Blogging is not as easy as Facebooking....

November 2014

Truthfully, while the idea of writing a blog sounds wonderful and intriguing, the reality for me is that it's time-consuming, and it's a hassle when it comes to uploading photos.  I also know, though, that once I start writing, it's often easy to continue for long periods of time.  Except when it's not.  Like today, when it's about 95 degrees Fahrenheit or 35 degree Celsius and I have the time to write but the thought of typing in this steamy climate just makes me sweat like I'm in a sauna.  So why am I typing away then?  Because there's a fan that's spinning above me, I'm not ready for an afternoon nap, and a whole lot of friends on Facebook have suggested I at least find my FB posts that I've written since November (when I embarked on this journey to and through India) and include them in a blog.  Here, then, are my posts since just before departing the USA, from oldest to most recent. Maybe after posting these, I'll be better able to keep up with it.  Realizing that the only people who know what I'm doing are those who are my Facebook friends, I'm setting a goal to continue these postings so I can send them out to my family and friends who only use email to stay connected--Yes, there are actually people who do not have FB accounts, which is so hard to believe, I know....Anyway, this is for them, and, of course, this blog is for me, so that when I'm about 85 years old (that's not so far off in the future now, is it?) I can read it (or more realistically, have someone read it to me) and relive this journey, and hopefully others I've taken, with just the power of words and some photos.


November 6,  2014 (three days before departure):

How does one prepare for an eight-month trip abroad when not living in one place? I have been house-sitting and couch-surfing since arriving back in USA in July. And while it has been fun, there's something about having one's own space and place. I am leaving Corvallis on Saturday for Portland and leaving Portland on Sunday for India. I can't even figure out how to organize myself. With my belongings spread between my car, my barn, and two friends' homes, I'm feeling so incredibly disorganized. Add to that the incredible frustration of dealing with Microsoft and the poor service and product performance (next time I'm buying a Mac)! I need to have a packing party on Friday — mainly to pack up books and supplies that I am taking to use when volunteering. Any local friends available? Of course I have no idea where to pack — maybe fill my car with it all and meet somewhere.

November 9, 2014 (hours before departure): After a crazy week marked by numerous frustrating calls to Microsoft, Comcast, and then, on Saturday, to AT&T, I finished off all my trip preparations with a pedicure and dinner with two of my kids in Portland. Now I've given up on sleeping though I'm in a nice hotel near the airport, because in just a few hours we have to be up and out of here. I think I just haven't taken the time to think much about the trip because of the energy it took for me to deal with incompetent service reps and technicians, particularly at Microsoft. I'm happy to be leaving this lifestyle behind for a while. Goodbye to cold and rain, hello to heat and humidity! The harder goodbyes to say, though, are the goodbyes I've been saying to my friends and family. I'm taking a part of all of you with me! November 9, 2014: Sangeeta:  See you and Shivangi on Monday night! I'll have a big duffel bag, three carry-on size bags (but heavy), and a small backpack. Excited!!! 5:55am:  Boarding for Delhi now after almost six hours in Newark (shortest flight from west coast to east coast ever — 4 1/2 hours!). Ready for warmer temperatures and electrified hair:-). Friends in Kolkata: I do not know when I'll be there but please send me your phone number so I can call you when I get a SIM card. So long America and her politics! November 10, 2014: Arrived in Delhi 12 hours ago to the news of my sweet friend Jana having a brain aneurysm. If there's ever a time to pray, and pray like your life — your friend's life — depended on it, that time is now. It's hard to be on the other side of the planet when someone you care for, and her family, is experiencing this trauma. Hard to believe . . . November 11, 2014 (breakfast): Being at Sangeeta's home in Delhi is just like being at my Jewish aunt's home. Eat eat — you haven't had enough. You'll be hungry later. Hard to say no to delicious Indian food.  November 12, 2014: Morning: Here's the thing about piercing my nose — I'm too old, it could hurt, I can't wear dangling earrings from it, and it kind of goes against Jewish laws (but then, I do eat bacon once a year and have been known to eat prawns and crab and lobster now and then . . . ). Should I or shouldn't I??  Kathleen from Costa Rica (via Austin) and Sangeeta from Delhi! Evening: The past couple of mornings I've started the day off at 5:30am with yoga instruction, individualized for me, thanks to my friend Sangeeta and her yoga teacher, who comes to her house a few mornings a week. Indian cooking, shopping for brightly-colored styles and just generally sliding into the everyday life here is the way to start off my time in India. Tonight we take a night train to Punjab, up by the Pakistan border, to attend a wedding. Looking forward to the excitement of the next several days filled with wedding events. But first, lunch with a friend from Costa Rica who is passing through Delhi:-) The world is small! Or so it seems... November 13, 2014: On the all-night train for the wedding of Dev and Tej. Our porter was small but very strong, carrying 2 suitcases on his head and pulling another (until I took over pulling one behind me). Traveling to Fazilka with Sangeeta and Shivangi from Sarai Rohilla railway station.

November 14, 2014:

We arrived in Fazilka in time for the wedding festivities of Dev (from Oregon via Boston and Russia) and Tej (from Oregon via Massachusetts via India) Mehindi! Three mehindi artists spending a lot of time painting our hands with henna. Tomorrow morning it'll be darker. So many of us women are having a great time 'bonding!'

Walking around Fazilka. We are THE main attraction. — at Clock Tower, Fazilka.