As I Wished

Having left Hassan yesterday for Chikmaglur, the second to last of our stops in India, we detoured from the main road to venture well beyond our itinerary. The place where we’d end up was well worth the sidetrip: on a site now home to an expansive reservoir there was once a valley filled with some 65 villages, flooded over 20 years ago by a dam building project. Among my required reading in graduate school was an article by an activist and daughter of India, Arundhati Roy, called “The Greater Common Good.” Through this controversial piece I came to learn that dam building is popular in India and, while tirelessly promoted for agricultural and economic development purposes, often results in the displacement of traditional communities and some serious environmental concerns.

To be sure, each country across the globe is either learning to balance human and economic needs with environmental and social protections, or they are suffering a lack of that balance. With 23 days in India now behind me, I see that India too engages in finding that balance. The issue of dam building is one area in which they must face down the toughest of decisions. And so, our visit yesterday to Shetty Halli, once a village home to a Catholic church built in the early 1800s, was sobering and poignant for me. With a background in international development and natural resources, this was what I’d come to India for… although in my time here I have realized a lifetime of knowledge and warmth that in my naive shortsightedness I never could have expected beforehand.

The unplanned stop was awesome in every sense. Along the banks of the reservoir we found a calm and peace proffered by a near empty and breathtaking landscape. A barefoot, leathered farmer plowed along the water’s edge with his traditional bullock-drawn plow, attempting to make a crop in the fertile soil in the next four months before the monsoons return. Further up the hillside, the remains of the Catholic church stood proud despite the weathering of the seasonal waters – this time of year it stands on high ground, but for most of the year only the peaks of the towers and belfry can be seen from above the flooded valley. In the early 90’s the church still stood in entirety; today it is a withering skeleton. A majestic sight.

Holy Cow. (And there are alot.)

Hi all!

I have been longing to sit down and type a spell on this blog, but alas they’ve had us busier that we ever could have expected. My computer time has been very limited and even now I only have about 30 minutes to type out a lifetime of experiences (it doesn’t help that I’m crammed into a teeny tiny internet cafe cubicle and the screen is a foot from my face – ha!).

What can I say? Wow. This has been the most amazing 12 days. As my team members have already communicated (however briefly) we have already traveled to home stays in Karkala, Manipal and Mangalore and now we are in Madikeri for the 3810 District Conference. We’ve also visited countless towns on day excursions – including but not limited to Parkala, Barkur, Udupi, Moodbidri, Pilikula and Kalianpur.

Let me start out by thanking our gracious hosts and coordinators at each stop along the way. They have worked generously and tirelessly to make this the experience of a lifetime. We’ve already made so many friends!!! And, it’s hard to imagine, but India shames our own “Southern hospitality.” These people are unbelievable hosts.

With so many memories, and so little time, here is a recap of some of my favorite moments of the past week and a half….

ARRIVAL – Mangalore

Though we were all sick with jetlag and bewildered with culture shock, I can clearly recall my feast on Tiramisu ice cream from Pabba’s, a local Mangalore ice cream shop. Yum. We also met Isaac, Lionel, Shetty, Eulalia and Victor – who we’d come to know better during our longer stay later in Mangalore.

Karkala

Words cannot express the joy that came out of our stay in Karkala. Such a wonderful place to begin this trip. The people were fascinating, warm and opened their hearts and homes to us. My host family even bought me a saree to wear to the cultural festival and joint Rotary zone meeting on New Years Eve, which can be seen in photos here (thank you Shiva!). Other highlights include our picnic and hike in the state park, where we skipped stones in a babbling brook. That activity resulted in me pulling three leeches off my feet, long after they’d feasted on my sweet American blood. Fortunately, it is considered good luck by the locals.

Manipal

First and foremost, thanks to Gowri for treating me to an early morning Ayurvedic massage and steam bath. I really needed it after the previous day, which began with a 5 am sunrise yoga session and ran late into the evening.  Manipal University was also a most impressive tour, far outpacing many of the universities in the US.

Upon leaving Manipal, we traveled through Udupi and visited the massive, vibrant Krishna Temple. We are really in the heart of Hinduism here and I am awestruck by the beauty and symbolism of this faith. (We’ve been fortunate enough to visit the houses of worship of many Indian faiths: Hindu, Muslim, Catholic and Jain. Tomorrow should hold in store for us a trip to a Buddhist temple.) Upon leaving the Krishna Temple, we were each blessed by an elephant (yes, a real live elephant) who obligingly tapped us on the head in exchange for 2 rupees. This may be my single favorite thing from the trip!

Mangalore

It was a blessing to be able to rest our heads somewhere for longer than two days. We were afforded time to catch up with the (aforementioned) friends from the beginning of our trip and to make many new ones. People in Mangalore really know how to throw a party, so we were able to spend the evenings socializing and learning more about each of them.  Day tours included a visit to cashew and roof tile factories – two of the traditional industries of the area, and to the Kingfisher beer bottling plant (complete with sampling!), trips to the beach (where Indians visit in full clothing, children pay for camel rides and cows – of course – roam freely), and an hilarious interview on local television. We also saw the Pilikula heritage village, where we bought some artisan handicrafts. (Speaking of shopping, I’ve spent a small fortune on clothing and textiles. Mangalore is a great place to grab souveniers for folks back home!!)

Lastly, we all experienced our first of several vocational visits. Since India isn’t overflowing with environmental non-profits, the coordinators lined up visits to a local magazine and then to the Times of India and Deccan Herald newspapers. I’ve left them my card in case they ever need another journalistic hand!!!

Madikeri

Madikeri is a smaller town located in the Western Ghats.  Temperatures are considerably cooler and we’re all thankful – our past week and a half has been one of considerable perspiration as our winter-weather bodies adjust to the warmer climate. The views from our hotel are breathtaking, though we’ve spent most of our time at the District Conference, where some 2500 area Rotarians have convened for the weekend. Wish us luck – we deliver our full presentation tonight to the biggest audience of all!

All the rest…

I know I am leaving out some many amazing experiences with new friends but there just isn’t enough time to do it all justice. This country is spectacular and so we can’t complain that most of our time is spent out IN it, enjoying it and all it’s splendor.

Sending all our love back home….

Cartographic Itinerary (ala Will)

My boyfriend back home has kindly provided us with a visual of our travels through January 11th. Check out our interactive Google map (below)!

Thanks Will!