India is the land of endless entertainment. At every corner there is a multitude of beautiful faces and amazing characters. Let's start from the beginning...
Calcutta.
We arrived after a 4 hour plane ride from Bangkok to Calcutta, India. It was the most intense city I've ever seen. Thais have never seemed so docile until now. My favorite quote from Drew upon arrival: "Now I totally understand why Buddhism started, he left his palace and saw this place and needed to chill out and sit under a tree". Indians are intense. The meaning of politeness and shame have no concept here. When you walk down the street, horns are constantly blaring, people are running up to you to sell things, and the faces.. There has not been a minute in India where you go where you are not stared at. Upon commencement of a simple question, you are immediately surrounded by 10 curious Indian men. It takes awhile to get used to and at first it seemed petrifying to be alone. Yet the constant curiosity and assertiveness is definitely what the aloof Pacific Northwest needs. The day we spent in Calcutta was the most emotionally and physically draining day of my life.
We first went to the Kali Ghat. It is the temple in Calcutta dedicated to the goddess of death and destruction, Kali. It is the place where her toe was believed to fall after Shiva spread her body across India. Upon arrival, I thought we would be enterring a beautiful temple just like all of the Buddhist monasteries of Thailand. To say the least, it was the embodiment of Kali. Sean describes it as the place where Jesus was tortured--metal bars, white walls, flourescent lighting, people yelling and screaming. It was as if we were in a mosh pit. We were shoved through this metal gate where people were yelling and screaming at us for money. When we finally got to the toe, the priest was angry that all I could offer was a Thai baht, pressed my forehead with tumeric really hard (giving me whiplash) and shoved me through the line. After that traumatic experience we stood around an area where a puga was being performed. Almost 8 goats were ceremoniously behead with a giant sycle. Whiskey was shoved into their mouths before the beheading. Those were traumatic moments. Imagine in an instant being smashed up against firey humans, heat blazing from the sun, a drum banging next to your ear, people screaming and yelling, your crotch getting groped by random hands, and a goat beheaded before your eyes. That was the most intense moment of my life. This experience has left me with a completely different feeling of Hinduism that I never anticipated before. Hinduism is the most raw religion I've ever participated in. There is no romanticism of majesty, only stories of creation and art.
After that we went to Mother Theresa's tomb and one of her hospices in one of the slums. Walking through it was a depressing dose of death. I've never seem so many hopeless women. One women Anjali who was near death held my hand and kissed it for so long. I broke out into tears. No one should ever be zooified like so on their moment of death.
I boycotted activities for the rest of the day. We went to Queen Victoria's palace. All I could do was sit on the lawn and contemplate. It was a disgustingly beautfiul place. There should never be such a beautiful palace in a place where slums grow virally and people sleeping on the streets. Calcutta is a wasteland of poverty.
Indian Train.
That night we boarded an night train to Varanasi. It was the largest and most crowded train station I've ever been inside of. Millions of people use it every day and the smell really says it all. The trains don't have grey water tanks. Whatever waste humans produce just go right onto the tracks. We were warned that the train was going to be the most dangerous part of our journey however I was only welcomed by warm hearts and smiles. One brahmin I sat next to named Roni was an extremely interesting human being. Coming from an educational background, he is the few of India. He could only read and write in English but can speak English, Hindi, and Bengali. We shared music, photography ideas, and minds. It seems as though Indians are never too quick to ease their curiosity. Why can't Americans let go of their aloofness and have more interest in the ones around them too? I was awoken that night by bathroom necessities, cold air, and chants "Chai, chai, chai" by men who board the trains to sell chai tea. If there is a possibility of overdosing on chai tea, it might happen in India.
Varanasi.
Varanasi is the most interesting city I've ever been in. Along with the bustling busy-ness of Calcutta, there are cows walking through the streets and alleyways, ghats along the mighty Ganga River, and even more interesting people to interact with. Despite the warning of our group leaders, I went off in solitude (extremely sick of constantly being with the same people) and explored the ghats along the river. The most powerful one was the Marnikarnika Ghat where Indians from all around make a pilgrimage to for cremation. There are bodies burning constantly on different tiers and levels for the differing caste of the person. The Ganga is a beautiful river, however extremely polluted. Safety levels of fecal chloroform per liter is 500 or under--the Ganga has 1.5 million in some parts. Confusingly, there are people bathing in it at all times for ritual purification. It is believed to cleanse one of their sins. Everyone you speak to in Varanasi has a different creation story. I will elaborate in my next blog because my time is up.
It is getting dark. It is dangerous for women to walk around alone at night. Until next time, J.
Calcutta.
We arrived after a 4 hour plane ride from Bangkok to Calcutta, India. It was the most intense city I've ever seen. Thais have never seemed so docile until now. My favorite quote from Drew upon arrival: "Now I totally understand why Buddhism started, he left his palace and saw this place and needed to chill out and sit under a tree". Indians are intense. The meaning of politeness and shame have no concept here. When you walk down the street, horns are constantly blaring, people are running up to you to sell things, and the faces.. There has not been a minute in India where you go where you are not stared at. Upon commencement of a simple question, you are immediately surrounded by 10 curious Indian men. It takes awhile to get used to and at first it seemed petrifying to be alone. Yet the constant curiosity and assertiveness is definitely what the aloof Pacific Northwest needs. The day we spent in Calcutta was the most emotionally and physically draining day of my life.
We first went to the Kali Ghat. It is the temple in Calcutta dedicated to the goddess of death and destruction, Kali. It is the place where her toe was believed to fall after Shiva spread her body across India. Upon arrival, I thought we would be enterring a beautiful temple just like all of the Buddhist monasteries of Thailand. To say the least, it was the embodiment of Kali. Sean describes it as the place where Jesus was tortured--metal bars, white walls, flourescent lighting, people yelling and screaming. It was as if we were in a mosh pit. We were shoved through this metal gate where people were yelling and screaming at us for money. When we finally got to the toe, the priest was angry that all I could offer was a Thai baht, pressed my forehead with tumeric really hard (giving me whiplash) and shoved me through the line. After that traumatic experience we stood around an area where a puga was being performed. Almost 8 goats were ceremoniously behead with a giant sycle. Whiskey was shoved into their mouths before the beheading. Those were traumatic moments. Imagine in an instant being smashed up against firey humans, heat blazing from the sun, a drum banging next to your ear, people screaming and yelling, your crotch getting groped by random hands, and a goat beheaded before your eyes. That was the most intense moment of my life. This experience has left me with a completely different feeling of Hinduism that I never anticipated before. Hinduism is the most raw religion I've ever participated in. There is no romanticism of majesty, only stories of creation and art.
After that we went to Mother Theresa's tomb and one of her hospices in one of the slums. Walking through it was a depressing dose of death. I've never seem so many hopeless women. One women Anjali who was near death held my hand and kissed it for so long. I broke out into tears. No one should ever be zooified like so on their moment of death.
I boycotted activities for the rest of the day. We went to Queen Victoria's palace. All I could do was sit on the lawn and contemplate. It was a disgustingly beautfiul place. There should never be such a beautiful palace in a place where slums grow virally and people sleeping on the streets. Calcutta is a wasteland of poverty.
Indian Train.
That night we boarded an night train to Varanasi. It was the largest and most crowded train station I've ever been inside of. Millions of people use it every day and the smell really says it all. The trains don't have grey water tanks. Whatever waste humans produce just go right onto the tracks. We were warned that the train was going to be the most dangerous part of our journey however I was only welcomed by warm hearts and smiles. One brahmin I sat next to named Roni was an extremely interesting human being. Coming from an educational background, he is the few of India. He could only read and write in English but can speak English, Hindi, and Bengali. We shared music, photography ideas, and minds. It seems as though Indians are never too quick to ease their curiosity. Why can't Americans let go of their aloofness and have more interest in the ones around them too? I was awoken that night by bathroom necessities, cold air, and chants "Chai, chai, chai" by men who board the trains to sell chai tea. If there is a possibility of overdosing on chai tea, it might happen in India.
Varanasi.
Varanasi is the most interesting city I've ever been in. Along with the bustling busy-ness of Calcutta, there are cows walking through the streets and alleyways, ghats along the mighty Ganga River, and even more interesting people to interact with. Despite the warning of our group leaders, I went off in solitude (extremely sick of constantly being with the same people) and explored the ghats along the river. The most powerful one was the Marnikarnika Ghat where Indians from all around make a pilgrimage to for cremation. There are bodies burning constantly on different tiers and levels for the differing caste of the person. The Ganga is a beautiful river, however extremely polluted. Safety levels of fecal chloroform per liter is 500 or under--the Ganga has 1.5 million in some parts. Confusingly, there are people bathing in it at all times for ritual purification. It is believed to cleanse one of their sins. Everyone you speak to in Varanasi has a different creation story. I will elaborate in my next blog because my time is up.
It is getting dark. It is dangerous for women to walk around alone at night. Until next time, J.
