Everyone should at some point in life...

Have someone do a sculpture of them...

 And be dressed in a Saree...

India Standard Time (IST)

There is no picture of IST.  It's a way of living.  We are to meet this morning for a tour of a farm, factory, and bridal show.  Our meeting time is at 9am at a place 15 minutes away and my host just left on his scooter to run a quick errand.  It's 8:59am right now.  Funny thing is that we will not be late because we are on "India Standard Time."  I think too that's why dinner is at 10:30pm.  There just doesn't seem to be the same kind of rat race treadmill thing going on.  But don't get me wrong, India has the fastest growing middle class.

All the riches in India

So I got called out by one of my new Indian friends for focusing on the poor of India.  I don't necessarily agree.  But to be fair, today I will focus on those in India who are not poor. 

This is our group sitting on a cannon at the Fort outside Aurangabad.  That is one of our hosts in front.  He has the nicest smile!  One note on hosts...we each have a host family but one family is responsible for us each day.  :-)

 Baby Taj

 Yet another wonderfully hosted party.

This party was at one of the Lawns (or Garden Restaurants).  These are outdoor dining and very popular in Aurangabad.  It's a nice time of year for this.  Daytime is a little hot for me but evenings are beautiful.  Notice the glass being raised?  Indians love their whiskey.  I have really enjoyed the Kingfischer beer.  I think because it has been so hot.  They were kind enough to provide me with beer at this party.  Apparently word had gotten around that I swim in beer.

Can't help one picture of "the poor people."  But this school was so clean and the kids so friendly and well mannered.  These girls go around when school is out recruiting other kids to come to school.  It is a government school.  The wealthy and educated Indians send their kids to private schools.  One obstacle for students at this school is that their parents may not allow them to go because they have to take care of younger siblings.  So the school started a daycare so the girls could bring their little brothers and sisters.

And I can't help a funny sign posting.  Many public toilets are "squatters," ie there is no toilet but a porcelain hole in the ground that you squat over.  This sign was on the back of a toilet door in a very nice mall where they actually had toilets. 

A Visit to the Ellora Caves (post courtesy of team leader, PDG, Kristi)

February 7, 2011:  Monday morning the troops took the hour ride northeast to Auranabad to the Ellora Caves for the day.

There are three groupings of .magnificent artistic rock cut caves, carved between the fifth and thirteenth century.

The caves with diverse details and minute carvings represent three different faiths:  Buddhism, Brahmanical and Jaina.

This Kailash Temple is absolutely amazing!

At night our gracious Indian friends prepared a fabulous feast that was enjoyed by all.

Dancing, Caves, Temples, Animals, Indian mass transit...

A traditional dance from the state we are in, Maharastra.

These are painting from the Ajanta caves which were carved out of the rock in the BC's.  There were abandoned around 700AD and then rediscovered by a hunter in the early 1800's.  There is a pictures of the outside of the caves below but I can't seem to get it moved up.

 This is from another set of caves, Allora.  They were built after Ajanta.  This is a community room.  Remember, it's carved out of rock with a hammer and chisel.

 The goddess of wealth at Allora...Not me, the carving.

 We felt bad taking pictures of people when we first arrived.  Now, we have had more pictures taken of us.  One person will ask to have their picture taken with one of us and then within minutes it's 20 people and 10 cameras.  And they love to shake hands, an American custom.  I was also shocked to have them ask where we are from.  Everywhere else I have been, I feel like it's assumed I am American.

 Seriously, there are hundreds of pictures of us roaming across India right now.

This is the most amazing thing I have seen, possibly ever.  I have been to Greece and many other amazing places but this is a temple carved out of a mountain side.  It's huge.  The pictures really don't do it justice.

 The view of the most amazing of the caves from above.  It's probably 6 stories high.  And the detail in the carvings...astounding.

Ok, now it's time for a little shopping.  You sit and they bring you clothes.  And tea.

The most I have seen on a bike is 4. 





Goats roaming free.  Along with cows, pigs, dogs, cats, and chickens.  It seems the role of the goat is to eat trash.

Steve noticing that certain parts of the statue have been rubbed smooth from so many people doing the same thing he is.  Also at Allora caves.





These are the Ajanta caves.  I can't get the picture moved up so deal with it.
 <>  The women here dress so beautifully, even when working.

Can you see the bangles she is wearing?  She is carrying cement to men building a brick wall.

  



I love India!  I'm not a great writer so it's frustrating for me to try to communicate India's allure.  You're just going to have to see it for yourself.  I thought it would be a much more intimidating country but if you come you will see what a wonderful place this is to visit.  I was warned of the poverty and how dirty it would be.  While I won't argue about it being dirty, I haven't found either to affect my travels negatively.  Maybe because I was prepared for the worst.  But everyone seems genuinely happy here and eager to share with you their India. 

Jet lag was nil.  India does not allow for jet lag.  There is too much going on, too much activity, too many buildings, so many people, sights, sounds, smells.  Here is a sampling of photos from the first few days.

The view from our hotel.  Mumbai (formerly Bombay) has about 17 million people with more coming every day.

A typical street view.  All over India you will see the contrast of old and new - notice the skyscrapers in the background.

Cows, cars, motorcycles, scooters, and pedestrians co-exist in the same streets.  No road rage here.  Just honk when you are going to pass someone and cut them off and it's all good.  No one has the right of way.  there are no lanes.

Boys peeling onions to make them pretty for market.  Many jobs that are typical "womens' work" in the US are mens' jobs in India. We were able to visit an embroidery shop where a group of about 7 men were embroidering an amazing table cloth that had been commissioned for the price of $1,200 US dollars. To put that in perspective, my cup of tea this morning cost .11 cents.

We hired a guide to take us through the slums, Dharavi.  Yes, it's dirty.  Imagine a place where the garbage is hauled to.  The interesting thing is that the garbage provides a big source of income to Dharavi.  Plastic bottles are salvaged, shredded and made into mattress and pillow filling.  Cardboard is refurbished and made into new boxes.  Soap shavings are melted with added chemicals, cooled, and chopped into soap second quality bars.  There is no government assistance so if you need money and can't find a job, you create a job.  The majority of people are entrepreneurs.

People enjoying life in Dharavi with this man powered farris wheel.

The opposite end of the spectrum.  The owner of Kingfischer Airlines lives here.  What has really made an impression on me is the vast difference of wealth.  There are homes that makes Bill Gates home seem small.  3 floors for parking?  The discrepancy in wealth is interesting not just in the spectrum but how close one end is to the next physically.  Next to a modern office building you'll have tarp homes.

Labor is cheap in India so you might as well pay 3 people to do a job for one... that is what one of our guides told us.  Here is the laundry neighborhood.  Most people around the city only have water for a couple hours per day so they send their laundry out to be done.  this people from this neighborhood pick up your laundry and deliver it.  They have water all day.

A typical street view.  All over India you will see the contrast of old and new - notice the skyscrapers in the background.

And something I hope to be a recurring segment of the blog, "What's wrong with this picture?

The first life in the day...

So it's my first blog and my first blog post.  It's a pretty big moment in my life.  Firsts are big and the older you get the harder they are to have.

The impetus is my upcoming trip to India and my desire to keep those of you who are interested in my trip, involved in my experience.  I'll be travelling on a Rotary Friendship Exchange with 9 other people, people I had never met when I first committed to the trip.  A Rotary Friendship Exchange is a reciprocal travel program that provides an opportunity for Rotarians and their families to travel to other countries and experience cultures firsthand. 

So here's the group I'll be travelling with.

Stay tuned for updates.  I anticipate my first chance to post once I have hit foreign soil will be February 4th.  Thanks for reading...