And so it begins....

I am in India! How do i know? I know because i can smell it. There is a smell to Delhi that i can proudly say i am now used to... 24 hours in and I am used to it... well kind of used to it. We arrived yesterday and the second I walked outside of the airport I thought i was in a movie taking place in Cuba. I know, i know... Delhi is NOT Cuba but I guess it is what i pictured Cuba to be like. Anyways, I feel like i am in a movie because the air here is SO different from anything i have ever seen or experienced before so, to be honest, i dont really feel like i AM here... i feel like i am just looking at this new world. Speaking of looking at this new world, it was INCREDIBLE to look out of the airplane minutes before we landed. You can actually SEE the giant hotels next to trailor parks which are next to the slums... I have a picture which i'll show you later but it is almost scary. I always told myself that if we SAW thousands of homeless people every day then we would be pushed to do something about it. This city proves me wrong. Really really really wrong- it is also interesting to see how the leaders/ guide books et cetera tell you that this is "just part of the social fabric" or "dont worry they are not REALLY suffering" or "they are not as destitute as they seem".... I guess i will be the one saying that at the end of this epic trip, but not now. It is really heart breaking. That said, the little kids on the street are so fucking cute. I have great pictures of the little mushy mushes that i will show you when I'm back. The cutest is listening to them try to say our names.. Jessica is "jetika" Elinor is "??" (that name never makes sense to little kids) and Tawni is "Conwy". Awww.
I got to see Carrie last night which was incredible- i have not seen her since May and she looks and smells like a true Indian (you know you are REALLY experiencing a country when...) she took me and a couple people from the program to the Manderine hotel prefacing our little trip by saying "This is NOT the India you are going to see but it is a part of India that you should see to understand what India really is." This hotel was beautiful- we went to the bar on the 20th floor which overlooked all of the fields of homeless people. That is India. We took a rickshaw to get there- a three wheeled car with 6 of us in it.. well not REALLY in it.. more like hanging out of it... funny/ not so much.
This morning we had a mini orientation and the leaders (all amazing... two Tibetan men and three American women... one a Barnard graduate uhu... i know) were telling us about things that we need to know... the cardinal rules... the dos and don'ts. Some were obvious and others were DEFINITELY NOT. For instance, here it is rude if you don't check your change after you purchase something- it shows that you don't care about money, or that you do not respect working for money. Also, they told us that it is really hard to find small change. Why? BECAUSE most of the people here are poor and so, if they get 10 rupees (about 20 cents) they will keep it hidden under their bed. So interesting! Cynthia, the program director, then started to talk about how the women should dress yada yada, and most of it was pretty understandable but then she said "don't worry, you (speaking to the women) will just get used to walking with your eyes looking down." Wow.
We went to a Sikh temple today (Carrie joined us) and then we went to a Hindi temple where i got my first blessings! I am sitting here with my red dot/ third eye and flower petals in my hair.
One of the boys on the program, a boy Russel from Emory, is making a documentary about this semester. WOO! That is something i would always want someone to do... someone else to do. So i am excited.
No one has gotten sick yet... I am kind of excited for my first "Indian sickness." I obviously hope that i don't get sick too much but on the other hand I have enough Immodium and Cipro to cure a nation so i feel like i should be using it.
I also have come to terms with the fact that i WILL be dirty for the next 6 months. It feels like the air is painting a new layer on to my skin and it is just lovely. ;)