With Deepest Gratitude
I hope that I have expressed my thanks to each of you over the course of this journey, but I am so truly moved by the wave of support that I have to say it again. Though I always had faith that we would find the funds for this worthy task, it has been a bumpy road and we are overwhelmed and deeply touched by the overflow of contributions.
During our first days in India, it occured to me that this is most certainly the hardest thing I have ever done --and the decision to come here was without question. I am equally certain that the reason I'm here is all of you! It is not only the financial support, but also the constant encouragement and enthusiasm that keeps us going.
I can't begin to tell you how much it means to us that so many people are cheering us on; and we love sharing this with you!
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One monkey, twenty-two schoolgirls, 14 real ghee sweets, and one triumphant mountaineer.
Just another crazy day
If we've learned anything, it's that every day holds a new, unimaginable adventure --or maybe I should say
fiasco. We had a meeting scheduled with Palmyra this morning, but apparently a roof-raising had come up. I'll just say that Trav found himself heaving a poured concrete roof onto brick pillars with 30 Tamil office workers, a French architect, and a German ecologist. Two hours later we were learning about healing stones and astrology with Sabine; our design meeting only required about 20 minutes of the morning.
This afternoon we visited the local secondary school to deliver cards made by Mrs. Eby's 5th grade class. The children were so delighted to meet us and see photos of their American counterparts. We left them crayons and markers so they may write letters back to the kids in Ohio. I think the 5th graders will be equally interested to see how much different the Indian school is. Can you tell which one is me in the photo?
Bollywood.
After a full morning of (re)designing, we drove to Pondy for our first Bollywood film. We pushed through a very enthusiastic crowd of primarily young Indian men and, with the assistance of a friendly English-speaking sahbib, purchased balcony tickets: 33Rs each. We then waited with the crowd in the scorching heat for the doors to open; they only became more animated once inside. To compensate for the cheering and whistling, the movie soundtrack blared at a deafening volume.
Everything was in Tamil, so I could only follow the plot from what our friend told us and by the over-acting. I can only describe it as 30% action, 60% love story, and 10% Backstreet Boys-esque music video. Yes, India's hot, but Bollywood's where it's at.
Best Day EVER!
We met with Palmyra again today; it couldn't have gone any better! They gave us productive feedback and we feel we are on track with the design. Jurgen is going to speak with the appropriate Auroville authorities to have the construction approved, as well as arrange to have the site cleared and the electrical/plumbing work done. We also met the other members of the project team, Sabina and Michael; everyone is lovely and as enthusiastic and dedicated to the project's success as we are. Everything is continuing to fall into place!
Sabina gave us a tour of her amazing home and then we received an impromptu yoga session in her living room. Actually, it was sometics, which deals more with breathing and controlling the diaphram, but it was
unorthodox, to say the least.
On the way home I stopped at the village tailor. I chose fabrics and was measured, so on Saturday I'll have two new tailor-made Indian ensembles for the bargain price of $15! Top it off with a trip to the beach and the electricty
finally coming back and I think we've had the best day yet. :)
Motorcycle Diaries
Travis has gotten pretty confident on the motorbike now and since my bruises are healing, I agreed to a two-hour road trip on Sunday. We went with a group of Indian architecture students our age to the town of Gingee, which boasts a 100 year old fort and temple.
The fort itself was amazing: the view from the top was well worth the 45 minute climb in the raging heat...and fighting the monkeys to get there. But I'd say the real story is in the journey. We left at 6am and enjoyed a peaceful, beautiful drive and the cool morning wind in our hair. Our celebrity status seems to have increased and I felt like Miss America on a parade route through the little villages. Children jumped up and down as we passed, delighted with a simple wave and a "hello!" Everywhere we went we were greeted with the same enthusiasm --it does a lot for one's self-confidence, I must say.
The drive home was less thrilling.
Two hours in the scorching Indian midday sun, wind-burned and dodging huge buses and honking trucks, my bum was sore and Trav was starving. Our traveling companions knew the way home and are also more used to the ridiculous Indian roads; they sped by on their motorcycles, leaving us to wonder if we were even heading in the right direction.
In the end, we navigated our way through the city, avoided being run off the road, and met up with the rest of the group. But all's well that ends well: the experience was well worth the trip.
