Yalies in India

Yalies in India

Pictures!!!

We have finally created a blog exclusively for pictures from our trip. Please visit http://yaleindiapictures.blogspot.com/.

We made it!

Our last night in delhi, six of us relaxed at a lounge called Mocha, gorging ourselves on chocolate fondue and other yummy things. We then said goodbye to Krishan, and headed back to Sailaja's family friends guest house where we were staying the night.

We slept for one REM cycle and then woke up at three am to go to the airort- our last ride in a toyota qualis! We arrived at the airport with a total of six bags for the four of us. We took the free carts and headed to the bag security check. As we loaded our bags onto the conveyer belt we could see the screen which the guards watched to determine what was inside our bag. As we viewed Lindsay's bag go across the screen we were confused by these large black balls in her suitcase which looked very much like the bombs in looney toon cartoons. "What is that?!" the guard asked her. Lindsay, uncertain, looked at the bag for a second and then it dawned on her- "Oh those are just pickle jars." "okay" the guard responded. Only in India!

We then went to the ticket counter, waited for an hour, and finally got through to duty free shopping, where we attempted to use our last ruppees on phone calls to the states. After seeing Hum Tum, we were very excited about the possibility that our lives could become Bollywood movies. As we waited anxiously to go through the final check to the gate, we imagined that Shah Rukh Khan had gone through earlier to sit in the first class. We also had a connection to an Air India Pilot- would we be upgraded and find ourselves sitting next to him? We were severly sleep deprived...

We then waited at the gate and reminisced about our trip while watching the sun rise over the airport. When we finally made it onto the plane we discovered that our pilot friend was not flying that day, so no upgrades. We claimed four seats in the center of the plane and were very happy to see that mein hoo na (a shah rukh film) was playing. We then went to sleep. An hour and a half later we stirred from sleep by the Air India flight attendents who were insistent that we eat our plane meal. This reminded me of our first plane ride to India. Worried that she would not be able to fall asleep, Sailaja had taken tylenol PM and was completely knocked out. When she wouldn't wake up forher meal, the flight attendent vigorously shook her to wake her up. When she said that she wasn't hungry, the flight attendant told her that she should eat, and proceeded to put her tray table down for her and dish out the food. Air India food is the best plane food I have had, so I was not complaining. As the flight went on, we watched one of the worst movies ever- the one with the olsen twins. we then played word association- ever memorable from our time at TATA ISS. We were very tired so our vocabularies were a bit shot- popular words which came to mind included: "peace" "me" "mango" "yum" "water" etc. we also went through most memorable experiences (many which are only funny to those of us on the trip, so apologies to other readers). some of them included:

- the car ride back from Kasoli with Nikhil "What's going on, yaar? We lost them and now we are in this jam."
- trying to get in touch with SK Sharma ("Mera Naam elena gr* hai. Indian Express. English Bolo"
-Tour uncle- "The exterior even is too good.", other tour uncle "my friends, this was the harem of the man who loved wine and opium"
- Katie and Joel's accents, all of our fun accents
- the trains in Mumbai
- Saiba, coffins, and random singing on the 24 hour train.
-mango tasting
-the comedy trio of geja singh, ram, and nundin

We said goodbye to Sailaja in London, and Crissaris, Lindsay, and I boarded our next flight. we took little naps, ate some delicious food, and then it was time to land. We were in such a giddy mood- we made it we made it! The flight attendent must have seen us laughing and she thought that we were all Indian and one family, so she handed us one form for arriving in the US and told us that one of us had to fill it out for our family! We happily filled out our forms (don't declare anything! ), and hit the ground to be greeted by the gray sky and cool weather of New York. we waited for our bags anxioulsy, there were millions coming out of the shute! finally we retrieved them all and headed outside. Our family reunions were joyous, and we parted with hugs and promises of BIP reunions in the fall. What an amazing two months- I still can't believe it is over!

Bhangra!

Well, after six weeks in Punjab, we have finally learned our state dance! Bhangra is the traditional male folk dance in Punjab and it is known for its amazing beat and high energy moves. Gidda is the more delicate dance for women, and we had learned a bit from Minti Chachi, but were yet to try real bhangra.  Anupam at the Newsline office told me about a guy she had written an article about who had taught and performed bhangra all over the world.  This Mr Tehal Singh, according to her, was the bhangra master. So I gave him a call from the office on Wednesday, and had Nidhi explain that the Indian Express was calling for bhangra lessons for their NRI reporter. He agreed to come that very day, and when we asked him to bring music he said that he would bring a dhol player instead (big drum which gives the beat). So at six o clock Tehal and the Dhol player arrived at our door ready to teach. We decided to dance in the backyard where there was a lot of space and soft grass.  Lindsay, Crissaris, and I lined up and the beat began. We then began the most aerobic dance I have ever experienced.  It was straightforward but we sometimes had difficulty coordinating left and right, etc, as we tried to match Crissaris with her rhythm. After an hour of jumping up and down with our arms raised to the sky, we were exhausted but so charged! If we did this every day, it would be amazing! We also attracted a crowd from the neighboring building balcony and the people who worked at Kuku Chacha's office- must have been quite the sight! The instructer came again Thursday and we were less tired, and we hope to see him today as well. The plan is to start a bhangra aerobics group at Yale, and perhaps film a music video- let's see how it goes! I think our instructer thought we were okay, and he seemed to be having fun, so perhaps we will manage it. We also will attempt to learn the Dhol, but this might prove difficult.

Seven Days, Four Cities: My Marathon around India

I've been away from the rest of our Bulldogs for a week now and have been trekking around India on my own visitng family and friends.  After leaving Punjab I went to Delhi where some family friends put me up in their guesthouse and provided me with a car and driver for shopping and sightseeing!  well needless to say i did more shopping in the past week than i have on the trip as a whole!  i went to janpath in delhi for a day and then the next day went to the national museum of modern art as well as the bahai temple.  the art museum was great and the front had a very unique sculpture garden.  it was a rather extensive collection of works by contemporary indian artists.  it's right near rajpath (india's equivalent of the national mall) and india gate so i got to see a lot of the government buildings along the way.  next it was off to the bahai temple which is shaped like a lotus.  it's such an architectural marvel.  the inside is very simple and has beautiful high marble ceilings.  the only thing was that it was forty degrees celcius outside, so after these two sightseeing stops i had to call it a day!

from delhi i took off to ranchi, the captial of a state called jharkand.  the state was only formed in 2000 when it split from neighboring Bihar.  it's a very tribal area with a lot of forestry works.  i went to the Ranchi Museum which has a lot of adavasi (tribal) artifacts.  after a great visit with my aunt and uncle, i came back to delhi for a night and then took an early morning flight to Nagpur in Maharastra the next day to see my cousin.  Nagpur was a very impressive city, clean, well designed and there seemed like there was a lot of things to do.  Capitalizing on having cousins around, i asked their help in telling me what new indian cd's to buy.  i essentially bought out the local music store and have loads of new indian beats to bring back to the have in the fall.

that finally takes me to yesterday when i got on a flight for Hyderabad, the capital of my home state of Andhra Pradesh.  Hyderabad is a really developed city with a lot of computer technology and industry.  It's great to finally be in a place where I understand what the people are saying!!  (much easier to negotiate with rikshaw drivers when you can speak the local language!)  now i'm just hanging out here and am hoping to see some of the moghul cultural remains in the city (as well as do some more shopping of course!). 

the last week has been an incredible marathon of running from city to city and seeing family member after family member, but since i'm here only once every few years i'm loving every second i get with  my relatives.  in three days i was in three different airports! 

to the gang in ludhiana:  i miss you guys loads, your adventures in manali and shimla sound like they were great!  i'm so jealous that i missed out on the cremica factory.  can't wait to see you all in delhi.  here's to a great last week and a half...

What could be better than biscuits and ice cream?

Yesterday, we were presented with the question of what could be better than biscuits and ice cream. The answer: a factory full of biscuits and ice cream. On Friday afternoon, we had the pleasure of touring the Cremica factory. These company which has been existence for over 20 years produces biscuits, bread, over 40 flavors of ice cream, burger buns, candy treats, ketchup, tomato sauce, hot fudge and many other yummy food products. Originally run out of Mrs. Bector's kitchen, the company has greatly expanded opening new facilities every few years. Currently, Cremica is business partners with McDonald's (all of their buns and ketchup for India), Dean Foods, Cadbury (who they are making chocolate treats with) and the United Nations. In the past few years, Cremica has provided biscuits for the World Food Project, shipping low fat biscuits across the world, particularly to the war torn areas of Afghanistan and Iraq. Cookies and a social conscience. Mmmm. They are also much more respectable than many India factories because they hold themselves to Western labor standards, limiting worker's hours to 8 per day and afterwards offering overtime.

Our tour began with the biscuit factory which smelled incredible. We were able to see all of the original ingredients in the biscuits, the prepared batter, the  molded biscuits, the ovens running (only 3 minutes per cookie), the quality control check points, the cream filler for stuffed cookies as well as all of the packaging techniques. As a treat afterwards we were able to sample fruit filled biscuits, shortbread biscuits and bourbon (chocolate) biscuits. There was also a warehouse filled entirely with packed cookies. It was like heaven on Earth.

Next we were able to tour the liquids factory where the ketchup, hot fudge and other sauces were prepared. Finally, we popped into the factory recently built in partnership with Cadbury. They were in the process of making a new treat that will be released in India in 2 or 3 weeks which are like those chocolate swirl sticks we get in the US only in bite sized pieces and filled with chocolate.

We completed our tour by having some amazing mango ice cream as a replacement for viewing the ice cream factory which only operates in the morning when the milk comes in. In the end we drove away with a trunk full of goodies and some very satisfied stomachs.

Mmmmmmmmmm

Cooking Lessons in Ludhiana Part I

In an effort to learn how to make the wonderful food prepared for us everyday, several of us have spent some time observing in the kitchen and would like to send back the recipes we learned so that you all may get some of the Indian flavor. Below is a recipe for Bindi.

Bindi
1. Wash 2 kg of bindi (okra, lady fingers) and allow to dry for several hours.
2. Cut bindi crosswise into 1.5 cm long pieces.
3. Roughly chop 4 small red onions.
4. Add 3/4 C. of light oil (vegetable works well) into a large preheated pan.
5. Add and fry the onions until they are light brown in appearance (~5 minutes).
6. Add 1 heaping teaspoon of turmeric and red chili powder to taste and stir.
7. Add the bindi to the pan.
8. Cook the bindi on high heat without a lid for 45 minutes.
9. Add about 1 teaspoon of salt adjusting to taste.
10. Cover the pan and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
Serve hot or reheated.

Kullu Manali

This past weekend, Krishan, Elizabeth and I decided to take a trip to Manali to see the Himalayas from the Kullu Valley. We began early for our 8 hour drive winding up the hills on mountain roads before reaching the town of Manali. We continued through the tourist town of Manali on to the village of Solang.  We decided to splurge on the hotel room and stay at the Solang Valley Resort, said to be the best hotel in the valley. Thanks to the low season, we were able to get a very reasonably priced room with a balcony overlooking the Beas River. We could hear the water flowing from the room at night. Thankfully, the temperature was cool enough to allow us to sleep with the windows open and a blanket on. A nice break from the hot weather of Ludhiana. After checking into our room, we took a walk into the village of Solang, which remains relatively undistrubed by tourists. From both the village and the hotel, we were able to see a glacier, which unfortunately, like many of the world's glaciers, is melting.  After our walk, we decided to go into Manali for dinner. The Mall in Manali is a long road lined with many shops as well as restaurants aimed at the tourists. We had dinner at a restaurant recommended by many called Chopsticks. Here we were able to have a nice dinner of Tibetan food.

The next day we returned to Manali to visit a Hindu Temple in a forest located right outside of the downtown area. We were lucky enough to see a procession that brought an idol up to the entrance of the temple as well as the preparation of food for those around the temple. It was incredible to see pots as large as bath tubs filled with dal, rice and tea. Next, we enjoyed the nature of the forest while sitting in journalling and reading. It was so peaceful and quiet. Our next stop was across from the forest, a visit to the Pine Tree Temple which is an official Hindu Temple that consists entirely of a tree. It is amazing how many people come each day to worship at this unconventional prayer site. To complete our day we travelled to the village of Naggar, halfway between Kullu and Manali. It was the capitol of Himachal for nearly 1500 years. Built partially up a steep mountain, there exists a museum of the Russian artist and philosopher Nikolai Roerich. The museum is in his former home and includes many of his watercolor mountain landscapes.  The property also includes a handicraft museum with works from Himachal, Pakistan, Russia, Kashmir and Jammu, China, Nepal and Uzbekistan (Elizabeth felt quite at home). After viewing the collection, we then wandered part way down the hill to reach Naggar Castle. This wooden beam and stone construction was built by the Raja Sidh Singh about 500 years ago and remained as the official residence until the 1970s when it became a hotel. The Castle includes some amazing wood carvings and a small temple in the center. The focal point of the temple is a large stone slab. This stone was carried to the site by a swarm of wild bees (the Gods) and the temple was built around it. Additionally, in the basement, we were told that there was a small museum. When we stumbled upon the museum, we found one small room with a display case. We were somewhat disappointed to say the least.

On Saturday, we had intended to hike to the glacier but our guide (a Tibetan man who has been leading since he was 15 and whose sister is the youngest Indian woman to climb Everest) advised against it. Instead, he decided to take us on an easy hike from 6,000ft to 12,000ft elevation. This was only easy for him. After rising about 2,500ft the elevation made it too difficult for me to breath so I stopped and was told to wait about 3 hours while the others finished the hike. They made it only to the saddle of the mountain, 500ft shy of the peak. This did provide them with some amazing views of the valley on the opposite side of the mountain. 5 hours later I joined them again for the hike down back to the hotel. Needless to say, the trek was challenging but incredibly rewarding.

On Sunday, we decided to take it somewhat easy after the previous day's exertion. We drove up to Rohtong pass (13,000ft) following a seemingly endless number of switchbacks in the process of the climb. The view from the top was too amazing to do justice with words. All around us were snowy peaks that were at least our height. It was incredibly cold and windy, but awe inspiring. To get a better view of the Lahaul(sp?) Valley on the opposite side of the pass, we drove down to the village of Kokar(sp?). This is the last place that foreigners may travel on that road without having to check in with the police. They want to be able to track who travels on the dangerous roads in case they go missing. In the village we stopped at a roadside Dhaba and had a delicious breakfast of stuffed paranthas and tea. So yummy! The drive provided us with an impression of the very different valley. There were minimal trees in that valley and many steep rock cliffs. We were also able to see clouds pass over Rohtong and literally disappear into the air. It was like out of a movie. Next, we travelled to Old Manali, a portion of the village that is less comerically developed and now the home of many "free spirits" and Israelis, both attracted by the abundance of marijuana. There we were able to have some wonderful Israeli food, totally unexpected in the hills of India. Finally, we walked to the Mall in Manali and did some shopping and visited two Buddhist Temples in the city. They were surprisingly peaceful given their central location. We then treated ourselves to a candle lit dinner of chinese take out in our hotel room. Nothing says elegance like eggplant and soup eaten out of bags.

On Monday, we were forced to return to Ludhiana and work, but not before attempting to get an American breakfast. Luckily it was more homey than we had even imagined. We got pancakes and iced coffee which we ate over a conversation with Nick and Max, two Rutgers students who are travelling through India this summer as an Indian would. It was wonderful to share travel stories and a bit of discussion about the news at home. Our drive home (8 hours straight through) was pretty uneventful, but did allow us half an hour of monsoon driving. It was delightful and the air smelled wonderful afterwards, a pleasant change from the desiel fumes we usually have to breath in. We returned to Ludhiana by dinner time more refreshed and relaxed than we had been all trip.