YSAC All India Conference

Stacy and I attended an all India Young Single Adult conference in Hyderabad. I didn't attend for the purpose of finding my 'soul mate' as I found out later, many had. The church is growing here in India and it is very exciting. There were supposed to be around 400 young adults there but over 500 attended! All of the wonderful people I met impressed me immensely and I am so happy that we went, because I was a little hesitant at first.
All the church branches in India plus Nepal branches attended. It was interesting to be the minority by such an outstanding percentage. Out of the 520 people there, I was one of four Americans. Oh, believe me when I say that this is not at all a bad thing! I loved it but I was a little tired of getting different treatment because I was white. Everyone there is a fellow child of God. I know there are a number of people in the US who we describe as having 'jungle fever' but I don't know what it is called the other way around. I'll make one up, how about 'Snow Mania' or 'Potato Passion'? No, no, forgive me, those are horrid.
Something that just cracks me up is that instead of the typical 'dances' that we would have at an American equivilent, we were taught line dances by one of the couple missionaries. Now close you eyes and picture this. . .actually, no minus the eye closing because then you couldn't read what I want you to imagine. Okay, keep your eyes open and picture this, a gargantuan open sided tent with 100 or so lovely dark haired young people. Now hear the Boot-Scootin' Boogie waft through the surrounding forest. Sister Mcintosh is calling out the steps as everyone tries to follow along. Sureal in a way. I definately didn't expect to be doing the grapevine on the grass of an Indian resort when I first got here, I assure you. It was really fun though and because Stacy and I have a background in dancing and had already done many of the dances, we were asked to be in the back and help when everyone turned around. This is where is gets interesting. . .
I was helping people and couple asked me if I would show them a little slower because they were having a difficult time. Believing myself to be just doing my friendly duty I talked and answered the questions that one particular guy was asking me. Granted I thought I had become accustumed enough to Indian culture but I admit was probably 'too' friendly in his eyes. He was asking me innocent enough questions and I am nieve I suppose because I was just dancing and responding but then it got akward, in a hilarious way. He asks, "So, do you like Indians?" And what kind of question is that? So I answered "I am in India, aren't I?" Then he started giving me his qualifications, like a matrimonial resume, listing "I am an engineer and I make a lot of money and we could move to America in a few years if you'd like." Now wait just a minute I thought, and then he asked me, "Do you like me?" "I don't even know you so how could I like you?" I responded in shock.
I told Stacy when I got a moment away that I had a semi-stalker which is strange because she is the one who usually has that problem ( I tell her it is because she is just way too likeable, dang-it). When he coronered me soon after he asked like I had known all along, "So how do you feel about what I've said?" "What have you said?" "How do you feel about marrying me?" he said without hesitation or any degree of doubt that my answer would be "Of Course!"
As you can imagine I was quite surprised, very surprised, in fact he took my silence as a good sign thinking that I was too happy for words. Finally my voice came back and I firmly told him no. He persisted and I said that I don't think my parents would like it. "Oh, I can call and talk to them. I'm sure they would agree." I guess I have to give it too him, he is really persistant and really has a hard time taking a clue.
"I can talk to Elder Macintosh and he can set it all up. Everything will be fine."
"No, no. Really, I mean it that we can't get married. I don't even know you and, um, sorry."

Needless to say it was quite the experience and I had a rather hard time not laughing right there at my terrible luck. Goodtimes, goodtimes. But it didn't ruin my time at the conference, just gave me a fun story to tell around the campfire, I guess.

Wandering through Kerala

Alright, I am sorry that it has been awhile since I have updated but I have been going here and there as hopefully you will realize from the following!

To begin Kerala is a state in South-west India and I spent about a week and half wandering through its beauty. We got two weeks off of college to study for our final exams. If you know me well you know that I hardly study anyway, let alone when I am in an amazing place with millions of things to see. Yeah right like I was going to sit home and study for two whole weeks when I could be out doing and seeing! Stacy and I had a hard time finding a train(our preferred mode of transport) to Kochin, Kerala but with the help of our friend Gabe we got a night bus to Kochin. We were on the bus for over 16 hours, 5 more than we were told it would be and I think I slept a total of two hours. Think of trying to sleep in an airplane with the added comfort of honking horns, passing street lights, and bumping over potholed roads. Lovely, just lovely. So, as you can imagine that first day was pretty difficult for me. I followed Gabe and Stacy around in a semi-lucid state so I don't really remember what we did that first day in Kochin. Kochin is made up of several small towns and it is right on the coast of the Arabian sea. We spent our first day in Ernakulum and then headed over to Fort Kochi, we took a crowded ferry over to the island that Fort Kochi was located on. Fort Kochi was really wonderful, though a little touristy. They eat a lot of fish in Keralan cooking and it was wonderfully fresh because all the fish is caught right there in Fort Kochi in these radical Chinese fishing nets that they let down on a pully system into the water from the beach.

There are these stalls next to the nets that say, 'You buy the fish, We Cook it'. And its true, you can go up to a fish vendor and buy a whole fish that they have just caught and than take it to the stall and they'll fry it, or curry it, or do what ever you want. Yummy!
Later that night we watched a traditional Keralan dance called Kathakali. It was interesting and kind of gave me the heebie-jeebies but I was glad we saw it. The costumes that are worn are so outrageous and ornate that I had a hard time not staring at them in a car-crash sort of way.


We looked in our handy Lonely Planet book and decided where to go from Kochin and decided to find a good beech to hang out at. The book sayed that a city called Allepey had a good beech so we took a sooped up auto-rickshaw for the equivilent of 5 dollars but when we got to Allepey we didn't like it so as we were living the transient life, we walked to the bus stand and got a very crowded bus to the town of Kollom. Kollom was nicer and smaller but it took us a a long while to find a hotel to stay in. We ended up staying in a rather overpriced hotel but it was big and clean enough for the dirty hippie/trekkers that we had become. It was twilight time but we wanted to watch the sunset on the beech that we were told was close by. We started walking in the direction that some kind soul pointed us in and we just ket walking and walking and asking and getting pointed in different directions each time. But we had fun anyway and everyone was very friendly, though a little misdirecting. We never did find the beech but we did eat some really good Shawarma roles that are these chicken/pork/onion/spices/lots of other things roled up in a pita things that are amazing!
The next day we took a tour through what are called the backwaters of Kerala. It is a system of lakes, streams, rivers and irrigation ditches that run all through Kerala. We took a canoe through the rural areas and saw some amazing things like how they built the boats, coconuts drying for their oil, and men diving down to the bottom of the rivers to collect dirt that they loaded onto big versions of the boat that we were on. Don't ask me why they collected dirt, I suppose it was better than regular dirt but I have always figured that dirt was dirt so why put yourself out to collect special wet dirt?!


That night Anna (another friend) met up with us and in the morning we were off again. Having been unsuccesful in finding a suitable beech we made our way to Varkala Beech, thinking that the 'beech' in its name was a good sign. It proved true to its name and we were finally able to sit on the beech as we liked. Gabe had to leave us at this point and then it was just us girls. We got this lovely cottage that was right on the beech but back far enough that we weren't in the public view. We were able to go wading in the ocean but I was hesitant to because I am already a self-concious person when it comes to being scantily clad in a bathingsuit but when you have all the male eyes of the beech looking at you, it is ten times worse. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not saying this to brag or proclaim my own vainity but take it as a fact that if you are a rare fair skinned and fair haired person, you will be stared at no matter where you go in India. I have resigned myself to this fact but it is still difficult when I want to swim in peace.

All the previous adventures were amazing but what I enjoyed the most was the fantastic last two days. Stacy, Anna, and I took a bus up to the Periyar Tiger Reserve located up in the Western Ghats Mountain range. The bus ride up the reserve was in an area of the most beautiful scenery, reminiscent of the Northern Californian coast, but the road up there was filled with switchbacks and potholes, a common ailment of Indian roadways. My face was so dirty from sticking my head out the window and looking at the beauty that it still hasn't recovered and it is quite blemishy even a few weeks after.
We stayed in a lovely little guest house and everyone was very kind and very willing to help us while there. The next morning we woke up very early (4:30! And if you know me well you'll know what a morning person isn't) and started our 'safari' through the perserve. We had a little jeep wrangler and the morning coolness brought in a low mist all around us.
We drove quietly through the jungle and our driver pointed out different animals and plants, very enlightening. We got to a lake about 2 hours into the park and had a traditional South Indian breakfast (which is my favorite food ever!) at a little jungle villa like place. After breakfast we geared up for a trek through the jungle, hoping to spot the illusive feline beast. We had to wear these very becoming (note: sarcasm) leech gaurds around our feet and calves.


Now as beautiful as these gaurds were I was happy to give up style for leechlessness. And I tell you what, leeches are now one of my new fears and though I didn't get one suckin' my life juices, I had plenty try. I got very good at flicking them off with sticks.
We traipsed around the jungle for four hours and ended up on top of one of the many hills. The view was outstanding and its peacefullness and beauty made me forget that there were places as noisy as Bangalore in this world. We made our way back to the villa and ate lunch. We then got into a little row boat with the same guide that took us through the jungle and he paddled us around the lake. I tried my hand at rowing and I tell you now that if you and I are stranded at sea in a row boat, I'll be the moral support and you can be the rower because I was terrible at it!

Chakde India!

So I have a new favorite thing in this world. And that is the rousing sport of Cricket (the game not the small insect). Any who have had the pleasure of being outside of the states in one of our fellow former British colonies, would know that Cricket is no laughing matter as silly as it may look to our mindless football sensibilities. It took me a while to understand the game but now that I do, I fond it one of the most interesting sports to watch, I think I'll start a club when I get back home to introduce it to the unknowing Nevada population. Last night was a particularly exciting one in the world of Cricket and India, because you can't have one without the other. The Twenty20 World Cup Cricket match was held in South Africa these last couple of days and the teams to reach the finals were none other than my own India and Pakistan! As you can imagine there is quite the rivalry between the two and it wasn't really expected that either would make it to the finals so there was a lot of hype for it. It was a rousing game and for quite some time I expected Pakistan to take the lead and win but in just the last few balls of the game, one of the fielders caught the ball from the air and struck the last Pakistan batsman out! It was very exciting! And for hours afterward there was joyous yelling, and loads of fireworks resounding through the streets. It was hard to sleep.

For you who do not know Cricket lingo, I will enlighten you so you won't be confused when I get home and want to talk about it. Alright now:

Wickets= three 'sticks' that stand behind the batsman, the Bowler (see Bowler) tries to bowl the ball so that it hits the wickets thus getting out the batsman
Batsman= the guy who holds the bat, which is long and flat
Bowler= Think of him as the 'pitcher' if you will, except he throws it much harder and usually throws the ball into the ground so that it rebounds and hits the wickets
Wicket Keeper= He stands behind the wickets and catches the ball, he can also hit over the wickets if the batsman isn't on his base.

Now I know that that probably hasn't helped you understand the game any better in the slightest but if you have any question about it, I now consider myself quite 'in the know', well as far as Americans go anyway. Have a great day ad watch some cricket if you can!

Photo's by Gideon

We had a branch activity at church this last weekend and it was loads of fun! It lasted forever, but in a good way because we got to know the other members better and were taught some awesome Indian Dance moves into the bargain!
Gideon is about seven years old and he is probably the most adorable thing in creation! He really liked my camera so I decided to let him play with it for sometime. Giving him the camera delighted him but I also had an alterior motive because doing so gave me the oppurtunity to enjoy the day with out snapping pictures all the time and Gideon could take pictures of people without the awkwardness that I might have fealt. Now I have awesome kid-level pictures that I suppose I could call a psycho-social expirament because it was interesting to see what he decided to take pictures of (like his upside-down between his legs period, I think this was some of his best work!).
He is quite the kid but now I think I have made a monster out of him because everytime he sees me he says 'Ankina (many have a hard time saying my name here so I just let it slide), can I see your camera, please?' He makes sure to use his most lovely pleading voice and widens his eyes to a riduculous circumferance that would make any perfessional begger jealous. When I answer in the nagative he usually sulks for a little while and then replies, 'Next time?'

'Yes, I'll bring it next week.'

Brilliant Footballer

So I joined the Christ College Girls Football Team (soccer for you uncultured types) last week!! A girl just asked if I played and when I answered with the affirmative she asked me if I wanted to be on the team, no tryout neccessary! I haven't played in a long time so I was a little nervous on the first day of practice, worried that my inadequate playing abilities would be scoffed at and I would be turned away for lack of any real skill. However, the very opposite happened. See, because football is a fairly popular sport here I thought that I would be in store of seeing a lot of great players, but what I came to find out is that the girls here rarely play football if any sport at all. There are a few girls on the team that are rather good and there are quite a few others, though I don't like to use this cliche, kick like girls, in the worst possible way. All my teammates are amazing people though, if not awesome footballers, and we have lots of fun.
We only had three practices before the first tournament, which was last week, and we had no coach to lead us in drills so they weren't very productive. I was again nervous as the tournament approached but not for my lack of skill but for the overall team's abilities. I was happy, or maybe more surprised, to find that we were actually one of the better teams. We won our first game 1-0 and it was really exciting but made me realize how utterly out of shape I am. Unfortunately, the next day we lost the second game which I came to find out half way through was our final game and that we were playing for the trophy. We were tied in the end and had to go into a penalty kick off. And can you believe, they made me kick first! I was really nervous and pretty much kicked it straight at the goalie who easily blocked it. In the end, they had two goals and we had one, it was quite depressing but I think with more practice we can be quite good.
The funny thing is, that now I can say I played college soccer and I won't be lying!

Mysore is Magnificent!

Alright, I know it has been too long since I last left a blog and I suppose I could use the excuse that I have just been doing to many fantastic things to have time to write and that is partly true but still not a good reason for negect.

Last weekend we went to a city in Karnataka that is known for its historical import. We were only there for two days but we were still able to see a batootie load of amazing things. Mysore is a town that was left mostly independant from the British Occupation so there are many things that have stayed true to tradition. Fortunately for me and my unwanted tourist tendancies, we were able to see a lot of neat things to take pictures of, but I do not currently have a way to get my pictures off my camera so I can't put them on here yet.

We (meaning all the USAC students) began the three hour ride to Mysore at 7:00 am Saturday morning but were suppossed to start out at 6 so I wasn't that happy that I woke up at 5:30 but I should have realized that we will always be running on Indian Standard Time here, no matter what our USAC coordinator says.
We stopped to see some pretty cool things along the way and I am lad that Jacob John (Indian USAC coordinator) was there with us so he could recognize these otherwise overlooked points of interest. We first stopped at a silkworm farm that was by no means what I had imagined and I have to say that silk in its pure form isn't quite so 'silky' to the touch as one would suppose. The silk fibres make up the encassing that surrounds the larve and it kind of reminded me of a squished piece of cotton candy that has become hard in the middle, if you can picture that which is doubtful because its a little crazy, I admit. We also stopped off at a jaggery mill. Jaggery is unrefined sugar that they get from squashing sugar cane and boiling the liquid down until it solidifies into a bitter yellow paste. Personally, I'm not a fan of jaggary but it is what is put in all the sweets here so I have had to get used to it. I must say that rotting sugarcane husks have a rather unpleasantly moldy sweet smell to them and by the time we left I was happy to go.
When we got into Mysore we first went to a big cathedral done in Notre Dame style which was an ironic thing to see in one of the most culturally prideful parts of India. The cathedral was complete with flying butchresses and stained glass windows but on a small level. There was an interesting mix of Catholic and Indian extravegance that probably isn't found anywhere else. I have realized that it is an interesting study of human behavior to be here and see the melding of cultures between 'east' and west.
We then went up to a temple on the top of a hill that overlooks the whole Mysore valley. It was amazing and beautiful and I wished I could have stayed there longer but we were on a schedule and for one of the first times since I have been here we kept to the schedule.

That night we stayed in a bed bug infested hotel and I was paranoid all night and didn't sleep very well because I felt like I had things crawling all over me. When I woke in the morning I told Stacy of my fears and she excused it as my being an insane person but I had the last laugh when she had bites all over and I had only a couple. No, I am not that heartless as to laugh at the pains of my dear friend, I did feel rather badactually but it was kind of ironic humor, I suppose.

The next morning we went to 'the best zoo in India', though I must admit that it was rather sad but most interesting at the same time. They did have lots f animals but there were almost more wild monkeys running around everywhere (uncaged of course) than there were animals behind bars. We had a number of people ask us if they could take a picture of us and I felt like putting a sign around my neck that said, 'Homo-erectus; of the white skinned variety' and getting my own cage to sit in so people could look at me. Dang this different skin!

After the zoo we went to the Mysore Palace. Mysore Palace is gargantuan, beautiful, and amazingly ornate!! I loved it and unfortunately we couldn't take pictures inside because it was so incredible. Room after room was so dazzeling and ornate that I could hardly focus on any one thing. I don't mean to give undue anxiety but I might stay in India longer than I first intended because the current Maharaja who lives in the Palace is single and you know, I wouldn't feel too bad marrying the richest man in India, especially if I could live in the Mysore palace (along with his 13 other mansions)!! Our tour guide was giving out applications for marriage and, dang-it I forgot to turn mine in!! I'll have to go back and get a new one soon.

It really was a nice trip even though we had to stuff nine of us in a seven person car but there are no seat belt laws here so we lollopped about whichever way we chose.

Hampi- In which we take a scary train, get accosted by friendly folks, an trade a pen for a picture.

Hampi, is a now small village located in the hills of central Karnataka (that's a state in India, brush up on your geography). It was once the seat of one of the most powerful and largest kingdoms in India. The king was very rich and very religious so he built temples to every god and for everything that happened. I mean it when I say it, apparently there are over 2,000 temples,, or former temples in the area of only a couple square miles! And I tell you what, over ever hill, behind every rock, there seemed to be an impressive marble structure at least 500 years old. It was amazing!

We left for our Hampi adventure late Thursday night so we could travel through the night and then get there bright and early in the morning so we wouldn't have to spend the precious daylight just getting there. I am very proud of us because we got tickets and found our way to the railway station all by ourselves, which I assure you is no small feat! We wandered around the railway station for a really long time and couldn't for the life of me, find out where we were to go. As it is wherever we go in this country, our dang 'lightened' appearance drew all eyes to us but no help as we walked back and forth trying to find the right car. We finally realized that we weren't even on the right platform so we very quickly hauled our butts 8 platforms down the line and got to the train we needed. It then proceeded that we wandered again for quite a long time because we couldn't find the right car. I was getting worried that the train would leave before we got on because people were running around like crazy antelope but finally we saw it there in front of us! A lovely, dirty car painted a nondescript color that reminded me of a shifty motel. We found our seats that were occupied by other people who fortunately knew that they were not in the seats they were supposed to be in and gave them to us immediately.
There then ensued a night filled with hours that were left sleepless by anxieties of impending robbery of our possessions, not knowing what stop was ours, and being overcome by the many rats we saw on the train with us (don't tell Stacy I said rats because I told her they were just mice so it wasn't a big deal). The sleeper car that we were in was not air-conditioned and was lined with bunks of beds that were more like lumpy wooden tables. It really wasn't that bad it was just that I didn't know what to expect so I was unpleasantly surprised at first. The most unsettling element of the ride there was that we still brought a lot of unwanted attention to ourselves, and trying to avoid the eyes of men who are staring at you while you try to will yourself asleep is so uncomfortable. We got there with no harm done though and it wasn't so bad that I won't ride in a train again.
Hampi is georgeous! It was so wonderful to get out in the clean(-ish) air and see real green for the first time in a long time. People in Hampi are nice and don't seem to stare, too much, and as such it was a nice change of scene and situation.
The mountains around Hampi are more like piles of granite rocks that have eroded into large boulders over the years. These are what gave the resources to build the two thousand temples that are in the Hampi area. Many of the rocks are precariously perched on the tops of hills and if it weren't for the fact that they are humongous, I would think that they were placed that way on purpose.
Stacy and I got a room at a cute little guest house with shared bathrooms and a little store that runs on the honor system, we just took what we wanted and wrote it down in a little book. I have to say that I am going to have a hard time when I come home because for one night at an average guest house here, it is an average of rps 200 a night (during off season), which is only around $5! Yeah, if I was a tight-fisted cheap wad before, I can't imagine how I'll be when I get home!
Stacy and I were content with taking things nice and slow, just wandering at our own pace and spending more time looking at things that we wanted to look at, so we didn't hire a guide the first day even though many of us bombarded us with offers. It was rather hot there and because we had a hard night on the train we decided that it would behoove us to go back to our guest house and take a nap through the hottest part of the afternoon. I have realized that all hotels here (at least the ones I can afford) have at least three things in common. Firstly, all of them have very hard beds that are lumpy in places they should not be lumpy in; secondly, the pillows are no better than the beds and are often no more than what feels like a bag of magazines; and thirdly, it is questionable whether or not the sheets are changed before each new guest. But it really isn't that bad, it just makes me miss my bed in Bangalore that is only slightly less hard.
For dinner on the first day we went to what is called a Hampi traveler's tradition. The name in The Mango Tree. And that is what it is. A large, open aired restaurant that is under the leaves of an impressive mango tree. We sat on straw mats on the terraced ground that looks over the river and it was so nice we could have stayed there for hours, which we did. There is this big swing that is made out of an old door that hangs from the high branches of the mango tree. I swung for a little while but it was right above other diners so I thought it a little inconsiderate to be flinging my dirty feet near their food so I didn't stay on it long.



















The power went out that night so I got candles from the front desk and read for a awhile, listening to the sounds of monsoon.

We didn't want to carry around our bags the whole day while we explored the mountains so we decided to keep the room for another day even though we left that night, but we figured that it was worth it for another rps 160 (about $3.75).
Though I am automatically pegged as a tourist the moment my whiteness is spotted, I am trying not to bring too much attention to myself but I must say, the shopping there was good because it was the 'off-season'. Off-season is a bad time for the local vendors and hotel owners but it is fantastic for the poor wandering college student! Lots of people don't come to India during this time because of the 'bad' weather, however, as I am a person who loves the rain, a little, or a lot, of moisture doesn't dampen my spirits in the slightest. I got some wonderful deals on some of the handicrafts there and I must admit that I am quite proud of my developing bartering skills. For example, I got a gift for some one that started at rps 1,550 but I got him down to rps620. I was told by a friend here to always start with at least half of what they are asking and go from there. I have also found that a helpful tool is just saying no, and walking away and many guys will run after you and give a lower price.

All in all it was fantastic and I might even go again before my India time is out. I'll take anyone who wants to tag along! I love you all and hope that you're adventures are equally as thrilling as mine!