Where are we, what the hell is going on...

I like my song lyrics titles... : ) Wow, its been three days and I have so much to say. I guess I'll try doing this by day:

Thursday started off with a visit to another temple, they are so beautiful and interesting and I learn something new every time we go I don't think I will ever get tired of visiting them. From there we went to a sari making factory and saw how they were made. That was also very cool, I've always wondered how they did it. Then we went and bought silk saris from the same group of people. From there we headed back to Chennai and stayed with our tour guide for a while. Then we went to get dinner, at a McDonalds in a mall. Can I just say now, that I don't like westernized India, at all. Its very...uncomfortable. Developed India and Modern India are one thing, westernized India is a whole other thing. It was just, way too much, and out of place, and uncomfortable (yes, I know I already said that). Anyway after dinner we boarded a night train for Coimbatore.

The night train was fine. The smell was intense but we hung jasmine flowers on the fan and that helped. The train ride was 8 hours i slept for most of that, so it went by pretty quickly and easily. When we got into Coimbatore we had an hour and then we went out to markets. First, to a farmers market which wasn't too busy and the farmers there wanted pictures and gave some of us free fruit. (I also bought mangoes. Then we went to a Wholesale market which was INSANE. There was a lot of staring, and groups around us. We didn't stay long, before going to the flower market. Which again was quiet and smelled nice. ;)

Then we listened to some lectures on the agriculture projects at TamilNadu Agriculture University. It was really exciting to hear how innovative they were in that area. Later we had a picnic with some TNAU students and talked mainly about cultural differences between the US and India.

And finally today, we had the day off, with an optional activity which ended up being really cool. We went to Isha, which is a non-religious, non profit yoga organization. There we bathed with a ball of mercury (sounds safe, doesn't it?)wearing only some cloth wrap dress, and then meditated in front of the Dhynalinga. The whole experience was interesting and exciting.

The end of this week was filled with my two least favorite things about India: The beggars, and animals. Outside of one of the temples was the worst, there were tons of children and adults and diseases and I just wanted to help all of them. but instead I put on my India face, and looked at no one, and responded to no one. it is one of the hardest things to do here. Then, of course, there are the animals. My pathological fear of rabies (its pretty bad) keeps me from going near them, but seeing them being hit, or kicked, or so thin you can count the bones in their bodies breaks my heart.

In contrast to that was today, when the little kids all smiled and waived, and when we drove down the road with the Western Ghats as our background. It doesn't make up for the pain I feel for the people with next to nothing, or the animals scrapping for garbage, but it is why I love India.

I realized today, more than ever, that westernizing India takes away from what makes it so special. We don't need to make it something it is not, we only need to work to make it a cleaner, healthier version of what it is.

India is one giant contradiction. It is rich and poor, calm and chaotic, painful and joyful, loud and peaceful. India is everything all at the same time. And that is what makes it amazing.