IACD = Buying gifts never felt so good!

On Tuesday, 01.22.11, Gill & her 3 children - Ellie, Indi, & Guthrie - and our other Aussie friends, Vicki and her daughter, Natasha, invited Oliver and I on a tour of IACD (ICRISAT Assocation for Community Development). To make a long story short, IACD promotes education, health care, and economic uplifting of women and children in nearby villages.

We toured the classrooms on the ICRISAT campus where Microsoft Office, sewing and tailoring, English, and other classes are held. They also have gardens out back, including a rose garden , from which students and other women sell the produce they raise. (Roses sell for only 2 rupees each). We were treated to wheatgrass juice - very green with a strong grass flavor - go figure! It's very good for you, and it's also sold to raise funds.

All profits from the MAMTA gift shop at ICRISAT go to supporting this wonderful program. The shop has a wide assortment of handicrafts from all across India, at very fair prices, even when compared to the markets where one has to bargain. The woman who runs the shop, Lata, does a great job choosing the inventory - everything from elephant carvings to batik, from jewelry to leather purses, from kurtis to bidriware.

Having gone to this school and seen what is done to help people made me feel very good about supporting them through gift-buying. I like knowing where the money goes - and this goes to a very worthy cause!

Power Booty and other happenings...

Okay, so over a week ago (01.21.11) our new Australian friends and I decided to venture into Patancheru, to the area I was familiar with, in an effort to find some fabric for kurtis and dupattas. Off we went, Gillian and her 3 children - Ellie, Indi, and Guthrie - and Oliver and I, walking along the road to the "village" as I refer to it.

The children loved the baby goats and were greeted by other children on our walk. We first stopped at a little shop which sold bangles. As we were waiting for Ellie to make her selections, a crowd was gathering. My guard immediately went up, sensing a different atmosphere today. Sure enough, I was approached by a man who was rather enthusiastically telling me, with a very heavy scent of liquor, that the woman that was with him was "my lover. She smart - she my lover". All right then. I was relieved when we were able to move on...

(Gotta get groups shots from Gill)

The fabric store that we found had the stiffest fabric I've ever touched - we were reluctant to take their word that it would soften upon washing. So off we went again, with the creepy man still watching us. I didn't feel threatened, but watchful nevertheless. No sooner had I written him off, when another inebriated man came up to me to shake my hand - and his hand was wet. YUCK! Man, oh man, I couldn't find the hand sanitizer fast enough! (I continued washing upon returning home...many times).
Shortly after that, thankfully - and how often does one say that - the children were getting tired and ready to go home. The walk home was exponentially more pleasant - watching oxen pull a cart, goats herded across the highway, water buffalo sharing our street - until one of the buffalo decided to get all freaked out, getting wild-eyed, turning on us...scared the *&%# out of me! I was eyeing up our options, which were not many. Thankfully, she turned and continued on her not-so-merry way. When Gill suggested some gin & tonics, I did not hesitate to say "Yes!"

Yup, that's her - the crazy one on the right!

As five-year-olds will do, Guthrie wanted to get down from his mother's carrying wrap upon entering the ICRISAT campus, and immediately start falling behind, beginning to sulk. The heat had worn us all out, but I decided he needed a game to get him moving again - after all, Guthrie is usually a bundle of energy. So I did my best Zombie Mama run back to him (with Oliver still in the pack on my back - the camel pack, I call it). AAAAAAARRRRRRRAAAAAAARRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!! Guthrie started running after the others  , and we began a game of trying to catch each other. Pretty soon he was running after me, transformer in hand, attacking my bum whenever I stopped. So I would stick out my bum (doesn't that sound cute in an Aussie accent - I think so!) and say, "Power Booty!" It was hysterical - listening to him growling as he crashed into me, Oliver belly laughing each time - then doing it all over again.
Power Booty became our new game - for Guthrie, Indi, and I. Those teachers in Australia have no idea what is headed their way - the new super-hero, POWER BOOTY!!!

Oliver relaxed with a warm bath

Beautiful verse by Ibn al Arabi

From Sadia Dehlvi's column in THE HINDI, the newspaper of Hyderabad:
Her column was entitled, "Sufi's Light on Divinity", about the Sufi Mystic, Shaykh Muhyddin Ibn al Arabi, aka Shaykh ul Akbar. This verse by Ibn al Arabi (who died in 1240, remembered for his contribution in understanding Divine Love):
"Wonder, A garden among flames!
My heart has become capable of every form:
A pasture for gazelles & a convent for Christian monks,
And a temple for idols, and the pilgrim's Kaaba,
The tables of the Torah and the book of the Koran.
I believe in the religion of Love,
Whatever direction its caravans may take,
For love is my religion and my faith."

I will be emailing Sadia to get permission to reprint her article in its entirety - it really touched my heart.

Solo Exploring of Patancheru

Pantancheru 01.16.11

Oliver and I set out on our solo adventure - exploring the streets of Patancheru. He loves riding in his "elephant carriage" - the baby backpack - and I was a willing beast of burden. Quite the pair, Oliver and I!

He was sleeping before we reached the main entry and slept while I bought a Pepsi from a local vendor and guzzled it in the unaccustomed heat.

Remember to click on any photo to enlarge it, then use your back button.
If you enlarge this, you should be able to see the meat hanging in the "window".

We admired the street art and watched more kite-flying. Turning down an unfamiliar street, we were greeted by smiles and children and mothers eager to meet us. Some even ran down the street after us to shake our hands. Two little sisters were anxious for me to take their photo - the mom even ran inside to fetch the younger one!
 

Hmmm, Oliver, what could we call our adventures...something along the Indiana Jones line...I'll have to give this some thought...

Tree (made me think Banyan) inside ICRISAT headquarters

First Wandering in Patancheru

Pantancheru, Andra Pradesh, India 01.15.11

It is sunny and warm here - about 81 degrees Fahrenheit - a great reprieve from Minnesota winter! So a walk gave us an excuse for some exercise and an attempt to get Oliver back on his napping schedule. He always falls asleep when in motion, whether in a baby wrap, a back pack carrier, or a rickshaw.

Here's some views of the ICRISAT headquarters and test fields:

We walked into the village, taking the 45-degree choice of streets at the first intersection we encountered. It is quite funny to watch passing motorists craning their necks to look at us - mutual entertainment. The festival of Sankranthi was being celebrated - a kite-flying festival. In addition to a multitude of kites in the sky, villagers decorated their sidewalks and driveways with colorful designs, done similar to sand-painting.

Enjoying fresh coconut, after drinking the water. The coconut was soft & chewy - and deliciously refreshing.

We ate lunch at a wonderful restaurant - the food was so spicy and rich - yum! Oliver was carried around by one of the waiters while we ate. On the way home, an ice cream wagon stopped by us - too good to resist.

Later that afternoon, we ventured out for a walk to the village to explore the local shops and check out the Sankranthi festivities. There were meat markets (genuine meat markets, not the slang version) complete with severed goats' heads and hanging carcasses. Several other stores were also open, but we chose to keep our walk's purpose to discovering the "neighborhood".

Sankranthi sidewalk art

Kite-flying on the rooftops

Meat Market with live chickens

Proud goat owner

View of the street we investigated

People in this village are more openly friendly than in Delhi, bringing their children out to meet us and running to catch up with us. Telugu is one of the predominant languages here. Its a visually beautiful language, which of course has me intrigued. I hope to find a Telugu calligrapher here - or a sign painter.

Telugu writing

Just plain beautiful - a photo begging to be taken

Unwelcomed Privilege

ICRISAT, Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh, India 01.14.11

My internal clock adjusted rather quickly, though not as quickly as when I had gone to Delhi. The extra hours in travel (23 hours total) were enough to set me off-kilter for one day. I am staying at the ICRISAT headquarters located at Andra Pradesh, India, about 32 km out of Hyderabad. If you're curious about what ICRISAT is about, and it does have a very noble mission, check their web site out:  http://www.icrisat.org/icrisat-globalpresence.htm

Ali & I call Patancheru a "village", although it's larger than a lot of "cities" back in Minnesota. Here's Wikipedia's description of Patancheru:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patancheru

On Friday, Ali, Oliver, and I took an auto-rickshaw ride into Andra Pradesh to stock up on diapers and other groceries. While standing in line, we experienced what Ali referred to as "white privilege", something that made us very uncomfortable. We were singled out and directed to another register that they opened just for us, so we wouldn't have to stand in line. Yes, to say it made me (us) uncomfortable is an understatement. Because of the color of our skin, we were treated differently - and I did not like it at all. I was more than happy to wait my turn in line like everyone else. Next time, I will refuse that preferential treatment - it's just not right.

Return to India

Hello, Hyderabad! Actually, I'm about 40 km out of Hyderabad, at the ICRISAT campus.
Getting here was a long haul - 23 hours total travel time. Yikes!
On the flight from Newark, NJ to Frankfurt, Germany, I sat next to two young women - one from Germany, the other from India. Upon landing in Frankfurt, I walked around for a while to stretch the legs and get the circulation going again after an 8.5 hour flight. I wound up at the Goethe Bar - having lettered a lot of Goethe quotes over the years, I was drawn to it. All my anticipation of tasting a genuine German beer went up in thin air after the first swallow - it tasted exactly like Blue Moon! Oh, well, as the only woman "bellied up to the bar", I soon had company - Jeff & Jeff from Chicago, on their way to Birmingham, England, and Mick (pronounced "Meek") from Sydney, Australia. I couldn't help but laugh as Mick kept showering me with compliments and offering me chocolates in addition to the beer he bought for me. Good thing I had a plane to catch!

On the Frankfurt-Hyderabad leg, I was seated next to a young Norwegian boy, Christian, who was traveling with his father to India as missionaries. For a young teen, he was a wonderful conversationalist, and we spent much of the time relating Ole & Sven jokes, talking about Dan Brown's books (he was also reading The Lost Symbol), and a myriad of other subjects.
That flight had the most babies on it that the flight attendant had seen in over 15 years. Let's just say that there were several baby chorus performances - enough to get out the ear plugs.
I landed in Hyderabad at 12:35 AM, exhausted, but curious. After nearly 1-1/2 hours, I arrived at my daughter's door - sleep never felt so good!

Going back...or is it forward...

Getting set to go back to India - this time to Hyderabad. I'll be caring for my grandson, Oliver, while his mama is researching. I'm also packing some basic watercolors, watercolor pencils, calligraphy nibs, Parallel pens, Rapidograph, MacPro laptop, 2 hard drive backups (one for my iMac back @ home, one for the MacPro), my trusty Nikon S8000, and a ton of imagination and appetite for adventure.
Thankfully, I will be working on revamping a client's web site and card designs while there - but also exploring other possibilities. After yesterday's phone call from a good friend, I am entertaining other life possibilities as well...who knows where that will lead?
Lots of retro- and introspection going on...the less I own, the less that owns me. I am free to pick up and follow where dreams may lead...or stray phone calls for that matter. "What would I do if I only had one year to live?"...those kinds of questions, and more importantly, "Why not do it now?"
Here's to 2011 and what lies ahead...

Thoughts on Being Protective...

I celebrated Christmas last evening with my son, Phil, and son-in-law, Juan. While talking about my experiences over in India with my daughter, Ali, and grandson, Oliver, Juan asked if I ever felt threatened. Interesting question...I never felt overly concerned about my own safety, but I can tell you with all certainty that "Mother Bear" mode kicked in several times - do NOT mess with my babies, or I will kick your *ss!


But seriously, the only times I felt this way were at the train stations, being accosted by scammers who were obviously trying to (physically) lead us astray and/or were following us to the point of hounding/stalking us.

I recall removing the full, hard, plastic water bottles from the side pockets of my backpack, having one in each hand, ready to slam them into someone's mouth (or elsewhere), using them as weapons if needed.  I quickly eyed an armed security officer and ushered us over to him to ask directions.

Other than that, I only had to use my Adrian Peterson stiff-arm move in queues for tickets at the train station (my daughter remarked that she was impressed that I was not only the only woman, but also the only foreigner in line) and at the ATM, a virtual glass "closet" that four men tried to follow me into. I don't think so!!! That same move (a "talk to the hand" version) was used on the Metro or in public situations in which men had been staring at me for too long. (I found out later that the only blondes that they see are in lingerie ads - great, just great).

Is it coincidence that, as I get ready to return to India, Victoria's Secret has its semi-annual sale?! I don't think so!!!   ;D  hehehe

Back to India...and Back to Square One...

Going back to India for seven weeks to care for my grandson, Oliver, work on new designs, tweak a web site (a commission), and look for work from there...this time in Hyderabad, India's version of Silicon Valley.

Discovering what I did today set me back a bit in spirit, but what does not kill one, makes one stronger, right? I choose to look at this as an opportunity to see what I am made of...and to rise above.

I will not miss winter in Minnesota, but I will miss several key pieces of my life that I have come to treasure...you know who you are...but know that you are treasured deep in my heart...the jewels in my life...

Jaiselmer, India 09.28.10 and 09.29.10

Jaiselmer is a place that I would go back to in a heartbeat...
(click on any photo to enlarge it...digital viagra, if you will...I know, bad humor, but I could not resist...)

At any rate, Jaiselmer was so ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL & CLEAN as to seem surreal - something out of a movie site...the yellow sandstone, ornately carved buildings and clean surroundings were only the beginning. It was quiet enough to hear the sound of children playing, pigs squealing, and dogs barking - horns were a secondary noise, much to my pleasure and surprise!

Its people were kind, smiling, and unaggressive - even the shopkeepers - such a welcomed change from other cities. There was an army base nearby, and the officers were so very open and friendly, too.

The tie-dye method was invented here - the original method alive and well - small knots, hand-tied, resulting in the most amazing patterns. These women were locals, encouraging us to buy at their friends' shop - needless to say, we were happy to oblige them!

The views from the rooftop restaurants were breathtaking and the food served from those places was delectable - spicy and rich.

One of the waiters carried Oliver around while Ali and I ate, enjoying the smell of the air and the sound of local musicians. A friend of his arrived, carrying his daughter, who, when introduced to Oliver in her father's arms, reacted with fear. Obviously, she had never seen a "white" baby before. It was a very intriguing experience, watching this beautiful little girl slowly warm to a baby that did not look familiar in the least.

We toured the Amber Fort - so clean and inviting compared to the others we had seen. This one was inhabited, too - and filled with shops - and life. It just felt so different - it was infused with life unlike the others. 

The Jain temple was a wonderful site to visit - intricate carvings. I was so struck with the contrast between modern Indian dress and the voluptuous, sensual carvings inside this temple. It was also "engendered" with some very amusing carvings!

Ali, Oliver, and I met some wonderful Chinese tourists at the guest house, and we set out on a desert safari with them. Ali & Oliver wisely ventured out to the camp in the Jeep, while the rest of us climbed upon our desert steeds for a  2-1/2 hour camel caravan amid gypsy encampments, area villagers on their camels, and fantastic views.

The safari was wonderful - the food, the camaraderie, and the night sky, complete with meteors to wish upon. I found particular delight filming a few dung beetles fighting over... well, dung.
I could have stayed here longer, relishing the surroundings and the people. Perhaps I will...