Hi,
Today we have some extra time becuase one of the schools that we went to visit this morning was closed. An NGO(non-government school) philanthrapic school. There are many different levels of schooling here-public which means private here-government schools and then the non-profits. I will try to post some pictures soon. I wish that I could describe the utter chaos of roads and driving here.We are still in Varanasi-Erin this is the town where the movie "Water" takes place. Our driver told us today that it is the town of learning and burning. For many years(like thousands) it has been known for academics. It is said that if you die in this town that your life/death cycle is complete.You will not have to expereince rebirth anymore.The day yesterday was very good. After I rested a bit we went to the location where Buddha gave his first sermon to 5 disciples. Lots of pilgrims visiting and ruins to see. We have been getting around town in bicycle rickshaws and this made me feel kinda bad. Having someone haul me around on a bicycle, but one of my friends pointed out how much better it was for the environment and it is keeping someone employed.We are getting ready to head out and hear a lecture on the environmental water condition of the Ganges.
Love for now,
M.
Reading List
- City of Joy-Freedom at Midnight, Collins Larry and Dominique Lapierre
- Holy Cow, Sarah McDonald
- Home and the World, Rabindranath Tagore
- Interpreter of Maladies, Jhumpa Lahiri
- The Bhagvat Gita, John Davies
- The Namesake, Jhumpa Lahiri
- The World Is Flat, Thomas l Friedman
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4 comments:
Mary this sounds absolutely amazing. I know you will be changed forever having visited and been with the people you can not help but not be. I am really looking forward to having you back and hearing all about it. Thank you for taking time to share what you can with us. The children will love to hear about your adventure when school starts too.
All our love and prayers are with you.
Mary, I know that all that you are seeing, smelling, and experiencing is far more than you ever expected. I am glad that you are able to exercise as I know that helps with how you feel overall. Your thoughts are so interesting I can hardly wait for you to return so we can process this with you. How blessed we are to have you as our ambassador!You are doing an amazing job in keeping us informed! It is really hot here-- how's the temperature there? We need rain too, Namaste Cathy
I don't think I can be as insightful and thought provoking as Cathy and Cindy. Just know we're thinking of you. You are doing an excellent job keeping us informed as to what you are seeing and doing. Thank you! :o)
Take it easy!
Hugs!!
Hey Mary,
I am happy to hear that you are pretty settled in India and having so many unique experiences. I really think the whole thing is such an amazing opportunity for you. It really sounds like the Fulbright program has really put together a schedule for you guys that will allow you to get the most from this experience educationally. I mean, how many people get to travel across the world and really spend the kind of time that you are with another culture. That is so much different than just traveling somewhere for a vacation and only seeing commercialized things. Learning about new people and places is probably one of my life's true passions. So to hear you describe your experiences, I can in someway picture it. Poverty is never beautiful, but the idea that someone can go somewhere and realistically see how other people live is in some ways beautiful because you can't really help if you don't have a true understanding. Anyway, I won't go on and on about that. I'm not a blogger so I had no idea that you would be posting your experiences or how it would work. I was really just checking in and wanting to drop a "few" :) words because I knwo you said the homesickness would kick in. Just wanted you to know that you are in my thoughts regularly and I hope you are having a time of your life. Take care of yourself and I'll check back in at a later date!
Glenda and Derek :)
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