Shabash Rahul?
-एरिक
Monday, May 31, 2010
Way to go Rahul?
For high school students in India there are two really important grades; 10th and 12th class. If you pass 10th you can keep going, and if not you're pretty much done with schooling. Well my friend Rahul was more than a little worried that he might not have passed his 10th class exams, but we found out this weekend that he did! So of we got him a cake... It said "Shabash Rahul" which translated means "Way to go!" or "congrats!" but instead of an exclamation mark, the cake maker put a question mark.
Shabash Rahul?
-एरिक
Shabash Rahul?
-एरिक
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Weddings, Circuses, and More!
Okay, I’m sorry. I’ve really been a slacker when it comes to blogging this month. It’s May 27th, and this will only be fourth time I’ve updated (and probably the last time I do before June). My bad. I’ll do better in June though. I promise.
In the last two weeks I’ve done a whole lot. Let’s see if I give you a little glimpse through pictures:
Where to begin….
Well I bought some new pointy shoes
Which I wore to a wedding. And of course, at the wedding there was dancing...
(but it’s funnier to show you a picture of T than of me).
I’ve also put quite a few miles (or kilometers on my bike). So as T. Sometimes we ride alone, some times it’s with two people, or every once and a while we ride three deep...
I also went to the Indian Circus: It was kind of like a “western circus”
And then when I went to my friends’ house to spend the night, all the kids decided to reenact the circus for us!
(I think that’s supposed to be a sword… He kind of looks like a dinosaur though)
These two guys are being the scantily clad dancers, or as their literal Hindi translation would be "dirty girls"
And even the dog joined in
It’s been a crazy few weeks . feel like I haven’t stopped for very long, but it’s been a lot of fun. Our friends who are here with us leave next Saturday, and T and I will also be headed out for a few days to
-एरिक
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Human Powered Ferris Wheel
Yesterday we took a holiday. We took all of our friends who are here to the hill station at the top of mountain for a day of fun. We ate good food (chocolate pancakes) and did some shopping. Then we took everyone for a ride on what I think is possibly the coolest thing ever: A human-powered ferris wheel. There's no electricity or other special way to run it. Nope, three guys climb around and around in daredevil like fashion to create enough force to get it moving. And once its moving, it moves quickly. Then they stop and put it in reverse.
All for 50 cents!
-एरिक
All for 50 cents!
-एरिक
Friday, May 14, 2010
"No, I won't take you to America with me" and a quick update on life
Since we got back from our hiking adventure, I've been spending a lot of time on college campuses. Right now I've got some friends from the states who are here helping with the research that I'm doing.
Basically, this research looks at the similarities and differences between college students in the U.S. and college students in northern India (probably one of the most culturally diverse places in the world). We look at a lot of different aspects of the college students life - hobbies, interest, and future plans... how this generation is different from the last... how western culture is influencing India... how religion is (or is not) important to the newest generation of Indian adults. From this simple survey we've had some really good responses, and the one-on-one meetings that often follow have been really encouraging to me. Daily I'm learning so much more about this place that has become home and these people who are now my neighbors. I'm having the opportunity to learn from them, and at the the same time I'm able to share with them also. I've been doing this for the last 3 or 4 months months (since my full-time language learning ended), but the last two weeks have been much more focused on it. Good times.
Today though, I had a funny thing happen. When I approach a person or a group I generally say "hello" or something similar in English. The Hindi word "namaste" is a little formal, and college students don't really use it much. Plus, this helps to gauge the level of English they speak and I decided from there if we're going to talk more in Hindi or English. Well, before I had a chance to say much more than hello, I heard a girl at the back of the group say (in Hindi), "He can have a visa made for me!"
The group laughed, I chuckled a little, and then switched the conversation over to Hindi. She was mortified when she realized I understood. The other girls started giggling, the guys laughed pretty hard, and she quickly found a reason to head off in another direction.
Other than though, it was a really great morning. My friend and I who were doing surveys had some really good responses from both students and administrators, this afternoon he was able to have some really beneficial follow up conversations this evening while I was in language class.
These guys helping with what we're doing will be here through the end of the month, and I'm really excited to see how they'll continue to further the projects we're working on!
Basically, this research looks at the similarities and differences between college students in the U.S. and college students in northern India (probably one of the most culturally diverse places in the world). We look at a lot of different aspects of the college students life - hobbies, interest, and future plans... how this generation is different from the last... how western culture is influencing India... how religion is (or is not) important to the newest generation of Indian adults. From this simple survey we've had some really good responses, and the one-on-one meetings that often follow have been really encouraging to me. Daily I'm learning so much more about this place that has become home and these people who are now my neighbors. I'm having the opportunity to learn from them, and at the the same time I'm able to share with them also. I've been doing this for the last 3 or 4 months months (since my full-time language learning ended), but the last two weeks have been much more focused on it. Good times.
Today though, I had a funny thing happen. When I approach a person or a group I generally say "hello" or something similar in English. The Hindi word "namaste" is a little formal, and college students don't really use it much. Plus, this helps to gauge the level of English they speak and I decided from there if we're going to talk more in Hindi or English. Well, before I had a chance to say much more than hello, I heard a girl at the back of the group say (in Hindi), "He can have a visa made for me!"
The group laughed, I chuckled a little, and then switched the conversation over to Hindi. She was mortified when she realized I understood. The other girls started giggling, the guys laughed pretty hard, and she quickly found a reason to head off in another direction.
Other than though, it was a really great morning. My friend and I who were doing surveys had some really good responses from both students and administrators, this afternoon he was able to have some really beneficial follow up conversations this evening while I was in language class.
These guys helping with what we're doing will be here through the end of the month, and I'm really excited to see how they'll continue to further the projects we're working on!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)