Entries this day: Carla Stuffs Then_sometimes miki tomoko_sumida_miyuki

Carla

9:53am JST Thursday 22 July 2004

Carla in India

Greetings from "the filthiest country on earth"....India. Well my two
and a half months in India have come to an end and we will leave
tomorrow evening!  I apologize for not having written any emails
recently but with my sister and Soula being here for the past
month...time has just seemed to pass so quickly!  I have so much that
I want to say in this email...some good some bad...but I will try to
keep it positive and short!!!

I think in my last email I was a little harsh on my feelings towards
India...can't say that those feelings have changed much...but I've met
some fabulous people and had some unforgettable experiences.  India
cannot be described in an email...it is sensory overload at its
finest.  The rickshaws, the cows, the camels, the begging children,
the smells, the honks, the heat, the cow shit on the streets, the
whistling men, the drug-sellers, the poverty, the everything is always
in your face.  Most days we are finding it challenging to force
ourselves to leave our hotel gates.  We have quickly nicknamed our
hotels "The Compound"..and often can't wait to get back to the little
bit of peace and tranquility they offer us at the end of each day.
The men are often more than we can handle.  A day has not gone by when
the men have not stared, followed, stalked, gawked, drooled, panted or
just down right propositioned us.  They are absolute filthy pigs!  And
of course I've often felt the need to tell them so (so many foul words
just seem to come flying out of my mouth...most of which I learned
from my years of going to school in Detroit)!  On any given day the
streets, shops and restaurants are filled with men, it is rare to meet
or even see women.  I'm struggling with the cultural differences here
and am often finding myself pushing Western values on Indian men.

So let me change the subject to a happier note...what have I really
enjoyed here.  After arriving in Delhi in May (Delhi blahhhhhh)..I
went straight to Calcutta and spent 6 weeks living on Sudder Street
and volunteering for Mother Teresa's organization.  I loved
it...absolutely loved it!!!  Mother Teresa established many different
homes around the Calcutta area for many different kinds of people
(orphans, lepers, the destitute, etc.). I volunteered in an orphanage
with 120 children all between the ages of 1-4.  They were all so
beautiful and I still find it hard to believe that I didn't come home
with one or twelve of them!!!  My job included making beds, doing
laundry and feeding, but most of the time was spent just simply
playing with the children.  I became attached to so many of them..and
it became harder to leave at the end of each day.  I also spent some
time at a leper's colony...a great self-sufficient place for people
who have been rejected by society...and at another home called
Callighat...for the destitute and dying..another beautiful place for
people (usually found dying on the streets) with nowhere else to go.
.  What made the volunteer experience so incredible was the fact that
the volunteers come from countries all over the world...so many
languages, cultures and people coming together to help the same cause!
Of course a big hello and hugs go out to my friends from there..the
Modern Lodge crew, the Paragon group (especially my Japanese
connection there) and fellow volunteers ( Azusa, Mari and Chiharu we
will hook up back in Yokohama desho!!!)

During my stay in Calcutta I took a weekend trip to Bangladesh.
Without sounding too negative all in one email....that country is not
yet ready to accept Western female travelers...nor are they on the
brink of!!!!  They do have some beautiful sights..that I could barely
see from behind the black shawl I had to wear to cover my head and
face....and some great food..that I was only allowed to eat in rooms
curtained off for "women".  Not high on my recommends...but maybe I'll
go back and try it again in the future!

At the end of June I left Calcutta and met up with my sister and
friend Soula.  Since then we have been traveling through Rajasthan
(Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Udaipur), Delhi, Dharmsala, Agra (Taj
Mahal) and of course up to Nepal.  Traveling with three in India...is
certainly much much much better than traveling alone but it certainly
hasn't been easy!!  As I said before, India and my experiences in
India cannot be fully described in an email!  Ya'll gotta come here
and check this place out for a day..you wouldn't believe it!!!!  Let
me tell you a day does not go by when we are not torn limb from limb
by the hordes of desperate cycle rickshaw drivers, auto rickshaw
drivers, cab drivers, camel drivers, horse and buggy drivers..(and the
list goes on)...all waiting to take us somewhere for a few rupees.
Soula's favourite has been the men pissing on the streets..or really
just anywhere they please...the smell adding to your already
overloaded nostrils.  A helpful person is hard to come by...everyone
here is looking to make a quick buck off the "rich foreigners".  The
inflated prices and the scams add headache and hassle to every move!
BUT...

On the more positive side of things we of course have done some
amazing things and seen some beautiful places.  We have even met some
beautiful Indian people (the Tibetans and the Nepalese
rock)...although I haven't really been able to have much interaction
with the culture as a whole.  Some highlights for me have been..our
entire time in Nepal...absolutely beautiful people and scenery..will
definitely go back for longer!  The camel trek we did near the Great
Thar Desert....gotta love them beige creatures!  Our night in the
thatched hut in the fort in Jaisalmer...it was a little windy with no
walls yes!  The mostly peaceful time we spent in Dharamsala (McLeod
Ganj) in search of His Holiness...Mr. D. Lama and his
sidekick....Mr. Hot Lama (these perhaps may be nicknames..but if you
do get a chance..check out a photo of the new up and coming Dalai
Lama...not too shabby!).  Definitely our morning at the Taj...that's a
whole lotta marble!  The lunch at the Chocolate Log restaurant in
McLeod Ganj...where I just happen to slice my finger open with a
knife...and a monk (who happened to be sitting at a nearby table)
rushed to my aid with tea tree oil and a blessing (now that doesn't
happen every day).  And definitely the best highlight for me has been
just traveling with Weiner and Soula in the most difficult country in
the world.  I'm usually not one to speak for others but I think I can
say that highlights for Weiner have included...man sandwiches (our
term for the rows of men often found throughout India)..and the men
staring at her chest while asking about her camera...and highlights
for Soula may include all the men pissing anywhere and
everywhere...and watching rats run into and out of various kitchens
and food stalls.  The things we have had to face and see every day
have made us better/stronger people...I hope!!!  You guys were
incredible traveling partners.  As we said many times..it takes a very
special person to survive India..and we did it (kinda)!!!  At the end
of each day we were able to laugh at allllll of our daily debacles!

So I'll say a sad good-bye to Weiner and Soula..but trust me we'll
never forget this trip.  Next destination...Cairo!!! Jennie
girl...I'll be seeing you there..can't wait!!!!

As for the rest of you....thanks for all the emails and regular
updates!  Bill and Sheryl have a great trip...it's your last
one...hahaha!  Kieron and Clayton be safe as you venture out into this
crazy world.Congrats to my cousin Patricia on her recent
engagement...maybe I'll be on the continent for your wedding!  Rhonda
and Rob I can't wait to meet your new baby girl..you'll be fab
parents!  KJ..best of luck with those wedding plans and I'll
definitely hook it up to meet you in Italy!

Hugs and smiles to all of you, CARLA
 
PS: OK...so I typed this email yesterday but did not have time to send
it.  Today's adventure was a classic..and a must include in this
email.  So my sister gets her phone stolen from the locker at the
guest house we are staying at in Delhi...so off we go to the police
station to get a police report for her insurance company.  First off
all...every rickshaw driver refuses to take us to the station(hmmmm
dodgy country?????)..in fact ..they all sped away before we could say
police statiiiiiii.....!  Finally...we get to the station and go in
thinking this is going to be an awful experience filled with bribes
and other Indian style debacles...but....we somehow get this inspector
that has a friend that lives in Canada (everyone here seems to have a
friend that lives in Canada)...after he spends 25 minutes going
through his address book...showing all his friends from
abroad..reminiscing about his time in Kosovo...and serving us bottled
water...he asks us if people have offered us drugs during our time
here..of course we said yes (it would be an all-out lie if you ever
saw the area of town we are staying in)..then he proceeds to ask us to
come back to India and work as undercover cops with his force...and we
can stay at his house!!!  After we fell off our chairs laughing (don't
think he quite understood how unlikely it was for us to ever set foot
back in India..let alone work as a female cop) we took the report and
went straight back to our compound!  Can you imagine..."Hello
mom...I'm a cop in India"...hahaha! I love my India!!!!!!!!!!

Stuffs

9:45am JST Thursday 22 July 2004

Last night I met Masashi for our biweekly lesson. Hitomi went with me to the station (on her way home), but Masashi invited her to join us, so she did.

Everything seemed cool, though her addition caused a lot of Japanese chatter, which arguably could be detrimental to his English learning, but we had fun and stuff.

10:19am

Okay. I'm going to take a shower and go back to the cafe where we met last night, cause I think it will be a good place to study without distractions.

But I've got almost no time before I need to leave to meet Miki at noon in Kawasaki. And then meet Tomoko, Sumida and Miyuki for dinner at 5:30 in Shinbashi.

Then sometimes

11:57am JST Thursday 22 July 2004

Then sometimes I like the little home I've created in Japan. Just today on my way to hang out with Miki, I saw two different students from Nova who were like, "HI" to me. Asuka on the train from Kosugi to Kawasaki and then Midori at Circle K in Kawasaki. Both names I had forgotten, but Asuka told me hers and I read Midori's name tag. (I notice that I didn't say Midori had on a name tag; I had to think to read it, not just read it.)

Midori's son is Takuya, but I didn't remember that until now; I'll go back and ask her about him. I wonder where Miki is; she's never late.

miki

4:39pm JST Friday 23 July 2004

She had been at Starbucks 30 minutes before, but then went window shopping. I called her and joined her shopping spree for a bit until she found some earrings for her sister.

I told her I had seen Asuka, so we went to the Italian restaurant where she said she worked. Didn't see her there (plus it wasn't an ice cream shop per se, so we inquired about the whereabouts of an ice cream shop). Second floor. Ah.

Found her and she gave me 20% off ice cream and Miki relayed the story of how I took us to the wrong place at first. I defended myself by repeating what I had asked Asuka before; anyway it was all good and we stayed there for probably 2 hours, most of which was me studying with Miki's corrections, and a little of Miki's questions and my corrections in English.

Soon I'm going to Shinbashi to meet /トモ et. al.

ps: the peeps from the picture place called. Pics are ready. Whooo!

- - - -

overall, big fun.

tomoko sumida miyuki

10:52pm JST Thursday 22 July 2004

Hung out with Teddy Bear Tomoko, Miyuki and Sumidasan tonight, starting at a Mexican/American/Japanese restaurant, where we (eventually) told Tomoko about our Mt Fuji adventure, and then moving to Starbucks (not Karaoke, as Miyuki wasn't in a singing mood) where I was completely blessed by all three of them as they suggested ways I could start my own business here in Japan. They heaped praise on my teaching techniques, my writing style, and my self confidence in general that maybe I can do something cool and interesting in the world.

During the evening, I basically re-calculated the idea that has been implemented in Houston: Leisure Learning Unlimited, and asked if the concept exists in Japan. (yes)

Though it already exists, I now know my brain can come up with cool ideas. I put a bookmark on the technique of the thought process that I used, not just a bookmark on the idea itself.

- - - -

overall, big fun.