Life in Rajasthan

Its been exactly three weeks in Udaipur, and honestly, it's hard to describe this place I find myself in. Words and pictures on a screen simply don't do justice to the sights, sounds, smells, emotions, and organized chaos that is India. Everything here - the people, the language, the food, the religion, the daily pace and outlook on life, is so... well... alien to me.

Yes, that's to be expected when you plop yourself halfway across the world in a completely foreign culture. Still, there's this mysterious quality about life over here which I can't quite put my finger on yet. No doubt it has to do with conventional 'East' vs. 'West' ideological differences. Or maybe it has to do with Udaipur's existence largely outside the subtle forces which influence, if not subconsciously dictate, our daily lives in the West; the profit motive, mass media, consumerism... fast food chains.

One thing is for sure, this place emanates culture. REAL culture. Like cover of National Geographic magazine culture. None of this whitewashed, neo-colonial, corporate pseudo-culture that I saw all too often in my Pacific Rim travels earlier this summer. However, like the emerging economies of East Asia, the kids here are all about the West when it comes to modern clothes and technology and pop culture etc. I heard Justin Bieber on the radio the other day. Alas, it seems globalization is inevitable.

For those of you who don't already know, I'm volunteering/interning with an organization called Development Action Awareness Nationwide, a grassroots Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) based in Udaipur, India. I've had the pleasure to work and live with Dr. Samvit Audichya, the founder and director of the D.A.A.N. Foundation ("daan" has a similar meaning to "charity" in the Hindu religion) (www.daanfoundation.org).


We have been working in the tribal villages on the outskirts of Udaipur for the past three weeks. Weekday mornings are centered around educating village families about various health awareness issues. We have been collecting data by interviewing the families about their health, nutrition, and sanitation routines. Then we provide precautionary advice or basic medicines to them.

Our primary village: Hawala Khurd


This has been quite the experience, with most of the population not even understanding what the word "precautionary" means, let alone the importance of washing ones hands. When asked what his family does when they get sick, a bearded old patriarch, decked out in his traditional turban and cloth wrap, responded "we go to a special tree that heals you when the wind blows." Its times like these that 1. make me second guess which century I am living in, and 2. remind me of the rich and mysterious tribal traditions which I am witnessing on a daily basis. I'm not usually one to press my beliefs, values, or culture on anyone, but in the case of fundamental health awareness, it seems like a worthwhile cause.

Hawala Khurd Tribal Rain/Harvest Dance, "Gauri" Celebration


Bedgoan Village School


We build relationships with the kids, who introduce us to their families


As we walk door-to-door, we are always welcomed into these meager village homes with such genuine hospitality, and almost always, a warm cup of chai. Here you can see Sam and Sanjay (our Youth Center helper) in action at a Hawala Khurd home.


In the afternoons we have been running an Education and Awareness Center for Youth in Hawala Khurd Village.


Playing Carrom, a sort of "mini-billiards" game played here in India


In addition to homework help, English lessons, and games/activities, we have been busy securing resource materials and basic decorations for the place. EVERYTHING we do is funded through private donors so we have also been trying to do some ad-hoc fund raising (if you're interested in helping, let me know!). With financial backing, we hope to open up another Youth Center in Bedgon Village and eventually extend the use of the Hawala Center to marginalized women as well (I will have to write about the gender issues here later on).


The kids and I at the site of our proposed Bedgon Village Youth Center


We also met with UNICEF last week and struck up a collaboration in which we will be distributing anemia pills and educating adolescent girls about the dangers of iron-deficient diets.
According to UNICEF, a staggering 94% of adolescent girls in Rajasthan (this province of India) are anemic. Vegeterianism plays a major role in this statistic but so does the male gender bias when it comes to who gets the best food at mealtime.




The weekends have been full of mini-adventures to nearby attractions. The first weekend Sam and I biked up to Ecklingji, 22km North of Udaipur. Here, I got to experience a Hindu service at an ancient temple which was built in 734 A.D. and dedicated to Lord Shiva - member of the Hindu trinity and the (ego) destroyer and restorer of the world.

Hindus waiting outside Ecklingji Temple (pictures weren't allowed inside)


The next weekend Sam and I took a day trip up a mountainous pass to Jhadol, where we had the privilege of visiting "Jhadol Safari Resort", a tourist place under construction and owned by the prince of one of the royal families of Rajasthan. Nothing beats the scenery and sense of adventure that comes with a motorcycle ride up a windy dirt road to the middle of nowhere.


This past weekend I took a two day solo trip to Mount Abu, a quaint local tourist town atop the highest peak in the Aravalli Range of Rajasthan. After a indescribable public bus journey to the mountain station, I trekked it out to Sunset Point to see the sun go down over Western India (and possibly Eastern Pakistan).


Abu?


"Sunset Point", Mt. Abu, Rajasthan


Nakki Lake, Mt. Abu


"Honeymoon Point", Mt. Abu


Typical street in Mt. Abu


Also blessing Mt. Abu, are the Delwara Temples, which are a mecca for Jain pilgrims from all over India. These temples were built in the 11th and 13th centuries and exhibit the most exquisite white marble carvings I've ever laid eyes on (some experts consider Delwara architecturally superior to the Taj Mahal). Each one of the five temples are dedicated to a specific Tirthankar, a historical being who has achieved enlightenment and has started a new order of enlightenment seekers. Sadly, photos were not permitted again, so here's a photo I stole from online:



I will admit that adjusting to the culture here is a continuous but worthwhile battle. Sometimes it is all a bit overwhelming; I find myself hankering for a nice steak dinner or a familiar face to talk to in English. But it's nothing I can't remedy with little bit of Jessup jerky and a good ol' Skype session. So if you're in the virtual area, hit me up, I'd love to hear from you (username jjessup2).

Thank you all for your continued prayers and support, and I hope you are all finding the time to stop, meditate, and listen to God's magnificent beauty which encompasses this Earth...
from India to America,

from East...


to West

शांति,
Johnny

Destination: Udaipur City, Rajasthan, India

Here are a few pictures that I took while getting acquainted with my new home.

View of Udaipur looking North.

Note the City Palace (brown building in foreground), Lake Palace (white building in middle of Lake Pichola), and Monsoon Palace at the top of the tall mountain on the left (hidden behind clouds). The monsoons are still in full force here for the next couple weeks.


Chandra Niwas Homestay - Where I live




Jagdish Temple (Hindu)



Traditional Rajasthani art, seen on walls all over Udaipur



City Palace of Udaipur (Capital of Rajput Mewar Kingdom)



The local people of Udaipur are extremely friendly...


and often curious enough to ask for a picture...





Plentiful rooftop views



Yes, that is a camel butt.


Clip of Lake Pichola at sunset from our favorite rooftop restaurant. The person speaking is the fellow I am working and living with, Samvit Audichya, director of Development Action Awareness Nationwide (D.A.A.N.)

A Taste of India - Mumbai

Well it is the start of my fifth full day here in India. I spent the first few days getting adjusted and exploring the streets of Mumbai - formerly known as Bombay. My first order of business was to opt out of the typical taxi ride and hit up the local metro train into town. You could say I'm sort of addicted the the excitement that comes with being completely thrown into a foreign culture. The acute sights, smells, sounds, and new procedures. The feeling that you have been missing out on a totally different way of living your entire life. It is also in these first few days that you can best detect subtle cultural differences before they later fade into normalcy.

Thus, after a train ride comprised of door-dangling, banging drums, and smelly armpits, I hoofed around the sites of downtown Mumbai: the Gate of India, Hanging Gardens, the Prince of Wales and Gandhi Museums, Victoria Station, the Outdoor Laundromat, and Marine Drive (reminiscent of "the Bund" in Shanghai). Rent in downtown Mumbai is comparable to that of lower Manhattan. The buildings are basically a smattering of old colonial architecture and expensive residential apartments that are home to India's wealthiest business tycoons and Bollywood stars.

The next day, aside from the usual tourist spots, I was privileged enough to get a taste of "the real Mumbai", i.e. the lives of the 8 million+ people (more than half of Mumbai's population) that dwell in slum areas. I found an organization online that provides ethical guided tours of Dharavi - Asia's largest slum. Located smack dab in the middle of metro Mumbai, Dharavi is known by many as the filming location for 2008's Slumdog Millionaire.

(Understandably, there was a strict no-camera policy so the picture above was the only image I was able to snap of Dharavi)

A quick anecdote:
Right outside the slum, I had my first up-close-and-personal experience with dire Indian poverty. This image will probably be etched into my head for the rest of my life: a migrant family (from rural villages), comprised of three adults and six kids were sitting on the side of a road. As I got closer i noticed a baby, probably 5-6 months old, completely naked and still, laying on a dirty piece of cardboard. The baby's skin was scabbed, bloody, and peeling all over her scalp and two legs. Flies swarmed on and around her body. Her father came up to me, and with a sense of urgency, he showed me an empty medicine bottle and pleaded with me for some rupees. I stood there, fresh off a bad experience with some pushy street beggars, and debated whether this guy was honest or if this was all some sick money-making scheme, operated by some demented underground boss. But the guy's eyes told it all. He was honest and desperate, and he also knew that this baby wouldn't survive much longer without help. So I checked the baby's pulse (to make sure it was still alive) and gave him some money. I instructed him to go to the hospital as soon as possible and buy some medicine. Tears of thanks began to well up in his eyes.

I walked away, watching the streams of middle-upper class cars drive by, half angry at them for not helping and half realizing for the first time that India's problems are simply beyond the scope of man.


Overall, the slum tour was incredibly inspiring, and in many ways it renewed my faith in human ingenuity and the importance of personal responsibility in economic development. I was guided by two young men, ages 18 and 21, who had grown up in similar slums of Mumbai. Their English was exceptional and they seemed to take a liking to me... providing me some of the inside scoops about Dharavi and its people.

Dharavi - although dirty, dilapidated, and unsanitary - is home to over 1 million people, and they are quite proud of the place. For good reason too. Dharavi itself generates a turnover of over $500 million per year, mainly due to its creative cottage industries which include plastic recycling, metal recycling, pottery and textile businesses. I was especially amazed at the single-room recycling factories, full of migrant men and women sorting and processing what us in America would consider trash. A look over the rooftops shows a whole second-story of activity. Acres and acres of recyclables being stored, leather being dried, and kids flying kites.

The two guides also took me through the residential area, where 6 person families are crammed into one-room houses, and where there is an estimated one toilet for every 1,500 persons. Dharavi's smell was unsavory, and I worried for the children especially, who I saw playing in the toxic gutters and dumps. But the place had a sense of resilience and community about it, and I felt both welcomed and safe walking around in these people's neighborhood. The tour ended at an NGO kindergarten/youth center which is funded from revenues gained by the tour. Earlier on the tour, my two guides had openly expressed with me their struggles with "succeeding" in the unjust and corrupt economic system of Mumbai. As I left, I encouraged them to continue working hard and to never give up, but deep down inside, I wondered if they would ever really make it out of the slums.

For the sake of time and space, I will spare you the rest of my day. Let's just say that I was still curious about life in the slums after my Dharavi experience. I went to Juhu Beach and met a henna tattoo artist who invited me to a Hindu temple and next thing I knew I was enjoying a meager dinner of rice with her family at her house in the slums. Probably not the smartest thing to do at night, but so worth it. This lady was smart and a hard worker, and she knew the importance of educating her kids. Her kids were also adorable, but without money to pay school fees, they worked on the beach dusk till dawn everyday. I left their house torn about giving them money for food and school.

On the rickshaw ride back to my hostel, I was approached by a beautiful young street girl, probably 7 years old, dressed in a colorful green sari. She looked me in the eyes and asked for some money. I stared into her glazed eyes and could tell she was stoned. I have heard stories of ringleaders who introduce drugs to kids so they can control their begging activities. So I told her no and turned my head away. But that stoplight seemed frozen in time, and I looked back up into her lifeless eyes and just about it lost it. I had hit a breaking point. Tears began welling up in my eyes. God, why all this suffering? Why all this poverty and pain? Where the hell are you in this bane and broken mess??

Overcoming Fear

Fear is a funny thing. It propels us to act - as well as fail to act - accordingly to that which we are fearful of.

Blogging is a fear of mine which must be quelled. This fear of having your personal thoughts "out there," floating around in cyberspace, ready and waiting to somehow be judged, abused, or misinterpreted. Yes indeed these sorts of perversions are inevitable. But that is the problem... or should I say opinion... of the reader, and they are entitled to think what they want. As M. Williamson explains in the post below, my "playing small does not serve the world."

So here I am, up early due to jet lag and enjoying the beginnings of my first full day in Udaipur, India - the infamous "City of Lakes". One may think I have traveled here as a last ditch effort to escape my impending "adulthood," to experience freedom from Western obligation and its frenzied pace of life. I can't deny all of this statement. But instead of some frivolous tourist adventure, I want this journey of mine to be a time of giving, growth, and enlightenment:

Giving, that is selflessness, to the people I am in relationship with out here. The village children and their parents, my co-workers... the people I interact with each and every day.

Growth, in the sense of learning a new language/culture/hobbies, confronting bad habits, and refining my own character. Cultivating an integrity and inner-harmony that will serve as a bedrock throughout my years of adulthood.

Enlightenment, of my God-given skills, talents and natural inclinations. Insight into what career path I should pursue and what type of activities are fulfilling to me. Understanding into Eastern philosophies and their relation to those that I've grown up with. Mostly, how God fits into all of this mess, i.e. life.

I feel so blessed to have this opportunity. This is probably why I wish to make the most of it... and SHARE the experiences I have with others. Yeah, as you read this blog you may notice that I seem to get lost in my idealistic thoughts. Or I may at times seem super-serious and depressed about life. But hey, all of us are a little bit crazy; and it is precisely this act of letting our individuality shine which "liberates others." So for what its worth, here you are - take it or leave it.