Please Conceal From View. Thanks...

Coming to a completely different culture, one expects different social norms, different values, different standards of personal space, etc. Differences make visiting these cultures interesting.

RIGHT?

Well, I can give you one example when NO, it's not. It's somewhat disturbing, really. (There's a possibility, a good chance even, that this is not a "norm". But, the characteristic of folks here to be on the streets so much does seem to increase the chances :/)
Being aware of the tendencies of the natives to be outside so much, one can assume that such individuals do many things outside. Some things... would be better if they were restricted from view.
Walking back from class today, I had the pleasure of witnessing a rickshaw driver masturbating in the back of his vehicle, sitting out the side. He was totally casual about it, and the specific region was quite exposed.
Now, don't get me wrong. I am a strong supporter of relieving one's desires in such a way. But... for god's sake, man! Don't show everybody else. {if anything, the guy's got to work on his business tactics}

Please take a gander at the posted picture, an APPROPRIATE location for such a task.

Yep. Been there.

Beginning on Friday Morning, we embarked on a 5 day journey to explore the depths of our home state, Gujarat.

We started off by waking up at 6:30 on Friday and loading up in the car for a 3 - 4 hour car ride. We began our trip with a visit to some small villages, and we looked at the weaving sights there. That was quite interesting. The bathrooms were remarkably clean... Even though the sit down toilet was replaced by a ceramic hole (with surprisingly helpful gravity technology to properly relieve one's self. A nice added component.). In fact, most of the villages themselves were clean. The villages seemed to be more sanitary than the cities. This surprised me.
After that, we stayed in Rajkot for the night. Nice, cheap hotel (maybe $15 a room?). Rajkot reminded me a lot of Baroda. It had a similar feel, and a similar size.

The next day, we went to a temple/holy town and explored a little bit. We toured an old fort, where apparently centuries of abandonment and siege took place. To top it off, it even had a several hundred foot drop hole, completely unprotected! We also visited an old temple site where kids were playing cricket, and there were these really tall spiral staircase towers made of marble/stone. They were gorgeous. The precision on all of the structures on the property as a whole was amazing. The craftsmanship and fine detailing on the main temples was brilliant.

The next morning, we got up at 5:45 and climbed Mount Gir Nar (approximate spelling) along with hundreds, thousands? of other Indians. It's a holy mountain, and supposedly many people climbed it for pilgrimage. Who knows. Regardless, the thing was a good 10,000 steps up. Very steep in parts. Extensive cardio. I felt my legs turn to noodles as we continued the climb. Wendy's achilles heel was hurting her. On the way down (which was MUCH more pleasent but stupendously boring), dad's good knee nearly gave out. It was bloody torture! On the flip side, though, the views that the mountain delivered were absolutely beautiful. You could see the nearby city of Junagadh with much ease. With the rising sun, you could see the tips of the mountains beginning the light up. Even the birds flying in the valleys were beautiful.
Then, we went to a temple town on the coast of the Arabian Sea, not sure the name. The hotel smelled like feces, which we later figured out to be dead fish odor. Icky. We had yet another experience with an interesting teenage fellow, though this time we're pretty convinced he was just excited. At one point I was using the restroom (with the door unlocked, stupid me) and he walked in as he had been doing countless times bringing things, and he was trying to talk in English but, as usual, was nearly indecipherable. All through the talking I could see him and he could see me through the mirror on the wall, and that was it. It was reflection communication. He didn't seem at all phased by the fact that I was urinating.
We then went to visit an active Hindu temple next the setting sun and the Arabian Sea. The place was heavily secured; we're talking no bags, pat downs, metal detectors, and then armed guards. Apparently the place was one of only ten or fifteen of this particular temple in India. A rare... place. I was scared, excited, and nervous all at the same time. It was so exciting to feel the energy in there, it was so new. And yet, gah. The armed guards and the security scares me.
After visiting the temple, while searching for a restaurant, we were walking along a board to escape a big wet, brown puddle, and a member of our party had a, ehem, WET AND WILD! interaction with the open sewer system. This individual's leg, up to the mid calf region, slid into exposed, brown, heavenly sludge. It was SICK, and I eventually got past being modest and respectful and laughed hysterically. At one point, a little black lab looking puppy came up and licked the calf area (minutes after it had been doused in water). I began laughing hysterically again.

We went to bed, and then got up at 5:15 Monday morning and went on a lion safari - a safari with lions that only exist in the Gir forest in our state, and the second and only other place in the world besides Africa where lions reside. We drove for a good two, three hours before one of the local tribesman gestured to our driver. There, it was communicated up the line that a lion pair had just been spotted. Our guide and driver hopped out and ran into the savanna. The tribesman ran to help. Soon, our driver ran back. We then began off roading onto an unused trail. After my heart started pounding, the excitement began. We ended up only seeing the backside of the courting pair. But, it was awesome! Apparently going off of the jeep road is against the law, and our driver and guide were taking extreme risk. Also, the fact that they got out of the jeep to go check was crazy. Mating pairs are especially moody and dangerous. All of those components to the ride made it one of my favorite moments on the trip thus far.

Since leaving the forest, we've driven to Diu (a known coastal drinking town that's absolutely beautiful), and then to Lothal. Lothal was particularly interesting, with its technological advances seeming to rival that of Rome (or so I hear). The harappans developed an incredible civilization that still mirrors modern India in many ways to now (their accuracy with regards to weighing particularly comes to mind). The similarities between then and now are amazing.

A Beautiful Sight

When I was walking to my sewing class earlier today, I turned the corner from our apartment building and came across a cow standing particularly protectively over a small lump of a calf laying on the quite empty dirt road. Upon walking closer, I realized just how precious the little event was. The little calf had JUST been born; it was still shiny and wet from the sac and other birthing materials. It hadn't even gotten up yet. Knowing that cows are regarded as holy and they have free roam of the streets, I had mixed feelings of hope and excitement for the little one. To be born into such a hectic place where surely cows aren't adapted to live, with a main diet of garbage and a habitat of cement floor and people, was a mixed omen. It would be on the plus side to be off limits for consumption, so that part was definitely on his side.
The most beautiful part was just the contrast of such a small, beautiful creature, so new and clean, untouched by this place yet, and about to enter this new world. Away from it's mama, roaming the streets, a hard and yet very safe at the same time type of life.
I wished him luck as I passed.

And the bugs

I have to say, the getting sick aspect of travel is becoming less and less exciting as time goes on. After the first bout of diarrhea, I was overjoyed that it was over and looking forward to the endless foods I could eat without worry of being sick. After the second bout of diarrhea and a fever of 102 degrees F, I was relieved that FINALLY, I would be free of traveler's disease. And then, yet again, I must get sick. Food poisoning is the worst, though. Of all of them. The cranking stomach, and then the off balance push as you feel like you're going to die. Then, for a brief amount of time, you feel fine again. And then you get this rush a good 5, 10 times again before it's over. How exciting. I enjoyed it, let me tell you.
And so, after this third event of becoming sick here, I have decided to now watch what I eat. I'm envious of Wendy and Ben, who seem to eat without much problem (Jay, on the other hand, gets to enjoy the sick business with me nearly every time!).
All I can say is, those American health standards and the oh so delightful American bacteria are looking pretty nice right now.

Those less tidy ones

Over the last few days and weeks, we've gotten to know some of our local beggar families quite well (not on a level playing field type of way; it's more... we're their "frequent customers"). The whole concept of the beggars themselves is a touchy one, in that it's complicated. Quite complicated. Some, many? of the people who live on the streets could in fact get a job and work to get money for their families. Many of those who choose to beg have decided that it's a better way to achieve what they need, and it takes less work. It's laziness. That makes me mad. The fact that they would also peg us fairer skinned folks as rich or with money to spare - which may be true, comparatively, but still - angers me as well (I've been struggling with feeling as though the way money works out, who has it and who doesn't, is just not fair). On the other hand, though, some people who live on the streets have almost no other option but to beg - they're illiterate, they have no education, and they have mouths to feed. It's really complicated.
Regardless of how complex the begging situation is, there is a right way and a wrong way - and this we have come to learn. There is a family of beggars over by the Hotel Aditi and the Hotel Apex here and Baroda, and they're touchy. The mother, if she doesn't do the same as her kids, tells them to get us. And they do. They run up, and they touch us. The pull at our clothes, dig at our pockets, and they DO NOT LEAVE. I myself have come to dread going to the Hotel Aditi neighborhood, because, think about it. These kids live on the streets. They're obscenely dirty. And they don't understand no in the context of touching other people. It's bothersome. So, that the lord my trusty father has developed an efficient technique for ridding us of these clinging, begging children. He raises himself very tall, turns, glares at them, yells "NO" quite scarily (I myself would be scared if I were 5 and someone did that to me), and if it comes to the last resort, he slaps his hands inches from their face to know we're serious. It takes direct and straightforward energy. For the first time, we've not been touched! Thank you daddy :]

Now, please note. I don't want to sound insensitive, and it's not like that. It's all complicated, the poverty is. Regardless, though, when it comes to the point where you touch without permission, YEAH! That's a problem.

Our apartment

We're on the second floor of a tall (ok, not that tall. I'm not even sure how many floors there are) building. We're lucky, because it's somewhat isolated (for urban India :]) and surrounded by plants. Once in a while, you can see little monkeys hopping across our neighbors' roofs, playing and what not (because of the monkeys, we have bars on our windows to prevent them from coming in and stealing things :]).
The floors are all marble, and all of the ceilings are really high. For an apartment, especially here, it's really spacious. Our kitchen has a little gas stove, running water, and a small fridge. The bathrooms all have sit down toilets (thank god, as compared to the little hole option), showers, and sinks. Not that there is no shower curtain in the bathroom. In many of the showers here, the floors are slightly slanted so the water will run into the drain at the corner of the bathroom. It is a more efficient use of space, if I do say so myself. Also, people here don't use toilet paper. They either use a stream of water directed at the rectum from the back of the toilet seat, or they use their hand (the second option, though it sounds revolting, really isn't as bad as it's made out to be. We're just scared of germs :]). Our bedrooms all have mosquito nets over the beds because of the mosquito infestation. Even though we're inside and we have screens over our windows, we are still somehow eaten alive. At least we can sleep now that we're covered.
Our living room has a not quite functional tv, a newly purchased stereo system from the Big Bazaar (a walmart type store with surprisingly good clothing), and a table. The furniture that came with the place is quite nice.
Over all, the apartment beats the hotel we were staying at, the ginger, by a LANDSLIDE.

The Rickshaw

I suppose for me, one of the most fun and yet most frustrating aspects of the trip thus far has been the rickshaws - interacting with and dealing with their drivers... and riding in them :]
The above image shows the standard Indian auto rickshaw, though many of them are green with yellow tops. A standard ride in an auto rickshaw can cost from 10 rupees to 30 rupees - the equivalent of 20 to 60 cents USD. Now, looking at it face value, if you get charged 80 cents for a ride, it's not too bad. BUT. The most frustrating part is when these drivers try to overcharge you or they don't charge fairly because of categorization. Many times, rickshaw drivers assume that you are a) a tourist or b) you have lots of money or c) you're ignorant of what a fair charge would be or d) all of the above. Because we've been traveling in and out throughout india for the last two weeks, well, we pretty much have the rickshaw concept down. My family is quite a bit more relaxed about getting messed with by them. I, on the other hand, find it to be extremely rude and so have coincidentally taken the job of rickshaw business into my own hands. I enjoy getting angry when they refuse to be fair, and then dramatically leave the little auto in search of another. It's helped me learn how to say no, and how to be direct about something. It's fun :]