First real day in India

Today was simple and almost boring at times.

We started out the day with a walk down beach road (as an exercise on how to walk down the street), but that ended when some people at a local private school invited us to stop in. The children were excited to see us and as luck would have it the school was preparing the children for an upcoming festival by dressing them up and having them perform the rituals (that’s the wrong word, but I don’t know what else to use). The festival is Sankranti and I really don’t have any clue what it’s about, but the real festival starts on the 14th and lasts for three days, so I’m sure that I’ll learn more then. The children really love the most outgoing people. Like I said, I’ll have to work on it. In reality I think that I’ll be more likely to be outgoing when I’m not around everyone from the program.

We did some other things, like set up internet and whatnot, but the most interesting for me was stopping by the Krishna Temple. We went inside and performed puja or worship, which included clapping and walking around the shrine as the priests chanted and clapped together symbols (along with other people from the neighborhood). After that we stood in line for water that had camphor in it, drank some, wiped the rest on our heads, and were given a food substance of some sort. I’ll have to look into the meaning of all that went on, or at least as much as I can find and let you know. The Jalaris, the people I’ll be working with, don’t really worship Krishna and Dr. Nuckolls said that 90 percent of them wouldn’t have any clue what deity the temple was even dedicated too. Local village goddesses are vastly more important to the Jalari than Krishna, Vishnu and other deities in the regular pantheon that we associate with Hinduism. Those Gods are worshipped and recognized mainly by Brahmans (and only Brahmans can become priests).

The house doesn’t have any hot water and the shower head works only marginally well, so I prefer just to pour water into a bucket and scoop it out to bathe. It has the major advantage of not making you all cold all at once. Water shortages are common here in the summer so water use is somewhat limited, so I hope that I’m using the more water conscious way to bathe, but I don’t really know and I’m not sure that I really care to find out.

I am tired and need to get to sleep so that I can wake up early tomorrow.


Justin

First India Update

I don’t know if Katie e-mailed or called people, but I’m now in Vizag and have been for the last day. I now have internet access (I pay for it by mbs), and am capable of skyping anyone who wishes to talk. Because of the time difference though, it would be better for me to talk in my morning (your afternoon), although I’m least busy around 1 or 2 in the morning (your time obviously). I will have a cell phone in the future, but I’m not sure if it will be cheaper to call or skype, because I don’t know the long distance calling rate. Either way, I’ll probably have skype up in your evening if you want to talk (although probably not for very long, an hour maybe).

Also, feel free to forward this to anyone you think might want to read this and future e-mails. So, Katie you need to send this to your family.

The flight was exhausting. I was between a bigger person and Frenchman with wide shoulders which made it nearly impossible to actually sleep. I think that all of the sleeping I did happened in 15-30 minute intervals and really only happened two or three times (I don’t actually remember very well). That’s about all the sleep I had for 40 hours or so. I was too tired to read, but too awake to sleep, so I watched movies...lots and lots of movies. Other than that everything was smooth. Several people lost luggage on the way and I feel fortunate to not be one of them, but it wouldn’t have been a big bother. I didn’t have anything important in my luggage, or at least not anything I couldn’t do without.

Just so you all know, Vizag is about 12 hours different from all of you (11 and a half from Utah).

Last night wasn’t actually all that bad. I crashed at 645 pm or so (and I CRASHED) and slept until 430, which I think was a pretty good sleep. I didn’t have any troubles falling back asleep after waking up the couple of times I did and that’s what most people complained about. At around 445 the Krishna temple which is only 3 buildings away or so opens the temple with loud bells and chanting (Hindu temples are supposed to be loud). I was already awake, but I’m glad that in the future I will have it as an alarm. We’ll see how long I stay in bed after a couple of weeks, but for now my plan is to wake up with the temple and exercise (which I did this morning). I’m fighting a headache right now, but I think that it’s a combination of jetlag and dehydration, and I’m definitely not feeling very smart. I can’t seem to remember simple things.

Vizag is a fascinating place. There are lanes on some roads, but no one seems to care either way if they’re in them or not. Drivers go where they fit. The city is a very strange mix of broken down or incomplete buildings and very nice places (all built in the last 20 years or so). The very contemporary mall (nothing on the order of the size of our malls, more like a medium sized business building 4 stories high) looks over at a 5 story building partially covered by tarps (half of two sides). I guess that I always assumed that in cities around the world there was segregation between the very poor and very rich, and there is some in India, but it’s not nearly as easy for me to see the division as in US.

There are no tourists in Vizag and people seem to be more excited to see us than we are to see them. White people are rare, especially Americans, and I have yet to see anyone outside of the program who is. It really pays to be outgoing in Vizag, so I’ll have to work on that, but it’s difficult for me to understand people (even when they speak english) and I feel rude asking them to repeat things over and over. Like I said, I’ll have to be outgoing and willing to make mistakes and talk to people, none of which I do very naturally.

The apartment/house has cement tile floors and cement walls and feels a lot like a missionary apartment (except cleaner).


Justin

Update!

So it has been a long while and lots has happened. Here is a quick over view of what has happened in our lives:

• We moved to California after Collins wedding. We are living with Justin's parents. The weather is fabulous about 58 degrees every day!
• Our baby is no longer a baby he walks around everywhere now. It is so cute. He is also learning how to run. He will not stay in his high chair anymore. He also figured out how to get out of being tied in...
• Justin is now in India!!! he working on getting adjusted to the time change and waking up at 4:30 every morning. I will be posting his e-mails for those that are interested in his eastern adventures.
• School has started again for me. I am waiting for financial aide so I can buy my books so I pretty much can't do anything with school right now.
• We have 2 terrariums to house our orchids. The plants seem to be enjoying them and doing quite well.
• The little guy passed away last week. It was sad. He just did not adjust well. So, Risky is a little lonely, but I think he is happy to be getting out more.

THANKSGIVING!

I am excited for Thanksgiving this year. I will be making a turkey again. I don't know which kind yet. I am thinking something new. maybe with pomegranate...

And I get to make pies this year as well! I am very excited as I just got a new recipe for apple pir that I really like. I am feeling super motivated and excited, so excited that I did all of the Thanksgiving decorating this morning and made an apple pie. I am ready!!!!

Halloween!

We visited a corn maze in Vineyard. It was perfect for small kids. They had lots of farm animals and a tour of a vegetable patch and a spooky pumpkin barn.

The boys in their costumes. They were cute.

It rained so hard Saturday night. We had few trick or treaters. We braved the bad weather and got some candy for dad. Can you guess who we were?

Sarah and Toby from the Labyrinth!!!

The Scarlet Pimpernel

A few weeks ago I saw the play "The Scarlet Pimpernel". I saw it for my Theater class and I was suposed to watch the play and think about Goeth's 3 questions. Here is my response paper to the play.

The Scarlet Pimpernel

By Katie Tungate

Goeth’s three questions help theater and moviegoers see a deeper meaning in their entertainment. Most importantly the questions internalize and personalize what you view. On October 28^th, 2010 I saw the Scarlet Pimpernel performed at the Hale Center Theater in Orem. This was a familiar play to me. By thinking about these questions while I watched the Scarlet Pimpernel I was able to view the play in a different light.

What was the artist trying to achieve?

The main subject matter of The Scarlet Pimpernel is to show that the noble cause of the French revolution had become distorted and was out of hand. I think the play shows that the reason for the out of control nature of the revolution was directly linked to those who ran it. The play personifies the notion that the aristocrat or educated man was born to lead and the common or uneducated man was born to follow. This theme is subtlety throughout the play. Marguerite goes through a transition before the play begins. At the beginning of the French revolution she is a full supporter of the cause. It is alluded to that her views begin to change through her courtship with Percy.

How well did he or she achieve it? I think that the theme I saw in the play was done well as a subtle underling theme. The costuming, lighting, and sets reflect the difference between aristocratically run England and democratically run France. England is bright, lavishly decorated, beautifully costumed and the characters seem very cheery. In France there is a haze in the air it is darker the costumes are plain and tattered and the characters are macabre. There is also a contrast in the love songs from Percy and Chauvelin. In Chauvelin’s song, “Where’s the Girl” you get the feeling that their love was more base and animal. Percy’s song “You are my Home”, shows a romance and exudes a feeling of true deep love. In scene six Percy is discussing the French revolution with his friends. They decide to do something to save the innocent from Madame Guillotine. In this scene Percy mentions that he and his friends are all educated smart men and would easily be able to out wit the French. Percy and his men go on to save many lives and make fools of Chauvelin.

Was it worth doing? I think that what I saw in the plot shows the bias of the original author, Baroness Orczy, who was herself an aristocrat who had to leave her home because of the threat of a peasant uprising. She spent most of her life in England. The English are also renowned for their hatred of the French. The play slyly shows that the educated aristocrat should be leading the country and not the poor uneducated masses. Which is why I don’t think the play was worth doing.

On one hand it does show the value of an education. Which none would say is unimportant. What the play does show is the complicated nature of war. Chauvelin is caught between the love of his country and his love for Marguerite. He chooses to betray her trust for what he sees as for the good of the people of France. The play is also very fun and entertaining. These are the reasons the play is worth seeing.

I think I am a little biased myself in my viewing of the Scarlet Pimpernel. Prior to seeing the play I was reading some of Karl Marx’s work for a sociology class. This is the reason I think that I picked out the theme and plot the way that I did. I am pretty sure that Karl Marx would see Chauvelin as a tragic hero of the people and not the antagonist. Using these questions really got me thinking about the Scarlet Pimpernel on a different level. (I may have read a little too much into this play)

I thought it was an interesting take on the Scarlet Pimpernel. Do you agree with me? It is also a fun play and I do recommend seeing it if you liked the old movie.

Deodorizing Expectations

I have never been satisfied with any deodorant I have ever used. I have even tried the organic crystals. (I wanted to stop using anti perspirents, alas I could not stand smelling after 2 hours.)

I am wary of the clinical strength ones, has anyone tried them?

I have been a Degree Girl for a long time now that seems to be what works best for me. I was super sad when they created the women's line for Degree because the other stuff worked sooo good. I am happy with my wetness protection, but it is the smell. I feel like after 4 hours of use it stops working.

I am so unsatisfied that I am thinking about trying Justin deodorant out.

What I am looking for is a deodorant that lasts more than 5 hours, like 7 or 8. Good wetness protection, and a pleasant smell.

Am I expecting to much from this product?