March 10 post

Imagine if we had a state language, special state dishes, and state outfits! Essentially that occurs in the various states in India. People in the state of Kerala, where the port is located, are very proud of their cuisine (food), high literacy rate, and special “dress” clothes. I learned that again at (another) cooking class, when I ran into the similar dress outfit as I saw in the village. I wonder what the state dressn colors would be for Michigan. UM, MSU???

After the cooking lesson, spice shopping, and lunch, we were supposed to go to an outdoor, handicraft market. Seems that it doesn't happen on Sunday, so the bus went to a rather busy area, and we were told we could go down the street shopping for an hour. I was walking for under 10 minutes and the entire bus was passing me, and I could see that they would be out of sight soon. Since the sidewalks are very uneven, I grew nervous about falling. Despite wanting to get inside a shop, my better sense prevailed, and I turned around and went back to the bus.

This turned out to be not only the best decision to make given situation, but also a great chance to talk to the local on the bus. The tour agency representative stays with the bus, so I used the time to chat. He told me that he works six months a year as a tour director and rents an apartment in Cochin in order to do that. Then, he and his family move back home where they normally live so he can “run his family.” He said that Europeans come to India, as well as Americans. Americans seem less likely to shake his hand when they greet him, and he thinks they think Indians are dirty. It is certainly true that there is a lot of dirt and trash around!

It turns out that the trip leader from SAS was responsible for the tour group—that was unknown to me. In reality, she should have been behind me and not out of sight as she was. BTW—she got her PhD from MSU.

What follows now are my answers to LJ & SK's questions...

You asked how hot it is—VERY!! About 100 degrees where we are in India and the same in Burma, but in the north it is apparently cooler. The food on the banana leaf picture was curry vegetables, curry fish bits, yogurt vegetables, and rice you would really like. The dance the women in the village did for us was a traditional welcoming circle dance. But, the dance in the orphanage rocked, and I know that both of you would have loved it!

There are a lot of animals around, but I have only seen two dogs on a leash since I left Chelsea. I did see pitiful looking kitty cats at the fish market here. I'm not sure, because I really haven't been in anyone's home, but I don't think families own pets. In Burma, it was pretty obvious that all the dogs around just stayed in the villages in general and belonged to everyone and no one.

The smudge that was on my face from the village was some kind of make-up decoration made from a tree. Remember in Burma where they made a paste as sunscreen? It's like that. There was a man at the lunch today who had both a white dot and a red dot, and he told me he got that when he visited the Hindu Temple for worship. In the picture of me and the women in the state “Kerala” dress, she had a sticker on her forhead. Apparently, she picked it out to go with her state outfit. Kind of a matching state sticker for decoration only.

Even though there are twin beds in my room, I don't have a roommate. Frankly, I don't think it would be very easy for two people to fit in here! I have a friend who has a bigger cabin with a couch and table in addition to a big bed. I'll try to take pictures around the ship and post them so you can see what's what here. I do some of my laundry by hand in my cabin, and the rest of it I put in a bag outside my door, and it comes back clean the next day. But, if it's black, it comes back grey.

I do get to chat with students—mostly when I go on trips with them. When people are eating on the ship, they tend to sit with the same people. We should have a mix it up day. The students are very friendly....This morning I had breakfast with two students who attend St. Thomas University in “the cities” in Minnesota.

The little boy being carried by the student in the orphanage was three years old. As you noticed, he was very tiny and wanted to be carried all the time.

Yes, I'm glad I came on the voyage. When we leave port tomorrow night, I'm going to concentrate on what it's like to be at sea. I think I'll try to be out on deck more than I have been. I forget to look out at the ocean because so much is happening on board. I think God is out there.