So I flew to Pune this morning. The same driver who picked me up from the airport when I arrived in Delhi was the one who dropped me off. The night before he said he was going to come at 5 in the morning and then all of a sudden I saw him waiting for me at 4:30 asking whether I was ready to leave. From my experience, it is highly unusual that Indians will say one thing and not stick to it. Even my companion to the airport, a 19 year old girl from England who was flying to Kerala, thought it a little strange that he came and asked if we were ready at 4:30 when the appointed time was 5. Well, I rushed and put everything in my pack and made sure I had my wallet, money belt, and passport--then we were on our way.
The drive to the airport was pleasant. Jessica, the 19 year old Brit, has been spending 6 months in India teaching English at a hospital in Hyderabad. She told me that in Britain, the country let students take one year off after high school to travel before they go to college. She had some interesting perspectives on India. She said that the things that make her like India also turns her off as well. I asked her about the whole poverty issue and how it affects women. She said that in India, women could find work but some choose not to. I’m not sure if I actually believe that--I find it hard to believe that anyone can make enough by begging alone.
The check in at the domestic terminal was definitely a sight. The airport looked really nice compared to the lame international one. I remember how the international one didn’t even have air-condition. About India, there is really no such thing as getting in line...it is almost a free-for-all mad rush. There is no such thing as “excuse me,” if you want to pass around someone. So Indians will often cut ahead of me if I lag even for a split second. It is really frustrating because in the West we consider anyone who does that as completely rude and lacking in all manners and propriety. I think that this is one virtue in the west that I am proud of having.
Oh and the fly to Pune, I decided to wear my dhoti because I had no clean clothing. It looks really nice except for the fact that I was the only westerner who was wearing it. While walking in a dhoti, I kind of have to walk slow and almost deliberately. I also had to lift the dhoti somewhat otherwise my strides would have been too small and unnatural. Some people were amused, I’m not sure why. I actually ended up talking to this unpleasant woman who I was sitting next to me and she asked me why I was wearing such clothing and I told her that I like the look of it. She said that I must be kidding. I told her no, it’s actually quite pleasant than wearing jeans in temperatures that were searingly hot. It is in fact the most comfortable piece of dress for men in hot temperatures. Luckily for me, the other person who was sitting next to me was a 16 year old girl from Pune who was not critical but actually curious about me as a westerner and the culture in general. We had a long and pleasant conversation about everything--from her trip with her grandmother to some interesting aspects of Indian culture that I did not know.
She told me how the flight attendants were mainly young good-looking girls who wear lots of make-up which is contrary to Indian culture. She also says that the flight attendants usually come from an upper-class background b/c they are the ones who can actually afford the expensive training. As you can see I was surprised b/c it shows to me some aspects of inequality in India. I asked her why Indians look up to western culture so much and she said it was the luxurious life style that we lived in the west. I then asked her if Indians look up to western culture, then why don’t they also adopt all of our lifestyles, i.e. cosmetics and such. She said something that I noticed many times before but now understood. She pointed out how she herself does not wear any make-up because Indians don’t believe that beauty is only from the outside. She told me that’s why foreign investment in cosmetics is not doing so well in India.She said that the glamor of Las Vegas interest Indians (but maybe not the real Vegas). She asked me why people put on make-up of which I told her that it is to make them beautiful. A lot of times people work in professions that require them to put on a little of make-up. But also adolescent girls put on make up to look attractive if they want to flirt and go on dates. The concept of flirting was entirely new to her. She said that her mother would give her hell if she found out that she was flirting with another boy and that the entire family has one closet where all the clothing and shoes of everyone would be stored in (I believe she falls into the middle class). She said that she has about 3 pairs of pants and that women would have 1-2 saris in which they wear. I told her that, in the west, however, each person has a closet with tons of clothes, and a lot of times they don’t have just 1 or 2 pairs of shoes but 4-5. It all surprised her very much. So even though Indians look up to western culture with men wearing pants and long-sleeve shirts, most still keep to tradition (which is nice IMO).
Delhi is just a very smoggy and polluted city. I don’t know really what the cause of this is but it probably comes from the fact that they burn everything--plastic bottles, trash, every imaginable thing you can think of. Flying domestic in India is really only for the middle-class and upper-class and not for the “common man” as the saying goes.
And the interesting thing about flying domestic in India is that there are in between stops. So before I landed in Pune, the plane landed in Aurangabad, a place which I will probably go visit because of the Ajanta caves which is full of Buddhist statues and cave paintings. When we landed in Aurangabad, almost half of the passenger on the plane left, and then another half would board. The crazy thing about it was that people were actually walking on the runway which is unheard of--granted it was a mid-size plane that carried about 180-200 ppl.
The trip to Pune was easy, met my rickshaw driver who came and picked me up to where I will be staying for most of the summer. Turns out that I’ll be living close to my Sanskrit teacher, but the area is very far from central Pune so I have to either take the bus or rickshaw to the center. I was kinda bum out that I’ll be sharing a house with like 5 other guys and actually share a room--all for $200. Everything is provided including good home-cooked meals prepared by a servant who also lives in the flat. My house-mates are cool--all are software engineers which are a dime a dozen here in India.
The drive to the airport was pleasant. Jessica, the 19 year old Brit, has been spending 6 months in India teaching English at a hospital in Hyderabad. She told me that in Britain, the country let students take one year off after high school to travel before they go to college. She had some interesting perspectives on India. She said that the things that make her like India also turns her off as well. I asked her about the whole poverty issue and how it affects women. She said that in India, women could find work but some choose not to. I’m not sure if I actually believe that--I find it hard to believe that anyone can make enough by begging alone.
The check in at the domestic terminal was definitely a sight. The airport looked really nice compared to the lame international one. I remember how the international one didn’t even have air-condition. About India, there is really no such thing as getting in line...it is almost a free-for-all mad rush. There is no such thing as “excuse me,” if you want to pass around someone. So Indians will often cut ahead of me if I lag even for a split second. It is really frustrating because in the West we consider anyone who does that as completely rude and lacking in all manners and propriety. I think that this is one virtue in the west that I am proud of having.
Oh and the fly to Pune, I decided to wear my dhoti because I had no clean clothing. It looks really nice except for the fact that I was the only westerner who was wearing it. While walking in a dhoti, I kind of have to walk slow and almost deliberately. I also had to lift the dhoti somewhat otherwise my strides would have been too small and unnatural. Some people were amused, I’m not sure why. I actually ended up talking to this unpleasant woman who I was sitting next to me and she asked me why I was wearing such clothing and I told her that I like the look of it. She said that I must be kidding. I told her no, it’s actually quite pleasant than wearing jeans in temperatures that were searingly hot. It is in fact the most comfortable piece of dress for men in hot temperatures. Luckily for me, the other person who was sitting next to me was a 16 year old girl from Pune who was not critical but actually curious about me as a westerner and the culture in general. We had a long and pleasant conversation about everything--from her trip with her grandmother to some interesting aspects of Indian culture that I did not know.
She told me how the flight attendants were mainly young good-looking girls who wear lots of make-up which is contrary to Indian culture. She also says that the flight attendants usually come from an upper-class background b/c they are the ones who can actually afford the expensive training. As you can see I was surprised b/c it shows to me some aspects of inequality in India. I asked her why Indians look up to western culture so much and she said it was the luxurious life style that we lived in the west. I then asked her if Indians look up to western culture, then why don’t they also adopt all of our lifestyles, i.e. cosmetics and such. She said something that I noticed many times before but now understood. She pointed out how she herself does not wear any make-up because Indians don’t believe that beauty is only from the outside. She told me that’s why foreign investment in cosmetics is not doing so well in India.She said that the glamor of Las Vegas interest Indians (but maybe not the real Vegas). She asked me why people put on make-up of which I told her that it is to make them beautiful. A lot of times people work in professions that require them to put on a little of make-up. But also adolescent girls put on make up to look attractive if they want to flirt and go on dates. The concept of flirting was entirely new to her. She said that her mother would give her hell if she found out that she was flirting with another boy and that the entire family has one closet where all the clothing and shoes of everyone would be stored in (I believe she falls into the middle class). She said that she has about 3 pairs of pants and that women would have 1-2 saris in which they wear. I told her that, in the west, however, each person has a closet with tons of clothes, and a lot of times they don’t have just 1 or 2 pairs of shoes but 4-5. It all surprised her very much. So even though Indians look up to western culture with men wearing pants and long-sleeve shirts, most still keep to tradition (which is nice IMO).
 |
| the visibility is terrible! |
And the interesting thing about flying domestic in India is that there are in between stops. So before I landed in Pune, the plane landed in Aurangabad, a place which I will probably go visit because of the Ajanta caves which is full of Buddhist statues and cave paintings. When we landed in Aurangabad, almost half of the passenger on the plane left, and then another half would board. The crazy thing about it was that people were actually walking on the runway which is unheard of--granted it was a mid-size plane that carried about 180-200 ppl.
The trip to Pune was easy, met my rickshaw driver who came and picked me up to where I will be staying for most of the summer. Turns out that I’ll be living close to my Sanskrit teacher, but the area is very far from central Pune so I have to either take the bus or rickshaw to the center. I was kinda bum out that I’ll be sharing a house with like 5 other guys and actually share a room--all for $200. Everything is provided including good home-cooked meals prepared by a servant who also lives in the flat. My house-mates are cool--all are software engineers which are a dime a dozen here in India.
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