8.8.08: Went to bed at 10:12 pm
8.9.08: Woke up at 1:27 pm
Went to bed at 12:30-ish am
8.10.08: Woke up at 6:20 am
I told everyone I was arriving at 11:30 pm and you know what? I was 12 hours off. That would probably explain why things were getting brighter, not darker, in the plane as we were getting closer to California. It's quite pathetic- I didn't realize my miscalculation until 5 minutes prior to landing when the pilot announced the local time. When I was traveling to New Zealand and India, I wasn't hit too hard by jet lag but due to my miscalculation, I ended up sleeping at the wrong times on the plane which doesn't help matters right now. I still can't believe my first night back I slept for about about 15 hours straight! Hopefully I won't pass out at today's barbecue or anything...
Yesterday would've been a good day to take pics of the goodies I bought since I rounded them all up in a pile to show my parents. I'll try to get some pictures when I have the time...
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
0 hours to go!
We should be leaving for the airport soon. I'm all packed and ready to go so right now I'm just getting my last hit of internet usage while everyone else is getting ready. Thankfully, despite all my mountains of stuff, my 2 suitcases are below the 32 kg weight limit. [Whew!] Now at least I won't be paying a penalty for overweight luggage although I will be paying a fee for my third piece of luggage. The fee is hefty (it was 117 NZD back in Auckland), but it'll still be cheaper than shipping a huge, heavy package in the mail via the Indian post or UPS. Plus, assuming none of my luggage is lost, I'll be able to have all my stuff with me as opposed to waiting for it to arrive in the mail.
If there's anything interesting, I'll try to keep ya posted when I get to Hong Kong.
If there's anything interesting, I'll try to keep ya posted when I get to Hong Kong.
Erica's not-so-impressive-nor-comprehensive Bollywood playlist
I was going to wait and buy some of my favorite Bollywood songs off of iTunes when I got back to the US, but then I realized that I wanted to show my family what I've been listening to so I started buying some music over here. Here's a list of what I bought so far, what I might buy later, and some of the songs I've been hearing lately:
FYI, pretty much all the songs I bought are mellow, ballads-y songs:
Tum Se Hi from the film, 'Jab We Met', which I saw a while ago back in the US
Tu Bole Main Boloon, which was played a lot in the 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na' trailers
'Pyaar Ke Liye' which is the only song that interested me when I saw 'Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic'
'Kal Ho Naa Ho' from the film of the same name, which I haven't seen yet, but I want to.
I also bought 'Kabhi Kabhi Aditi Zindagi', Nazrein Milaana', and 'Kahin To Hogi Ho', all also from 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na'.
Don't ask me what the song titles mean; I know only several words in Hindi and that's about it!
I'm also thinking of buying a couple songs from the films, 'Haal-e-dil', 'Om Shanti Om', 'Kismat Konnection, and a couple by Swathi's all-time favorite singer, Atif Aslam.
Songs that I don't plan on buying but do find infectious and therefore may eventually buy one or two for the memories anyway are:
'Bachna Ae Haseeno'
'Paapu Can't Dance'
'Bas Ek King'
I feel too rushed to bother finding their respective videos on youtube to link- I gotta start packing all my stuff!
FYI, pretty much all the songs I bought are mellow, ballads-y songs:
Tum Se Hi from the film, 'Jab We Met', which I saw a while ago back in the US
Tu Bole Main Boloon, which was played a lot in the 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na' trailers
'Pyaar Ke Liye' which is the only song that interested me when I saw 'Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic'
'Kal Ho Naa Ho' from the film of the same name, which I haven't seen yet, but I want to.
I also bought 'Kabhi Kabhi Aditi Zindagi', Nazrein Milaana', and 'Kahin To Hogi Ho', all also from 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na'.
Don't ask me what the song titles mean; I know only several words in Hindi and that's about it!
I'm also thinking of buying a couple songs from the films, 'Haal-e-dil', 'Om Shanti Om', 'Kismat Konnection, and a couple by Swathi's all-time favorite singer, Atif Aslam.
Songs that I don't plan on buying but do find infectious and therefore may eventually buy one or two for the memories anyway are:
'Bachna Ae Haseeno'
'Paapu Can't Dance'
'Bas Ek King'
I feel too rushed to bother finding their respective videos on youtube to link- I gotta start packing all my stuff!
Only several hours left!
Noooo! Things are coming to an end, fast! Today I dropped by Yeshwantpur where I'd been volunteering for the Dream School Foundation to say good-bye and sort of tie up any loose ends. Going there for the last time was just another reminder of how soon I'm leaving so it was sort of sad. I blogged about doing a notebook drive earlier and I think I told some of you that my regular volunteer work consisted of compiling case studies of the students and this was all done through Dream School.
I'd never really done volunteer work before this with the exception of helping out at my mom's school or the occasional church shindig, so it was really cool to be able to see a foundation in action and how it's changing the lives of the people it aims to help. The students I've met have been so well-mannered, polite and sweet. Compiling the case studies allowed me to get to know them a little bit and it was cool to hear their ambitions. The first day I came in, they all greeted me, introduced themselves and bombarded me with questions about myself and the US!
Few individuals make a big enough impact to change the whole world, but seeing how Dream School has really helped its students shows that everyone can do something to contribute within their community and impact someone's world. The Dream School Foundation helped its students to get into schools that they wouldn't have been able to afford to attend otherwise and also helps supplement their education with an after-school program so they're getting some great opportunities to get an education through the foundation. I got to meet some great, bright students with a lot of potential and I hope I was able to contribute in my volunteer work with them.
_____
I'm trying to make the most of my last several hours in India by wearing my favorite churidar today and some moments ago, I was parked in front of the TV so I could blog and get my last doses of Bollywood music videos before I have to go off to take on the enormous task of packing. In the last couple days, I've had to climb over my things to get to my bed since I've had all my stuff out in piles in the middle of the room. Swathi's scolding me to pack instead of blog but I wanted to get some blogging in while I'm still in India before I get down to business...
I'd never really done volunteer work before this with the exception of helping out at my mom's school or the occasional church shindig, so it was really cool to be able to see a foundation in action and how it's changing the lives of the people it aims to help. The students I've met have been so well-mannered, polite and sweet. Compiling the case studies allowed me to get to know them a little bit and it was cool to hear their ambitions. The first day I came in, they all greeted me, introduced themselves and bombarded me with questions about myself and the US!
Few individuals make a big enough impact to change the whole world, but seeing how Dream School has really helped its students shows that everyone can do something to contribute within their community and impact someone's world. The Dream School Foundation helped its students to get into schools that they wouldn't have been able to afford to attend otherwise and also helps supplement their education with an after-school program so they're getting some great opportunities to get an education through the foundation. I got to meet some great, bright students with a lot of potential and I hope I was able to contribute in my volunteer work with them.
_____
I'm trying to make the most of my last several hours in India by wearing my favorite churidar today and some moments ago, I was parked in front of the TV so I could blog and get my last doses of Bollywood music videos before I have to go off to take on the enormous task of packing. In the last couple days, I've had to climb over my things to get to my bed since I've had all my stuff out in piles in the middle of the room. Swathi's scolding me to pack instead of blog but I wanted to get some blogging in while I'm still in India before I get down to business...
Monday, August 4, 2008
3 days and counting
Last night we all went out to a local place known for having really good masala dosas. We'd gone there once before when Swathi's and my stay in India was nearly halfway over and this time, we tried to savor everything as we knew it would be our last time coming here, especially for me. The masala dosas here are the best I've had since the outside is crispy and buttery, and both the batter and filling have a mild flavor to them. Other dosas I've had would have a lot of cilantro in the potato filling and the batter for the outside of the dosa would have a slightly sour taste to it so I wasn't crazy about them or anything until I tasted other versions of them.
The first time I ate at the local dosa place, I was still struggling to tear chapatis, dosas, naan and the like using only one hand so I just used both hands to eat. This time around, it was sort of a bittersweet milestone that I was able to eat the dosa using only my right mehendi-covered hand. I was proud of myself for the progress I made, yet also a bit sad that this was the last time I might ever get to eat dosas there and it was as if I could feel the end coming near. The pictures I took of my dosa don't quite capture the crispy, buttery outside and tasty filling, but at least you guys will have a better idea of what a dosa is. I'd describe it as an Indian crepe:
I feel like today I also hit another milestone when I got dressed up in my best and favorite new salwar-kameez with a bindi to match to visit Swathi's grandparents, whom we last visited a couple weeks after we first arrived to India. When we last visited them, I didn't have any Indian clothing so I just wore some plain brown pants and what I considered to be my 'best' shirt out of what I brought while Swathi wore a nice churidar. In this visit I was so flattered when Swathi's grandmother said that I looked more beautiful in my traditional Indian outfit than when I had last visited them! I felt like at least on the outside someone could notice a change in me.
This morning I used my Indian cellphone to talk to my parents since the departure date is right around the corner and while it was good that they brought it to my attention that I'd probably need to make a declaration to customs upon my returning to the US, it also made me feel weird. I decided a while back that I want to wear a churidar when I fly back, so for one thing, I felt awkward as I pictured myself in Indian garb at the American customs counter trying to clear up my purchases with an intimidating officer who was oblivious to the amazing summer I just had and would just think that I've complicated things for him with all the purchases I made. While Bangalore has been like home to me for the last 2 months, perhaps it had finally hit me that despite that and whatever in me that had changed, I was still American and I would be returning to the country where I held my citizenship. A part of me is nervous that by leaving India, I'll lose whatever Indian-ness I've gained; as if it will shed itself bit by bit as I get closer to the US and finally disappear when I have to step through customs. I feel caught between two places- India feels like home for me right now but obviously, 2 months here doesn't make me completely Indian and I wouldn't identify as Indian, yet the US doesn't feel like home for me either. I imagine that after all that has happened, I'll have to somehow 'put on' all my old American-ness like an old jacket that might not fit me the same way- not that I completely shed my nationality while I was here, but the US definitely doesn't have the same meaning for me somehow.
The first time I ate at the local dosa place, I was still struggling to tear chapatis, dosas, naan and the like using only one hand so I just used both hands to eat. This time around, it was sort of a bittersweet milestone that I was able to eat the dosa using only my right mehendi-covered hand. I was proud of myself for the progress I made, yet also a bit sad that this was the last time I might ever get to eat dosas there and it was as if I could feel the end coming near. The pictures I took of my dosa don't quite capture the crispy, buttery outside and tasty filling, but at least you guys will have a better idea of what a dosa is. I'd describe it as an Indian crepe:
I feel like today I also hit another milestone when I got dressed up in my best and favorite new salwar-kameez with a bindi to match to visit Swathi's grandparents, whom we last visited a couple weeks after we first arrived to India. When we last visited them, I didn't have any Indian clothing so I just wore some plain brown pants and what I considered to be my 'best' shirt out of what I brought while Swathi wore a nice churidar. In this visit I was so flattered when Swathi's grandmother said that I looked more beautiful in my traditional Indian outfit than when I had last visited them! I felt like at least on the outside someone could notice a change in me.
This morning I used my Indian cellphone to talk to my parents since the departure date is right around the corner and while it was good that they brought it to my attention that I'd probably need to make a declaration to customs upon my returning to the US, it also made me feel weird. I decided a while back that I want to wear a churidar when I fly back, so for one thing, I felt awkward as I pictured myself in Indian garb at the American customs counter trying to clear up my purchases with an intimidating officer who was oblivious to the amazing summer I just had and would just think that I've complicated things for him with all the purchases I made. While Bangalore has been like home to me for the last 2 months, perhaps it had finally hit me that despite that and whatever in me that had changed, I was still American and I would be returning to the country where I held my citizenship. A part of me is nervous that by leaving India, I'll lose whatever Indian-ness I've gained; as if it will shed itself bit by bit as I get closer to the US and finally disappear when I have to step through customs. I feel caught between two places- India feels like home for me right now but obviously, 2 months here doesn't make me completely Indian and I wouldn't identify as Indian, yet the US doesn't feel like home for me either. I imagine that after all that has happened, I'll have to somehow 'put on' all my old American-ness like an old jacket that might not fit me the same way- not that I completely shed my nationality while I was here, but the US definitely doesn't have the same meaning for me somehow.
unlucky Fridays
It seems like the last couple Fridays that Swathi, her relatives and I try to go out and do something we’re really looking forward to, it doesn’t pan out:
We were going to go to Fun World but the park and surrounding businesses due to riots in the area. Earlier that day people had thrown pork at a mosque and as we were driving through, there were still riot police, crowds, burn marks in the concrete and broken windows. At least we ended up going to see Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, though.
When we finally got around to going out to Commercial Street for some serious shopping, that was the day of the bombings in Bangalore so that, in addition to the rain, cut our day short. This time around, we couldn't just go see a movie since even the cinemas were closed as having large crowds in one place would be kind of dangerous. At least that day I got to make a stop at a nice clothing store where I got some tops and salwar-kameez sets and last week I finished getting my dose of shopping on Commercial Street.
Last Friday didn’t seem to favor us, either. It was considered an inauspicious day on account of the solar eclipse so many local businesses were closed and there were few people out in the streets. Even the family driver didn’t want to eat his lunch while the eclipse was occurring, although it was so cloudy that day that I couldn’t tell when it was happening, anyway. At least on the way to an uncle’s house there was little traffic since the eclipse had just happened. Later that night we went out to see Kismat Konnection, but all the theaters we tried weren’t showing it anymore- our only options were the latest Mummy film or ‘Ugly Aur Pagli’ which didn’t get rave reviews. Sure, the eclipse didn’t have anything to do with our failed attempt this time, but we thought it was cruel irony that while ‘kismat’ means ‘destiny’ or ‘fate’, going out to see this movie on such an inauspicious day just wasn’t working out for us!
We were going to go to Fun World but the park and surrounding businesses due to riots in the area. Earlier that day people had thrown pork at a mosque and as we were driving through, there were still riot police, crowds, burn marks in the concrete and broken windows. At least we ended up going to see Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, though.
When we finally got around to going out to Commercial Street for some serious shopping, that was the day of the bombings in Bangalore so that, in addition to the rain, cut our day short. This time around, we couldn't just go see a movie since even the cinemas were closed as having large crowds in one place would be kind of dangerous. At least that day I got to make a stop at a nice clothing store where I got some tops and salwar-kameez sets and last week I finished getting my dose of shopping on Commercial Street.
Last Friday didn’t seem to favor us, either. It was considered an inauspicious day on account of the solar eclipse so many local businesses were closed and there were few people out in the streets. Even the family driver didn’t want to eat his lunch while the eclipse was occurring, although it was so cloudy that day that I couldn’t tell when it was happening, anyway. At least on the way to an uncle’s house there was little traffic since the eclipse had just happened. Later that night we went out to see Kismat Konnection, but all the theaters we tried weren’t showing it anymore- our only options were the latest Mummy film or ‘Ugly Aur Pagli’ which didn’t get rave reviews. Sure, the eclipse didn’t have anything to do with our failed attempt this time, but we thought it was cruel irony that while ‘kismat’ means ‘destiny’ or ‘fate’, going out to see this movie on such an inauspicious day just wasn’t working out for us!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
7.31 shopping tally
Location: Commercial Street
Total: approximately 7,500 rupees
12 large blue bangles: 20 Rs
-These are a gift for someone, and the last of the gift bangles I had to shop for. It's almost kind of sad that my shopping list is getting shorter and shorter as it signifies the end to come.
blue embroidered skirt: 950 Rs
-There was this exhibition of some sort at an outlet-type place and although the skirt is a bit long for my tastes, I couldn't pass it up since I hadn't bought any skirts in India yet. It's a cotton skirt with a printed leaf pattern and hand-embroidered sequins. There's also some gold sequins on the hem of the skirt, which makes it hard to decide if I should hem it to make it a more flattering length as I'd probably have to lose the sequined border. : /
dark blue, silk top: 660 Rs
-For the price, it was a sweet deal, considering the top is pure silk. It also doesn't hurt that it's a fabulously rich shade of blue with a subtle floral pattern all over it. The neckline is wide with a silver border, which is pretty nice, too. I almost didn't buy this top since I wanted it more fitted at the waist but gave in when I thought of later adding ties to the sides of the top so it can be tied back. I was also wary of buying a silk top since it means you can't just throw it in the wash, but the idealistic side of me figured I might need to dress up for something so I should have it on hand to wear with some skinny jeans and heels.
2 churidars (gifts), 1 salwar-kameez, 2 embroidered tops: app. 4,200 Rs
-I don't feel too badly about the price tag, considering I got a lot of bang for my buck (or, in this case, rupee) and 2 of the outfits were gifts, anyway. These items almost don't count since I bought them earlier, but today I picked them up since I had my own items altered. I was wary of having such baggy pants as they might make me look shorter and fatter, but they actually look okay. The top is an iridescent purple-green with a really nicely embroidered neckline (and I'm quite picky about embroidery and patterns), a matching green and purple chiffon-ish dupatta and green salwaar pants. One of the tops I bought is a nice yellow and the other is a blue top with polka dots on it. I actually saw the blue top the first time I shopped at Commercial Street nearly 2 months ago and at first, I decided against buying it. When I did change my mind, someone else was already looking at it! I considered it gone so it was amazing to be reunited with it the last time I went to that store.
5 magazines (Seventeen India, Marie Claire India, People India, Cine Blitz, Film Fare): 225 Rs
-I've been wanting to buy an issue of Seventeen India every since I realized there was an Indian edition of Seventeen and as for the other magazines, I'd bought them before and the new issues were already out. I'm trying to savor these and consider them my last dosage of Indian magazines unless I see some new ones at the airport on the way back to the US.
blue, pashmina/silk wrap: 1,500 Rs
-There's a cool, handy Indian crafts emporium on M.G. Road called Cauvery that sells all sorts of things from carved wooden items, brass items, shawls, silver jewelry, saris, bags, silk ties and even some tops and the products' quality is supervised by the government so it's more reliable than buying some of these things from other stores. Anyway, when Swathi told me there's a craftier version of Cauvery featuring northern items, especially pashmina shawls, I wanted to check it out and we actually found one on Commercial Street. I almost splurged and bought a second shawl that was a bright shade of purple, but fate intervened and all the purple ones in stock had a defect in the way they were dyed! So, I made myself content with just buying one royal blue wrap which will actually go well with my silk top.
I wish I had done a tally for all of my shopping outings, but it's a bit late to back track now since I probably can't remember which items went with which outing. Later though, I would like to do a post with a grand total tally though, complete with pictures and descriptions of EVERYTHING I bought and a grand tally of how much I spent (but perhaps not necessarily with the price of every item!).
Total: approximately 7,500 rupees
12 large blue bangles: 20 Rs
-These are a gift for someone, and the last of the gift bangles I had to shop for. It's almost kind of sad that my shopping list is getting shorter and shorter as it signifies the end to come.
blue embroidered skirt: 950 Rs
-There was this exhibition of some sort at an outlet-type place and although the skirt is a bit long for my tastes, I couldn't pass it up since I hadn't bought any skirts in India yet. It's a cotton skirt with a printed leaf pattern and hand-embroidered sequins. There's also some gold sequins on the hem of the skirt, which makes it hard to decide if I should hem it to make it a more flattering length as I'd probably have to lose the sequined border. : /
dark blue, silk top: 660 Rs
-For the price, it was a sweet deal, considering the top is pure silk. It also doesn't hurt that it's a fabulously rich shade of blue with a subtle floral pattern all over it. The neckline is wide with a silver border, which is pretty nice, too. I almost didn't buy this top since I wanted it more fitted at the waist but gave in when I thought of later adding ties to the sides of the top so it can be tied back. I was also wary of buying a silk top since it means you can't just throw it in the wash, but the idealistic side of me figured I might need to dress up for something so I should have it on hand to wear with some skinny jeans and heels.
2 churidars (gifts), 1 salwar-kameez, 2 embroidered tops: app. 4,200 Rs
-I don't feel too badly about the price tag, considering I got a lot of bang for my buck (or, in this case, rupee) and 2 of the outfits were gifts, anyway. These items almost don't count since I bought them earlier, but today I picked them up since I had my own items altered. I was wary of having such baggy pants as they might make me look shorter and fatter, but they actually look okay. The top is an iridescent purple-green with a really nicely embroidered neckline (and I'm quite picky about embroidery and patterns), a matching green and purple chiffon-ish dupatta and green salwaar pants. One of the tops I bought is a nice yellow and the other is a blue top with polka dots on it. I actually saw the blue top the first time I shopped at Commercial Street nearly 2 months ago and at first, I decided against buying it. When I did change my mind, someone else was already looking at it! I considered it gone so it was amazing to be reunited with it the last time I went to that store.
5 magazines (Seventeen India, Marie Claire India, People India, Cine Blitz, Film Fare): 225 Rs
-I've been wanting to buy an issue of Seventeen India every since I realized there was an Indian edition of Seventeen and as for the other magazines, I'd bought them before and the new issues were already out. I'm trying to savor these and consider them my last dosage of Indian magazines unless I see some new ones at the airport on the way back to the US.
blue, pashmina/silk wrap: 1,500 Rs
-There's a cool, handy Indian crafts emporium on M.G. Road called Cauvery that sells all sorts of things from carved wooden items, brass items, shawls, silver jewelry, saris, bags, silk ties and even some tops and the products' quality is supervised by the government so it's more reliable than buying some of these things from other stores. Anyway, when Swathi told me there's a craftier version of Cauvery featuring northern items, especially pashmina shawls, I wanted to check it out and we actually found one on Commercial Street. I almost splurged and bought a second shawl that was a bright shade of purple, but fate intervened and all the purple ones in stock had a defect in the way they were dyed! So, I made myself content with just buying one royal blue wrap which will actually go well with my silk top.
I wish I had done a tally for all of my shopping outings, but it's a bit late to back track now since I probably can't remember which items went with which outing. Later though, I would like to do a post with a grand total tally though, complete with pictures and descriptions of EVERYTHING I bought and a grand tally of how much I spent (but perhaps not necessarily with the price of every item!).
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