India, Day 3-5

Day three started off with a bang...my first ride in an auto rickshaw, which is basically a three-wheeled motorcycle with a metal shell around the outside. I think the rickshaw rides alone are reason enough to visit India. Anyone that has been to the country will understand when I describe the traffic as “graceful chaos”. Although everyone completely ignores road signs, lines, and rules, the traffic obeys its own kind of laws. Traffic flows like liquid, just pouring into whatever open space there is. Drivers use the horn brilliantly as a kind of echolocation, and a lot of the horns have a singsong tone that makes the comical. Roads with two lanes end up accommodating four or five vehicles side by side, and stop signs and lights are totally ignored. Somehow it all works, and it's so much fun.

 

The first excursion we took was to Spencer Mall, which is a gigantic shopping center that we were told we shouldn't miss. It's weird, in a cool way. The building is maybe seven floors, and a complete maze of hallways, loops, and dead ends. Some parts felt like a mall in the U.S., but then you turn a corner and you're in a skinny bazaar alley with tiny shops and merchants. It went on and on.

 

Some friends from Semester at Sea had exchanged contact info with some students they had met at the welcome reception, and we made plans to meet them that afternoon. The plan was to meet them to see an Indian film, and they trusted us to buy tickets to whatever sounded good. The only film that wasn't sold out was called “Thee”, and the students were totally disappointed when they found out that's what we would be seeing. “Thee” is...basically trash. It's in Chennai's local language (Tamil), and it's made and released only in Tamil Nadu. They crank these movies out in very little time, with a minimal budget, and they're shown in a small region for a short while, after which they disappear completely. I believe they release 2-3 films like this every week, and they usually make a fortune. I can't even describe how awfully bad it was. Completely cheesy and exaggerated, with all the dialogue overdubbed with shouted lines. I feel like I was yelled at throughout the whole film. The film was some kind of revenge story about a cop/politician, with a couple of dance numbers thrown in. The guys we met insisted that we shouldn't judge Indian films by what we saw that night. We left at the intermission (“Thee” is three hours long). I actually had a great time, mostly because I could hardly believe what was being forced on us.

 

Meeting and hanging out with the SRM University students turned out to be one of the most rewarding things we've one so far. They were such gracious hosts (one had to ask me to stop thanking him for things). They took us out to dinner for two nights, and showed us Chennai's beach at night, which was beautiful. Like at the welcome reception, we clarified more stereotypes about each other's cultures. (One asked me if everyone in the U.S. owns a gun.) Guys, if you're reading, thank you a thousand more times for helping us feel at home in your country. We're making it a goal to meet university students in every country from now on, because our experience with you was so fantastic.

 

The last thing for me to mention is another SaS trip called “Rural India and DakshinaChitra Heritage Villiage”. We took a bus into one of the rural villages, which was awesome to see but the actual trip was structured to be a little touristy. We got to step into a home and talk about the prayer rooms that are commonly included. Some people got to try their hand at cultivating rice plants and climbing coconut trees. We also got carted around by bulls. Interesting, but the trip didn't offer much interaction with the local people. [A word of advice for students planning on studying through Semester at Sea: be aware that the trips sold through SaS (except for home-stays) are often touristy and may not give you much immersion into the cultures. Be sure to keep a good balance between SaS trips and independent travel.]

 

So that was how I spent my time in India. It was too quick. I'm still turning it all around in my mind, but so far I know that I felt the safest and most comfortable in India of all the ports we've visited. Although I wish I could have stayed longer than those five short days, I'm also the most satisfied with the short visit, because I have such a strong feeling that I'll be returning to India. I'm really drawn to its unique balance between vitality, goofiness, pain, the ancient and modern, desperation but also satisfaction and humility. My glimpse of India was hypnotically compelling and I can't wait to go back.

 

We reach Thailand tomorrow. We're now halfway through the entire voyage, and the pace quickens from here on. In the next 26 days, we have only 6 days at sea, with classes. So I'm taking a deep breath and preparing myself for the plunge.

 

Thanks to everyone who has been keeping in touch. I do miss some folks at school and at home. Especially a few people that are studying abroad as well. If you have a free moment, I'd love to hear how you're doing. Also, I feel like I've gotten a pretty good handle on Semester at Sea by this point, so I'm happy to answer any questions about the program if you're planning on sailing or just curious. I love you all.