Mission Accomplished

Though this is a photo of me in Jaipur, I looked pretty much the same today and got multiple compliments as people went out of their way to congratulate me on assimilating to Indian fashion.

Two words: mission accomplished : )

Left to right: Mariya (Bulgaria), Carol (Brazil), the Owner of the Holy Cow Hostel, and Yours Truly

Flesh and Stone

My Indian travels finally began some weeks back when I and a group of interns decided that it would be worth a 12 hour bus ride to spend 3 hours viewing temples in Shravanabelagola and Halebidu (try saying that five times fast - or better yet, spelling it)

- Shravanabelagola, India - 

We began to question our decision about halfway up the side of a steep cliff as we courageously took on several hundred stairs and cursed our daily gulab jamun for weighing us down.

(for some reason, this picture refuses to load with the correct orientation) 

As we climbed higher, we were shocked to see an old man happily trotting down the side of the cliff carrying a bucket and adjusting his turban every few steps. We were surprised, you see, because the turban was the only thing he was wearing.
Maybe he was trying to prepare us for what we would see if we ever reached the temple?

At least when you weren't faced with damaging sights burned into your retinas, the view was quite nice:

And I have to admit, what we saw when we finally reached the top was even better.

With the same pride (but less sag) than the old man enjoying his morning hike au natural, this Indian god built hundreds of years ago and is still a towering sight to behold. Attended to by temple priests offering blessings to passing tourists and the faithful gathered in the courtyard to sing praises, he looks out upon his domain with a cool, unfeeling gaze.

- Halebidu, India -

In my opinion, this is the hidden gem of India. This temple was nearly as breathtaking as the Taj Mahal, and it's a shame that it doesn't get the attention it deserves. Imagine the detail of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, multiply it, and apply it to the interior and exterior of a great Indian temple tucked away in a (relatively) small town. 

What's even more incredible is that every single statue in the entire building is unique, and there are thousands of them throughout (this picture above is only one small portion of the entire temple, pictured below). My favorites were, of course, the elephants marching along the bottom column with each one striking a different pose (though the kama sutra carvings also proved interesting).

They say this temple is incomplete, which explains the lack of an ornate roof and why some portions of the decoration are left untouched. But archeologists have offered a different explanation as to why there are spaces of stone without statues: it's a challenge to the next generation, to see if they can match the talent of the craftsmen who built this temple.

It raises an interesting question: If we were compared to our ancestors, all things held equal, how would we compare?

Sorry...

I haven't posted in a long time, but I haven't dropped off the face of the earth, promise.

I'll make up for it over the next few days, so stay tuned - there's incredible sights and experiences in store

Hampi, India

Acclimating

After three weeks of near starvation and more Domino's pizza than I care to think about, I have finally developed a strong tolerance to spice. 

Doesn't mean I particularly like doing that to my poor taste buds, but at least I can handle it now :) 

While I'm eating lots of food and have no idea what it is/what it's called, there is one thing I've really enjoyed: kerola parotha (specifically the parotha). Mmmmmm

Checking an item off my bucket list: The Indian Wedding

I'm still reeling from this weekend and the fact that I was invited to participate in a South Indian wedding, in India. I would have been happy to attend one in the states, but this was just incredible :D

While speaking with a coworker, I mentioned the three wishes I would want granted while in India: to see the Taj Mahal, ride an elephant in Jaipur, and attend a wedding. To my surprise, she mentioned that she and her family were going to one that weekend, and would I like to come?

Well, who wouldn't?

That's how I found myself wrapped in 9 yards of light blue fabric, decked out with bangles, gold jewelry, and a bindi. We traveled to Sneha's house and, after meeting her husband, parents-in-law, 9 month old son, and 94 year old grandmother (who all attended the festivities), we tried on saris. Despite feeling a bit like a burrito wrapped in all that fabric, I was thrilled and we set off. 

We arrived at the venue, and the first thing I noticed was all the colors. Now India in general is one of the most colorful places I've ever been (it's because people got sick of the bland desert after a few hundred years, according to the locals), but this was a whole new level. The second thing your senses are assaulted with is smell, and you realize all that color is from fresh flowers. I mean, thousands of flowers. Everything is decorated to the nines with beautiful bouquets, which are hung near the entrance, arranged in walkways, given as gifts to the groom, draped around the necks of important members of the wedding party (I somehow got one myself despite not even knowing the families that were getting married), and in every other part of the ceremony you can imagine. 

I wish I could recount for you every detail of the rituals, but there is no way to give justice to the grin on the new couples' face as the groom ties the knot on a necklace for the bride three time and they are married, doused in rice with turmeric, flowers, and beads. It was an arranged marriage, but neither the bride nor groom seemed particularly unhappy. Maybe a bit bored at times, but they performed about 20 hours of rituals over the course of two days. I don't really blame them. Everyone else attending the marriage was equally distracted - nobody besides me was watching the ceremony with rapt attention - and they were all milling about, chatting with their sister's cousin's brother's aunt. No one even so much as blinked when the transgender cross-dresser came in and threw a nasty hissy fit over not being paid immediately (it's actually auspicious to have a man dressed in a sari bless a new couple, and they are often paid to attend the nuptials) despite being in the middle of a complicated ceremony. 

I wish I could upload the pictures I took, but alas, I left the cord that connects my camera to the computer at home. So please accept these pictures as place holders, and I'll update the post in a few weeks with the correct picture. 

Now checking off "attend an Indian wedding" from my bucket list :)

Day 1: Sari

Day 2: Salwar Kameez

The Sky Bar

Picture this: a 16-story luxury shopping mall modeled after the elegance of the Roman empire. The highest-end stores, fine dining, and on the roof, an open-air bar with the best view of the skyline, a dance floor, and a dace permit (dancing is not permitted in Bangalore without permission). 

Add the best group of interns you could ask for - all international students starved for dance and drinks - and you'll get an idea of one of the most fantastic nights I've spent in India:

Carol (Brazil), Mariya (Bulgaria), Dan (Columbia), Laura (Mexico), Monica 

To be honest, I usually don't like going to dance clubs; I was even a bit skeptical about this one. It's just awkward when no one can dance and random guys grab your hips and (poorly) attempt to bust a move. But it's a totally different story when you're with people who know real dancing - I'm not talking about just the ability to bounce to the beat or trust your hips - and the other people at the bar are too timid to try anything. We owned the club that night, and with the view, it felt like the entire world was at our feet. And it was the best feeling in the world. 

P.S. If you're worried about the drinking age in India, don't be. It's 18.

Just Go

Advice from an Indian on a moped when I showed hesitation at crossing a busy street (and for good reason): "it's India, just go!"

My new motto, I think.

Commercial Street

We went shopping today :) 

No idea where I'll wear this stuff in the sates, but still totally worth it. At least it'll be my outfit when I visit the Taj Mahal next month! 

Update: I ended up finding a place to wear this - a workshop on volunteering at work. If I thought I got a lot of stares while dressed in Western clothes, it's nothing compared to when I'm in Indian style clothes. I even got to plant a tree on the Infosys campus wearing this (side note: the tree planting ceremony is a pretty big deal. Presidents, kings, internet titans, and other important figures have all planted a tree on the campus, and I was part of a group that added another one). :D

Commercial Street, Bangalore

Bangalore, India


Reminds you a bit of Tokyo, especially at night. There's a million little shops selling everything you can imagine, and bargaining is encouraged at all.

I had my first bargaining lesson when I went last night with Dan, another intern from Columbia. We bought some beautiful souvenirs, and I think my favorite purchase was a sky blue salwar kameez (at least, I think that's what it is). I'm planning to wear it on my trip to the Golden Triangle (Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur) when I see the Taj Mahal :) 

What I Actually Do Here

I've had a lot of people ask me why I'm in India for the next two months, so here's the full story:

How I got the internship:

Last year, I applied to go on a networking trip in Silicon Valley that my school was organizing (but to be honest, I didn't really expect to go). I received my first shock when I learned that I was actually selected to go on the trip; it's normally reserved mostly for select juniors and seniors, and only two sophomores (including me) were chosen to participate. So for the last week of winter break we were paraded around San Francisco as we toured tech companies, passed out resume books, and handed out business cards. It was an informative experience, but only two of the companies sparked my interest: Intuit and Infosys.

So I applied to both, with great excitement for Intuit and smaller expectations for Infosys, which was more selective than I thought myself to be qualified for. So imagine my surprise when I was hit with shock number two: shortly after submitting my application, Infosys contacted me for an interview.

Perhaps most surprising of all was that it was less of an interview and more of an inquiry as to how soon they could book my ticket to India so I could begin work and, by the way, would I like the job? So here I am, surprised even now to find myself here.

About the Internship:

This is where it gets exciting. I've been charged with the task of researching and enhancing the volunteer process at Infosys. This is a project that will actually impact a large number of people, seeing as Infosys has over 150,000 employees in 39 countries. And what I'm doing will change the way all of them use their company as a platform for community service. I met with my project mentor's boss last week, and she explained that she is really seeking a way to intrinsically motivate people to do good because they want to, not because it's something to check off their to do list. 

Right now, there's not much of a system to speak of. Which really means I'll need to create an entirely new system, and I'll need to do it quickly. 

I was supposed to have 8 weeks to work on this project, but I learned last week that I will be presenting my results to Kris Gopalakrishnan, CEO and Managing Director of Infosys, for use in his keynote address at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Rio+20). So I'll be in hyperdrive for the next two weeks, and then I'll focus mainly on implementation of my suggestions, quality enhancement, marketing the final product, and progress tracking until it's time for me to go home. 

Whew. 

What's really great about this internship is that it's giving me international business experience. I'm working with people from literally every corner of the globe (there is only one other American on campus besides myself), so I am really getting a variety of perspectives on the business culture. I love it :)

Driving in India: The Surest Way to Appreciate Life

"Anyone driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac."

After about a week and a half in India, I think I've roughly figured out the driving system:

When to Honk Your Horn: Frequently, and with Enthusiasm 

1. When someone is in your way

2. When someone is thinking about possibly getting your way

3. When someone is going very slow and you'd like to warn them that you'll hit their car if they don't hurry it up

4. When you're about to do something very illegal and want to let everyone know (I'm still deciding if this is a "watch out!" or "check it out!" tactic)

5. To assert your position on the road

6. To show off your new horn (it hits 4 musical notes!)

7. To say "hey, we're inches away from an accident in which we all loose our lives in a horrible, fiery death! Just thought you should know!" 

8. Because you feel like honking the horn 

Basically, you fallow the law when it suits you. Which is rarely. 

My first car ride from the airport, I was wide-eyed and white-knuckled and as I watched my life flash before my eyes so many times it was burned onto my retinas (it also doesn't help that I have yet to discover a car in this country that contains functional seat belts). A few hours on the roads later, I've learned to trust my drivers and those around me, despite the fact that there are literally no rules. For a (hilariously accurate) account, continue reading:

I found these humorous Indian driving rules online, and have found them to be sadly accurate: 

"Do we drive on the left or right of the road? The answer is “both”. Basically you start on the left of the road, unless it is occupied. In that case, go to the right, unless that is also occupied. Then proceed by occupying the next available gap, as in chess.

1. Just trust your instincts, ascertain the direction, and proceed. Adherence to road rules leads to much misery and occasional fatality.
2. Most drivers don’t drive, but just aim their vehicles in the intended direction. Don’t you get discouraged or underestimate yourself. Except for a belief in reincarnation, the other drivers are not in any better position.
3. Don’t stop at pedestrian crossings just because some fool wants to cross the road. You may do so only if you enjoy being bumped in the back. Pedestrians have been strictly instructed to cross only when traffic is moving slowly or has come to a dead stop because some minister is in town. Still some idiot may try to wade across, but then, let us not talk ill of the dead.
4. Blowing your horn is not a sign of protest as in some countries. We horn to express joy, resentment, frustration, romance and bare lust (two brisk blasts) or just to mobilize a dozing cow in the middle of the bazaar.

Occasionally you might see what looks like an UFO with blinking colored lights and weird sounds emanating from within. This is an illuminated bus, full of happy pilgrims singing bhajans. These pilgrim buses go at breakneck speed, seeking contact with the Almighty, often meeting with success.

One Way Street Signs: These boards are put up by traffic people to add jest in their otherwise drab lives. Don’t stick to the literal meaning and proceed in one direction. In metaphysical terms, it means that you cannot proceed in two directions at once. So drive as you like, in reverse throughout, if you are the fussy type.

Lest I sound hypercritical, I must add a positive point also.

Rash and fast driving in residential areas has been prevented by providing a “speed breaker”; two for each house. This mound, incidentally, covers the water and drainage pipes for that residence

and is left un-tarred for easy identification by the corporation authorities, should they want to recover the pipe for year-end accounting.

If, after all this, you still want to drive in India, have your lessons between 8 pm and 11 am – when the police have gone home. The citizen is then free to enjoy the ‘FREEDOM OF SPEED’ enshrined in our constitution."

---

Despite all this, I have yet to see one real accident. Nada. Zip. Zilch. And in America, where we all constantly obey the rules (well, most of us, at least) in an orderly fashion, can't seem to get anywhere without coming across an accident that inevitably screws up traffic and makes us late. After some reflection, I've decided that it's because Indians set out expecting to die each time they enter a car. So what is there to loose? They make rash driving decisions and constantly expect the worst possible scenario. They're realistic and they're practical. Americans, on the other hand, expect everyone to play by the rules, and it causes massive problems when someone doesn't. 

Maybe we could learn from each other. But my first lesson to Indians would be "seat belt." 

A Word of Advice to the Indian Government:

It will be very difficult to convince investors to start their businesses in India if you make it so difficult to do business here. For example: asking people to wait 8 hours in a hot, stuffy, miserably full and terribly inefficient Foreigner Regional Registration Office (FRRO) just to register for work (in accordance with their employment visa obtained prior) does not give you a very good rep. 

Clarity on the procedure and requirments would be helpful. Then people wouldn't need to constantly keep coming back with different documents, thus wasting everybody's time. This might also lead to less overall confusion. 

I hope this isn't too much to ask, but if you could consider requesting that the employees show some common curtsey, I think everyone would just be happier and less stressed. 

I'm just saying that an entire day of confusion and frustration isn't making your country seem like a very attractive investment option and you may wish to consider more efficient routes (I mean, does it really take 7 different people to check my documents and give me a registration number?!?).

Respectfully, 

Think About It

P.S. While you're at it, you should read this too 

Food In India:

Really spicy, or extremely spicy.

Therefore, I eat Domino's like a real Amurican.

I don't really think I'm missing out on much, especially after I realized that certain "non-spicy foods" have little black balls of pepper that are like exploding spice bombs in your mouth if you're unfortunate enough to bite into one.

Because I appreciate my taste buds, I play it safe.
Can you blame me?
No, I didn't think so.

How to Tame an Elephant

An interesting metaphor I once heard: 

When elephants are young, they have a metal chain tied to their front left leg to prevent them from running away. They pull on it and try to escape, but never can because the chain is too heavy for them to break. Eventually, they give up and accept the fact that whenever they feel a weight on their front left leg, they are unable to leave. They'll carry this with them for the rest of their lives, and even when they are adults and could easily snap the heavy metal chain, they don't even try. 

It makes me wonder: what imaginary glass ceilings do we live under? 

My Bucket List

The description of myself next to this post is entirely sincere - my greatest passion in life is to enrich it. Unlike most people, my bucket list isn't a list of dream or things I just hope to do one day; it's more of a checklist, because I have the intention of completing every item on this list.

Because my wishes, ambitions, and interests are prone to change, I'll be updating this post regularly. So check back often, if you're interested, and I'll put up a new post each time I accomplish an item on the list. 

My Bucket List

• Participate in a Sky Lantern Festival in Chiang Mai, Thailand (this is my #1) 
• See all 7 Wonders of the World:
1. Chichen Itza - Yucatan, Mexico
2. Colosseum - Rome, Italy
3. Taj Mahal - Agra, India
4. Machu Picchu - Cuzco Region, Peru
5. Christ the Redeemer - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
6. Petra - Jordan
7. Great Wall of China - China 
• ...and the Great Pyramids of Egypt, even though they're not officially counted in the list. I still count them as a wonder of the world. 
• Attend the Elephant Festival in Jaipur, India 
• Attend Holi, the Festival of Color in India 
• Attend Carnival in Sao Paulo, Brazil 
• Attend the Gelato Festival in Florence, Italy 
• Watch the Bull Run in Pamplona, Spain 
• Drink LaVazza and eat gelato in Italy
• Create my own international nonprofit 
• Be invited to an A-list party 
• Be recognized by someone famous I admired growing up
• Participate in a Color Run 
• Take a ride in a hot air balloon 
• Have a spa day at an expensive resort 
• Pick apples from an orchard, then make an apple pie with homemade ice cream 
• Cook an entire meal from scratch 
• Sponsor a child, then visit him/her 
• Be a movie extra 
• Have dinner on top of the Hancock Building 
• Eat frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity in NYC 
• Become an accomplished cook
• Climb the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France
• See the original Mona List at the Louvre in France 
• Ride the Ferris Wheel on Santa Monica Pier 
• Drink Earl Grey in London, England

The inspiration for my bucket list and passion for travel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY

The Elephant's Blessing

Bangalore, India

The inspiration for this blog's title is this:

I've always loved elephants. Everything I've learned about them - their complex social structures, high levels of intellect, displays of affection, fascination with the bones of deceased elephants, the ability to die of heartbreak - makes them almost seem more fundamentally human than we act sometimes. 

I used to say that hummingbirds, distinguished by their bright colors and tendency to flit around from flow to flower (effectively working hard but "taking time to smell the roses"), were my favorite animals. But I think elephants have always been my true favorite, ever since I saw them as a girl in A Little Princess and then read about them in Water for Elephants (one of my favorite books) in high school. This sentiment was confirmed when I met an elephant for the first time yesterday at the Indian National Zoo.  

Looking an elephant in the eye is an almost overwhelming sensation. I held the gaze of white tigers, lemurs, monkeys, deer, peacocks, and countless other animals yesterday, but nothing was quite like that of the elephant. Like looking at the Mona Lisa, you can't help but feel that she knows something right out of your reach that you can't quite grasp. Those brown eyes are tired, almost weary with wisdom, but the trunk swings playfully - like she's reminding you that she still retains a youthful lightheartedness. 

Pay her 10 INR  (about $0.19), and she'll happily accept the bill by grasping it with her trunk and passing the money to her handler. She'll then lift her dry, wrinkly trunk above you, and set it on your head - thus giving you her blessing. 

Because I don't really believe in such things, I can't say that the blessing itself was a magical, life-changing experience for me. But I do believe in the power of relationships, and I think taking the time to appreciate the animal and the happiness she was bestowing (rather than treating her as a photo opp) does create a special kind of bond. And since I do have a particular attachment to elephants, I can say the experience enriched my life and gave me a story to share. 

Not to mention a title for my blog :) 

So It Begins

Bangalore, India

It's been a week since I arrived here, and I've already had various people suggest that I consider listing "survived India" among the talents on my resume. To be honest, I'm starting to see why. 

The food is hot enough to make you spit fire. I'm hungry all the time. The heat is outrageous, but respect for the Indian customs prevents me from wearing shorts. I haven't stopped sweating since I got here. People stare and make me uncomfortable. You could confuse the mosquitos with a small species of bird.

But I've fallen madly, deeply, passionately in love with this country. 

First of all, I have the good fortune to have an internship with Infosys, a global IT consulting cooperation. Inside the campus' heavily guarded walls, it's more beautiful than many of the resorts I've stayed at in the past. The lush greenery is not contrasted with the sharp modernity of the buildings, but rather coexists seamlessly, with ivy inching up the walls and palm trees shielding buildings from the sun. 

And while we may be buffered from the raw Indian experience within, we're more than encouraged to step outside and explore the city and the country. Which is exactly what I intend to do. 

We (myself and another intern) set off for our first weekend with a trip to the national park and zoo. Like most things in India, imagine the American version without health and safety codes. The animals are kept in simple cages, by which I mean they are within the confines of a fence. No glass. No "please don't get too close." I figured I'd never get an opportunity to hand-feed a lemur (they like spicy BBQ chips, go figure), touch a bear, or pet a zebra in America, so I jumped at the opportunity to do all these things. My personal favorite, however, was playing with the animals that weren't in the cages - first the monkeys (who have a weakness for popcorn and stealing mango juice), and then the elephants. 

The elephants. Wow. They deserve a post of their own, which I'll put up soon. 

The zoo excursion was a great close to a wonderful week. My work has been slow as my project manager was away at a conference, but I expect things to pick up at a breakneck speed once she returns. Lunch, coffee breaks, and drinks with the other interns has been a diverse cultural mixture in an of itself, as we have people from Thailand, Brazil, the UK, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia...and, with me being me, I'm learning so much about their cultures and even having lots of opportunities to practice my Spanish and Italian :) 

In short (can I say that after writing so much?), I couldn't be happier, and I am so thankful to have been given this incredible opportunity. 

P.S. If you're interested in seeing a video of where I'm staying, click here