I’m going to try to base my blog around the menu of a local café/hookah bar I went to called Elementz Café, Chennai, India. I will first write exactly as the menu reads, and follow by describing some things about my time in India as they relate to each element, or because I just really want to share them.

THE FAMOUS FIVE:

The Menu Reads:
Space-
-----The omnipresent source of all energy, it is the domain of promise, potentials to be realized and paths to be traveled.  The source that creates and nourishes the elements.-----

Gandhi: Mahatma Gandhi is known as the Father of India.  It is very apparent how much of an impact on the nation he had, through countless monuments, gardens, parks, and tomb named in his honor

We met a lot of locals during our time in India.  We seemed to grow a quick friendship with two in particular.  They rent out a space in Pahrganj Bizarre, selling homemade goods by their friends and family.  Their main business, though, comes from tourism.  They rent out their houseboat in Northern India, taking groups trekking, horseback riding, and snowboarding through the Himalayas.  We spent most of our free time in Delhi hanging out with them, drinking Chai (tea), and playing pool with these guys.  If at all possible I would love to go back to India to experience the Himalayas and to see them again.

The Menu Reads:

Air-

-----This power of movement.  Nothing stops it.  It twists and turns on its own will and is the master of its own destiny.  A free spirit.  It symbolizes travel, freedom and thought.-----

First I’ll talk about the air in India in general… It’s bad.  I knew it was going to be dirty before we even arrived in Chennai, when our crewmembers were covering the floors, stairs, tables, and chairs with cardboard and plastic wrapping.  The seventh deck was closed down and the doors to the fifth and sixth decks were locked.  Immediately upon arrival, Hannah’s allergies act up in full force (Go Figure).  Luckily, I was very prepared for this situation and allergy meds saved my life throughout my stay in India.  I don’t want to bash the atmosphere in general… It just reminds me of when I lived in Minneapolis and we had “bad air days”.  Minnesota’s air quality scale wouldn’t know what to do with India.

Now for the symbolic meaning of air: Meaning travel. Travel we did. On Sunday we hung out in Chennai, shopping and getting to the area.  On Tuesday morning (about 4am) my friend Eric and I got a taxi to the airport and flew to Delhi.  The Chennai airport was very unorganized but we got through it pretty quickly and surprisingly pretty efficiently.  We arrived in Delhi around 10am where a driver was waiting for us.  We drove to our hotel as he explained briefly the many historical sites we passed on the way.  We stayed in the Rak International hotel in the Pahrganj Bizarre area for about 6 dollars a night.  The Pahrganj Bizarre is on the border of what they call New Delhi and Old Delhi.  It is a common area for back packers to stay, and was filled with beggars, small street shops, tiny restaurants, and cows (yes, cows).  We spent the entire day on Monday exploring Delhi.  We saw temples, monuments, forts, mosques, the India Gate, and more.  That night we ate at a local restaurant and played pool with Massy and some other guys. Monday night three other guys (Steve, Jim, and Chris) met us at our hotel and stayed with us the rest of the time.  Tuesday we went to Lodi Gardens.  It was absolutely beautiful.  We relaxed and played hacky sack in between some gorgeous flower gardens and I climbed some trees.  On Thursday we went to see a wonder of the world, The Taj Mahal.  It really is just as beautiful as people make it out to be, and how ever amazing you think it is… multiply that by about seven hundred.  We hung around Delhi, saw South Extension Two and Deference Colony before we flew back to Chennai on Thursday evening at 11pm.  On Friday we tried to have a little “soak in India” day and went to Elementz Café.

The main means of transportation in India: Rickshaws.  There are two kinds: Regular Rickshaws and Auto Rickshaws; three wheeled bikes or automobiles.  The Indians who drive them around are nuts.  I will admit, though, as chaotic, unorganized, and crazy the streets of India are, the people do it pretty damn well.

When I think of India and I think of thought, I am reminded of the numerous “Reality Checks” we had to give ourselves while we were in India.  Randomly and spontaneously during our trip, one of our “five” would call out ‘Reality Check, Where are we?’  It was a friendly reminder to remember how lucky we are.  Instead of sitting in a classroom in America, we are learning across the entire globe.  Our answer to the reality check question was always a deep breath, and then, “We’re in India.”

The Menu Reads:

Water-

-----Without any attributes to be proud of, it is still the lifeline to all the species.  Cleansing, purifying, loving, shapeless, it cuts through mountains with persistence.  Symbolizes humility, flexibility and determination.-----

The water in India… We were told that it takes the average person five to six weeks to become adapted to the water.  Seeing as we only had five days, we were not advised to go anywhere near anything but bottled water.  Lucky for us, a liter of purified, bottled water was about ten Indian rupees, which is equivalent to about twenty American cents. 

In India you have to be flexible with plans and timing.  It’s a little like Africa time, nothing ever goes as planned.  But I have found, as I have said before, that if you expect nothing, and go with whatever life throws at you, you will have fun, and you will come out with more than you could have imagined.

Yes/No Head Shake. This doesn’t have anything to do with water or the things water symbolizes, but it was a pretty interesting cultural behavior.  So, in America when we want to say “yes” we not our head.  If we want to say “no” we shake our head.  Well, in India, they do this head wobbling thing… it’s hard to even explain.  Hold your head straight and tilt it to the right then to the left, really fast.  A lot like a bobble head doll.  Well this motion literally means both “yes” and “no”, which makes it very confusing when trying to ask an Indian person any sort of question.  Their answer is always the head bobbling yes/no.  So unless they speak English, you never really get an answer that you are sure of.

The Menu Reads:

Earth-

-----The ever-giving mother, who sustains life.  Bears the weight of every living form on her shoulders.  A symbol of fertility, grounding, stabilizing and nurturing.-----

The people of India: They live their own, simple, yet unorganized lives.  A life I’m not sure I will ever understand.  But they do work hard.  The first day in Delhi, we met a man name Massy, who took us around to some monuments and temples.  He was very nice. The thing I will remember most distinctly about Massy is how much he loved and talked about his girlfriend.  I remember this because she is from Japan, and was supposed to be flying to Delhi yesterday… I’m not sure how the earthquake in Japan had affect on that, but please keep Massy and his girlfriend in your thoughts and prayers.

As Earth symbolizes marriage, we were invited to a traditional Indian wedding.  Unlike American weddings, Indian wedding do not have a set time.  The wedding was set to happen that night, but at no certain time in specific.  The males were arriving much too late for us to stay for the actual wedding, but we were lucky enough to meet the bride and the entire bride’s family.  She looked amazing, with henna, piercings, and Indian silk covering her body.

The Menu Reads:

Fire-

-----The creator and the destroyer.  Responsible for the metamorphous of all that exists; it has led the human race through the darkness of the ages.-----

Fire reminds me of the human race; more specifically the relationships built by the Semester at Sea Community and the people of the countries we visit.  We are building bridges between cultures.  We have the opportunity to either create greatness, or destroy it. 

“Be the Change you wish to See in the World” –Mahatma Gandhi