It's The People

Today I decided to take another one of "muse walks" and just see what's going on in my neighborhood. I grabbed my camera and decided to walk the "100 foot, CMH loop"--a favorite walking path of the expat walkers (thank you, Todd) which takes you on a nice one-hour walk--approximately 3 miles--around some of the neighborhoods in central Banglore--Indira Nagar, Cambridge Layout, and Ulsoor. On the route you will see everything from cows to coconuts; smell everything from freshly steamed sweet corn to auto rickshaw exhaust; hear everything from fluted Indian music to noisy car horns; an assault on the senses but an amazing experience nonetheless.

After living in India now for over 10 months I must say that my favorite part of this experience has got to be the Indian people. Being a blonde caucasian I stand out easily which still seems to fascinate people--it's like they're not sure who or what I am. They often stare, which at first bothered me. I thought they must think I am a threat to them or that I was trouble, but then I figured out what to do--I smile. When they see me smile I see their faces soften, their eyes glimmer, and their brilliant white teeth peek out of their mouths as a gentle smile comes to their face. It's wonderful!

Everywhere I go I continue to meet amazing people--warm, sincere, polite, and oh so friendly--and when they see my camera they know that I am just as interested in them as they are in me. Kids will come running to me yelling "Hi!" and "Me! Me!", waiting for me to take their picture as they stand and pose, showing me their best angle. Most of the time I don't need to say much... in fact, today I didn't speak a word to any of the people in my pictures--I didn't need to... just that simple smile, hand wave, or a quick salam (done by touching your forehead and bringing your hand down) is all that's needed to communicate in a universal language.

I have only 53 days left in India--and what an adventure it has been. I've still got a couple of trips left--one to Nepal & Katmandu in two weeks (some fresh air in the Himalayas!), as well as a week-long trip to Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia with some of the expats--but then I pack up for home at the end of October. So I will continue to soak-in the experiences during my last two months... each experience, each person, each memory another page in my book as my world gets bigger and bigger.

I am so grateful for this experience.

Namaste.

Bangalore Walks

This weekend I went on a tour of Bangalore with Bangalore Walks, a journey through 500 years of history in 4 hours. This tour is one of the most popular among overseas visitors and expats, and is not a sightseeing tour--rather, it is an interactive introduction to Indian culture in parts of Bangalore that most expats (and even locals!) are unlikely to have visited. It includes short walks, along with portions driven by an air-conditioned bus, and moves from point-to-point over the 4-hour period. The tour was followed by a fantastic lunch at Ebony, a restaurant on the 13th Floor, a local favorite spot.

Andi, Mike, and Michael (from Target) joined me along with several other international expats and visitors from the Bangalore Expat Club (BEC) for this enlightening tour of old and new Bangalore and its rich history. It included visiting the legacies left behind by the British, French, and other nations of the world. India has been a foundation for so many of the world's influences--from the exportation of exotic spices, to being the home of a young Winston Churchill. Many battles have been won and lost on Indian soil, and if Napolean would have made it past Egypt to India in 1799, Indians may very well be speaking French today. Je trouve cela incroyable!

One of the most fascinating parts of the tour was visiting a Hindu temple and learning more about the different customs and traditions of Hinduism. Since 80% of population of India are Hindus, I wanted to learn more about the foundations behind their belief system. It was interesting to learn that Hinduism is not as much a formal "religion" as a philosophy about tuning into God within you. The Hindu teachings recognize a single God/Source, and view other Gods and Goddesses as manifestations or aspects of that supreme God (sound familiar...?) The Hindu religion brings a tolerance that allows for different stages of worship, different and personal expressions of devotion, and even different Gods to guide your life on this earth. Fascinating. I was once again reminded how so much of spirituality is deeply within us; our religions just manifest this common understanding in different ways. Our physical and emotional bodies may be different, but our spiritual bodies are One--we are cut from the same cloth. And when it comes down to it, isn't that what really counts?

See beyond the body and mind;
see the spirit within each of us.

Namaste.

The Colors of India

As I approach my third month of living in India, I wanted to assemble a small collection of my favorite images showcasing some of the amazing colors I get to experience in this beautiful country. I used a nifty program called Color Select Studio to assist me with the b&w/coloring effects; however, all of the colors you see are the authentic colors brought back into the picture. For comparison you can find most of these original pictures in my slide shows and/or my Picasa online galleries, so feel free to check them out. If you want to know more information about any of the pictures, please drop me a note (this is the carrot to connect with me :o)

Enjoy the gallery.

Let me show you the world through my eyes.

Neighborhood Muse Walk

Recently I decided to walk around my neighborhood and take a closer look at the people, buildings, and colorful culture that surrounds me--well almost surrounds me. My apartment, which is in a gated and sheltered oasis from the realities of the neighborhood, has been built to ensure that its guests won't be surrounded too closely by the realities of Bangalore. So naturally I wanted to experience the dichotomy which exists a few steps away from my front door--something that I'm usually only allowed to observe from the backseat of my chauffeured car.

My apartment building is a complex appropriately named Zen Gardens to attract expatriates, foreign nationals, and other corporate citizens. There are several of us expats living here from Target, Goldman Sachs, IBM, and other multinational corporations. The complex is cleaned and maintained by a crew consisting of gardeners, housekeepers, security guards, and other staff. The main structures of the two buildings were completed just last spring and some of the apartments are still under construction, so our places are new and mostly owned and furnished by local investors. The grounds are quiet, patrolled, and calm.


The view across the street from Zen Gardens is profoundly different. The streets are filled with buses, trucks, cars, motor scooters and motorcycles (referred to as "two wheelers" in India), people of all ages, dogs, cows, goats, and anything else you can think of. Most fascinating are the piles of bricks, rocks and other rubble that line the streets and grace the front step of nearly half of the buildings and houses. Directly to the left of our front gate are several garbage piles where you will always see either a cow, dog, or goat munching on the latest treats. On this day there were a couple of dogs and a goat having an afternoon snack as a woman washed her laundry on the sidewalk (well, there really aren't any sidewalks either--they're just rock slabs lined next to each other... mostly).

I also caught the interest of the local kids who were excited to see a man with a camera taking pictures of animals and garbage, so they naturally started lining up for pictures with their smiles and laughter. Their favorite part is when I would show them their picture on my digital camera--they loved that!

I spent the afternoon just walking, listening, watching, (smelling), and experiencing my neighborhood. My muse walk was enlightening. The contrasts are so clear and powerful you can't help but be instantly moved into a state of introspection.

When I returned to the gates of Zen Gardens I was greeted by the usual 3-4 security guards, the iron gates were opened to me and I was once again welcomed into my protected sanctuary. I suddenly felt a rush of relief and gratitude, yet pangs of guilt and sadness. I felt grateful for the privilege to be experiencing life in India but also selfish for complaining about my water not being hot enough or my fan not keeping me cool. It's all a matter of perspective, but that's exactly what leaving your comfortable environment gives you. That's why I love to travel so much--it always teaches me to be grateful for what I have.

Today I am reminded to be grateful, and that is good.