Day 99: 10 Surprises
I'm nearly at day 100. Day 100 will be my last day in Vizag. Funny how that works out huh? So just a heads-up, it will also be my last day of blogging while in India. Israel, Carly and I are going on a trip to Goa to a beach resort-type place and I thought it would be nice to enjoy the last little bit of my trip without worrying about finding internet connection.
Today I'm writing about 10 things I really didn't expect when I decided to come to India-- things that caught me by surprise.
#1. Humidity... I used to think of humidity in the same category as unicorns and big foot. I kind of didn't think it existed. Or maybe I thought I was immune to it. But no. No I am not. And it is very real. Give me a blizzard any day.
#2. How fast my nails and hair grow here. It's kind of crazy actually. My eye lashes are SO long and I have to cut my nails every few days. I will definitely be missing that :) (Except that ironically enough, my hair has never been dryer).
#3. Geckos... I did not know that South India had such a thriving gecko population. This morning I opened my cupboard and this baby gecko was snuggled into my shirts.
Did you know geckos make this weird clucking sound like they are laughing at you?? Well they do. And they are EVERYWHERE. We hear that it is very bad luck if a gecko falls on your head. Thank goodness that hasn't happened. So far. haha
#4. I'm kinda good at bartering! This on definitely surprised me. I'm usually not very good at saying no to sales people (ask my sister) and so I don't know how I got over that. But it really is kind of like a fun game!
#5. I love research. I had kind of convinced myself that research would be really hard and that I would just have to suck it up and do it. But it turns out that I WANTED to go out every day (almost every day) to do interviews. The families I got to talk to were so cool. Doing interviews was the most meaningful way that I learned anything about South Indian people. I'm sad to leave that :( I know it will be one of the things I miss most.
#6. I'm cool with my natural appearance. Despite wearing not the most flattering clothes, no make-up, feeling sticky all the time and not being able to straighten my hair I'm more comfortable with my body than ever before in my life. I feel happy and content. That doesn't mean I'm not excited to be able to dress in my style and to put on some lipstick but I feel determined to keep this feeling inside me. I didn't think that would be something that I would learn here.
#7. Power cuts. I had no idea that there would be power cuts. I'm pretty sure Andhra Pradesh is a big supporter of power cuts because I never saw them anywhere else. But when they started I didn't think it was that big a deal-- it wasn't hot out yet. Now it happens every day, two or more times, for over 4 hours. I don't think I could ever get used to it. It's too hot not to have a fan, let alone air conditioning. I don't remember what it feels like be to be at a comfortable temperature.
#8. Rice gets old. At the very beginning of our stay in Vizag I remember saying, "I don't think I'll ever get tired of rice". HA I wish it wasn't true, but I literally can't swallow it anymore. Unless it's basmati (cuz we don't have that very often). I hope that doesn't last for very long. Maybe its just pressure-cooker rices that I don't like as much.
#9. People stare. I feel like I should have known this but I guess I kind of expected to blend in. We really don't though. Our skin colour makes us stick out and people treat us differently because of it. We are the "foreigners". Though I will miss India it will be so nice to be able to blend into the crowd.
#10. I love South India. This one is the most important to me. Since I've been learning Hindi for the last two years I never really wanted to come to South India. I wanted to be able to practice the language. And South India really isn't a touristy place. No Taj Mahal, no Himalayas... its kind of off the beaten track. So it didn't seem as appealing. But since I had to come here for anthropology it was better than nothing. "At least I'll get to travel in the North". But I really don't feel that way anymore. There is something so wonderful and different about South India. Vizag is definitely cleaner than most places we have visited. It has some great universities. And the people are really relaxed, blunt and inviting. I can't explain it... so here is a video that was just made about Vizag (and it is set to one of my new favourite songs)!
I think i'll call it MY city now :) I hope I can come back one day.
Love,
Stéf
Today I'm writing about 10 things I really didn't expect when I decided to come to India-- things that caught me by surprise.
#1. Humidity... I used to think of humidity in the same category as unicorns and big foot. I kind of didn't think it existed. Or maybe I thought I was immune to it. But no. No I am not. And it is very real. Give me a blizzard any day.
#2. How fast my nails and hair grow here. It's kind of crazy actually. My eye lashes are SO long and I have to cut my nails every few days. I will definitely be missing that :) (Except that ironically enough, my hair has never been dryer).
#3. Geckos... I did not know that South India had such a thriving gecko population. This morning I opened my cupboard and this baby gecko was snuggled into my shirts.
Did you know geckos make this weird clucking sound like they are laughing at you?? Well they do. And they are EVERYWHERE. We hear that it is very bad luck if a gecko falls on your head. Thank goodness that hasn't happened. So far. haha
#4. I'm kinda good at bartering! This on definitely surprised me. I'm usually not very good at saying no to sales people (ask my sister) and so I don't know how I got over that. But it really is kind of like a fun game!
#5. I love research. I had kind of convinced myself that research would be really hard and that I would just have to suck it up and do it. But it turns out that I WANTED to go out every day (almost every day) to do interviews. The families I got to talk to were so cool. Doing interviews was the most meaningful way that I learned anything about South Indian people. I'm sad to leave that :( I know it will be one of the things I miss most.
#6. I'm cool with my natural appearance. Despite wearing not the most flattering clothes, no make-up, feeling sticky all the time and not being able to straighten my hair I'm more comfortable with my body than ever before in my life. I feel happy and content. That doesn't mean I'm not excited to be able to dress in my style and to put on some lipstick but I feel determined to keep this feeling inside me. I didn't think that would be something that I would learn here.
#7. Power cuts. I had no idea that there would be power cuts. I'm pretty sure Andhra Pradesh is a big supporter of power cuts because I never saw them anywhere else. But when they started I didn't think it was that big a deal-- it wasn't hot out yet. Now it happens every day, two or more times, for over 4 hours. I don't think I could ever get used to it. It's too hot not to have a fan, let alone air conditioning. I don't remember what it feels like be to be at a comfortable temperature.
#8. Rice gets old. At the very beginning of our stay in Vizag I remember saying, "I don't think I'll ever get tired of rice". HA I wish it wasn't true, but I literally can't swallow it anymore. Unless it's basmati (cuz we don't have that very often). I hope that doesn't last for very long. Maybe its just pressure-cooker rices that I don't like as much.
#9. People stare. I feel like I should have known this but I guess I kind of expected to blend in. We really don't though. Our skin colour makes us stick out and people treat us differently because of it. We are the "foreigners". Though I will miss India it will be so nice to be able to blend into the crowd.
#10. I love South India. This one is the most important to me. Since I've been learning Hindi for the last two years I never really wanted to come to South India. I wanted to be able to practice the language. And South India really isn't a touristy place. No Taj Mahal, no Himalayas... its kind of off the beaten track. So it didn't seem as appealing. But since I had to come here for anthropology it was better than nothing. "At least I'll get to travel in the North". But I really don't feel that way anymore. There is something so wonderful and different about South India. Vizag is definitely cleaner than most places we have visited. It has some great universities. And the people are really relaxed, blunt and inviting. I can't explain it... so here is a video that was just made about Vizag (and it is set to one of my new favourite songs)!
I think i'll call it MY city now :) I hope I can come back one day.
Love,
Stéf
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