Hello again friends and family! With only a week standing between us reciting monologues about our epic voyages to all you, I give you one of our last updates. It seems like a lifetime ago we were sadly leaving Calcutta. Heading to Phool Ashram we all had our reservations about this week long semi silent retreat with 5:30 am wake up calls for morning chanting and meditation, neti potting and a day packed with yoga, lectures, and yes, more chanting and meditation. I speak for all of us when I say the Ashram life was delightful, peaceful, and offered a great environment for introspection and reflection on our last two months of non stop travel. After a free day in Rishikesh, the yoga capital of the world, which I spent white water rafting down the Ganga river (may I add for $7), we were off again, as we nomads do best.
The Rajasthan program was a breath of fresh air. Our amazing contact, Rishiji, uncovered some of the beauties, complexities and mysteries of India as only a local could. We had fantastic home stays in Jaipur. My host siblings took us out to a Bollywood movie and my lovely host mama taught me her unforgettable family chai recipe. Watching Indian soap operas after dinner and eating scrumptious home cooked meals gave the amazing sense of home!
The most impactful leg of the journey was still to come. After a two hour car ride into the mountains of the beautiful city of Udaipur, it felt as though we had entered another world. During the days we all volunteered teaching English to girls grades first through eighth who came from the villages that dotted the mountain side. Most of them were the first in their family to ever get a formal education. I will never forget teaching my third grade class the days of the week and colours with songs, playing Simon Says, and their personal favourite, freeze dance. Their faces lighted up as they mirrored my exaggerated dance moves to Jai Ho. During recess, the whole school gathered around to witness the spectacle of my faithful minions dancing with me to the Slum Dog Millionaire soundtrack. Despite near heat stroke, I cannot think of a better time. Being a dancer, it was a dream come true to be able to use dance as a bridge to overcome language and cultural barriers. But it didn’t stop there. The last night we had a huge dance party where all 200 students, all the young teacher’s aids, and a couple dozen villagers joined together to dance to blasting Bollywood music. I was making a fool of myself but it was a great time for all!
During the evenings we stayed with village home stays. This village of farmers spoke their own dialect so verbal communication was virtually impossible. The herd of jubilant children that scampered from one hut to another didn’t see this as a problem. I taught them all the cabbage patch, the sprinkler, and every other old school dance move your crazy uncle would pull out at the family wedding. They loved them and we even made a few of our own innovative moves that are sure to sweep the nation once I return. Our host parents were some of the most humble, kind, and content people I have ever met. Each family slept on the ground, spooning each other for warmth and comfort. They woke up before sunrise to start making chai over a small open fire they would build, to sweep their prideful dirt packed yard, and to feed the baby chicks, goats, and water buffalo that were practically part of the family.
Living here with my crazy but extremely lovable 7 year old host sister, Baloo, my warm and nurturing host mama, and the rest of the amazing family, I truly understood the contentedness that came with the simplicity and beauty of living off the land, being detached from the endless cycle of consumption, and having a community as close as family. I will miss having Baloo proudly paint my toenails by the fire, getting tickled by at least five baby chicks clambering on my shoulders and head, and falling asleep sandwiched by my snuggling family on one side and sighing water buffalo on the other. Hugging my host mom and sister and waving goodbye to them was one of the hardest things I have had to do all trip.
Today marks the beginning of our student directed travel and last leg of our journey together. Wish us luck as we soak up our last week in India!