continue to recognize the importance of my body’s fuel

And appreciate this gift from the earth.

May I release my discomfort of extended eye contact

For eyes show the strength of one’s soul.

May I continue to appreciate my incredible support system

Because these people shaped me more than they would know.

May I continue to meet people filled with hope and peace

So we can collectively become the change we wish to see in this world.

May I detach myself from worries of the past and future

So that the present is clear and beautiful.

May I treat the world as a bridge

So I will pass over but never settle on it.

By Caroline J. Williams; September 29, 2014

 

My time in Rishikesh has been very special and I have learned much more than I expected. I chose to write the poem above because I thought it would be easier to describe what I have learned here in the format of an open-ended poem. I also chose to write a poem because I’ve been trying to live by the quote, “Your true nature is blissful, playful and fearless” by Yogrishi Vishvketv where I am mostly exercising my fearlessness with this poem. This is because I’m quite uncomfortable when it comes to artsy stuff like writing or drawing. I also can’t even remember the last time I’ve read a poem, let alone written one, so I thought I would just go for it and give it a try.

Obligatory Description of Rishikesh

How am I supposed to describe Rishikesh in words? Before coming here I had heard so much hype about this place but never fully understood what to expect. Now I know why.

Rishikesh is similar to other places we have visited in that it is littered with foreign backpackers, Indian tourists, religious men, monkeys and of course cows, poor roads, trash, etc. Rishikesh is different than other places we have visited, however, because it is also surrounded by the foothills of the Himalayas and has the Holy Ganges River running through it. With this, something special gets carried through the air that brings a great amount of relaxation.

Our first view of the Ganges River

Ganges River

Another Ganges River photo...they never get old

 

Anand Prakash Ashram

Rishikesh is also unique because it is known as the “yoga capital of the world” and with this, there are many different ashrams where various types of yoga practices are offered. This was actually mine and Stephanie’s main reason for coming to Rishikesh because we hoped to practice a holistic yoga approach for two weeks at an ashram. With this, we chose to stay at the Anand Prakash Ashram and we had a wonderful time.

The entrance to our ashram

 

Our time in the ashram was quite regimented and is described below.

 

5:00        Wake-up Bell and Individual Meditation

·         This was optional and was often neglected to get a bit more sleep.

6:00        Yoga Class

·         The sun was barely up and you could only hear chirping crickets.

·         We began with deep breathing and sang a mantra (chant). The mantra would often connect to the theme of the yoga session which would be either bliss, unity, love, enlightenment, etc. I surprisingly enjoyed this part of the class more than I expected.

·         Next we said om, namaste, and then we were told to say namaste to our neighbors. To do this, we would look around the room with our hands in a prayer position, make eye contact with a different person in the room and say namaste to them. I found this to be quite a special moment because Namaste isn’t just “hello.” It means, “the divine in me welcomes the divine in you.”

·         We later moved into various poses that were not too difficult, but we would hold them for a decent amount of time.

·         Sometimes we would do “laughing yoga” where we would lay on our backs and simply laugh out loud for at least five minutes straight. It’s both exhilarating and tiring.

·         We always end laying on our backs to relax for five to ten minutes

·         And we’ll conclude with a brief meditation and the short mantra, “om shanti shanti shanti.” Shanti is translated into ‘peace’. Physical peace, mental peace and spiritual peace.

 

Entrance to the Yoga Hall

 

Front of the Yoga Hall

Rest of the Yoga Hall

 

8:00        Breakfast

·         The food at the ashram was absolutely delicious. I might even consider it heavenly because it’s everything I could ask for: incredibly fresh, lots of vegetables and grains, very flavorful and of a good variety.

·         Before every meal we would repeat the same mantra and it was nice to see people smile while they sang it. It also reminded me of at home when we say grace before meals.

·         Breakfast usually consisted of one piece of fruit (banana, apple or papaya) and one other dish ranging from oatmeal to a peanut sort of mush thing. We also had the choice between sweet or non-sweet herbal tea that I loved.

·         Breakfast was supposed to be silent but sometimes there would be chatter. I really enjoyed when it was silent because it was calming in the morning and I could focus on the flavor of the delicious food more.

·         We were also given one set of aluminum dishes that we had to bring to each meal and wash ourselves after each meal.

This is where we ate meals but we didn't have middle tables because there were fewer people at the time.

 

8:30        Agni Hotra (Fire Puja)

·         This was a special ceremony where people would gather around a fire pit and perform various prayers or mantras. From what I understand, this ritual would cleanse the atmosphere in hopes of bringing peace and such the surroundings. Stephanie could explain it a lot better though.

·         While Stephanie went to this every day while we were in the ashram, I only went once. The ritual aspect of it wasn’t quite for me.

The fire puja would take place under the hut to the left

 

9:00        Rest, Free Time

·         We would normally nap for a good portion of this time and probably read or write for the rest of the time.

9:00        Karma Yoga (Only Sunday)

·         We did not have yoga classes on Sundays but we did have karma yoga on Sundays at 9:00

·         For us, this consisted of cleaning the yoga hall and dusting some areas.

12:30     Lunch

·         Lunch usually consisted of a flavorful mixed vegetable thing, some sort of spicy lentil or bean soupy thing, delicious white rice, and awesome chapattis.

·         We usually got offered seconds for everything so we definitely never went hungry!

1:00        Rest, Free Time

·         We would either read, write, talk with others in the ashram, or we visited our friends outside the ashram for a few days.

4:00        Yoga Class

·         Same routine as the morning.

·         It would usually be hotter or have more mosquitos as compared to the morning session.

·         Saturday’s afternoon yoga class was awesome because it was more of a meditative session where this awesome guy led a tranquil session with music.

6:00        Dinner

·         Dinner was basically the same as lunch.

7:00        Kirtan Chanting (Only Tuesday and Thursday)

·         The closest I could describe this to is that it is similar to a “jam session.” Everyone sits in a circle and most everyone has an instrument; maybe a drum, tambourine, or maraca. Then people just start singing a mantra over and over and people play their instrument however they want to. This was also quite fun but we only did it once.

9:00        Silent Time

·         Everyone is supposed to be silent during this time because it should be bedtime if you are to wake up at 5:00 am.

·        For us, this was difficult to adjust to the first few days and almost felt like we had to adjust to jet lag.

Lounge area

Library

Our room

Room 16!

Hallway of our rooms

This was the view from my bed where I did a lot of reading, writing, and sleeping.

 

While this was the most structured we had been since possibly high school, it was also the most relaxing time we can remember. It felt great to be away from the internet, not even have to worry about choosing food and only focus on yourself. It gave me time to think and learn about new ways of thought and my mind feels clearer since being there. It’s quite wonderful.

While in the ashram, I did much more writing and reading than I expected. I ended up finishing five small books and also read half of one book about meditation. My two favorite books that I read were both written by Paul Coehlo: the Alchemist and Manuscripts from Acra. They both are easy reads that offer various spiritual advice along the way. I also wrote in my journal almost every day and it reminded me of the benefits of simply writing down your thoughts and the satisfying feeling after.

I'm also very bad at drawing but I tried to be playful with this drawing that is supposed to be the view from the porch of our room.

Overall, it was a wonderful experience and only had one bummer: I reinjured my hamstring and continuing yoga unfortunately was not helping. After thinking about it for a few days, I suggested to leave the ashram early and we both decided that it would be best. It also worked out because a yoga teacher training was just beginning so things were about to get quite crowded just as we left. We also felt like we learned a lot from our nine nights in the ashram and we thought it was a good time to leave on the note we did.

Staying in the High Bank

We chose to move into the same area where our friends, Jamie, Leah, (our Scottish couple crush) Luke and Michael (the guys from Portland) were staying because it has a great atmosphere with various backpackers. The name of the area is High Bank because it’s tucked away on a hill where the Ganges River can barely be seen. It’s very calm in the High Bank though with no honking and the constant sounds of crickets and the surrounding trees.

We chose a room for 400 Rs. per night which has hot water, fresh air and a nice breeze from the river area. An unexpected bonus, I suppose, is that especially in the High Bank area, there are a ton of Israelis. I expected to see groups of Israelis sometime on this trip and I have finally run into an Israeli hub. It’s quite interesting though because they will flock together in their groups and kind of give a persona that they don’t give a fuck. They’re nice people but in general, they’re probably staying in Rishikesh for at least a month and they may have just got out of the army so nothing really matters (or at least that’s my interpretation). There’s also a few Israeli families here with kids which is also interesting to see. Don’t get me wrong though, there are some non-Israelis here too, just not too many.

The porch of our room

The view from our room. It's not much but it has a great breeze from the river.

 

Since being in the High Bank we have done a whole lot of nothing. As you would expect, we love this. Our days mostly consist of hanging out at various cafes or restaurants and talking with friends or we will walk around the town that surrounds the river. The restaurants are quite relaxing; however all basically have the same menu that includes everything from pasta to Israeli food to spring rolls. Many of the restaurants also only have cushions to sit on while you eat and they’ll have relaxing music in the background.

Pedestrian bridge across Laxman Jhula

Crowded pedestrian bridge

 

A view from one of the cafes we stay at that overlooks the Ganges

You can't see it well, but the street is all lit up for a festival

One of our favorite cafes - Nirvana Bistro

 

This is how happy Stephanie is when she's in Nirvana café (she obviously didn't know I was taking this picture)

 

Old and New Friends

Being in Rishikesh has also been great because we were able to meet the friends we met in the desert, Jamie, Leah, Luke and Michael. It was great to reconnect with everyone and it really did feel like we were some sort of family towards the end of our time together in Rishikesh. It was so sad to say goodbye to them a few days ago because we have no idea if or when we’ll see them again. I have a feeling we’ll see them again someday. I guess we shall just see where our lives take us!

We have also met some new friends in Rishikesh, the first being friends who joined us to go rafting on our day off from the ashram (I’ll talk about the rafting more later). The plan was to go rafting with just Jamie, Leah, Luke and Michael but then we found out that extra friends were invited: Tim and Alina from Germany and Guy and Irit from Israel. Both couples were very nice and we had a great time with them. Tim and Alina were university students and had to go back home two days after we met them. Guy and Irit were taking breaks from their jobs and were at the end of their four-week India stay but will continue to Thailand for two weeks.

A few friends we have met from the ashram include Gillian, Arthur, Valentina and Vandala. Gillian was a woman originally from South Africa, but recently got a job in London. We also learned that she had a past with working with nature documentaries, specifically with lions and leopards in South Africa.

Arthur is about 68 years old and is from northern England. He said that when he turned 60, he decided to quit drinking and smoking and then he began yoga and continued since.

Valentina is around our age, is from Chile and she recently completed a six-month internship in Udaipur, India. She’s also been traveling for about four months after her internship and she only has two more weeks in India. She’ll then visit her boyfriend who’s in Atlanta right now for a week and then she’ll go home for the first time in a while.

Chilling with Valentina at Nirvana

 

Vandala was our yoga instructor at the ashram and was also 22. She said that she had been doing yoga since she was 12 and that she may be the only female yogi in all of Rishikesh. Apparently, it’s incredibly unlikely to be a female yogi in India however it’s the complete opposite in the West. She was incredibly sweet and made our time in the ashram special. She has a dream of opening up her own ashram-maybe even one specifically for women either in Singapore or the U.S.! So we hope everything works out for her as the years come.

Two more friends we’ve met since being in the High Bank include Martin and Hannah. Martin is from Ireland and is also around our age. He is incredible because he hitch hiked for something around 3.5 months from Ireland to Iran and then he took a car of some sort that required security during his trip through Pakistan and now finally he is in India. India is the end of his trip where he will return home in about a month to soon to attend graduation and begin his job in a seahorse conservation place. He is also probably the most humble guy I’ve met on the trip so far and we also learned that he loves his mother dearly. As he said, “If you meet more Irishmen, you must ask them about their mothers because their mothers are the center of their universe.

Hannah is from Vancouver, is about 27 and is also someone we’ve been hanging out with a lot since moving to the High Bank. She is also quite interesting because she has traveled to around 30 countries and this is her fourth time to India. Of course she is very relaxed and a great person to be around. She also taught us a new card game named kabu and we really like it. Watch out Heidi, we have a new game to teach you that you’ll be obsessed with when we get home.

Rafting Down the Mother Ganga

On our day off from the ashram, we decided to go rafting with the gang which included Leah, Jamie, Luke, Michael, Irit, Guy, Tim and Alina. At first we were nervous because one should be cautious when doing any sort of extreme sport in India, but most of them had gone before and said how it was an easy boat ride and that you could also lay in the water.

 

This day rafting was one of my favorite days in Rishikesh. I loved so many aspects of it: being with our friends again, feeling great after being in the ashram for four days, being on the beautiful river with the surrounding hills, paddling in a boat and of course laying in the water (and yes ma, we did have life jackets and even helmets). There was also a little tea stand about halfway down the river where we could park the boat to grab some chai and sit by a few small waterfalls. Oh, and most would probably be concerned that we were swimming in the Ganges which is known to be an incredibly dirty river but we were told because Rishikesh is at the start of the river, it is okay to swim.

 

A group pic of the gang (Back L-R: Irit, Guy, Alina, Tim, Luke, Jamie, Stephanie; Front L-R: Caroline, Leah, Michael). I stole this from Leah's Facebook page.

The stop where we got chai

Chai and rafting - got to love it!

The place was kind of crowded though

Maybe we could frame this one!

 

Various Thoughts/Comments

·         One of the best parts of Rishikesh is that time has little meaning here. I have gone whole days with only looking at the time twice only out of curiosity. No one is in a rush here and everything is very relaxed. It’ll be weird to adjust to a time-centered culture.

·         Since leaving the US I have made various simple bracelets from embroidery floss and have given them to special people I have met along the way. I gave one to almost everyone apart of the China EDC class but have also given a few to people we’ve met in India such as Leah and Jamie, Martin, etc. Recently, I had given away my 50^th bracelet and it’s cool to think that I’ve met so many new people that have been special to me in some way.

·         If I wanted to, I definitely could have had access to wifi these past few weeks but I chose to tell my family and friends that I wouldn’t have access to wifi until October 1. This was mostly true while we were in the ashram but especially when we left the ashram on September 25, I could have responded to people. I chose to wait until October 1 because it felt liberating to not be tied in conversations for a brief amount of time. I do love connecting with people back at home but being detached in that way felt oddly refreshing because the only communication I participated in was in person.

·         We’re choosing to stay in Rishikesh three days longer than planned; and we will be in Varanasi by October 5th and will then leave for Nepal on October 8^th.

Caroline’s Song of the Day

16-Sept On My Way by Passion Pit

17-Sept Track 25 by Unknown Artist

18-Sept This Is The Life by Two Door Cinema Club

19-Sept Grown Oceans by Fleet Foxes

20-Sept Donizetti: L'Elsir D'Amore by Luciano Pavarotti; Kurt Adler: National Philharmonnic Orchestra

21-Sept God Moving Over the Face of the Waters by Moby

22-Sept KarmaKontot by Timbuktu

23-Sept Living in the Moment by Jason Mraz

24-Sept La Vie En Rose by Louis Armstrong

25-Sept Penny Lane by the Beatles

26-Sept Nude by Radiohead

27-Sept Oxford Comma by Vampire Weekend

28-Sept Shake by Victoria Justice

29-Sept September by Earth Wind and Fire

30-Sept Our Love Comes Back

Mussoorie

Our next stop of our India journey was Mussoorie. As I mentioned in the last post, the ride getting here was interesting but ended up being relaxing once we got settled in. Mussoorie is another hillstation and is similar to Shimla, but is also much smaller. It’s also been a lot foggier so we haven’t been able to see the surrounding hill scenery very well.

Mussoorie is set up where there is one main road, named Mall Road, lined with shops and restaurants. It’s not quite as nice as Shimla though because it seems to be less “planned” with odd buildings, a bit more garbage and more cars, cows and dogs on the road. Mussoorie is also interesting because it seems to be a popular honeymoon spot and also has a sizeable Tibetan population. We think it has a significant Tibetan population because there’s a percentage of people here who look Tibetan and there is also a lot of Tibetan food, mostly momos, sold here.
 

Our favorite part in Mussoorie is a cute coffee shop named Chick Chocolate that reminds us of coffee shops at home with interesting lighting, artsy furniture and various pictures and art pieces on the walls. It also usually has good wifi which is a plus. Stephanie and I have spent a large amount of time at this place either reading, checking a few internet things or writing/blogging. Oh, their coffees are also good which reminds us of home as well.

Chick Chocolate

 

The main attraction here is a place named Gun Hill. It requires a hanging cable car to get to the top and is supposed to be a good view point of the Himalayas. Because it’s so foggy here though there was no chance of us seeing the mountains, only the surrounding hills. We were also greeted by a cheesey carnival setup when we got to the top of Gun Hill which was both surprising and not at the same time. Indians would put a cheesey carnival at the top of a tourist attraction. Nonetheless, it was still a nice place to relax and drink some chai.

The view from Gun Hill

 

 

 

New Mussoorie Friends

While we were relaxing outside our hotel and drinking a beer we met guy named Abhay from Dehradun (only about 1.5 hours away) who is also staying at the same small hotel. Abhay is 22 and is in school working on his Master’s in Chinese. We found this quite interesting because this is the first time we’ve met an Indian studying Chinese. He said he’s chosen to study Chinese because of the growing relations with China as both India and China develop as powers in the world. We also met his girlfriend, Vishali, who is a mass communications student two years younger than us.

This was Abhay and Vishali’s first time hanging out with Americans and they seemed to be very excited about this. We had great conversation with them and they were even nice enough to have dinner with us. They know the Mussoorie area quite well because they come here about once a month as a break from school in Dehradun. They took us to a restaurant that had a few tasty chicken dishes and we followed the meal with a coffee. Although the coffee was more like a really sweet cappuccino, it was still nice to have while it was cold outside.

We then continued back to our hotel, but then stopped on the way to try a paan. Paan is a snack that has mint and other seasonings wrapped in a green leaf. Stephanie and I both didn’t really like it and either that or the chicken got me sick in the middle of the night, but it’s okay because I felt fine the next morning. Abhay and Vishali were also very kind in that they let us hang out in their room for a little bit to hang out and watch TV. Then soon enough, we went to bed. Another unexpected day!

We spent one more night with Abhay and Vishali and this time talked a bit more about India and its history. We learned more about Indira Ghandi, who was a great (but corrupt) leader, and heard more about her assassination story which was quite interesting. We also learned more about the conflicts between Hindus and Muslims here, as well as the Sikh population in Kashmir. Because we love learning about this sort of stuff, and especially hearing it from a local Indian’s perspective, we really enjoyed this conversation.

The Heart and the Mind

Ever since we’ve gotten here it has seemed like every long conversation that we have with an Indian involves them mentioning the heart and the mind. I’ve found this quite interesting because decisions and feelings at home are rarely related to inner physical feelings. For example, friends or family at home may give general advice by saying, “do the right thing” or “be a good person” etc. However here, advice will be given a bit differently such as, “make sure it feels right in your heart and then your mind” or “have a clear mind” etc. I’m probably not explaining this very well, but I’ve just noticed a slightly different approach here when it comes to decision-making or advice.

This “head and the mind” approach does not apply to everyone in India because as we’ve experienced, many people here also lead with the greed rather than a pure heart and mind. But of course this also happens at home. I would even argue that many more people at home than here place material things ahead of their own inner ethics and values.

Since I’ve noticed it so often here, I am led to believe that this way of thinking must be laced in the culture here and consistently taught as people grow up. Maybe it’s because religion has a much heavier influence here as compared to home. I think it may also be because at home, people are taught to be very logical and rely on outside data or experiences while inner “gut feelings” are not encouraged often.

I would definitely say that I am a type of person that feels more comfortable relying on outside data or experiences when making decisions rather than making decisions purely based on what feels good in my heart. Since being in India though, I have felt a slight shift in this way of thinking. We’ll see how this continues and how I feel at the end of this trip though!

Various Thoughts/Comments

·         Mussoorie is also cold, maybe as cold as Shimla, but we’re too stubborn to buy sweaters or jackets because it’s going to be hot in the next two Indian places we’re going to and we don’t want to carry the jackets through those areas.

·         The hotel we’re staying at has hot showers and it’s awesome

·         I miss plain vegetables

·         I’m really looking forward to our two-week ashram stay in Rishikesh which will begin tomorrow. I’m sure it’ll be both challenging and rewarding. We’re going to have to wake up early though (something like 5:00 or 5:30) so that’ll be challenging.

 

Caroline’s Song of the Day

12-Sept Be. by Common

13-Sept Boys and Girls by Alabama Shakes

14-Sept The World At Large by Modest Mouse

15-Sept Anywhere I Go by Slightly Stoopid