Buzzing on the Bangabus in Bangalore!

So since I last posted I've seen the Taj Mahal and it is absolutely breathtaking! It is honestly so much better when you see it in real life than you can ever imagine from photographs as in real life you can see all of the tiny little details and carvings that are absolutely everywhere and all of the grounds around it aswell. I was worried that it might have been a bit of a let down since I was so excited to go but it was definitely amazing! The only thing was that it was 49 degrees so we were wrecked by the end of it!

Anyway since then I've arrived in Bangalore with my team of 10. Everybody was sad that we were splitting into 3 groups but that said, our Bangalore group is realllly good, clearly the best one! :P We're awesome. So since getting here we've visited a private school and a disability centre and have also had an evening reception with some teachers from England on a scheme called the Leader's Quest, not to mention a market hunt! So we've been really busy and still havng an amazing time. I particularly enjoyed the school and found the headmistress an inspiration as she has started the school from scratch and has not given in to any of the pressures of corruption - something which is very difficult in India when bribes are the done thing and corruption is rife!

Well I'm looking forward to tonight as I'm going to meet my host family in the next few hours, though a little nervous too!
Oh I forgot to mention that the other day that in Delhi I was in my first 'semi-monsoon' with winds so strong that the hotel staff had to hold the lobby doors closed and we couldn't even go outside! At least here in Bangalore it's around 29 dgrees and we actually have a breeze, it's so good!

Baragins at the Bazzar

I've been learning more Hindi since my last post and I've definitely got the essentials - "How much" and "too expensive"! These came in really useful at the market today where I did some serious haggling on some goods! The market was really bright and sold loads of authentic goods and was exactly the kind of thing that i was expecting to see in India - wood carvings, handpainted papers and loads of bright materials.

I had a Yoga class yesterday too which was really good, I can see myself taking it up when i get back to England, it was soooo relaxing! Our instructor was really flexy and it was just unbelieveable to see some of his moves. We also did a bit of classical indian dance today which was also pretty interesting and we all had a good laugh trying to do it ourselves at the end. I also got to watch a Bollywood movie. There wasn't as much upbeat song and dance as i was expecting but it was still really good as it showed some of the main problems of corrupton n the Indian polical system. I'm also now more aware of the caste systeme, which is really unfair i think, as it completely segregates people into different classes from birth and the low classes just have no say or anything in the system, whereas university places and good jobs are reserved for people of the highest caste!

Anyway I'm looking forward to the next couple of days, particularly Saturday as that's when I'll visit Agra, where the famous Taj Mahal is situated!

A Few Days In...

O.K so it's a few days in and I'm still enjoying myself. I'm starting to feel a bit more at home and things don't seem as crazy as before although it's still weird how people are staring at us and asking us if we'll be in their photographs!

I met the British High Comissioner last night in his huge, posh residence and got to 'mingle' with some people who are backing the programme which was really good. I also got to play with the dog in the field of a garden! :)

I had my first Hindi lesson in india today and it was really good, I can say a few things like 'what is your name?' and introductions so it won't be long until I'm fluent! I'm also a huge fan of air-con now as we're all sweaty betties in 45 degrees!

I learned all about hinduism and Buddhism today and the lady who was teaching us was so good she almost had me converted! The only thing holding me back is that you aren't allowed to have too many desires like... getting good grades and a well paid job so that ruled it out for me! ;)

The food's good and everything is soooo cheap so naturally i'm loving it and can't wait to get to Bangalore to start some souvenir hunting! All of my fellows are a great bunch so I'm having a great time at the minute and every day it seems like I see something that amazes me.

For example, yesterday we were driving along and on this dirty street corner at the side of a motorway there were about 15 children all naked pouring buckets of water over their heads to wash and when they noticed us all started dancing and waving at us on the bus when they were totally naked which was pretty odd!

I'm not sure exactly what my expectations were before this programme but so far I'm seeing a really ancient and diverse culture here. One minute we're at really impressive pices of architecture such as the Lotus temple and the next we could be walking past groups of people sleeping on the street under nets. I'm surprised by how hospitable people are being and I can't wait for the next few days which have a lot more activities packed in!

First Impressions

We arrived yesterday and were really tired so didn't get to experience much of India, although we did see some of the poverty and the filth on our bus journey, such as an old man knocking on the bus window for money.

Today though, we got up early and I visited the British Council office which was really modern and air conditioned, just like our hotel. On the way we were followed by a number of children though, who were trying to force us to buy flashing pens from them. I've began to realise that this is commonplace as it's been happening a lot since our arrival.

After this we went through a market which had loads of bright bangles and goods for sale, and into a temple where we had to take our shoes off. I was a bit nervous as I'd watched 'Slumdog Millionaire' and thought that somebody might steal my flip-flops! The one thing that does hit you is a strong stench in some of the streets.

Then I got to have my first ride in an auto-rickshaw! We managed to squash four of us into one rickshaw and they are really small! The roads were manic and it was really exciting and hilarious.

After a quick look at India Gate we came back for lunch and then afterwards had a wander around the local area. I managed to buy my first bottle of water from a street vendor after carefully checking the seal and label (another Slumdog scene!).

At least it had cooled down a bit today, only 39degrees compared to 46 yesterday!

Tonight we're off for a welcome ceremony at the British Council so that should be good and I'm looking forward to seeing more of India.