Goa, Diwali and 4 months

The pics are me on the beach, the church which has St. Francis Xaviers body, some coconuts and a scooter, the temple, and me lighting fireworks.

Hello everyone,

This one will be a really long one so if you want to read it over a few days feel free.
Yesterday was my 4 month anniversary in India. I am sorry I don’t write very often but I, along with many other exchange students, feel that this is like a job which I don’t get paid for until many years from now when I look back and read the post. Then the feeling is priceless but right now it is a chore. This post will tell you what I’ve been up to while also exploring the festival Diwali and religion. At the end I will answer some questions.
Oh ya and I just figured out Sunday that I am moving host families on Friday.

I left you just before I went to Goa. Goa is a really nice place it is like the Hawaii of India. It was a Portuguese settlement till 1961 when they were finally kicked out but the Portuguese still left their mark in a major way in the form of religion and architecture. Goa is the party place of India and is where you go to relax on the beach. Some of the best beaches are Goa. Due to the Portuguese settlement there are many Christians in Goa it is very surprising to see all the crosses set up on the side of the road for a quick prayer and all the churches in a county which I expected to be predominantly Hindu. Although the population is generally Hindu most of the country is tolerant of other religions in particular Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains and Parsis. This being said religion is the main cause for civil unrest in the country the most notable conflict is probably between the Muslims and the Hindus. Speaking of unrest, there where more serial blasts in India which killed 75 people and injured at least 300 more in a state called Assam. This area, which is close to Bangladesh, is generally not that stable but this was the most deadly blasts of the year. So far there have been blasts in Bangalore, Ahmedabad, New Delhi, Assam and a couple other small places since I got here. I only really know about the Hindu religion as my host family is Hindu so I’ll give you a brief overview.

IF YOU DON’T WANT TO READ ABOUT RELIGION SKIP THE NEXT COUPLE PARAGRAPHS

No one can be a Hindu except by birth but anyways there are over 800 million Hindus world wide. Hindus believe in a god called Brahman, but there are three manifestations of Brahman which symbolize three aspects of such. These include Brahma, who is the creator, Vishnu, who is the preserver and Shiva (my family’s god) who is the destroyer. There are also other gods and gurus they worship such as the elephant god Ganesha, the guru Sai Baba, the monkey god Hanuman, and others who come from the Hindu epics. There are two Hindu epics, like the bible in Christianity but they have very different stories and purposes for the readers. Hindus pray in temples which are everywhere and you must enter the temple without shoes. There are also the laws of Karma and Dharma. Dharma is the obligation to accept ones condition and perform the duties while Karma is the law of consequence or fate. Karma governs the cycle of rebirth in which individuals are reincarnated on earth according to past behavior. Hindu’s don’t eat beef or if they do it is not cooked in their kitchen and they are very liberal Hindu’s.

I don’t know much about Muslims other than they don’t eat pork and there is a god called Allah, maybe Meaghan can help me out. Buddhism started in India but a very small portion of the people are Buddhists (less than 1 %) so I don’t know much about it other than followers try to achieve enlightenment. Sikhism is a religion where the followers are very recognizable because they have uncut hair and wear a turban. The Sikhs see their religion as modern and practical as they do not fast but do stress qualities such as honesty and courage. Jains are a small religion but a powerful force. I have mentioned them before they refuse to eat any meat, eggs, potatoes, ginger, carrots or anything grown in the ground. They believe in the attainment of Nirvana in life. Parsis are one of the oldest religions in India but it did not develop in India. Parsis came to India as refugees from Persia and settled mainly in Bombay and Gujarat. Truth, goodness, and charity towards others govern their way of life. The Parsis adapted very quickly to the British ways and were often employed in British companies, therefore they are usually westernized and are generally wealthier than most.


Anyway back on topic Goa is a good place to relax (or how they say in Hindi araam se) so I did a lot of that. My host family has a lot of family in Goa so we did a lot of visiting and not a lot of spending time on the beach like I would have liked but it was still a very enjoyable trip and it was a good change of pace from the big city life.

In an attempt to reach Goa before the sun set we got up early in the morning on the 29th to take the 9 hour drive. But that was not ever going to happen, as like most other things in India it took a lot longer than expected for two reasons. The road we took was a very curvy road and our tire burst 4 hours in to the drive. So this 9 hour drive took more than 13 hours including stops. When the tire burst we had a spare but, due to Murphy’s law, not all the part to fix the tire so we waited around till someone got the parts from a nearby town and he didn’t bring the right part so he needed to go back and get the right part. I just waited around in the car. When we finally got to Goa, to the family’s house we were staying at, (Margao was the name of the town we stayed but I also saw Panjim, Barga beach and some other places) my host dad and I went out for a snack. I think I take after my Canada dad when traveling I always want to be doing something so just relaxing around is not really my cup o tea but maybe I will learn the beauty of relaxation in India. We defiantly did a lot of hanging around on this trip.

The next day was my mom’s birthday so, just like back in Canada, I sat in my room and thought about how much I love her all day…just kidding. She doesn’t make me do that but Happy Birthday anyway. This day I went with my host family for a walk around the town we were staying in and then had a nap. In the evening (after the sunset) I went to the beach with my host dad and had some beer and a special dish that was prepared for us. The sun had already set so the beach was dark but I could see how beautiful it would look in the day. Anyway back to the special dish, I found out on the drive home that the dish was frog legs which are banned in India but my host dad spoke the local language to the waiter and he hooked us up. He called it jumping chicken and I believed it was chicken when I was eating it. Keep this on the DL though because that restaurant could be in serious trouble if they are caught serving frog legs.

The next day was Halloween but they do not celebrate Halloween in India so it wasn’t actually Halloween. I did phone my mom in the morning, her birthday night our time and it cost me many rupees but not many Canadian dollars. Like $2.50 for a 9 minute call from out of station to international, not bad. They were very surprised because I didn’t warn my dad. On this day we checked out a couple resorts, which were nice, very similar to Mexico resorts but not as big. I then went with my host dad to do the regular routine with relaxing in a restaurant with a snack and a drink. This time one of my host dad’s friends came and he was an interesting character. He was a judge in Goa and he wore a wig I didn’t understand what he does now but he does know a little about astrology and palm reading so he read my palm. It was pretty cool, we also philosophized together. He was asking me unanswerable questions like why do we live? and what is happiness? When he read my palm he said I will have a very long life, I don’t like education but don’t give up on my studies, I make decisions with my heart, I am very kind hearted, I will face obstacles to reach my goals (who doesn’t?), I will have one boy and one girl child, I will become more spiritual later in life, I am unsure about my goals right now, and some stuff that wasn’t true like I am an artist. Although I know what I like in art I have no idea how to create it. He also says when he comes to Bombay next he will tell me what I was in the previous life and what I will be in the next life with the reincarnation and all, that would be cool to know.

The next day we went to a big temple that was pretty stellar and we also went to see a church where St. Francis Xavier’s body is kept. That was pretty cool. You couldn’t see the body or anything but it was interesting to see the church. We then did a family visiting extravaganza where we saw three families in fours hours in different parts of Goa. They all fed us something, boy howdy am I fat. I hope my next family doesn’t fees me so much, hint, hint, if you are reading this Supriya. I then saw a Bollywood movie called ‘Golmaal Returns’ it was not that great because it was a comedy and the jokes didn’t really make me laugh because I didn’t understand them.

The next day we saw the touristy side of Goa which I liked, so we went to the beach and had a tropical mocktail by the beach, along with some seafood. It was good. My host dad bought me a t shirt then we left for home. We didn’t actually make it all the way to Bombay because the drive was long and it was late so we stopped in Pune on the way home, and stayed with family.

When we got back the next couple days I just hung out. It is still holidays right now, this is truly like Christmas vacation for Indians. A couple times Red Bull representatives (who were foxy) gave us Red Bull, so I guess being a foreigner does have some benefits. I also went running a couple times last week, it felt good. I also saw Obama become elected as the next President of the USA so that was really great seeing his speech live. I will never forget that moment.

The next day I went to tabla (drum) classes but I am not sure when I will start the classes in full because I will be away much of December and stuff. The drums are like bongos but the two drums are different and you have to strike the drum perfectly to get a proper sound. The children in the class were all very young (10 or so) but could play really well, except for the one like 5 year old I was better than him. Is this what I have become comparing myself to a 5 year old?

The next day I was sitting watching the sun set on Marine Drive with a couple IYE friends and some really old guy was creeping us he had already talked to us before and wants to take us for a swim or something like that. We had to be pretty mean with him but I swear he is up to no good. I also have another RYLA in a couple weeks and we had the orientation there were so many rules for the RYLA. RYLA is a program designed to develop leaders of the future so there are activities and lectures and stuff and we are foreign so we go. There are so many rules for the RYLA but at the RYLA orientation there was an open bar so the Rotarians said that we should do all the drinking there so we don’t do it at RYLA so we obliged.

I wasn’t feeling too good the next day so I just hung around most of the day.

The next day I saw the new James Bond which was good but not quite as good as Casino Royale. Part was filmed in Siena, Italy where I had been a couple summers ago so that was cool to see on film.

Diwali is like Hindu Christmas. It is actually celebrating something to do with one of the epics like the return of Rama to his village after he completes his goal or something. It is the festival of light so people burst many crackers and they have lights (just like Christmas lights) to decorate the apartment. This is the main time to see family or go back to your village or travel with family. Schools and offices close and there are even Diwali office parties. The people are supposed to get up early for reasons unknown to me other than to wake me up from my beauty sleep with firecrackers. People give gifts and say Happy Diwali all the time during this 4 day festival. Any questions ask. I think it is technically celebrating the Hindu New year also, although the western calendar is used for business, the Hindu calendar is used for festivals. I really don’t know a lot about the festival but you do get special food and there are a few rituals (poojas) throughout the festival. That was actually the last festival for a while so no more crazy festivals for me till next year :( (2009)

NOW QUESTION TIME

Samantha: Did you eat at the German Bakery by OSHO?
-No unfortunately I didn’t but I know a German Exchange student who did. He said it was the only place where you can get a cold salad. If you have a salad here it is boiled so it is no longer a salad it is just veggies. I will go next time!

Dad: Have you been able to participate in any sports?
- I have played soccer a few times and went running three times but other than that I just walk tons every day.

Trevor: how is the cricket??
-The cricket is good but I haven’t really played much. Batting isn’t too hard but bowling is really tough. You need to buy all the special pads and stuff if you want to join an academy. It is on TV all the time and the people always talk about it.

Carlann: Have you had any other things happen to you that could have happened here in Calgary?
-I will get back to you on that one I haven’t really thought about it. Many of the clothes are the same which are for sale, especially for the boys. It is just so different in general though so I will think about it.

Mel: Is your host family observant? Of the fasting.
- No, my family is Hindu so they are not observant of the Ramadan fasting. They might have some other fasting thing I am unaware of though. I will get back to you. I really appreciate your comments and questions Past President Mel.

Lesley: What do they do for Christmas over there? Do they celebrate Christmas?
It seems like there is always a festival happening, does everyone just kind of know where to go and when or is there like... the Indian Festival Users Guide?
- I don’t think they do much for Christmas over here other than just get a little time off work. There are Christians so they celebrate it but it is not a huge festival. I think I will get together with the other exchange students to celebrate something. Everyone just knows when the festivals are basically but I got info on the internet and a book.

Aunty Rhesa: Are you still practicing and learning about yoga?
- Yes I still go to yoga every weekday morning if I can get up.

Aunty Wendy: nce it's hunting season, we have two deer carcasses hanging in the garage already. What would your host family think of that? Do they hunt anything there? Maybe gnu's? I dunno... Let me know what the great hunters are stalking out your way!!
- I don’t think they do a lot of hunting here, maybe in the south. My family is liberal but may be a little shocked by the carcasses. They don’t really hunt much here but I wouldn’t know as I am experiencing big city life. Maybe they hunt wild pigs, ducks or buffalo. I don’t know though I will ask.