"What chapter are we on?"
"zzzz...."
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
You might live in India if...
...your so excited about your first solid BM in 3 weeks you phone a friend to share the news! (don't laugh, true story)
...the most current state of yours or others intestinal tracts are topic of daily conversation, and it's completely acceptable!
...even the cows have diarhea!
Please come visit me, PLEASE! Don't forget to BYOBOP! (bring your own bottle of Pepto)
Sunday, April 13, 2008
White water rafting on the Ganges
Last weekend we started off our spring break with an exciting trip to Rishikesh for some white water rafting down the Ganga (otherwise known in America as the Ganges). Never having been white water rafting before, I have to say, it was absolutely thrilling!
We awoke just several hours after having gone to bed so we could catch the bus to the Delhi train station for our 5 hour train ride only to be followed up by a two hour bus ride up the steep and treacherous rodes of the Himalayan foothills.
The mountain roads have been under construction for some time now in an attempt to widen them for increased traffic. Our driver was obviously very experienced as he manoeuvred the switchbacks at an ever increasing speed all the while dodging other moving vehicles, rock slides, people and animals without so much as a flinch. Me on the other hand...lets just say I was braced for impact most of the drive.
After arriving at camp we played a little in the (freezing cold) river while some tried their hand at repelling and others at kayaking. Mo, Mish and Big T all repelled and kayaked. Little T tried his hand at kayaking as well but you could barely see his head over the life preserver and the paddles were almost twice his height. Although he enjoyed the kayaking he seemed to be more gifted at the art of rock busting and sand castle building. He must take after his father who was busily constructing the Indian version of Stonehenge (see photo slide show).
After that we lazed around the camp and waited for the nightly barbecue and dinner, however, most were so full from eating all the yummy chicken, paneer (an Indian cheese) and vegetables that were barbecued as appetizers that only a few took part in the evening meal of soup and lamb curry. As I am not very fond of lamb, I didn't mind so much.
The next morning we climbed out of our tents to an unpleasantly, overcast, rainy day. We pushed back our rafting trip 30 minutes in hopes the rain would let up. It soon became obvious that we would have to press on rain or shine. So we all dawned our life vests, helmets and with oars in hand we boarded our water crafts.
The children were all able to accompany us for the first few kilometers of the trip at which point they were met buy a bus and taken back to camp with their parent or appointed guardian. Since R has actually rafted the Colorado river (yeah, I know, what hasn't he done) he graciously took our two youngest and several other children back to camp so that I could continue the trip.
While rafting there were plenty of water fights, hostile boardings and of course "smack-talk". I forgot to mention we had a group of marines on the trip who made sure there was never a dull moment...unless of course they were in a weakened state of 'hang-over'.
When we hit the big rapids though, it was all "business". Our guides would refocus our attentions on the challenge ahead by practising our commands including; forward all, back paddle, down (reserved only for the 4+ rapids), and my personal favorite; high-side!(High-side is when the person sitting in the middle in the front sacrificially throws themselves to the front of the raft in hope the added weight will stabalize the craft and help prevent us from flipping during the big waves! ROCK ON!)
At one point in the river we stopped for cliff diving. Now, I consider myself a pretty adventurous person and in my youth I was known to have dove off a cliff or two. But that was a long time ago and in my frozen condition I wasn't sure I could manage my fear long enough to make it up the cliff-side. I was chilled to the bone by the time I climbed from my boat. Mo was at the top of the cliff waiting her turn to jump (she was actually the first one to jump! That's my girl!) with Big T at her heals (Big T ended up jumping 6 times, more than anyone else in the group) and my friend A and her husband yelling for me to "come on!"
So with a great deal of fear and trepidation I climbed to what I thought might just be my death. Once at the top I should have thought twice when the guy before me turned back. But no, I couldn't let my kids think I was any lamer than they already do. So I jumped....
I remember cliff diving to be much more exciting as a teenager but once my feet left the cliff I was gripped by one thought and one thought only; "WHAT....THE....HELL....AM....I...DOING!!!!!!" I sailed through the air as if I was trying to climb every rain drop I could grasp to get back to the top of the cliff. I then hit the water with such force I thought my hand had been broken, but no, it was just frozen and beet read from slapping the water at 50 miles an hour! (trust me, I'm a big woman)
Just barely recovered from my cliff diving accident we hit some of the biggest rapids of the trip. I was sitting in the front left rowing position and as the waves crested over our entire raft engulfing me in the process, I literally had a 'brain-freeze'. Our guide was screaming "forward team, forward team!" as I sat with the oars frozen in my hands, trying hard for the second time in mere hours, to push the thoughts of death from my frozen brain cells. After what seemed like minutes instead of seconds I lurched forward digging my paddle as hard as I could into the icy waters. It took less than a minute to clear the rapids but it felt much longer. After each rapid I wanted to stand up and beat my chest but, opted for whooping and hollering. The adrenalin was pumping through my veins and after surviving two near-death-experiences, I was ready for whatever the river was able to dish out!
After the rafting we ate lunch. It wasn't anything special, in fact I'm pretty sure it didn't even taste very good, but after nearly drowning and freezing to death, it was the best food I've ever tasted.
Back at camp we tried to clean up the best we could and recover from the onset of hypothermia. The evening events were much the same as the night before. The marines started drinking, we ate barbecue, the marines drank, we sat around the campfire, the marines still drinking. Finally we surrendered to bed (while the marines stayed up to....you guessed it, drink some more).
Sunday morning we woke up to a beautifully sunny day and one more 4+ rated rapid to go. This would be our last opportunity to cleanse ourselves in the waters of the Ganges and I was looking forward to it, especially now that the sun was shinning!
It was a much more relaxed ride with only one big rapid during the hour and a half ride. R rode ahead and stopped to take pictures of each our rafts as we entered the big rapid. He got some amazing photos. (see slide show below)
Once back at camp we started the tedious job of drying wet clothing on rocks, chairs, tents and the volleyball net. We cleaned up for the second time in 3 days and hiked up to the buses for our back-track to Delhi.
Once again we had the Himalayan Nascar bus driver and one of our friends eventually told him he could not exceed 40 miles per hour for the rest of the drive. We were all on separate buses, hanging with friends and family. R was on the same bus as Little T but was in the front of the bus taking pictures when Little T decided to up-chuck his lunch. Luckily, those present were very gracious about the whole situation and after Little T was cleaned up they were underway once again.
We arrived back at home safe and sound and exhausted. The rest of our spring break has been....well, a lot less adrenaline pumping than white water rafting the Ganga! Mostly we've been hanging with friends, swimming at the pool and eating at ACSA.
Tomorrow the kids go back to school and life will unfortunately, resume to "normal". No near-death-experiences, terrifying bus rides or rock busting. No stinky out-door toilets, bucket showers or cardboard mattresses. No drunken marines, sandy bums or frozen limbs.....I can't wait for next year!!!!
We awoke just several hours after having gone to bed so we could catch the bus to the Delhi train station for our 5 hour train ride only to be followed up by a two hour bus ride up the steep and treacherous rodes of the Himalayan foothills.
The mountain roads have been under construction for some time now in an attempt to widen them for increased traffic. Our driver was obviously very experienced as he manoeuvred the switchbacks at an ever increasing speed all the while dodging other moving vehicles, rock slides, people and animals without so much as a flinch. Me on the other hand...lets just say I was braced for impact most of the drive.
After arriving at camp we played a little in the (freezing cold) river while some tried their hand at repelling and others at kayaking. Mo, Mish and Big T all repelled and kayaked. Little T tried his hand at kayaking as well but you could barely see his head over the life preserver and the paddles were almost twice his height. Although he enjoyed the kayaking he seemed to be more gifted at the art of rock busting and sand castle building. He must take after his father who was busily constructing the Indian version of Stonehenge (see photo slide show).
After that we lazed around the camp and waited for the nightly barbecue and dinner, however, most were so full from eating all the yummy chicken, paneer (an Indian cheese) and vegetables that were barbecued as appetizers that only a few took part in the evening meal of soup and lamb curry. As I am not very fond of lamb, I didn't mind so much.
The next morning we climbed out of our tents to an unpleasantly, overcast, rainy day. We pushed back our rafting trip 30 minutes in hopes the rain would let up. It soon became obvious that we would have to press on rain or shine. So we all dawned our life vests, helmets and with oars in hand we boarded our water crafts.
The children were all able to accompany us for the first few kilometers of the trip at which point they were met buy a bus and taken back to camp with their parent or appointed guardian. Since R has actually rafted the Colorado river (yeah, I know, what hasn't he done) he graciously took our two youngest and several other children back to camp so that I could continue the trip.
While rafting there were plenty of water fights, hostile boardings and of course "smack-talk". I forgot to mention we had a group of marines on the trip who made sure there was never a dull moment...unless of course they were in a weakened state of 'hang-over'.
When we hit the big rapids though, it was all "business". Our guides would refocus our attentions on the challenge ahead by practising our commands including; forward all, back paddle, down (reserved only for the 4+ rapids), and my personal favorite; high-side!(High-side is when the person sitting in the middle in the front sacrificially throws themselves to the front of the raft in hope the added weight will stabalize the craft and help prevent us from flipping during the big waves! ROCK ON!)
At one point in the river we stopped for cliff diving. Now, I consider myself a pretty adventurous person and in my youth I was known to have dove off a cliff or two. But that was a long time ago and in my frozen condition I wasn't sure I could manage my fear long enough to make it up the cliff-side. I was chilled to the bone by the time I climbed from my boat. Mo was at the top of the cliff waiting her turn to jump (she was actually the first one to jump! That's my girl!) with Big T at her heals (Big T ended up jumping 6 times, more than anyone else in the group) and my friend A and her husband yelling for me to "come on!"
So with a great deal of fear and trepidation I climbed to what I thought might just be my death. Once at the top I should have thought twice when the guy before me turned back. But no, I couldn't let my kids think I was any lamer than they already do. So I jumped....
I remember cliff diving to be much more exciting as a teenager but once my feet left the cliff I was gripped by one thought and one thought only; "WHAT....THE....HELL....AM....I...DOING!!!!!!" I sailed through the air as if I was trying to climb every rain drop I could grasp to get back to the top of the cliff. I then hit the water with such force I thought my hand had been broken, but no, it was just frozen and beet read from slapping the water at 50 miles an hour! (trust me, I'm a big woman)
Just barely recovered from my cliff diving accident we hit some of the biggest rapids of the trip. I was sitting in the front left rowing position and as the waves crested over our entire raft engulfing me in the process, I literally had a 'brain-freeze'. Our guide was screaming "forward team, forward team!" as I sat with the oars frozen in my hands, trying hard for the second time in mere hours, to push the thoughts of death from my frozen brain cells. After what seemed like minutes instead of seconds I lurched forward digging my paddle as hard as I could into the icy waters. It took less than a minute to clear the rapids but it felt much longer. After each rapid I wanted to stand up and beat my chest but, opted for whooping and hollering. The adrenalin was pumping through my veins and after surviving two near-death-experiences, I was ready for whatever the river was able to dish out!
After the rafting we ate lunch. It wasn't anything special, in fact I'm pretty sure it didn't even taste very good, but after nearly drowning and freezing to death, it was the best food I've ever tasted.
Back at camp we tried to clean up the best we could and recover from the onset of hypothermia. The evening events were much the same as the night before. The marines started drinking, we ate barbecue, the marines drank, we sat around the campfire, the marines still drinking. Finally we surrendered to bed (while the marines stayed up to....you guessed it, drink some more).
Sunday morning we woke up to a beautifully sunny day and one more 4+ rated rapid to go. This would be our last opportunity to cleanse ourselves in the waters of the Ganges and I was looking forward to it, especially now that the sun was shinning!
It was a much more relaxed ride with only one big rapid during the hour and a half ride. R rode ahead and stopped to take pictures of each our rafts as we entered the big rapid. He got some amazing photos. (see slide show below)
Once back at camp we started the tedious job of drying wet clothing on rocks, chairs, tents and the volleyball net. We cleaned up for the second time in 3 days and hiked up to the buses for our back-track to Delhi.
Once again we had the Himalayan Nascar bus driver and one of our friends eventually told him he could not exceed 40 miles per hour for the rest of the drive. We were all on separate buses, hanging with friends and family. R was on the same bus as Little T but was in the front of the bus taking pictures when Little T decided to up-chuck his lunch. Luckily, those present were very gracious about the whole situation and after Little T was cleaned up they were underway once again.
We arrived back at home safe and sound and exhausted. The rest of our spring break has been....well, a lot less adrenaline pumping than white water rafting the Ganga! Mostly we've been hanging with friends, swimming at the pool and eating at ACSA.
Tomorrow the kids go back to school and life will unfortunately, resume to "normal". No near-death-experiences, terrifying bus rides or rock busting. No stinky out-door toilets, bucket showers or cardboard mattresses. No drunken marines, sandy bums or frozen limbs.....I can't wait for next year!!!!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Dharamsala
Richard recently went to Dharamsala, the Tibetan head quarters and home-away-from-home for the Dhali Lama, on a protection detail for the speaker of the house when she recently visited India. Wow, that was a mouth-full.
From what he told me and what I gathered from others who were present, it was an amazing experience.
There has been a recent surge in violent 'crack-downs' by China in Tibet and the Dharamsala community, made up of Tibetan refugees, was charged and an intense sense of revolution permeated the air.
Richard brought home a piece of cloth that was blessed by the Dhali Lama and given to him. I thought that was pretty cool, wish he could have gotten him to autograph it though!
I hoped I could pin him down to tell you his personal experiences but alas I cannot.
But even though I do not have access to his mind, I at least have access to his photos!
From what he told me and what I gathered from others who were present, it was an amazing experience.
There has been a recent surge in violent 'crack-downs' by China in Tibet and the Dharamsala community, made up of Tibetan refugees, was charged and an intense sense of revolution permeated the air.
Richard brought home a piece of cloth that was blessed by the Dhali Lama and given to him. I thought that was pretty cool, wish he could have gotten him to autograph it though!
I hoped I could pin him down to tell you his personal experiences but alas I cannot.
But even though I do not have access to his mind, I at least have access to his photos!
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Mehandi
Traditionally they do these for special occasions and holidays. Most commonly it is done for brides and grooms for their weddings.
I went with 2 friends and we all had different artists. One friend had two different artists doing each arm and they turned out completely different. She wasn't so happy.
My other friend ended up picking the best artist and got both the tops and bottoms of her hands done (up to her elbows) and then a small design around her bicep. Her design was our favorite.
I picked a design that I loved and as he was about half way done I realized that it was not even close to the design I had picked out. Needless to say I drew a bit of a crowd while expressing my displeasure. Finally after speaking my peace another artist said "okay, you no like, you no pay". I'm sure my henna artist didn't appreciate his advice but I sure did!
I felt a little guilty afterwards for not paying because it really was a nice design and I ended up liking it a lot later, but at the time I was feeling very angry and a bit taken advantage of.
We used to get henna done when we lived in Cairo and I was so excited to learn they did it here as well. It is a lot of fun and great because nothing is permanent. It all wears off in a week or two!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
I love his people...
While talking with Little T's teacher at a recent parent-teacher-conference, she once again shared with me her "love" of Little T's "people". I'm not sure if she remembers telling me the exact same thing at the last parent teacher conference, but she seemed just as earnest this time as the first.
Which got me thinking....
She has been an elementary teacher for quite some time and would be considered somewhat of an authority on children's art, maybe she was trying to tell me something.
But then, I don't want to be one of those obnoxious parents who thinks any old chicken scratch their child produces is a Picasso!
So, I'll let you be the judge. Skills or no skills?
Which got me thinking....
She has been an elementary teacher for quite some time and would be considered somewhat of an authority on children's art, maybe she was trying to tell me something.
But then, I don't want to be one of those obnoxious parents who thinks any old chicken scratch their child produces is a Picasso!
So, I'll let you be the judge. Skills or no skills?
I think he's captured such emotion in my eyes, and R's hair looks so, so...natural!
Personally, I think the resemblance to Big T is just uncanny, don't you?
I'm not afraid to admit that I'm not a big fan of abstract art but...I just can't stop looking at it!
Oh, this is a personal favorite! There is something magical about it. I don't know if its the whimsical way her hair curls or the delicate lines of her fingers...or possibly the mischief portrayed in her eyes, its just all so captivating.
Last, but not least he did this amazing self-portrait. I'm convinced...he's a genius!
Seriously, this art is magic! MOMMY MAGIC!
(Mommy loves your people too Little T!)
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Night Under the Stars
On Saturday night the school held their biggest fund-raiser of the year. They call it 'Night Under the Stars'. Each year it is a different theme and this year it was "Bollywood Through the Ages".
Traditionally it is formal "Indian" dress. That means wearing a sari, which I have apprehensions about. Not for any other reason than being short and round. But since we bought tickets I had no choice. Luckily I was pleasantly surprised when I found and fell in love with a black, glittery sari. When I saw it, it made me forget all about being short and round, all I wanted to do was try it on, the quicker the better.
Being wrapped in a sari is no small feet mind you and after a few minutes of wrap and tuck (plus the normal "feel ups" in the process, never get tired of that) I was in love!
About an hour before the event me, A and my neighbor J, gathered in my bedroom with each of our maids who furiously wrapped, tucked and pinned us until we were ready. What was so cute was that none of them are over 5 feet tall and with us wearing heels, we towered over them like giants.
Our men also dressed for the occasion and looked quite dashing in their fancy Kurtas.
At the school they had a "red-carpet" entrance and an elephant to take photos with. The ball field was set up with tables and a stage for the show, which consisted of the Indian version of the Solid Gold Dancers.
There was all kinds of food and free alcohol, which we don't drink, but its always fun watching others after they've "had a few"!
It was a fun evening and a great opportunity to help the school. All the proceeds go to fund all the student-service and out-reach programs.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
