one week down, ?? to go...

hi everyone! yay, so happy to see comments on el blogarino! matt pie, it looks like there are some people who want to contribute (um, will is one of them). thanks for helping with this!

i'm going to answer a bunch of questions from an e-mail from stephanie...

weather is hot and humid. there are about 2 hours where this is pretty uncomfy, but other than that it's great! i love warm weather. how's the weather on the east coast? A-hahahaha!!!

food. ahh, one of my very favorite topics. i'm at an event that's vegetarian by the dalai lama's request. so i'm in heaven! they make these salty-type crepe things with a spicy dipping sauces called...umm, i forget what they're called but they're good! they make these fried tortilla-type things with a spicy dipping sauce called puri, which is also really good. fresh watermelon, fresh pineapple (spelle pinapul), guava, little mini bananas, oranges. the food is really good and really cheap!

i feel really safe here. people are curious about the whities, but not disrespectful. indians are very helpful. for example, i was fidgeting with the key on my bike the other day and i knew in about 30 more seconds someone would probably come and help me...it didn't even take that long.

there are some annoyances: the air pollution, the noise pollution around here is insane, a subtle but constant fear of the fact that i will be getting sick at some point. the beggars are the worst part about it. it torments me. if you give to one you are immediately surrounded by a hoard. people do things to make themselves more pity-able, too; because they can make a better living begging than they can if they were to work hard at a job. they go so far as to cut off the limbs of their children. it wears at my heart.

on a lighter note, there are a lot of monks around, just a sea of maroon and bald heads. last night i went to a tibetan concert that was 50 rupees admission ($1). these junior monks (about 8 years old on average) climbed up this tree outside the fence to see the concert - there were about a dozen of them in one tree, it was so cute!

and, finally, i will be heading to kerala after this, the southernmost state of india. after learning that i do not in fact have a spot reserved at the yoga ashram, i ran into some people who just came from kerala, and i was assured that i could easily and happily while away 2 weeks on some coastal towns. so once again, things have fallen into place!

all righty, i'm off to meet up with some amigos! i miss you all a bunch!

now post a comment! (i reckon this will be my constant nag;)