Described below are a few things we've experienced in India and wanted to share what India is really about.
-The streets of India are littered with cows. We asked Brother Boddu if someone owns the cows wandering the roads and he said no one owns them, they are street cows. The cows eat the garbage, sleep in the most convenient spots and roam the streets as if they own the place. In previous countries, the streets were owned by dogs. Here the cows rule the roost!
-The Indian head bobs. When Indian people speak, it is hard to tell if they are in agreence or disgust with you because of the way they bobble their head. Each person does it differently too! Some shake from side to side to answer yes and some go up and down to answer yes. Even during a conversation, a head bobble can be seen numerous times when certain words or even sounds are being said.
-Flyover is the English word used to describe a bridge or overpass. Because if you get going fast enough, you will "flyover".
-The ground is spotted with spit. Spit is everywhere. Smoking is not very common, however, chewing and spitting is. It is gross when every person you walk by (and you walk by hundreds of people) spits. The ground is decorated with a red dye from the chew used.
-The Indian Stare. We have had many people stare at us as we walk around in other countries, but India wins. It is amazing how many people stop the conversation they are having and stare at both of us. During our time at Amber Fort in Jaipur, Shelley and I became the stars of some guy's video as he walked within a couple feet of us with his camera phone pointing right at us. I can only imagine how boring that video will be to look back at.
-The men strongly out number the women in India. Each time we walk down a street, we are amazed as to how many men occupy the street and no women are present. There have been several times when Shelley has and/or probably was the only woman on the street and there were thousands of people on the same street.
-Last night as we were walking to a nearby restaurant for dinner, Spike was hit by a motorcycle. It was somewhat surreal because he wasn't hit hard and the biker tipped his bike over and fell to the ground. The left handlebar hit Spike's shoulder bag that crossed his back, but it wasn't hard enough to send the biker to the ground. Spike's arm was hit harder by a motorcyclists in Vietnam. We think the man tried to swerve to miss us and over corrected and hit Spike on his way down. His leg was stuck under the bike. Spike picked up the bike and everyone went on their way. We were glad it wasn't any worse than it was.
-No one, men, woman, or child, ever puts their mouth on the cups or bottles they drink from. Most places have community cups so everyone is trained to pour into their mouth. However, they don't just pour then swallow then pour again. The Indian people can swallow as they pour. It is actually quite amazing to watch.
-People are getting ready for the Holi Festival that will occur starting tomorrow, Monday, March 17. We are super sad that we will miss the festival by one day, but the kids around town have started early. As we were walking around the streets near Jama Masjid, Shelley was hit by a water balloon by kids who made basecamp on a balcony above us. The balloon mainly broke on her bag, but still got her wet. As we looked up to see where it came from, another was launched at Spike. Spike caught the water balloon, without it breaking, and threw it back at the kids, nearly hitting one. The balloon broke one the wall behind the little boy who threw it as the people below cheered. Everyone at the market below thought it was pretty funny that a foreigner would retaliate like that.
-Church today was amazing! We were greeted by and shook the hands of every single member of the Branch wanting to welcome us. We have something to learn in the Utah church culture. At the beginning of Sacrament, Brother Boddu asked us if we would bear our testimonies for seven minutes each because one of the sisters who was suppose to speak wasn't able to make it. If we knew we would be giving a talk in church, Spike may have brought a tie to wear. The rest of church was wonderful. The speakers and teachers did an excellent job and everyone was so candid with one another. The discussions were uplifting and not like pulling teeth. Everyone was engaged and participating. We met the missionary who baptized Brother Boddu in 1997. He is from Delhi and is in the Elders Quorum Presidency. We have seen some amazing things while one our trip, but church today was one of the major highlights of the entire trip.
-The streets of India are littered with cows. We asked Brother Boddu if someone owns the cows wandering the roads and he said no one owns them, they are street cows. The cows eat the garbage, sleep in the most convenient spots and roam the streets as if they own the place. In previous countries, the streets were owned by dogs. Here the cows rule the roost!
-The Indian head bobs. When Indian people speak, it is hard to tell if they are in agreence or disgust with you because of the way they bobble their head. Each person does it differently too! Some shake from side to side to answer yes and some go up and down to answer yes. Even during a conversation, a head bobble can be seen numerous times when certain words or even sounds are being said.
-Flyover is the English word used to describe a bridge or overpass. Because if you get going fast enough, you will "flyover".
-The ground is spotted with spit. Spit is everywhere. Smoking is not very common, however, chewing and spitting is. It is gross when every person you walk by (and you walk by hundreds of people) spits. The ground is decorated with a red dye from the chew used.
-The Indian Stare. We have had many people stare at us as we walk around in other countries, but India wins. It is amazing how many people stop the conversation they are having and stare at both of us. During our time at Amber Fort in Jaipur, Shelley and I became the stars of some guy's video as he walked within a couple feet of us with his camera phone pointing right at us. I can only imagine how boring that video will be to look back at.
-The men strongly out number the women in India. Each time we walk down a street, we are amazed as to how many men occupy the street and no women are present. There have been several times when Shelley has and/or probably was the only woman on the street and there were thousands of people on the same street.
-Last night as we were walking to a nearby restaurant for dinner, Spike was hit by a motorcycle. It was somewhat surreal because he wasn't hit hard and the biker tipped his bike over and fell to the ground. The left handlebar hit Spike's shoulder bag that crossed his back, but it wasn't hard enough to send the biker to the ground. Spike's arm was hit harder by a motorcyclists in Vietnam. We think the man tried to swerve to miss us and over corrected and hit Spike on his way down. His leg was stuck under the bike. Spike picked up the bike and everyone went on their way. We were glad it wasn't any worse than it was.
-No one, men, woman, or child, ever puts their mouth on the cups or bottles they drink from. Most places have community cups so everyone is trained to pour into their mouth. However, they don't just pour then swallow then pour again. The Indian people can swallow as they pour. It is actually quite amazing to watch.
-People are getting ready for the Holi Festival that will occur starting tomorrow, Monday, March 17. We are super sad that we will miss the festival by one day, but the kids around town have started early. As we were walking around the streets near Jama Masjid, Shelley was hit by a water balloon by kids who made basecamp on a balcony above us. The balloon mainly broke on her bag, but still got her wet. As we looked up to see where it came from, another was launched at Spike. Spike caught the water balloon, without it breaking, and threw it back at the kids, nearly hitting one. The balloon broke one the wall behind the little boy who threw it as the people below cheered. Everyone at the market below thought it was pretty funny that a foreigner would retaliate like that.
-Church today was amazing! We were greeted by and shook the hands of every single member of the Branch wanting to welcome us. We have something to learn in the Utah church culture. At the beginning of Sacrament, Brother Boddu asked us if we would bear our testimonies for seven minutes each because one of the sisters who was suppose to speak wasn't able to make it. If we knew we would be giving a talk in church, Spike may have brought a tie to wear. The rest of church was wonderful. The speakers and teachers did an excellent job and everyone was so candid with one another. The discussions were uplifting and not like pulling teeth. Everyone was engaged and participating. We met the missionary who baptized Brother Boddu in 1997. He is from Delhi and is in the Elders Quorum Presidency. We have seen some amazing things while one our trip, but church today was one of the major highlights of the entire trip.
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