India Fulbright 2010

Check out this video about my project!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 21:47:00 +0000

Artist, S. Paul, created a video about my Fulbright-Nehru project in India, Portraits for People.

Below is his documentary, Different Passage 2.

Heading home tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 11:42:00 +0000

... with very mixed feelings ...

Sorry the blog faded, but sometime (after a lot of sleep, catching up, and appreciating all of you whom I miss so much) I should have plenty of photos to share.

As my pal, Roman - who returned from India in May - says: "an emo time." I am so looking forward to home, but I am also feeling very sad to leave my home and family here.

... and I have plenty of unfinished work, too.

Big exhibit of big photos

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 17:40:00 +0000

Yes, the blog has been abandoned for much too long. C is back in the US. I'm still here in India.

Why no posts? I'm afraid I've been working at an insane pace, with continued unreliable electricity and internet. No too surprisingly, these can be helpful when one has much to accomplish. No email interruptions, etc.

My exhibition at the art museum is going on now. It has been met with some wonderfully positive responses and a few loud complaints. I remind myself that contemporary art should make you think. You don't have to like it.

I am thrilled, though, that some viewers are enjoying the spectacle. I sit for hours outside the building - the prints are on the outside of the museum - and enjoy watching the surprised faces reacting to the work.

I would give anything to have all of you back in the US here to see it.

A few pics from installation (click on the photo to see a larger version)

Checking the roof before hanging the prints

Shyamal repairing torn print, day 2

and the first few days.

Bartha standing below his portrait

This rickshaw driver was surprised to see me photographing passers-by from the opposite side of the street.

Many view the exhibit at night through the museum's gates

Note: We are having a record-breaking storm as I write now. I can't guarantee any of the prints will be intact in the morning. I hope so, but can't be sure. It's quite something out there!

Busy and safe

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 12:13:00 +0000

I know that I am too far behind in reporting on our adventures to continue to consider myself a blogger. Good thing C is up to the task.

I am unimaginably busy trying to catch up on months of lost time, now that the project is finally moving along and my deadline approaches much too soon. In addition, power cuts are much more frequent lately, sometimes lasting most of the day and night. (We have our lovely battery to run a fan, but it's not enough for the computer or much else.)

This quick check in is to reassure anyone who has seen the news of yesterday's train collision in West Bengal, that we are entirely uninvolved. This is another heart-breaking tragedy. Currently, it seems that it is entirely coincidental that it took place in West Bengal, and sabotage is not suspected.

Thousands of trains run all over India without incident. It's a wonderful system parts of which the US might do well to copy. As we all know, the more trains, the more opportunity for error. I am saddened, but not frightened.

For any of you who have insomnia and recognize this post from C's blog, I mistakenly posted to hers.

Healthy, damp & trying hard to get things done

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 19:27:00 +0000

We're better and back at it. Silly to think we'd last six months without some illness. At home we rarely go so long without something. All fine now. And it's raining!

I've been impossibly busy lately, though much time is spent in less-than-satisfying endeavors. No complaints tonight, though. Here's a list (PowerPoint style - and you know I hate that) because it's late and the electricity is likely to shut down any moment.

[At another time, I will try to upload some photos to illustrate all this.]

C had her first day of school today at Patha Bhavana (Wikipedia).

I inaugurated a rural library and was treated like a rock star (no kidding).

We saw the most beautiful temple (though I'm told there is a twin) in Kalna,
Worked in several more villages,
Took photos,
Lost photos,
Spent the night at the Buddhist Center in Kolkata, and
Missed another train.

I worked on my chapati and egg-roll techniques (improving, but far from ideal).

Our flat was transformed for a day into a film stage.

C had her debut as a film actor in our friend, Shamayal's, video.

[Shamayal also showed us how to cut glass with kerosene. Do not try this at home.]

We met more people
Including some who are both encouraging and really helpful.

I finally discovered how to get the newspaper delivered (by meeting the delivery man early one morning when my interpreter didn't show) and
Built a holder to protect the paper when neither Rono (the caretaker) nor I are there on rainy mornings. (Unlike at home where my paper completely dissolves some days, here he won't deliver if it'll get wet.)

Twice we used our amazing first-aid kit from Aunt Linda to dress wounds (other peoples', not ours).

We counted cows,
Bought souvenirs,
Drank lots of tea,
Ate many of mangos,
Picked limes from a tree outside our rooms,
Cooked (and ate) many kilos of okra, and
More grilled cheese sandwiches than I should admit.

My fingernails are always dirty moments after I bathe and I still haven't a clue how it happens.

I'm getting better at eating rice with my hand. (C is a natural.)

My Bengali is terrible, though I know many food words.

I made people laugh, and
Made others look like "Movie Stars" (in their portraits).

I practiced wearing a sari,
Saw more of my equipment break or fail,
Made peace with rickshaw drivers (beginning a small photography project with some of them), and
Grew more comfortable with lizards (though snakes are out of the question).

I photographed in my first Muslim village and, after an uncertain start, was unexpectedly well receive

My hair is perpetually damp. (And though I know it won't help its health, some of those garden limes are used to address resulting problems).

I miss home. I miss all of you. I also want to make the most of the time I have left. I lost so much time with all the problems early on (and, no, I haven't written here of all of them). Now, things are moving... or they were... While we are all happy that monsoon is here, it means that my work will be further frustrated. No free lunch, eh? (Or is it, 'no free monsoon'?)

Psssst. On that running nose thing a while back: We did use hankies, but only in secret. I fear everyone we know here would be thoroughly disgusted.

Monsoon

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 17:49:00 +0000

Finally, it's raining! Yesterday morning was our first daytime rain and it was a big one. Everything's damp, muddy, humid... and great!

Post from June 22nd

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 19:14:00 +0000

You've probably already seen this one...
Accidentally deleted. Now back.

June 21st was a great day. Odd, but great. I told myself that if I got a break, I'd write about it. Well, I didn't get one yet, so I'm cutting an pasting from a letter I wrote to B && L about it. Tacky, I know, but it was such a great day...

Celia and I went with Central Library Deputy Library to his hometown and then to a rural library where he and I were invited to inaugurate the new Tagore Reading Room. I was to prepare a speech, wear white, and bring a camera.

We saw the sights of a small city between here and Kolkata, ate a great meal and were treated like VIPs throughout. The city we visited is called Kolna. It has all the sites of a typical small Indian city plus an amazing amount of history. My favorite site: the most beautiful temple. I would happily have stayed there all day (though my feet would have been less so as walking barefoot on the too-well-sun-heated grounds was tough).

In Kolna, we met my colleague's family, the newly-elected Chairman (mayor equivalent?), and many other citizens.

The Library 'inauguration' was very strange. C said my speech wasn't very good, which I expected since there was great commotion while I was at the microphone and I kept losing my focus. On the other hand, the man who read the translation (which was only vaguely what I had written - more on that at another time) was a very dramatic reader and seemed to have everyone's attention.

After the program, they presented me with a photograph of Tagore and many thanks. Then, to my surprise, we left before the program was over. Good thing, since we had a very long drive, but it seemed rude. Even so, while I was trying to figure out what I was supposed to do, I failed to notice the program being interrupted to give us a standing ovation and the audience, dignitaries, etc. waved to us, wide eyed, as we left, crossing the front of the stage in what, again, seemed to me very poor manners. (I kept looking over my shoulder to see if some prince was behind us causing all the commotion. But no, it was just us.) Then, to make things even more rock-star like, a huge crowd followed us to our car and once I shook one man's hand at least 30 others crowded in to shake my hand as well.

Once in the vehicle (a big SUV) one man I'd met earlier asked for a business card (very popular here) so I fished one out. Immediately, several others I'd met during the day crowded windows on both sides asking for them. (Everyone I gave a card to seemed unusually pleased with it. Fortunately, I'd brought a pile, knowing I would be introduced around.) After I'd given cards to the men I recognized, all windows became filled with new faces asking for cards, shaking hands and showing such appreciation you'd think I was passing out cash. The car was swarmed by well-wishers and card seekers, so I finally gave one of the men the whole pile to pass out later. Made his day. Who do they think I am?!

Celia's reception was equally adoring, but more individual. Again (this has happened before), a lovely grandmother (really great grandmother) offered for Celia to live with her because C is so beautiful, an angel, a princess. This one also offered to go back home with her to take care of her. I suggested that I would stay on the farm with her daughter (grandmother) in exchange. Everyone laughed, then hugged us and acted as if we'd both broken their hearts by not staying longer and blessed them just by being there. When we said we planned to return with the whole family in August, clasped hands jumped to hearts as if we'd awarded a great prize.

Though the intense, and undeserved, admiration/affection makes me a bit uncomfortable, I found that I felt an unreasonable level of affection for many of the people (generally women) I barely know. This has happened to me before here, that I feel very close to someone I've only just met. I suppose some of it is simply a reaction to Indian warmth and hospitality, and may be even more so as we are often treated as special guests. Sometimes these women remind me of Bea or Jane or Grandma, or any of the group of women who have been so important - and so thoroughly supportive - throughout my life. I can't explain it. Not looks and definitely not conversation since the language problem is major. Just warmth, humor, I don't know...

Maybe I'm a little homesick?

Fine, Quiet, Sniffley

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 18:20:00 +0000

Tough to believe that June 3rd passed without my notice. It marked three months since we left home. So much has happened, and so little. Both C and I miss you all and think of you... much more often than we write. We're both growing, changing, learning and not getting much done. But, as too many people say too often, "It's all good." (Okay, some of it isn't all that good, but a great deal is.)

No big troubles (that I know of) in West Bengal. Elections done, results in. Village folks around here are celebrating the outcome, though I fear that changes won't be as dramatic as hoped (1). Note: That was not a comment on any political party, just on the nature of elections. Correct me if I'm wrong, but election victories don't generally lead immediately to improvements in standard of living, do they? Still, the joy is pretty infectious. To us. Not necessarily to the rest of the University community.

Everyone got to enjoy over a week with only very-occasional power outages. I was a little disappointed when someone told me it was just for election: good-government-doesn't-turn-off-the-power-in-this-heat sort of thing. Who knows if it's true? We did get a cut day after the election, and have had several times a day since then. BUT, they are nowhere near as long or frequent as they had been. AND, the last couple of days, they've all been very short. AND, after waiting for weeks in weather reaching 47 degrees C (2), we did get our new battery which, so far, works. That means we still have a fan even if there's no electricity.

Though it continues to be uncomfortably hot - the temps down a bit, but humidity is way up - it rained several evenings, we missed the hurricane and Kerella reports monsoon. That means it's on its way up here. I do hope we like it when it arrives.

Above I mentioned election victory celebrations. Both C and I have more to say on the subject and will do so in other posts. For now, I was reminded today that it had been a while, plus the last entry was when I learned about the train derailment. I hadn't realized it had been such a long time. Right after that post, C had a short tummy thing (very short, fortunately!) and I caught a nasty cold. Nearly all better now, C hasn't caught up on sleep (mostly it's the mosquitoes' fault) and I'm still just a little sniffley (3).

Thanks for staying in touch. We both enjoy hearing from home (4).

1. Say what I may, I'm still just a little high from the Obama victory.

2. You can do the conversion this time, okay. I'm tired..

3. Not as trivial as it sounds in country where tissues are both rare and considered really distasteful. Lucky for you, I will not compose a long essay on nose blowing in India, though I've thought about it a lot recently. (If you must satisfy your curiosity, I will tell you all about it. In the mean time: I am my very own snot joke.
4. And it really is okay to call us (if you use Skype, cause it's not too expensive). If we're in the middle of something or asleep, we'll tell you. And we'll love that you called anyway. (Sorry we still can't use Skype from here.)

We are safe

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 28 May 2010 13:44:00 +0000

News is sketchy about yesterday's train crash and reports continue of possible sabotage by Maoist Rebels. Municipal elections take place on Sunday. I have decided that we will hunker down until all results and any subsequent reactions are past. I have plenty of work to do here, so it won't be a problem to stay put for a bit. Celia will continue with art lessons, etc.

Though this is a tragedy and many are suffering as I write, I assure you that we are both fine though quite sad.

Circumambulating & (not) blogging

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 27 May 2010 17:06:00 +0000

Yes, I am failing in the blogging department. (Thanks, Maggie & Fred. Good thing I love you both. Good thing also that I know you love me and that I know you're reading my blog. Best of all, I've seen those endless cel-phone-photos-in-night-clubs-with-incomprehensible-captions blogs, so I know I'm nowhere near the top of the worst-ever list.)

I remember that I promised not to whine, so take this as explanation only, please. We don't get much Internet and I'm awfully busy with everything else. Though still not really accomplishing as much as I'd like. I must focus on more pressing items much of the time, and everything takes longer and is more complicated than I'd hoped. (Plus free time often falls when I am both Internet-less and too hot and/or tired to do anyting but throw buckets of water over myself and imagine breezes. Twice recently, free time coencided with brief storms which inspired C and me to dance in the rain, rather than be otherwise occupied. And, of course, we know about being safe in storms, so don't worry 'bout that.) Lucky for me, C keeps up her blog. She can be a bit more current as she has the advantage of not being burdeoned with all those other responsibilities. Unfortunately, she also is disadvantaged by having lower priority for computer use (yup, work before blog), so she can't blog nearly as much as she might otherwise.

Explanation complete. Begin content (1).

So much has happened since I last wrote a thoughtful post. As mentioned earlier, I compose blog entries regularly when I'm without pen or computer. Most never find their way beyond my thoughts. Most won't make it to you now. Still, a few thoughts I will to share, beginning with the following:

Circumambulating Arunachala

Tiruvannamalai, in Tamil Nadu, was lovely, relaxing, interesting, fun. We met new friends, visited villages, did productive project work, ate excellent mangos and papayas, saw temples, made pujas, meditated with a Mother, learned about the variety of spirituality that surrounds The Mountain, and got hit on the head by an elephant.

One of the many special things about Tiruvannamali is The Mountain, Arunachala. Each full moon, pilgrims flood into to town to walk the 14 kilometers around The Mountain (2). Shortly after our arrival was, I'm told, the biggest full moon of the Tamil year (end of April). People travel from all over India for the event. It's a scene like I'd previously witnessed. So, of course, I had to do a little circumambulating of my own.

At about 5 pm, I headed toward the main road which was already packed full of walkers. It took me just under six hours; everyone walks at a pretty leisurely pace. I, and a few thousand of my pals, added a kilometer or two to the trip avoiding one area that was just too crowded for comfort. Other than that, it was entirely moving, fascinating, uplifting, even fun.

I was the only Westerner I saw walking, though I'm sure there were plenty that I didn't see. I noted several pasty faces on motorcycles, on the sidelines, staring or taking photos. They got the pics, but missed the experience.

I loved the variety of participants and forms of participation. Many walkers were silent, but many others were making a party of the night. Families were common. Every kind of vendor imaginable set up a stall or blanket to show his/her wares (3). Food was for sale, plus free plates of rice, dhal and chickpeas were distributed at stands along the route. Artists created chalk renderings of deities on the pavement. And the 100,000 butter (oil) lamps were exactly that. Spectacular.

Days later, I read in Chennai papers that the crowd was estimated at 2 - 2.5 lakh (200,000-250,000), and one automobile accident (with fatalities) was reported. I like to think that that problems were not underestimated. The night, and much of the following day - thought I didn't go out much while I nursed my feet (4) - was crowded, busy, hot, filled with noise, sights, people, and long queus. I can only imagine the disaster it might have been had everyone not felt - or at least acted - thoroughly content to be there, watching, experiencing, worshiping, each in his or her own way.

Me? I came with camera to walk, see, photograph. I did take some pictures. Then, as I exited one of the smaller temples, I saw a young, Western-looking photographer. I watched her crouch below a small ceremonial flame in the entryway to shoot devotees as they placed camphor offerings into the fire. I'm sure her images are wonderful. Dark, devoted faces viewed through flames, framed by smoke blending to darkness behind them.

I had many thoughts over the next few minutes. I even tried to photograph this photographer and her partner a bit later as they pointed and giggled. They disturbed me. Yet, I am no less a tourist. I fight the urge to think that I am 'better', though I do credit myself with at least trying to be respectful. Still, I'm here, with cameras, doing 'research'...?

As it became dark, I hesitated to unpack my flash. I stopped stabilizing my camera on make-shift tripods to focus in the low light. I let my camera hang, capped. Only when someone asked me for a photo did I turn it back on. And then I put it away. And walked.

My Pradakshina began as a little adventure, evolved into introspection and grew into a four-plus hour a meditation on photography. I formed many more questions than I could hope to answer. I need to put more thought into this experience and this topic. Much more thought.

They say that circumambulating The Mountain is very powerful.

NOTES
1, For nerds only, an old joke.
2. The Arunachala circumambulation is called Giri Pradakshina in Sanskrit and the road around the mountain is called Pradakshina.
3. Along the way, a man could (and many did) buy new clothes to change into when his grew to filthy from sweat and dust. Puja supplies? Of course. Need a towel? Buy one. Souvenirs? Toys? Housewares? No problem.
4. One is to walk barefoot as he/she is stepping on Arunachala, the incarnation of Siva, thus must show appropriate respect. Nearly everyone goes shoeless. I made it +/- 3/4 around before I caved and put my sandals back on. I was torn about it, but the ground became much more difficult in the last parts, so I suppose it had been necessary. Even with footwear, my feet needed a lot of TLC after.

By Request

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 19 May 2010 16:07:00 +0000

Only because I've been asked, I post this photo of me taken early this morning by Santiniketan radio personality, photographer, and my friend, Arpita Chatergee. Arpita joined me on one of my portrait outings. Today, we visited a nearby Santal village. I will return to the village in a day or two to deliver the portarits we took today.

We're fine but with little electricity

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 17 May 2010 12:54:00 +0000

No more complaining about internet woes. If the fan stays on, I promise not to whine.

We are just fine, back in West Bengal, but having too many power outages. We're very sweaty, a little crabby, but otherwise fine.

Hope you are all well, happy, healthy and generally not to sweaty.

In case you read this earlier, I removed the weather link. In addition to being Kolkata, which is 3 hours from here - the nearest weather link I've seen, though haven't looked very hard - it was wrong.

A few Tiruvannamali pics... since we have Nan's lovely Internet connection...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 04 May 2010 04:45:00 +0000

Arunchala Mountain and 'Big' Temple Entrance

Downtown Tiruvannamali

Note: Comments on the Picasa album are from Nan.

Click here for some pics from the House Beautiful (not really) photo shoot at Nan's house last night.

Paul Moore is my hero!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 01 May 2010 11:50:00 +0000

As you already know (thanks, Steve) we are in Tiruvannamali (plus various other spellings). Our amazing guide/driver/translator/planner/facilitator/all-around-amazing-guy, Karuna, set us up in the loveliest rooms, view of The Mountain (incarnation of Shiva), kitchen, AC. Plus, it's clean, pretty, safe and not too far from shopping and the Sri Ramana Ashram. We are thorough enjoying ourselves.

Not only is our place great, but Karuna, the extraordinary, picked us up in Chennai and drove us here (>3 hrs), advises us on food and shopping and, best of all, has taken us to four villages for photos. (More on that in another post as I am very tight on time.)

This is a great vacation spot for folks who don't want to do much of anything, like us. As C reported, embroidery and AC are making us very happy. To push us over to euphoria, this town also has cheese! We are living it up big time.

There are, of course, difficulties, but lets leave them to another conversation.

When time permits, I will write about the villages, walking around The Mountain, the Kolkata workshop last week. At least I plan to.

So why is Paul my hero? Who do you think got us here, introduced us to Karuna, made all this possible? You guessed. Thanks very much, Paul. I owe you.

COOLING their heels

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Ford) — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 10:05:00 +0000

Hello all. Steve here. As some of you may have noticed in Celia's blog, the girls are without Internet for the next few days, so Margaret asked me to post an update. They are in Tiruvanamali and are doing fine. Her spirits are good, especially since their hotel has AIR CONDITIONING! Whew!

Her workshop at the American Center went fine - a few logistical problems, but was well-received - so that is a huge load off her shoulders. So now they are taking a few days to relax in the coolness.

More later.

Steve

Ages without an update

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 13:57:00 +0000

I know it has been ages. I update the blog regularly as I walk around, though only in my head, neither on computer or paper. Unfortunately, when I might have time on the computer, I have too many other pressures on me. Plus, computer time is limited. Limited by electricity, heat, my own stamina, hours and hours waiting around town for various people and things, Internet connectivity (and you know you don't want me to start on that topic), and my attempt to refrain from posting when I'm too, too frustrated and feeling glum. This is all furthered by the fact that all the other obstacles seem to be high around the time I'm feeling up and ready to post the many positive developments. In summation, here's another short, not-entirely-informative, not-very-detailed post.

Again, for timely posting see C's blog. For less-entertaining, delayed stuff about work and travel, continue reading.s

Villages

After a very slow start, I have begun to visit villages and I did one portrait session in one of them. The visiting is fascinating and I have a real fondness for the Santal tribal people - their villages are the ones I've spent time in so far. They are peaceful, warm-spirited, terribly poor, welcoming to me (in spite of my poor communication and general oddness), and unbelievably clean. This is most striking in light of significant water shortages, of which I will write when time allows.

The one photo shoot was fun, with many children participating. Particularly enjoyable was the reaction of two men who were initially quite negative - they've seen plenty of westerners come in, observe, and leave - but after about an hour, they were not only setting up poses for the children and women, but also for themselves. Unfortunately, most of the images are pretty poor. A few please me, but most are poorly lit due to all wanting to remain in the patchy shade. Still, I hope they will enjoy them. I had planned to deliver the prints this morning, but need to remain here to work on Friday's course. (See below.)

Internet

Aaaarrrrggg! (Translation: Spent lots more money, tried multiple services and Internet cafes, interacted with young men that showed that special combination of inefficiency, laziness, outrageous rudeness, arrogance, stupidity and (my favorite) that unique power to know and not know the English language from moment to moment... enough said.)

On the other hand, should this continue to be one of my greatest difficulties, I'm getting off pretty easy, eh?

Travel

We will be on the road for +/- 3 weeks beginning Thursday morning.

(Note: If you want to reach us, please use the mobile number rather than email. I do hope it will work outside West Bengal. If mine doesn't, perhaps C's will as it is another carrier. If neither, I will let Steve, Bill and B&L know how to get in touch with us, plus they have all the 'only-in-a-really-awful-emergency' contacts.)

Thursday, we take the train to Kolkata. Lucky us! This time, we are VIPs and will be picked up by a car because we're there only to do the course on Friday. No insanity of the Howrah taxi stand. (It's scary how much this pleases me.)

All day Friday we will be at the American Center. Me: trying to convey worthwhile info, demonstrate how American university faculty teach (that part I'm pretty confident about) and, hopefully, not seeming too awkward or illprepared. C: Not sure. She's offered to assist, and I will take her up on that eagerly, but I also hope she can escape for something more fun for part of the day.

Early to bed, because at +/- 4 am, we head to the airport for the earliest flight to Chennai. (Why earliest flight? After endless battles trying to use my credit cards - which both banks insist are just fine for India - and the ATMs had several days to dispense enough cash for the now-greatly-increased ticket fees, the travel agent could only get us on this one.)

Sleepily, we will arrive and - in the unlikely event that all goes according to plan - we will be whisked off to Tiruvanamali. We will stay there until May 11th with the plan of visiting villages there, doing my photo thing, and perhaps will make a short stop in Ponduchery for sun, surf, tourism and all things Indian in French.

We should be back in our rooms in Santiniketan by the night of the 11th.

Money

Credit cards aren't working. Not that we need them much, but for travel or anything over the internet, it sure would help. Happily, the ATM card is still working. (And I really hope it won't follow the example of the electricity which fails each time I observe that is has not.)

While the credit card failures are frustrating, there are (though cumbersome) ways around. What I haven't mastered, and what seems to have grown enormously worse in the past week, are grossly increasing expectations of my wealth and resulting personal hyper-inflation. Suddenly, nearly everyone with whom I interact - from rickshaw drivers to translators - has requested double-or-more fees. I suspect encouragement in this may be centralized, but I hesitate to point fingers... yet. I am glad to be leaving town for a bit as it gives me time to gather my wits and plan how to deal with all this. Fortunately, out of sight means out of reach of requests to quadruple fees. Perhaps things will return to a reasonable state in a few weeks. Unlikely, but perhaps.

Terror Alerts

For those of you who follow such things, please know that I do also. I've seen them and am staying on top of all available info. More importantly, the State Department - the same folks who send monitor threats and send the alerts - knows where I am, my phone number, address, travel plans, etc. Further, they can change my plans any time if they think it necessary. I promise not to do anything foolish, to be careful always and to be even more so for C.

Were there anything to fret over, I guarantee I'd do it myself. After all, I'm hours ahead of most of you, so I can worry all day before you even have your morning coffee. And if you're really worried, call us. We'll reassure you. And we'll be happy to hear from you.

Course in Kolkata

Friday I am to run an all-day workshop on Self-portraiture. Because I'm some kind of expert on the topic? Nope. (Impostor syndrome!) I had to come up with a topic that met a ton of criteria the toughest of which are filling a whole day, including both lecture and hands-on components, and culminating in a contest to be judged by internationally renowned, multi-media artist, Rathin Kanji, former Fulbrighter, currently exhibiting in a one-man show in London, (Did he ever suffer from imposer syndrome, I wonder?) So, I will end here and return to preparing.

Thanks to you all for staying with me in spite of these long silences.

Excuses for not updating

noreply@blogger.com (StatisticsCount) — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 14:23:00 +0000

Unfortunately (or fortunately?), I've been really busy the past few days. In addition, what little internet time I've had, I've used - unsuccessfully - trying to contact folks in Tamil Nadu to see if we should book flights. But that's another story...

I will report about Santal village wanderings when time allows. In the mean time, C is doing a great job keeping up with our news. It's wonderful to have such a great travel companion who is also a timely blogger.

More soon.

NEWS FLASH: American woman cooks potato in West Bengal. No injuries reported.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 07:43:00 +0000

Inefficient, ripped off, frustrated, over heated... and contentedly eating lots of bananas

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 09:52:00 +0000

Note: Was unable to post/send this for a day and a half due to - you guessed - problems with electricity and internet. So, a little update: We finished the move and are happily sweating in our own little home.

It is such a joy to see your comments and to receive email. Many, many thanks!

Last night was the one-month anniversary of our arrival in India. I'm one month in and can report that I have done absolutely nothing on my project. I'm getting really anxious about it, but we have to finish moving first, then maybe...

I sincerely hope to have all our stuff at our rooms by tonight. It is only a short walk between places, but the heat makes it rough. Caring even just a bag or two each trip is work. For those who saw us leave, you know we don't really have all that much stuff. True enough. We've acquired a bit more, but only a bit. To keep from completely falling apart, my moving strategy involves +/-2 tote bags per trip. If C does one or two trips with me tonight, we should be able to get everything there between 5:30 (when the heat is less) and 7:00 when it's nearly dark and the mosquitoes become violent.

Wish us luck!

I feel particularly eager about getting out of here because I'm quite annoyed with the situation here. I was told today that I owe an additional $200 above the outrageous price I was already paying. I'm trying not to get too upset about it. But between feeling ripped off and helpless to do anything, hostility seems a comfortable emotion.

It doesn't help my frustration that I spent all morning visiting every bike 'shop' in the area (more than 20) and only one will sell me a bike. None will rent and the one who will sell want's about twice what a new, but junky, bike would cost in the US.

But don't think my whining means things are bad here. They're not. I'm frustrated that I haven't gotten the project moving, disappointed about the bike and angry about the money, but I'm also quite pleased and content, in general.

Why?

Celia (finally) began her art classes and had rave reviews about her fist session. She is frustrated that she has to struggle with her 'homework' drawings, but that's part of the process, no? And she's eager to go back for another.
We will be in our own rooms very soon.
And they are really nice. They are already cooler - though no AC, unfortunately - because they are on the ground floor, where here we are upstairs. After days of hassles and lots of help, we now have

gas for the cooking burner,
the battery inverter for our fan during power outages (so long as they don't last too long),
sheets, 2 pillows, 2 towels,
a water filter,
some cooking and eating stuff (but no food, yet), and
though we though it impossible, a fridge. It's a pretty gross one and I'm paying dearly to rent it, but... cold water!!!

N & S spent a few days w/ Steve in NYC visiting Bea & Lloyd. Sounds like they had a fine time (no surprise :-) and that makes me very happy.
Jane's surgery is done. Of course, she has a long recovery now, but I'm much revealed that it went well. Distance makes for some pretty powerful worrying.
C & I each have some additional clothing now. We left with very little because my equipment alone put us over the luggage limit. We both enjoy wearing the Indian outfits, not just because they look better, but also because they help with the heat a little. They don't stop people from staring at us, though.

Finally, I suppose I can't file this under good news, but I thought I'd share it anyway. Today, while on my long and futile cycle hunt, it finally happened. I knew it would. C and I joked about it. But today it became reality.

Two boys bicycling, turned to stare at me as they went by. So many people do every day. These two collided, an expected result of looking backward over one's shoulder in transit. I'm amazed it doesn't happen more often. Fortunately, they were going slowly and didn't hit anyone else in the process. They seemed unhurt, brushed off, laughed and biked away. One, still transfixed, continued to stare back at me as he left. I'm just guessing here, but I don't think it's my striking good looks.

So much to say, so little time to write

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 15:48:00 +0000

We are back in Santiniketan from our Kolkata trip. It was great to be able to see Ed before he left for the states. For those who don't know, Ed is another Fulbright person lecturing in literature in Kolkata, and all over the place also. I believe he is in the air as I write on his way back to the US. (Not true now, since we lost power, so it took two days to write this.)

While in Kolkata, I also met with USIEF staff about a day-long workshop I've been asked to run for selected high-school students on April 23rd. This will be the 6th (I think) of these events where Fulbright folks present a discipline and create an environment where the students practice with the scholar's supervision. It is to culminate with a presentation (in this case an exhibit) of the students' work, which is then judged by some invited luminary for prizes.

Obviously, I've never done anything like this, so I'm a bit uneasy about the whole thing. I find myself even more so after describing the day I planned and being told that, it's time for the more-conservative - both at USIEF and in Kolkata high schools - to be exposed to all that American free-wheeling stuff. Okay, that's not exactly what they said, but I got the feeling I was 'pushing the envelope'. No matter how much I asked for guidance to make it more what they would expect from an Indian workshop, no one would help me re-design it. Instead, I kept hearing that it was time to try something like this.

Even hear of the impostor syndrome?

In truth, being in Kolkata was unnerving. Seeing Ed and others from Udaipur was great. The workshop will okay. But, our time there reminded me that I really can't get around, travel, really do much on my own without making endless mistakes. The rest of the time in the city, I was constantly lost, over payed for everything, and eventually felt helpless and grabbed a cab so I can hide in my room (with C, of course). I found myself yelling (in English) at a lot of men who were simply trying to do their jobs, jobs that involved following me around trying to sell me things.

It can't have been easy for C, as she depends on me to, if not know what I'm doing, at least function. After my first real panic call to Steve and a few leaked tears, C and I shared a few 5-Star bars (our current favorite packaged sweet) and the crisis passed. With C's encouragement (Who's the parent and who's the kid?) we ventured down in search of dinner. We wandered only a block, selected an overly-fancy-looking resteraunt and had a very nice meal.

The next morning, we made it to the train station and onto the train with less than a dozen people to assist us (people who stopped to help, not folks who work for the rail). Thanks to two women who hollered to me to get off the train, we didn't miss our destination either.

Fear not for our future here. We are both fine. Some days are just tougher than others.

And having a stash of 5-Star bars helps*.

In the never-ending saga of our living arangements, my attempting to start to prepare to begin to move into our rooms is progressing at the same rate as everything else. To pass the time, we're enjoying the nice cold water from the fridge here. (Our place doesn't have one (and I'm not sure I'll figure out how to get one, so we're happily hydrating.)

Finally, today (Thursday) saw a great accomplishment: I got my Rabinda Bhavana Library reader's card, complete with my picture on it!

And, with that, I'll end and refill my water.

As the title says, "so much to say, so little time to write."

* After posting this, I thought I'd put a link to our 5-Star comfort food. Turns out it is an 'energy bar' (got that description for an article about them) made by Cadbury. Note: read the Cadbury link at your own risk. I'm less enamored of the candies after seeing their press.

We have a home!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 17:38:00 +0000

[Truth in advertising: Today, I agreed to take an apartment on April 1st.]

The apartment/rooms are attached to an elegant, much-larger home. The owners, who live primarily in Kolkata, use the main house as their get-away place and keep the loveliest grounds and gardens. We will live in the back, attached to, but private, from the main house. We will have our own bathroom, kitchen and two (yes, you got that right) bedrooms.

I have scheduled a man to come to install an inverter (battery backup for the fan when the power goes down). It will not power fans in both rooms, so C and I will probably go on sharing. Perhaps we can use the other as a work room? We might need at least a little more furniture if we do that.

The place is furnished. This means that it has ceiling fans, light fixtures and a portable gas burner (without gas). Plus it has beds. We have to provide, or do without, everything else. Since we're heading to Kolkata tomorrow, I plan to do some shopping there. The owners gave me some idea of which things we are unlikely to find here. Not only that, they gave me the specific shops where they get certain items when they are in Santiniketan, plus a few spots to avoid, even suggestions for cleaning supplies (and what they are called). Of course, I can shop where I like, but I am grateful for any guidance I can get.

Kolkata, tomorrow. We plan to use those train tickets that I so cleverly purchased the other day.

My current major quandary is how to deal with the people where we are staying now. The caretaker family is so nice, attentive, respectful, thoughtful, etc. But we're leaving anyway. And I have to tell them. They got the battery fixed, so the fan stays on when power goes out. But that's not really worth 3-4 times what we'll be paying. Yes, they feed us. But I think I can handle that, too.

How to be gracious and clear without a common language, or much of anything else. I realy don't know. And this is a very, very small community. (So small that when I tripped last week, about 1/4 mile from here, the caretaker showed up on a motorcycle minutes later to check on me. This was both charming and terribly embarrassing since I'd already continued on my way, with a few scrapes and a lot of dirt, feeling extremely foolish.) I sent a query to my University adviser about it. I hope he will take pitty on me and join the conversation. Any advice?

If I get a decent connection some time next week - which is unlikely - I'll send pics of the new home.

If anyone is thinking of visiting, we will have a place to put you up!

Busy, busy, busy

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 16:53:00 +0000

We are very busy here, at least I am. But, as before, little gets accomplished. At the same time, I can see small improvements. Since my last post (6 days), I can report the following successes:

I have permission to use both the Kala Bhavana (art school) and Central Unversity Libraries. Can't take anything out, but I can go in and read. The libraries are unlike any I've used before. In some ways they seem poorly cared for, but when I look at the collections, they are most impressive. I will write more about them another night.
I have met several people who are not only friendly and good company, but who are also interesting, accomplished and speak English. Plus, C has a new friend and the two girls are going to take art classes together.
Both Celia and I can name a variety of foods in Bengali.
We can also count to ten. And Celia can write all the numbers. I'm a bit behind.
I was permitted to look over the Tagore photo archive. Not sure if they will let me do anything with it, but it was quite the experience to see it.
I bought us each an umbrella. Though it looks very dorky, it's really helpful for the sun.
We have taken several rickshaws. I still feel guilty, but sometimes it is necessary.
I walk miles each day. And for some of them, I actually know where I'm going.
The accomplishment of which I am particularly proud today is that this morning I bought us train tickets to Kolkata for Monday. I need someone to look them over to see if I got the right ones, but I'm feeling pretty thrilled with myself anyway.

Continuing frustrations: No. 1) We still can't find a place to live. Every referral I get is already taken or wasn't really available or will be in July. No. 2) Very limited Internet. That one I'll work on more once we get the home thing straitened out. No. 3) I'm having a really tough time remembering names. I'm working at it, but failing miserably.

Don't worry about us being homeless. We are still in our beautiful and very expensive rooms, being well taken care of, and sweating a bit less now that they have the battery working so we can use the fan when power goes off.

Speaking of which... Power is gone again, so I'll sign off.

Thinking of you all and wishing you a good morning (it's 10 pm here).

US Health Care Reform

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 15:42:00 +0000

I am very happy to learn about progress (finally!) on health care reform. Keep up the good work, Team America!

Accomplishments!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 03:48:00 +0000

Since my last post, I have accomplished a few of the 'goals' I spoke of previously. This evening I' have decided to focus on accomplishments and pleasures rather than failures and frustrations. Of course there have been plenty of the latter. Pleanty.

Accomplishments:

I figured out how to get warm water from the tank to the tap.
I (really someone else) got my laptop to work with the University's internet (once).
I did not get lost on the way back from the University this afternoon. (No comment on the way there.)
Though my 'facilitator' took me to a book shop that didn't have one, I - on my own - found another and they had a child's first Benali script book.
I bought a bunch of bananas.
I figured out how to light the mosquito coil when the power went out last night and I didn't burn anything or anyone. (And for you public health folks, I thought long and hard about the pros and cons of using this thing indoors and decided, with plenty of ventilation, the risk was worth the benefit. These mosquitos are mean.)

Non-accomplishments that I'd like to share:

Yesterday six rather large monkeys ran in front of me, one at a time, and lined up on the wall beside where I was walking. Eventually I stoped and let the parade continue, not knowing the protocol to avoid a Margaret-monkey colision. The last one stopped in front of me, turned his head to examine me, then lept onto the wall.
I found the main commerce district. It's busy and rather overwhelming. Though many people stared at me, no one bothered me. This is so not Delhi. On the other hand, I got the feeling things cost me a little more than they should. Just a little, though.
We are eating so well. Manju, the caretaker's wife, who cooks for us, is very talented. We both thoroughly enjoy our meals.
We are far enough from the Kala Bhavan, the school where I am afiliated, that I'm getting plenty of walking. Much more than in Highland Park. If I find that I am going back and forth too often, I may need to get a bicycle just to save time.

Uh oh. Power has gone again. I will send this later and add more as time allows. For now, off to relax w/ C.

Eating Well, Accomplishing Little

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 08:17:00 +0000

While we continue to be comfortable and content - perhaps too comfortable - I am very busy accomplishing almost nothing. As one can imagine, it's frustrating. Still, I can't say I'm really upset by any of it. My concerns only are with the difficulty of staying in touch, of being able to do, at least some, of my project, getting around and functioning day-to-day.

No problem, right? As Becky advised, one goal only per day. Unfortunately, I believe she meant: set and accomplish one goal. I'm well with goal setting. It's in accomplishment where I fall short.

On the other hand, I've leapt two of the initial hurdles - with a great deal of help - and didn't hurt myself. We now have a mobile phone and both C and I completed 'Foreign Registration'.

Regarding the Foreign Registration process: It was made much, much easier by the many people in Udaiphur at the Fulbright meeting who warned that it might be terribly difficult, necessitate multiple visits, long waits, etc. Though it wasn't the simplest thing, by any means, it wasn't as bad as I anticipated it might be. It did require a long drive. The nearest Foreign Registration Office (FRO) is quite far from here. It took several hours at the station. We each needed four copies of several forms and had to write each copy out by hand. (Not bad, but a little tedious. However, they let us sit at a table that had a nice breeze going by, so it was really pretty civilized, in a no-duplicating-machine kind of way.*) It was an overly-long ordeal for C, but the only part that troubled me was when the officer repeatedly scolded me for waiting until I'd been in India for 12 days. (14 is the legal limit.) I don't think he would have cared about my going to the meetings, leaving luggage in Delhi, waiting 2 days in Kolkata. No matter. It's all done.

One little difficulty, though. As we were leaving, the officer told me that we had to get an exit stamp from that FRO before we leave India. At the least, it means I have to do this two more times: once with C in August, once when I leave, a few weeks later. More troubling is that it may involve a bunch of extra travel (including the costs there of) if we spend time in the north when N, S and Steve come this summer.

Worry later. Exit stamps are not on my daily goal/accomplishment list for months yet.

As I type now, I am uploading a single 30M file as a test. It's 39% complete and has been running for 17 minutes. My greatest worry regarding internet is that I rely on it to back up photos. I also have backup devices here, but were I to lose my equipment, it would be very upsetting. Should I lose my equipment and have no net-based backup, I would also lose all my work. Wish me luck and hope that the technology angels take pity on me.

For day-to-day narrative, see C's blog where she is carefully recording her experiences with her typical wit and insight. I enjoy reading it, and I'm right here. For now, from me only ramblings, observations, bits of experiences. If the technical stuff gets evened out AND I dig out from all the settling-in chores AND I figure out how to do some work, maybe then... I will catch up on email. AND if that happens, perhaps a more timely updates from me, too. Maybe.

Until then, some 'bullet points' about which I had intended to write in detail (the ones I remember).

My first bicycle rickshaw trip. It made me feel uncomfortably guilty to have this man doing all the peddling. I also felt very heavy. And a little worried we might tip over as we turned. The driver didn't complain. He even smiled as I paid. As it was explained in one of the books we read, it's work for him. I hope that's true and that it really was okay with him.

Cost of living. The house in which we are staying now (not sure for how long) is charming, spacious, clean, safe, a good location, with a western toilet and running water, plus they cook and clean for us and they have a dog. [More about 'home' at another time.]

Negatives, not many.

It's really hot and no AC.
The power goes out pretty frequently, but that's not specific to this house. Perhaps AC wouldn't help much without electricity?
The hot water tank light comes on, it's full of water, but I can't figure out how to make any of it come out. (4 knobs, all cold.) Since it's hot, we don't really mind cold bucket baths, but I'll put figuring it out on my daily goal list soon.
Lizards, or whatever they are, are disconcerting. Again, not unique to our place. (C will write more on them.)
This lifestyle is expensive. Not by US standards, but it's way more than either USIEF or I had budgeted.

Figuring cost of living is not as simple as I'd thought. Without internet (sorry to be whining constantly about it), I cant find in-country flight prices, a major expense. I hope to have more info on local expenses as I accomplish some of those daily goals. Obviously, I never thought of this as a money-making venture. I knew I'd spend more than the grant. But how much, and how I can control costs, is a tough call. Made even tougher as I contemplate it sitting in my comfortable rooms...

Trucks:

Nearly all commercial trucks we've seen are intricately painted with a variety of designs, instructions to honk on the back and, occasionally, text that inspires my curiosity (e.g., "Hypothicated to State Bank", "Sunset, Good Morning", "Backing Home").
Most have their mirrors very close in to their cab (they'd be knocked off otherwise), possibly explaining requests to honk?
And many of those mirrors are adorned with decorative, hanging pom-poms. C and I think we will need some pop-poms for our car when we return.

Graphic anti-smoking ads with images of damaged lungs and very ill people. I approve.

The most helpful airport staff imaginable. Not particularly speedy, but helpful beyond my best expectations.

More soon. (Now lets see if I can upload this post.)

The following are notes I tacked to the bottom of my text as I composed. I was doing various upload tests. Don't pay them much attention. I include them only to illustrate my adjustment to, or battle not to adjust to, technological limitations.
Note: This entry was typed into a text document, off line, over a period of about two days, during which I did (read: 'tried to do') a lot of other things. There were also two power-outages, one lasting all yesterday afternoon.

FYI, the upload I was trying crashed. Oh, well.
Restarted upload. Ran 2hrs 16mns and disconnected itself. No crash this time, but I can't get back in to see if anything, even remotely successful, happened.
Nothing. Ugh! Retrying using different approach and with a smaller file (15M). It says it will take another 32 mins. We shall see...
Ahhhh! Logged off with 15 mins to go. I re-started and it began from 2k. I'm not surprised, just fantasized it might remember where it was.
I shouldn't write this as it may lead to bad luck, but I will so you don't see only complaints. The upload says it's 63% complete. I know, I know. I won't hold my breath. Just trying to be positive.
75% !!
95% !!
Success!!
15M in less than 2 hrs. Hmmmm.

* As we were leaving the FRO, I saw a pile of carbon paper on one of the desks.