...just for fun, and just in case there's a secret demand out there (mainly to laugh at my pitiable attempts).
Friday, February 15, 2008
More Bhangra photos...
...just for fun, and just in case there's a secret demand out there (mainly to laugh at my pitiable attempts).
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Video Links, in case they didn't work for you before
http://www.vimeo.com/690350
http://www.vimeo.com/690355
http://www.vimeo.com/690379
http://www.vimeo.com/690382
http://www.vimeo.com/690399
http://www.vimeo.com/684789
http://www.vimeo.com/681706
http://www.vimeo.com/681659
http://www.vimeo.com/690355
http://www.vimeo.com/690379
http://www.vimeo.com/690382
http://www.vimeo.com/690399
http://www.vimeo.com/684789
http://www.vimeo.com/681706
http://www.vimeo.com/681659
Good Fences make Bad Neighbors
Another occasion of the last week was my visit to the Attari-Wagan border crossing between India and Pakistan. This is one of the main tourist draws of this area, and surely with Pakistan still in a state of martial law, and India the world's most populous democracy and religious hotbed, this would be a sober and weighty affair. Quite the contrary, it was simply a big dance party.
Sure there's a big fence with barbed wire (electrified), and it's exciting to be only a few yards from Pakistan, but the action was very slow, and mainly people just shouted slogans, cheered, and danced. Also, I don't know where they learned this style of martial parading. I think the British might have been playing a big joke on colonial India by 'teaching' them that this was the way real troops behaved...and dressed.
It was actually an enjoyable atmosphere, but nothing like what I expected. When I visited the North/South Korea border four years ago, it was decidedly more tense. There, the positive spin they tried to put on the DMZ was how many native plant and animal species had flourished with no human interaction in this zone for fifty years. Yea right, squirrels with shrapnel vests are not exactly 'flourishing'.
Once again, I was grateful to ride to this landmark with my ragi, instead of being swindled and cramped with other tourists (mainly British). As it was, when we arrived, their was a special VIP seating, apart from the masses of domestic tourists, where I was cramped with other tourists (mainly British).
Sure there's a big fence with barbed wire (electrified), and it's exciting to be only a few yards from Pakistan, but the action was very slow, and mainly people just shouted slogans, cheered, and danced. Also, I don't know where they learned this style of martial parading. I think the British might have been playing a big joke on colonial India by 'teaching' them that this was the way real troops behaved...and dressed.
It was actually an enjoyable atmosphere, but nothing like what I expected. When I visited the North/South Korea border four years ago, it was decidedly more tense. There, the positive spin they tried to put on the DMZ was how many native plant and animal species had flourished with no human interaction in this zone for fifty years. Yea right, squirrels with shrapnel vests are not exactly 'flourishing'.
Once again, I was grateful to ride to this landmark with my ragi, instead of being swindled and cramped with other tourists (mainly British). As it was, when we arrived, their was a special VIP seating, apart from the masses of domestic tourists, where I was cramped with other tourists (mainly British).
More Things Seen
This one just makes me chuckle
Mom I finally found out why no one's happy with their Medicare drug benefit:
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Important
I forgot to add a very important thing to the last post: my cell phone number here in Punjab. Not that I'm expecting everyone to call, based on international rates, time zone (please be aware of that), and schedules. IF, however, you were tempted to give me a ring, via landline or Skype, it is as follows...
011 (int'l) + 91 (India) + 98 7826 9997
Now I'm off to eat some dinner!
Also, I think I fixed the video link posted below, but someone please write in the comments if it can't be accessed.
011 (int'l) + 91 (India) + 98 7826 9997
Now I'm off to eat some dinner!
Also, I think I fixed the video link posted below, but someone please write in the comments if it can't be accessed.
First Day of Spring
No kidding. In Punjab, it's officially the first day of Spring. According to the Sikh calendar, the second to last month of their year began today, and the new year falls on April 13th, or Vaisakhi day, about which there will be much more to come. Anyway, the day is called Basant, which translates to 'spring', and so for the last few days I've been learning the raag called Basant (which actually has many variations, but also many appearances in Sikh scripture). I was pleased with myself to be able to go to a major gurdwara in town on basant day and recognize that they were playing basant raag, in various forms.
Over the end of last week, I spent a few days in a village called Chugawan, about 30 km from the house I'm staying in Amritsar. Village living is a whole other side of India from city life, as anybody who's been here can attest. It has its disadvantages, namely that westerners are even more of a foreign sight, and the center of attraction. Even when I would go out accompanied by someone, down the narrow alleys of this town (by narrow I mean you could reach both walls if you put your hands out), I felt slightly uncomfortable. It didn't help that the power was frequently cut even at night, blacking out everything but generator-run single lightbulbs, or that the kids of the village who had heard about me being there would come up to the door of the house to stare in at me.
However, the plus sides is the relaxed pace of the families, the sense of being more in touch with community and nature. I say that in an idyllic way - this is a subsistence life, and probably the pastoral charm that I see parallels the hunger that many people here feel to get out of there and go have a nice car in the West, etc - things I take for granted.
We also saw some lovely village gurdwaras by driving through the countryside. That was definitely a high point. The sun was out, the fields were green (wheat, basmati rice) with yellow flowers (mustard leaves which make a delicious treat), I was riding on the back of a motorcycle down roads that were barely roads and trafficked by oxen, wedding parties, and bicycles. This is one historical gurdwara in a little town called Sorhian. My music teacher was telling me that he will serve as the hazuri ragi (hired, in-house musician) here in the fall for a few months.
I also put in an appearance at the local school, where my host teaches English. This is the 8th standard class (a little unclear on the comparison to the US system). I was brought in as a ringer, so they could hear the pronunciation of a native English speaker. Especially at schools like this, they primarily are learning grammar for a written test, and there is a very marked accent when they are saying their English lessons - it resembles British pronunciation more (which I tried to correct as much as possible), but with many oddities of the local languages thrown in. As a guest teacher, I correct their lessons, and they all wanted me to sign their workbooks, then I gave an impassioned reading of the day's lesson, a short story called "The Monkey and the Crocodile." (Note: it's not a girls' school, but the girls sat separately from the boys, so the pictures are separate).
A view of a crowded road outside the Baba Deep Singh gurdwara in Amritsar. Baba Deep Singh was a famed warrior at the time of the Gurus and became a famous shaheeda (martyr). Legend goes that he vowed he would fight his way through the occupying Moghuls to liberate the Sikhs sacred tank (at the Golden Temple, literally "Amrit-Sar"). Unfortunately, his head was chopped off during the confrontation. However, when a loyal Sikh nearby reminded him of his vow, he got up, picked up his head, and carried it all the way to the edge of the sacred tank, where he expired.
The other tradition on Basant Day is the flying of kites. These are some of my friends who live in adjoining houses. When I arrived home at the end of the day, they were just sitting in the park, and I incited them to act like true Punjabis and fly kites. Fortunately, they were obliging and not offended, and we went up to the roof, to add our kite to the many that were flying all across the city. These boys have also included me in their nightly cricket game (believe it or not, it's actually not as dull a game as I long though, I actually know what an "over" is now, and I seem to have enough athletic ability to hold my own).
Over the end of last week, I spent a few days in a village called Chugawan, about 30 km from the house I'm staying in Amritsar. Village living is a whole other side of India from city life, as anybody who's been here can attest. It has its disadvantages, namely that westerners are even more of a foreign sight, and the center of attraction. Even when I would go out accompanied by someone, down the narrow alleys of this town (by narrow I mean you could reach both walls if you put your hands out), I felt slightly uncomfortable. It didn't help that the power was frequently cut even at night, blacking out everything but generator-run single lightbulbs, or that the kids of the village who had heard about me being there would come up to the door of the house to stare in at me.
However, the plus sides is the relaxed pace of the families, the sense of being more in touch with community and nature. I say that in an idyllic way - this is a subsistence life, and probably the pastoral charm that I see parallels the hunger that many people here feel to get out of there and go have a nice car in the West, etc - things I take for granted.
We also saw some lovely village gurdwaras by driving through the countryside. That was definitely a high point. The sun was out, the fields were green (wheat, basmati rice) with yellow flowers (mustard leaves which make a delicious treat), I was riding on the back of a motorcycle down roads that were barely roads and trafficked by oxen, wedding parties, and bicycles. This is one historical gurdwara in a little town called Sorhian. My music teacher was telling me that he will serve as the hazuri ragi (hired, in-house musician) here in the fall for a few months.
I also put in an appearance at the local school, where my host teaches English. This is the 8th standard class (a little unclear on the comparison to the US system). I was brought in as a ringer, so they could hear the pronunciation of a native English speaker. Especially at schools like this, they primarily are learning grammar for a written test, and there is a very marked accent when they are saying their English lessons - it resembles British pronunciation more (which I tried to correct as much as possible), but with many oddities of the local languages thrown in. As a guest teacher, I correct their lessons, and they all wanted me to sign their workbooks, then I gave an impassioned reading of the day's lesson, a short story called "The Monkey and the Crocodile." (Note: it's not a girls' school, but the girls sat separately from the boys, so the pictures are separate).
A view of a crowded road outside the Baba Deep Singh gurdwara in Amritsar. Baba Deep Singh was a famed warrior at the time of the Gurus and became a famous shaheeda (martyr). Legend goes that he vowed he would fight his way through the occupying Moghuls to liberate the Sikhs sacred tank (at the Golden Temple, literally "Amrit-Sar"). Unfortunately, his head was chopped off during the confrontation. However, when a loyal Sikh nearby reminded him of his vow, he got up, picked up his head, and carried it all the way to the edge of the sacred tank, where he expired.
The other tradition on Basant Day is the flying of kites. These are some of my friends who live in adjoining houses. When I arrived home at the end of the day, they were just sitting in the park, and I incited them to act like true Punjabis and fly kites. Fortunately, they were obliging and not offended, and we went up to the roof, to add our kite to the many that were flying all across the city. These boys have also included me in their nightly cricket game (believe it or not, it's actually not as dull a game as I long though, I actually know what an "over" is now, and I seem to have enough athletic ability to hold my own).
Monday, February 11, 2008
two new videos
And scroll down to read all the new (backlogged) posts
http://www.vimeo.com/user352193/videos
http://www.vimeo.com/user352193/videos
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