here are some of the kids that I met when I went to the slum. I hope this picture post works. These kids were SO AWESOME! :) I dunno how this will work but I hope you can see the smiles on their faces. :) 

reminder to self

so, I'm sitting here... smelling like incense (a new desi soap I tried!!)... and rushed as usual... so, I'm just going to write some highlights that I'll expand on soon (hopefully)!
- HOLI- kacchey & pakkey rangs... bhang... bhang de pakorey.... two day "trip"... forgetting cuz at airport....
- visit to sponsored kid... garbage dump houses... rag picker kids.... great work being done by World Vision - post pic of street kids... how easy we have it! His fav. food... daal & chawal... has he ever tasted anything else? Folks living in plastic & styrofoam (from refrigerator packaging) houses
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Holi... maybe a lil'

so... today was "Chhoti Holi" (little Holi)... the festival of colours. My lower body and "chaddis" are soaked as I sit infront of my cuz's machine. (Hopefully he won't read this till long after Holi is over)
I'm not sure what the plan for tomorrow (the main day for HOLI) is... but I'm sure its gonna be wild! I'm hoping to try it the "adult" way... including some bhang Apparently its ALL good on HOLI! Lets see... I'll let u know!
gotta run...
ciao!

You're In, I'm in, Ur-inal!

Now, I thought about writing a normal post regarding the general things that are happening here with the wedding planning, the start of the heat, the constant ambient noise the is India and stuff like that... but after receiving a text from a buddy... DON'T worry Snoopy, I won't tell anyone it was you... I thought I'd write something about the urinals here...
Now, we have the most common type of urinal here... a wall, bush, car, cycle tire, tree etc (basically anyplace that doesn't directly face oncoming traffic... although even this rule is sometimes broken). So, we have the "THE WORLD IS MY URINAL" school of thought that is quite pervasive here.
Secondly, in order to reduce this above-mentioned mentality in many street markets, they've build public urinals... which generally are a raised shoulder on the side walk with white(I assume they were that way at some point!) tiled half-walls... so really, you're neither in a stall nor out in the street. Now the comment that sparked this post is the insistance of the average Indian male (as observed in these stalls) to stand RIGHT NEXT to you... i.e. if there are three urinal spots, the North American mentality is to take one of the extremes, then the next person takes the farthest one and only in dire need will a third approach the middle urinal. NOW, in India, they'll come and stand RIGHT NEXT to you. Why this happens... is at the heart of this discussion.
Is it that North American males are trained to be more aloof in their peeing habits or are Indian guys more curious about your size vs theirs? I'm not sure. Mind you, its quite common here to see perfectly straight men holding hands and walking down the street. This is generally because amongst most classes of Indians, holding hands with anyone else than your wife or daughter ain't cool. SO, if anyone knows why the street Urinal here has become a stranger-bonding thang... lemme kno! :)
Well, I gotta go 'cuz I gotta go pee! :)

Delhi... a little belly

well, all that eating in DehraDun seems to have caught up! But it was totally worthit! With the heat waves beginning here (I'd say its more the heat combined with pollution)...
We just had the prayers for before the marraige (Akhand Path) and along with any Sikh prayers come the traditional "Parshaad" (offering.. generally a very sweet and oily dish consisting of clarified butter, flour and sugar). And I LOVE IT! I've done nothing for the last two days except eat it! :) Mmmmm....
anyways, I digress... but I'm not sure where I was going in the first place. Either the heat or the Parshaad have gone to my head! :)
So... till sanity returns, I'll sign out! :)
Cheers all!
Jup
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Elephant by roadside... cutting down a tree & takin' a dump at the same time! I wish I could multi-task like that!

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Kailash Market "MOCHI"... he's been in the same location for over 40 years and seen the world literally change around him!

off to Delhi

well, after all the great grub... the laid-back life (in bed by 9 & up by 630), I'm off to Delhi by train tonight! (hopefully). I'd write more but am on the run... its about to start raining and generally when it starts... it REALLY pours down... so, now that I've heard the thunder... am outta here! :) Cheers all!

Dehra-Dun - Trip down memory lane

well, here I am in Dehra-Dun (Doon Valley)... its a 6 hr train ride from Delhi and at the foothills of the Himalayas. For me, it used to be a lot more scenic than it is today. Since it became the capital of a newly created province, the beaurocracy, traffic and thus pollution and rampant "kothi" (mansion) building for the elected members and croneys have overtaken the lush green mountains and hill side. Anyways, I guess I can't really complain as this phenomenon is worldwide and on a more selfish front, the house and surrounding area where my grandmother lives has remained largely untouched (glaring exception is the new cell tower in our neighbours backyard!)
I've deliberately chosen not to spend much time outside of the home compound as getting run over by a car or cow is a lot more likely than before!For those of you who haven't travelled to India, the best and the worst drivers in the world are here as traffic hazards include trucks, cars, buses (so far so North Americanly normal), bicycles, three-wheeler rickshaws, auto-rickshaws, cows, stray dogs, pigs, possibly poultry, occasionaly elephants and camels, scooters (with upto 7 people on a single two wheeled scooter)... and much more! Anyways, I banter on.
Damn! I'm outta time! But more bantering later... and you thought this would be interesting! :P Shame on you!
You should know worse! :)
Cheers All!
Jup

Random Delhi thoughts

well, now that I've been here for a few days (and actually planning to leave tomorrow for DEHRA-DUN) and have been settling in... I've decided to add my random thoughts and observations to my blog. I hope to expand on them when I get more time... but here's a taste....
- my chai-wallah (the guy who has a tea-stall by the roadside, which consists of nothing more than a pot, a burner and few steel cups which area regularly "washed" with water & dirt... for that good scrub!) has a mobile/cell phone! Pretty cool... seeing this guy in a raggedy kurta pyjama and worn out plastic thong slippers gabbin' it up on a Nokia thats better than any phone I've ever owned.His tea is pretty awesome! ;)
- A self-service food kiosk (U know the one where you put in your coins, press C-24 and get some chewing gum or chips) at the airport has an attendant to whom you give the money and then he OPENS the kiosk and pulls the food from the appropriate shelf!!! Remind me to post the picture! :)
- Straight men holding hands and walking hand in hand down the street
- Early morning howls and shouting of the supermarket on wheels... basically street vendors with veggies, fruits, bread, toilet bowl cleaners etc screaming what they are selling in a near incomprehensible tone... starting at 7am... now I know why Indians started meditating... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
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THE FULL SERVICE KIOSK!!!

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VEGGGIIIEEESSSSS or FRUITTTTTT WALAAAA!

Delhi... surprisingly refreshing...

well, as predicted... my emailing has gone down the tubes and am trying to compensate by starting this blog again! :)
I've been in Delhi for two days and am slowly adjusting to the different pace of life, the obvious poverty, the pompous show of wealth (remeniscent of peacocks showin' off their plumes, except even the females here agressively show their plumes as jewellry) and the great food!
I'm going to try for the very first time to break the tradition of putting on atleast 15 lbs (7 kilos) on my trips to India! Wish me luck! I've recruited my cousin's fiance to take me to the gym (so far, we've gone only a day and am sore as a dog! BUT we're heading out in ten minutes for round two!).
The most obvious changes in Delhi for me have been the dramatic drop in visible pollution levels since I was last here. My flight landed around 11pm and by the time I actually got out (with surprising ease at customs) it was 12:30am. Now, I'm used to walking into a thick blanketing fog of pollution that envelopes the city at night but for the first time I could see the red lights of the oversized truck burgeoning with hay as we honked our way to my grandfathers house. So, not everything has changed here. I still maintain that one can survive Indian roads without brakes but will be killed if the horn stops working!
I haven't ventured out on my own yet but thats mainly due to living with my grandparents, who are as most, overprotective when under their roof. Walking around Delhi can be a harrowing experience.
The sheer amount of marketing and increases in price (and goods) is incredible. Apparently one of the reasons they don't hassle people at customs any more is because most goods are now freely available here. Ironically, one of the gifts that an aunt sent for my cousin (as a wedding present) was made in India! Chalk one for globalization & marketing!
Well, I gotta run but I'll try and write regularly. I think it'll also help me clear my mind! :)
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LORD GANESH in a tree by the roadside