Julie and Kathleen’s Visit

(Note: I found and LOVE Flickr…Here are few pics to describe a few of our sites and I’m working on posting all of them.)

We just spent a fabulous week with Mark’s sisters, Julie & Kathleen this past week.  They arrived to Delhi last Saturday night in great spirits and we spent Sunday touring around Humayan’s Tomb, India Gate and the Presidential Palace then headed to Khan Market for some lunch and shopping. They had a little jet lag but plowed right through.

Mark, Julie & Kathleen

On Monday morning, we woke very early to take the 6:15 train to Agra to see Fatehpur Sikri which is about an hour away and of course, the Taj!  Agra is not the most pleasant city and the train timings are spread out which is why we thought Fatehpur Sikri would allow to spend a little time outside the actual city – and what we’ve heard, it’s a very neat site.  We also booked reservations at the Oberoi for cocktails to help cushion our afternoon.  We got to the station right as the train was pulling up and settled into our 2 hour ride…however the terrible dense fog had different plans for us.  We got in three hours late and had to skip Fatehpur Sikri because of time.  Our driver, Mr. Laal, informed us that if the train is late going south, it will be late coming back north.  He offered a driver to take us back to Delhi that evening and to help us with refunding our return train tickets.  In the end, it worked out.

Just one of many...

This is the second time that Mark & I have visited the Taj Mahal (we’re lucky!) and the weather was fantastic.  Sun & blue skies but no matter the weather it’s always a stunning building.

After the Taj, we headed over the Agra Fort in search of some monkey business.  After some wandering around and snaps (Julie & Kathleen met some local students and teachers) we finally found a few…Best shot was one Julie took of a monkey eating an ice cream cone.

Time for drinks at the Oberoi!  Mmmm…lush surroundings; view of the Taj; a couple of delicious drinks…all to soften the 4 1/2 hour drive back to Delhi…at least we were in a SUV-type car!

Sunset at the Taj (Kathleen's pic)

Tuesday morning – up bright and early for our 9:30 flight to Udaipur, in Rajasthan. Fog was not too bad except when we pulled into the ramp up to the departure area…couldn’t see the nose on our faces…another delay of four hours.  Boo fog!  The papers said it was the worst fog since 2003.  The flight finally took off at 1:30 – it was a cinch; the driver picked us up and we arrived at our beautiful hotel…just exactly what we were all looking for.

Mark, Kathleen & Julie’s Aunt Patricia and cousin Katharina visited Udaipur in November and stayed at the Lake Palace Hotel (in the middle of the lake) which was the summer palace for the King and his family.  Patricia was very kind to make dinner reservations for us.  A little boat is the only way to get there and the property (what we saw of it) is exquisite.  Dinner was at a sunken table where the Royal family occasionally dines.  We feasted on delicious tandoor quail, spicy prawns, dal makhani, among other traditional Indian dishes.

The lily pond at Lake Palace

Wednesday…slept in and lounged by the pool for a little while before heading to Devi Garh Hotel, a converted fort, for lunch.  It’s in the mountains and the landscape is very much like Arizona or New Mexico – dry with brush.  This hotel is like an oasis of green and pool – lovely for lunching.  Later that afternoon we had a tour of the City Palace Museum which was originally part of the royal residence (converted to museum in 1984). It was fascinating with lots of decoration, mirrored rooms (the kings did have more than one wife back in the day…) and rooms full of paintings.  Girish, our guide armed us with a lot of information about the families and way of life of the royal families.

Family Photo

Intricate Glasswork

We ended our lovely day with a lovely dinner on the hotel rooftop in a little turret lined with white cushions and candles overlooking Udaipur at night.

The next morning, Mark & I headed to Ranakpur which is home to a Jain temple which has 144 pillars – all hand-carved marble and all different.  Not only were the pillars a work of art, there were several domes, windows, and walls which .  It was truly a breathtaking site and one of the prettiest temples we’ve been in.  The girls were seeking some R&R, shopping and serious spa treatments and their day was just as fulfilling.

Columns

Our last day in Udaipur, we walked around the city, went inside the Vishnu temple and then to the City Palace Museum and shopped for a few souvenirs before we headed back to Delhi that afternoon.

We wrapped up our trip in Delhi with more shopping, good eating and a few laughs.  It was an incredible week with Julie & Kathleen and I’m so glad to have spent so much time with them.

Stefan and Elise are coming in a couple of weeks…we’ve just finalized our itinerary and made reservations for a few days in Jaisalmer which includes a camel safari and night in the desert.  And then, my sister Beth comes…plans are coming together for a trip to the Himalaya foothills and girl trip Udaipur.

Our Trip to Kerala – Chapters 1-4

Hi all,

Well, we’re back from a whirlwind December. Here’s the update on our trip to Kerala, in three chapters to help break up the story a little bit.  And, if you need to run off for some reason, you can remember where you left off.

Mark sent out this update shortly after we returned on December 10th.

Introduction from the Author

Katie and I are in the Cochin airport, waiting to board our flight back to Delhi.  We have been traveling in Kerala for the past week and have had an amazing time.  I flew down to Cochin on Wednesday, December 2 for the Cardiological Society of India’s annual meeting.  The conference was a good opportunity to learn more about the research already underway here in India, and I even met up with a few familiar faces (including Jeff Goldberger, an electrophysiologist from Northwestern).

I stayed in small hotel in the Fort Cochin area, which still serves as a key seaport for Kerala and southern India.  The highlights of Fort Cochin include the St. Francis Cathedral (former tomb of Vasco de Gama), traditional Chinese fishing nets (a particularly durable style of nets, which are still being used today), Jew Town (full of nice shops and restaurants), and the fort itself.  I spent two nights in Cochin before heading down to Kovalam to meet up with Katie.

Chapter 1 – The Wedding Festivities

We traveled near the tip of southern India to Kovalam for the wedding of Anjana Eapen in nearby Trivandrum.  Anjana is Asha Eapen’s sister, and Asha is married to Jyothy Puthumana, who is a cardiologist from Northwestern.  Katie and I spent time with Asha and Jyothy during our last visit to India one year ago, as well as back in Chicago.  They recommended the Travancore Heritage Hotel (named after a former king of Kerala), which was situated atop a plateau overlooking the Indian Ocean.  The property was as lush, and the views were as spectacular as what we had seen in Hawaii.

Our Room with a View

So tempting...

Katie arrived Friday afternoon and was invited for dinner at Asha’s family’s home for a traditional south Indian dinner with plenty of coconut-based curry dishes served on banana leaves.  Katie also met several of Anjana’s New York-based work friends who were very fun and new to India.  Anjana works as a technical designer for Tracy Reece, a fashion designer who outfitted Michelle Obama for the cover of People magazine.  Katie even won a few rave reviews for her colorful salwar kameez and dupatta combination from Tracy, who made the trip as well.

And when you're finished, you fold the leaf in half lengthwise

I arrived late on Friday and noticed several hundred small lights in the distance as I was walking to our room from the lobby.  I figured we were staying on one side of a bay, and the lights were coming from the town across the bay.  When I asked the bellboy about the lights, he corrected me, telling me that the lights were from the fisherman in the ocean, who went out every night.  The next morning, we saw all of the boats lined up along the beach—I could hardly believe it.

Restaurant & Pool

The wedding ceremony itself was in Trivandrum, about 30 kilometers away.  Anjana and Tushar (the groom) were married in a Carmelite church with a beautiful ceremony.  The priest gave a good homily, reminding us to love people for who they are, and not who we want them to be.  After the wedding, there was a large luncheon at the local social club with about 650 people.  Jyothy served as the emcee, and Asha’s father toasted the couple to many years of love and happiness.

Beautiful Bride

This pic only shows about 3/4 of the room...

Groom's side

Bride's side

We spent the evening and next day on the beach—playing Frisbee, swimming, reading, and relaxing.  Katie had a full-body aryuvedic massage (I limited mine to head, neck, and shoulders), and we headed off to the second reception at a nearby hotel that also overlooked the ocean.  Here the couple was greeted by a local band of drummers wearing traditional south Indian dhotis (long cloths that are wrapped around a man’s waist) and a giant, colorfully-decorated elephant.  The women held oil lamps to welcome the couple, tossing flower petals as they walked in the entrance.  The reception included classical Indian dancing, the best gulab jamun we’ve had in India, and a muscle-bound DJ playing the requisite “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” to end the night.

The Beach

Greeting the Bride & Groom

Chapter 2 – The Houseboat

The day after the reception, we jumped into the car with Asha and Jyothy to drive several hours to the Kottayam district for a houseboat trip into the backwaters of Kerala with Jyothy’s family.  Jyothy’s father (John), mother (Mary), uncle (Matthew), cousins (Chery, Sissy), and aunts (Anna and one other whose name I am blanking on) were all waiting for us on the boat, so we took off as soon as we arrived.  The backwaters are a must-do in Kerala, with luxurious houseboats outfitted with comfortable couches, expansive dinner tables, on-board cooks, air-conditioned bedrooms, and fresh coconuts awaiting us.

The Houseboat

Drinking Tender Coconut Water

Asha & Jyothy enjoying Tender Coconut

Throughout the afternoon, we lazily moved along the backwaters, stopping only for lunch and to dock for the night.  The rivers were clean and verdant, reminding me a little bit of the swamps near New Orleans.  Before dinner, our group hopped into a small gondola to visit a 550 year-old church across the river and offer a prayer.  Around this time, we were approached by a man from Delhi who was honeymooing in Kerala with his new bride, and he asked if he could sleep in our boat since he was fearful of bandits.  Jyothy reassured the man: telling him that the area was safe, giving him his mobile phone number in case of an emergency, and recommending that he dock his boat near ours for the night.  Jyothy then told the man not to worry, reminding him of Kerala’s motto, “This is God’s own country.”  We finished the evening with dinner, listening to Bollywood classics and catching up in general.

Mary & John - Jyothy's Parents

Bedroom

Dawn on the Backwaters

Chapter 3 – Family Visits & Education

The next morning, we toured around the backwaters a bit more, enjoying our relaxing breakfast of toast, coffee, and meen (fish) curry.  We hopped off the boat and headed off with Jyothy, Asha, John, and Mary to visit John and Mary’s families over the next few days in the hills of Kerala.  First stop was John’s older brother, Phillip (note that John is one of twelve children, and Mary is one of ten children, so we may mix up a few names!), where John and his brother had a chance to catch up.  We chatted for about 30 minutes, meeting Phillip’s wife and their two fox-like dogs.

On the road again...

We then drove north and east through the hills to Mary’s ancestral home in the Palai district where her brother Joy lives in the family home.  Joy is the second oldest (the oldest is an archbishop in Assam, a northeastern state in India) and helps oversee the family rubber estate.

Rubber is big business in Kerala, and the hills are covered with thousands (probably even millions) of rubber trees.  The rubber trees mature for five to seven years at which point they can be tapped for “milk” (the liquid form of rubber), much like maple trees would be tapped for their sap.  Each morning, a skilled “tapper” will introduce a small metal conduit into a new position in tree to allow the milk to drain into a medium sized bowl.  Around noon, all of the bowls are emptied, and the milk brought into a small processing room where it is combined with formic acid in a baking pan.  Once the rubber is set, it is fed through a hand- (or sometimes machine) powered press that operates like a pasta maker.  The flattened rubber mats are then dried in the sun over several days until they reach a golden brown color (or can be smoked to achieve the black rubber color seen on tires and soles of shoes).  From here, the rubber is sold for Rs 135 per kilogram, and this process continues for ~200 days per year.

Rubber Tree Farm (plus other complimentary crops)

Rubber Tree which has been cut to collect "milk"

Liquid Gold Rubber

After the acid & rubber set the sheet is put through the roller

Smoking is one method of drying the newly made rubber sheets

Another method is to hang them in the sun (Jyothy is showing me the family's stamp)

Mary and Joy’s sister (from the backwaters tour) lives next door, and we were visiting Palai to remember her husband, who had died suddenly five years back.  She also serves as the village council (“panchayat”) president and has served on the panchayat over the past 15 years.  When I asked her what her proudest accomplishments were, she included several critical milestones for the entire village of 7,000: 100% tile roofs, 100% electricity, 100% indoor plumbing, 100% primary schooling, improved, paved roads (which were much better than Delhi!), and overall empowerment of the community’s women.  I think she should win in a cakewalk in the next election with that list of achievements.

Mary’s other brother, Michael, a Salisian priest from Tamil Nadu, also made the trip over the western Ghats (mountains that separate Tamil Nadu from Kerala) to concelebrate the memorial Mass the next morning.  Fr. Michael was a garrulous, friendly man, who encouraged Katie and me to speak Malayalam (the local language, an appropriate palindrome that means “hills and valleys” and has equally serpent-like characters) as well as to eat everything in sight.

From here we made a quick stop at another relative’s house (savoring crunchy rose cookies with black sesame seeds and sweet dodols, made with cashews, butter, and jaggery [brown sugar]) and then went to meet Daisy (Mary’s younger sister) and Joy (her husband, different Joy than above), who live in Joy’s ancestral home nearby.  Daisy and Joy have five girls (in comparison to John and Mary, who have five boys) and also care for Joy’s mother, who requires their help around-the-clock.  Joy cultivates many acres of land with diverse produce such as rubber (in line with the family tradition), betel nut, pineapple, jackfruit, gooseberry, cocoa, black and green pepper, nutmeg, and more.  Fr. Michael insisted we try everything we could get our hands on—from sour gooseberry to aromatic nutmeg flower to spicy black pepper to sweet cocoa to other fruits I have never seen before.  The best part of our visit was coming back from our tour of the fields to Daisy’s table, where we enjoyed banana chips, grilled banana, cashew cookies, and a light, homemade chocolate cake—all before lunch!

After being sent off with a bag of beautiful, green cardamom (my favorite, especially for making tea), we drove to visit Mary’s cousin Matthew (different Matthew than before) and his family.  Their family welcomed up for a delicious lunch with spicy, curried squid, porottas (flaky south Indian flatbreads), beetroot with yogurt, rice, and ice cream.  Matthew and his three sons own a south Indian food export business with two factories near their rubber estate.  Two sons work from the US, and one son (also named Matthew) works from Kerala.  The company produces flash frozen foods under the Daily Delight brand name, and spices and canned foods under the Periyar brand name.  They sell products such as porottas (manufacturing approximately 10 million per year!), meen curry, shaved coconut, vegetable puff pastries, and many others in New York, Chicago, and other US/European cities with large south Indian populations.  We toured the giant cauldrons, giant vats of oil (using sunflower oil, rather than the cheaper, more atherogenic palm oil), and giant freezers.

After lunch and the factory tour, we went back for a nap at Mary’s ancestral home, and caught up with the rest of the family for the evening prayers and dinner.  Katie had a slight fever (likely from sinusitis), so we turned in early for the night.

The next morning, I went to the memorial Mass while Katie rested and recovered.  We were able to pick up some meds (including antibiotics—she had symptoms for 5-6 days so we figured it was time to pull the trigger in lieu of traveling and her fever), which helped over the course of the next day’s travels.  From Mary’s ancestral home, we drove to meet John’s cousin, who led the previous day’s annual town jubilee for Immaculate Conception.  He and his wife served cake and wine, since it was the first time they had seen Jyothy and Asha since their wedding (December 29, 2007).  Cake and wine are part of a tradition welcome for a newly married couple into one’s home.  John’s cousin also showed Jyothy and me his previous cardiac reports—lipids, stress test, and angiogram—and also showed us his treadmill that he walks on for an hour every day without angina.   I asked him if he wanted to be my patient!  We had fun taking a short video that I will try to incorporate for future talks about coronary heart disease care in India.

After this visit, we drove to visit Mary’s cousin and her husband, James, who works as a lawyer.  They live on a small, picturesque river downstream from the Udiqui dam, which is the second largest arched dam in Asia.  They served us delicious jackfruit, a huge green and yellow fruit that is divided into many bite-sized segments that taste just like bubble gum (with a color that looks like a Juicy Fruit label).  Perhaps Beth can let us know if jackfruit is the basis for bubble gum, because I’m convinced that it is.  They are also cousins of a well-known Indian cardiologist, Dr. Enas Enas, who practices in Downers Grove and spoke at the cardiology conference in Cochin (one of the better talks of the meeting, I thought).  Dr. Enas had stayed overnight at their home just the night before so we just missed him.

Jack Fruit pods

For our lunch stop, we visited one of John’s other cousin, Dr. John.  Dr. John is a general practitioner who spent the greater part of his career in Benin, Nigeria.  He still treats the occasional patient for mild illnesses in his home-based clinic, and shared with Jyothy and me the diversity of his previous practice in Nigeria (ranging from pediatric illnesses to performing hysterectomies).  We lunched on chicken curry, vegetable biryani, fried beef patties (our first taste of beef in a while), and a

Neapolitan-like ice cream for dessert.  After walking around the estate to get a little exercise (Dr. John is also a rubber farmer) and to meet the dog and cows, we drove to Jyothy’s brother’s in-laws (his brother lives in Baltimore) to say a brief hello.

After a two hour drive northward (which included naps for everyone), we made our way to John’s cousin’s ancestral home where we were remembering his cousin who had died one year back—again suddenly and likely related to heart disease.  We met Thelamaunty (his widow), and their three sons—Johnson, Geppy, and Alex.  As usual, coffee and snacks awaited, including dried mango and tapioca chips (surprisingly good).  I tried my hand at the coconut shaver, narrowly escaping a major kitchen catastrophe, and quickly left the device to the experts.  We toured around the rubber estate, seeing the new brick home being built for Alex (over 4000 sf!) and a few bee colonies.  We cleaned up and played with the grandchildren, who ranged from about three to eight years old.  We had evening prayers then another indulgent dinner of spicy fried fish, cabbage salad, chapatis, and banana/pineapple pudding with caramelized cashews.

Two Cute Kids

We slept nearby at the home of Johnson’s, Geppy’s, and Alex’s cousin, Vinoy, and his wife, Sobha.  They live in a beautiful, traditional-style Keralan home with their three children—Phillip, Maria, and Thomas.  After the morning memorial Mass, we toured the estate, which included a rubber processing building, fruit trees, chickens, and a GIANT two year-old pig that should be ready by next Christmas.  We had our final meal (breakfast of scrambled egg sandwiches made with an electric sandwich-maker, vegetable curry, and coffee) before heading off to the airport.  On our way, we dropped Fr. Michael at his bus stop (for his eight to ten-hour bus ride back to Tamil Nadu) and were dropped off at the Cochin airport with Jyothy and Asha (they were headed to Mumbai for the Hindu portion of Anjana and Tushar’s wedding with his family).

John's Family

2010 Christmas Dinner

Chapter 4 – Reflection

We have greatly appreciated this past week on so many levels.  We have met so many wonderful, kind people who are proud of their families, their heritage, their state, and their country.  We have visited villages that did not have paved roads or electricity only 30 years ago, but now have DSL with Skype, Wii sets, and flatscreens along with life expectancies and literacy rates that rival the US.   We have learned more about rubber than I ever thought I would.   Most importantly, though, we met two extended families that respect and remember their elders, love each other very much, and have remained connected over generations and thousands of miles.  We feel grateful and lucky to have been able to tour Kerala with Jyothy and Asha and their families and look forward to re-connecting with our own families and friends back in the US in less than two weeks for Christmas and New Years. [KDH – updates, pics coming soon!]

We hope you are having a good Advent/holiday season so far, and we can hardly wait to see you in St. Louis and Chicago soon.

Love,

Katie & Mark

Susan’s Visit

Mark’s sister, Susan, came to visit us a couple of weeks ago (Nov. 6) and we had a fantastic time together.

The first couple of days were spent in Delhi easing our way into Indian culture and lifestyle.  Unfortunately, the smelly, dirty side of Delhi decided to show itself in the form of terrible pollution so seeing things at a distance was difficult (I mean can’t see down the block bad).  We made the best of it and visited Humayan’s Tomb, India Gate, the Presidential Palace, Tibetan shops, Jama Masjid and many parts of Old Delhi, plus a few nice spots for meals and breaks. We even got snake charmed.

At Humayan's Tomb

The ridiculous garments we were made to wear at Jama Masjid

At the crack of dawn Monday, we took the train to Jaipur or the Pink City.  It’s a walled city that was “pinkwashed” when Prince Albert came for a visit in the 1850’s and the color stuck.  The city was pinkwashed again in 2000 for Bill Clinton’s visit.  It’s very pretty.

One of the gates into the walled City

On our first day in Jaipur we had lunch poolside at our hotel (a renovated Palace) and then hit the town and visited the Ancient Astrological Park.   Indians are very into astrology and it plays an important part with decision-making, match making and wedding date selection.  It was a very clear day and the juxtaposition of the structures against the blue sky enhanced the experience.

A big way to get your horoscope

We then went the flagship Anokhi store (one of my personal favorite stores) and bought a few gifts and then went on a quest to find this jeweler which we read was in an amazing old building and had a stunning collection of jewels.  It took us quite a while to figure out where it was (we were on foot).  It’s one of the more frustrating parts about India…No clear roadsigns.  After a few phone calls to the place, we found it and were amazed by all the frescoes in the haveli.  Frescoes we learned hadn’t been altered since they were finished a couple of hundred years ago.  Oh, and the jewel collection was indeed, stunning.

Our hotel offered dinner and an “evening programme” of traditional Rajasthani entertainment which included music, fire-breathing and the ever entertaining “how many jars can you balance on your head” act.  Plus, a puppet show.

Lots of jars.

The next day we were up early for a walk with a guide through the Pink City.  He led us through a few havelis, some very run down and some still in great shape, a Jain temple, a Hindu monastery (with a great view from its roof) and a Krishna temple.  We got to go places and see things that we wouldn’t have exposure to without the guide…We’d been a bunch of snoops instead.

Haveli Archway

Song and Prayers at Krishna Temple

Then we went to Amber Fort, in the foothills of mountains.  This is one of the more opposing forts I’ve seen since it’s so high up.  We rode an elephant up there since we were feeling lazy.  Just kidding!  We did it because it’s cool.  Our elephant was quite insistent on walking very close to the edge which made me a little scared but we made it!

With a friendly elephant

Susan on her way up to the Fort

After that we went to the Anokhi Museum of Hand Painting which displays the work of the designer, the restoration of the haveli in which the museum is housed and demonstrations on hand block designing.

The Rambagh Palace was supposed to be a nice place for lunch so we headed there.  Um, it’s a ******** place (as in 5+ stars) and we sat on the veranda and overlooked this:

Aaahhhhhhh

That night, in an attempt to find an auto rickshaw, we stumbled upon a wedding procession.  The groom was on a white horse and his relatives and friends were dancing to a brass band.  The entire party was encircled by men carrying chandelier type electrical lamps which were connected to a generator at the back of the parade.  Mark was dragged into the dancing but Susan and I stayed behind to watch and laugh and catch it all on video.

The next day, we were up early for a train to Agra.  We were placed in a sleeper car even though it’s  only a 4-5 hour ride.  It was nice because we all sat together instead of 2 and 1 seats.  We saw the rural parts of India, the little villages that sit by the train stations, the filth and poverty that goes along with it.   These places are worse than the poorest county in the US by leaps and bounds.  I must say I saw some things that I’ll never forget but am glad I saw.

And then to suddenly switch gears to see the most extreme dedication of love in the entire world, The Taj Mahal.  It is magnificent!  It is opposing!  It has so much detail!  And we took a ton of pictures and tons of people took our pictures.  One woman grabbed Susan by the arm and shook her hand and insisted that her relatives took their pictures.  Susan is a celebrity in India…didn’t you know?

The Taj Mahal

Spectacular!

We visited Agra Fort because we needed to kill a lot of time before our 8:30 train departure.  Forts are India like churches are to Europe…you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.  The most amusing part of the Fort were all the monkeys!  I mean lots of monkeys.  A few got into a rumble as we were exiting and their screams are very shrill and loud and they have big teeth that they were baring at each other.  Yep, that was a good time to leave.

That same night we took the train back to Delhi and boy, were we glad to be home, sweet, home.  Lots of travel in a short amount of time and worth it!

On the last day, we slept in (well, not Mark, poor guy, he had to go to work), had coffee, went shopping, had lunch and lounged in the evening before taking Susan back to the airport.

Thank you Susan for being a great travel companion, open to our ideas and sharing these experiences!  It’s a trip we’ll never forget.

A farewell salute. Really, we wanted to capture the pointy toed shoes.

Update #5

Mark wrote another update yesterday(Monday) …it’s a blitzkrieg of blogging!  Enjoy!

Hi,

Today is Eid al-Fitr, the Feast of the Breaking of the Fast, otherwise known as the end of Ramadan.  The upshot of this holiday is that I have an extra day off (Katie has a half-day at the American Embassy School).  I did not find out that I would have today off until Saturday, so Katie and I cooked up a quick trip to Amritsar, the holy city of Sikhism and home of the Golden Temple.  Most people find Amritsar to be a good place to visit for a day, since there is not too much else around town, except that Amritsar is close to the Pakistani border.

After booking our flights and hotel on Saturday afternoon (prompting a hold on our debit and credit cards that required a phone call to complete the reservations), we had plans to go to Fiona Taylor’s birthday party in Vasant Kunj, a nearby suburb.  Katie knows Fiona through the Delhi Network, and I know her through the South Asian Network for Chronic Diseases, which is headed by her husband, Shah Ibrahim (SANCD is adjacent to the CCDC and falls under the Public Health Foundation of India).  Fiona and Shah are from Bristol, UK and will be in Delhi for a total of four years (one down, three to go).  They have a large network of mostly-European expat friends, and we were lucky enough to be invited to what turned out to be quite a party.  Their home is on three acres (and thus qualifies a farm in Delhi phraseology), and it easily accommodated the 50 or so guests.

When we arrived, there was some beautiful tabla music that ended too quickly for us (we arrived late because we were finalizing the Amritsar plans) but a huge buffet dinner awaited (with produce from their gardens!).  There was a magician and puppet show for the kids, which they seemed to enjoy (the routine between US magicians and Indian magicians is strikingly similar–I claim this because of (my niece) Katie’s recent graduation party, which included a magician as well–love that rope trick).  For the adults, the stakes were a little higher.  There was a gang of Rajasthani dancers (and accompanying drummer) that roused the crowd from their post-prandial state into a frenzy of dancing, capped off with some good-old-fashioned fire-breathing (no joke).  I was stunned, amazed, and a little scared that this guy’s entire oropharynx, larynx, and lungs were going to be torched, particularly given the state of Delhi’s emergency service.   But he managed to pull it off with a smile and a wild-eyed look all in one, and boy did the crowd (and we) love it.  The pictures don’t do the whole experience justice, but you can hopefully get the feeling.There was cake and singing and more dancing, and we even met a few people that Katie knew from Delhi Network and that I knew from SANCD.  It was the best party we’ve been to in Delhi without hesitation. [Katie: I also have a video of the fire breather which I’m figuring how to post to Fickr or Vimeo.]

Dance Party, Indian Style

Balancing with Fire & 180 proof alcolhol (or kerosine)

He did this several times

The next morning we awoke at 430 am to be able to make our 715 am flight (which was not unsurprisingly late but you’d hate to be wrong).  On a side note, the new domestic terminal that opened earlier this year is quite an upgrade from the old terminal we used when we flew from Delhi to Chennai last December.  Upon landing into sleepy Amritsar, we were picked up by the hotel (Ista Amritsar) and left for the Sikh Golden Temple soon thereafter.   Skihism (derived from “discipline”) is predominant religion of the state of Punjab, a state northwest of Delhi on the border with Pakistan.  Sikhism was started in the 16th century as an alternative from Hinduism and Islam, and the Golden Temple is its holiest site.  Built in the late 16th century and into the early 17th century, the Golden Temple was a place constructed for all worshipers of God.  As you likely already know, Sikhs typically wear tightly wrapped turbans and beards, compared to the Rajasthanis, who typically wear loosely wrapped turbans and mustaches (not 100%, of course).  Sikhism teaches the 5 Ks – kēs (uncut hair), kaṅghā (small comb), kaṛā (circular iron bracelet), kirpān (dagger), and kacchā (special undergarment).  They also have a reputation of enjoying their food and drink, with hearty appetites for both.  Men and women must cover their heads, take off their shoes and wash their feet upon entering the shrine amidst Sikh chanting.  Most non-Sikh visitors end up buying a small piece of cloth with white and orange as the primary colors that are offered (orange seemed to be the color of the pilgrimage).

There are several instances of bloodshed that mark Sikh history: the Jallianwala Bagh massacre by the British in 1915 which led to the “Quit India” campaign of Mahatma Gandhi, and Operation Blue Star by the Indian government itself by Indira Gandhi (no relation despite the name; she was the daughter of the first prime minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru) in 1984.  Operation Blue Star was an attack in the walls of the Golden Temple that was ordered by Indira Gandhi for possible terrorist activities of a Sikh leader and led the killing of hundreds at the Golden Temple.  Gandhi was killed by her Sikh bodyguards later that same year for the location of the attack.

The visit was like nothing Katie or I had ever witnessed.  There were thousands of people visiting the Temple with many getting into the surrounding lake to bathe in the holy waters; hundreds waited in the scorching heat enter the Temple itself.

Pictures don't do it justice.

Given the temperatures and the sheer density of people waiting in line for an estimated 90-120 minutes, we decided to stay on the outside and capture some representative pictures, including one attached here (a common way to approach one’s visit apparently).

Some people walking toward the line

Lotsa People + no space between you & the next person + 90 degree heat = Recipe for a Katie Freakout

At the Golden Temple

There were many people (especially kids and teenagers) who wanted to shake our hands, take our pictures with them, and ask us where we were from (during our whole stay here, most people have thought that we are either German or English [not that far off genetically]).   Some others pushed their way ahead of us, given our non-Sikh status.  After a hot lap around the bare marble pavement, we grabbed some lunch at one of the recommended Punjabi restaurants and headed back to the hotel for a nap before our next adventure.

I had read that visiting the Indian-Pakistani border was an interesting side trip from Amritsar (30 km), and one of the guests at Fiona’s birthday party encouraged us to go.  I started having reservations after our trip to the Golden Temple, but Katie was very interested and very excited at the opportunity.  So we took an SUV from the hotel to the Wagha border, through some harrowing traffic of pedestrians, horse-drawn carts, bicycles, motorcycles, cars, buses, and trucks, many trying to the get to the same place we were.  Since there appears to be a single road to the border, a major bottleneck occurs as you get closer to the border, and eventually we had to walk the final mile or so.  There were hundreds of people filing ahead with occasional surges from the crowd (not fun) to get to the metal detectors and guards–one line for men and one for women.  Kids are hawking DVDs, Indian flags, and bottled water.  Once we neared the stadium-like stands, were were led around to the VIP/foreign nationals line to get near the front (our passports were essential for this one). It’s good for tourism, I imagine.  It took me about 10 minutes to get through the next set of guards (with one guy getting kicked in the pants by one of the guards for his pushing; Katie got through in about 15 seconds) and were directed to seats just before the ceremony began.

More people!

Katie and I have differing views on this ceremony: she enjoyed the pageantry and enthusiasm of the crowd, where I was on high-alert for all of the militarism and nationalism.

March toward Pak border

Lowering of the flag...Looking toward Pakistan

There were probably 1500 or so people on the Indian side and maybe 50 or so on the Pakistani side (see the second picture, above).  There is frequent call-and-response with the emcee and the crowd with cries of Hindustan! (not always appreciated by the non-Hindus of India, I would guess).  The Indian guards alternate fast marches with puffed-out chests to the border with their Pakistani counterparts before the flags are lowered for the night.

Putting the flag away until sunrise

Near the end, a man tried to run from the Pakistani border to the Indian side but was held up by one of the Indian guards with a decent amount of pushing and shoving.  We had heard that such an act was “part of the show,” but it seems like a pretty bad idea that riled everybody up.  With people pushing to get out, a wild-eyed crowd, and the heat, I was ready to head back straight away and we fortunately made it near the front of the pack (by virtue of being among the last to get in).

We took a quick trip back to see the Golden Temple at night (and snap a few more photos) then back to the hotel for dinner before heading off to bed.

The line was still 90 minutes at 8 p.m.

We made it back late this morning, and Katie is back at work.  I am going to head to the market to pick up some food for dinner and get some work writing done.  We are heading down to Hyderabad and Secunderbad this Sunday for the next week or so, and we will have more updates soon thereafter.  Thanks for sending us all of your updates, and we look forward to catching up via Skype soon.  Have a great week!

Love,
Katie & Mark

Landed!

We had a terrible experience on our return flight from Delhi last December and I think it scarred us for life.  The flight takes place at night so it’s dark in the cabin the entire time.  The overhead lights in our seats were not working and only one of our TV’s worked and all we could watch was Hell Boy 2.  I think we watched it 5 times.

To make a long story short, we decided to prepare for the worst and this included bringing little camping flashlights and a headlamp and a deck of cards.  The over-planning worked because our section was up and running!  A few hands of Gin Rummy helped the time pass and there were better movies than Hell Boy 2 (although Ghosts of Girlfriends Past was quite silly).  We arrived a few minutes early, got through the health check (Swine Flu) and customs very quickly, and our bags were on the conveyor belt by the time we picked up a couple of carts and got to the carousel.

The hotel is very nice…kind of like a mini-State Place (our old apt.).  It’s called Svelte and it’s connected to three malls.  Malls are now very popular in India and it’s where a lot of people go to hang out and head to the movies.  There is Benetton, MAC make-up, book store, Aldo, nail place, etc…just like Old Orchard or West County.  I might go in for a polish change later this week.

One of Mark’s friend/colleague put us in touch with one of his college friends and her husband (Aarti and Surbhit) so we met Surbhit yesterday afternoon.  He has been so kind in the last couple of weeks and worked with apartment brokers on our behalf and has even looked at a few places.  And he is a busy ophthalmologist with a booming clinic!  Anyway, he took us to look at a couple of places which were very nice.  They were not furnished which is fine but they don’t even have the appliances like stove or fridge.  It seems like this is very common and that appliances are easy to find second-hand, especially around the embassies.

After we looked at the apartments he took us over to his office where he shares the practice with his wife and we waited while they finished seeing their patients.  We drove back into Delhi and they took us to drinks and dinner at their club.  It is an old British club that was built sometime in the turn of last century and has beautiful dark wood floors and crystal chandeliers.   We finished with dinner around midnight and then they took us to a late-night ice cream and sweets shop where we shared couple of their favorite sweets.  By the time we got back to our hotel it was close to 1:30 a.m…We were full and amazed that our first day in Delhi had been so full, thanks in full part to Aarti & Surbhit’s warm hospitality!  On to day two!!

Chicago Departure

Saturday, August 1st was our last day in Chicago.  We spent it wrapping up our packing, tying up loose ends and watching the last of our final Netflix rentals (Mad Men, season 2 episode 2).  The past few weeks have been a whirlwind but totally worth it.  We’ve been able to see all of our family and friends, go through all of our things while we packed (If you’re looking for some sweaters or pants, hit the Goodwill in West Loop) and take a few moments here and there to enjoy the process.

My sister dropped us off and we had to get two carts to haul our bags in.  The American Airlines agent was so nice…our bags were so heavy that she allowed us to do some weight distribution changes to avoid extra fees for all the bags.  I don’t really feel bad for having a lot of stuff…it’s stuff that we might need.

We left Chicago on a great note and are off on the right foot in Delhi!