Calcutta day One!

We arrived in Calcutta around noon and although we were greeted by unseasonal rains, our spirits were in no way dampened. I was so excited to see my friend Shankhayan's Calcutta. Seeing some one's home, their friend-family-space-culture nexus, makes that person so much richer in teh viewer's eyes. Instant deep-end, all that history and old school laughter.

Jan, Violet, Shankhayan and I took a cinematic looking taxi all the way to Shey's parents place. I have come to not be shocked by the luxurious way that most Indian's treat their guests, but I was not prepared for the Bengali feast that was about to startle my senses.

Shankhayan's mother, a buzzing, flying, creative activist, who happens to be one of the sharpest and most stunning women I have met, also is an amazing cook. She prepared a 2-fish lunch, complete with all the essentials. Us 'n00bs' were instructed in the systematic eating order of Bengalis that goes from light to heavy, salty to sweet. First rice and sabzi (vegetables), then fish usually made with mustard oil that gives it a particularly royal bite, then meat if one has it (which doesn't include fish but does include crab..). Then, the sweets - not just dessert, but a home-made sugary daal, and a 'chutney' that is a watery soup made with fresh fruit pulp, special beganli olives, raisins, and some light spices. The dessert is a typically misthi dohi, a rich yogurt eaten from a terra-cotta pot.

It was absolutely impossible to stick to the food road map, our arms and hands were extensions of our taste buds, launching and diving excitedly at the lunch spread on the table. We messed up the order of things big time, and even destroyed some old principles about what goes together and what doesnt... mango mustard with eggs ? Hell yes!

soft sounds of living the high life: 

2 A/C train, Kolkata to Delhi, non-stop I might add? 

{a little girl whisphers to her mother in Panjabi and I understand, jingling of a train worker's key chain, Violet is crunching on an apple. We make completely random guesses about the apple's origins, calculative people making shots in the dark}

Jan, Violet, Me, Shankhayan's ma, Grandmother, and Father.

Amazing individuals, wonderful family, spectacular hosts.

the crisis

the crisis

THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated. Britain, with an army to enforce her tyranny, has declared that she has a right (not only to TAX) but "to BIND us in ALL CASES WHATSOEVER" and if being bound in that manner, is not slavery, then is there not such a thing as slavery upon earth. Even the expression is impious; for so unlimited a power can belong only to God.

- thomas paine, 

december 23, 1776

If we can't sleep, at least we can learn.

(its the morning now, before my first day of work begins with SEWA Bharat. the darkness of a sleepness night has risen into the light of an exhausted morning. the first day, might be rough.

the good news is that i've had a nice few hours to catch up on some great and important learnings. the video above is a roundtable discussion by some top celebs in 1963 on 'the black question' - or was it - 'the white question' ? And on equality, justice, MLK, and the significance of the 200,000 strong march on Washington that took place on August 28 1963.

it was shared with me by a new current flatmate named Ashwin.

Which brings is on to goodnews number 2, that this year, hopefully with more sleep than tonight, i will be will be undoubtedly in the best place for me to live with Violet and Ashwin here in Delhi. just as Paine's quote painfully (ha!) captures the voice of people internally wretched by injustice, people here are also crippled by a legacy of suppression, hatred, and inequality. i feel blessed to live in a house with people who not only care deeply about this, but actually spend their lives trying to do something to work towards a better place.

these issues are not merely for trailing conversations and shrugging shoulders, this is a crisis.)

current time:      6:06 am
alarm time:        7:00am
____________________
sleep possible:   54 min

home.

home.

home has been amazing.

(thank u all!)

during these weeks, i have played, laughed, eaten, and danced with so many great people. 

NEW YORK CITY: i had the special opportunity to dine with my dear friend Melinda and her mother, aunt, and our other great soul sister, Mara.

(thanks Melinda for taking an epic bus journey to come see me.

every moment was special: ketchup on the green couch at 30Bond; museum trotting; fine dining; bridging uptown and downtown by foot; running joyously through the city rainstorm; changing our plans; doodling into time; and afternoons on the rocks - i love you)

OHIO: made it out to Rootwire Festival and shared positive energy with so many earnest folks. not to mention grooved out to some great live music, saw many old friends & made some great new friends, and ushered in a renewed sense of hope within my heart.

Asheville, NORTH CAROLINA: a beautiful relaxed lil city. downtown explorations, taco tuesdays, fregan-ed carrot cake pancakes, and 9 mile carribbean cuisine.  

Ah! And of course, some woods & farming adventures complete with excellent foraging, forest explorations, goat-milking, and art-making with Zoe.  (more pictures of this to come!)

Oh! and the long&last minute drive, with in-car camping, resisting dunkin donuts, NPR-ing, & feeling frightened that the breaks would give out any second.

thanks bubba - so glad u came.

SACHmO

RAIN: ferry: walking: talking: re:connected with Coop.

NEW JERSEY: ( my jersey shore ! ) swimming in the golden drizzle of sunset with Mara-ley & Willow; eating&talking with many guests on my birthday; walking to the beach for a late-night sesh with my brother, mara, willow, sunny & cecile - we perched up on a life guard stand and watched the light of the moon race down the face of pitch-black nighttime waves as if the sparkling rays were shooting stars across the night sky; kayaking against the current, around the island, into the afternoon, with dad & mara sat in the middle; oh - who can forget the mid-day thrift store & the furry vests (one in brown and one in white) that will & i tried on.

DAD

RHODE ISLAND: a summer-time must.

as always, a beautiful occasion to be with family, especially auntie Robin, uncle Wayne, Hank, & grandma. aaaand, its also super delicious & corn-fritter filled. mmm.

fir milenge! until next time everyone!

(above is a cinemagraph created late night with uncle wayne, an ever-learning and inspiring person, who also happens to be really chilled out.)

Life has to be nourished.

Eat, shit, sleep. Its what we do, some even go say, "that's life in a nutshell". Although our lives are cyclically repetitive, things don't need to get mundane. Violet and i have, rather naturally, been exploring the awesome and diverse delicacies of India. Our food-quest approach is a healthy mix of exploring restaurants, state bhavan hopping (details on that soon), crashing weddings, braving street-food, and enjoying good old 'ghar ka khana' (home cooking).  As expected, our friend group is populated by wonderful people from different parts of the world and from the many regions of India  (did you know there are over 4,315 different communities here?!), so we have been tapping into their regional specialties as well. 

below are just a few of many snapshots to make you salivate. 

(Disclaimer: these photos may not be suitable for people bored at work, women pms-ing, or those with empty stomachs)

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Home cooked Bengali fish fry, sweet daal, and rice 

by our 'Bong' (Bengali) friend, Shankhayan: 

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Here in Delhi, good meals end in laughs and with mangoes for dessert.

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Eating 'meethai' (sweets) from a Panjabi wedding in Chandigarh.

 

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Crazy 'chef' at a Panjabi Dhaba, a road-side food hut that we stopped

at on the way from Delhi to Dharamshala.

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Enjoying kulfi, ice-cream-esque dessert, 

that was made frozen by plunging in a Himalayan glacial river. 

Bhagsu, Himachal Pradesh.

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Raghu oogling an amazing breakfast after a long 12 hour bus ride.

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Mangoes, delicious in places with sinks and floss; dangerous in places where you don't want to be a horrible sticky mess, aka: buses / desk at your office / nice sofa in the living room.

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South Indian Filter Coffee, 

directions: make cool by pouring taller metal cup contents 

into more bowl like vessel, repeat 3-4 times, enjoy.

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Violet making egg salad on Sunday morning, 

"there's no mayo...i guess i can make some.

.... that doesn't look like mayo."

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I was missing the sweet and tangy taste of East Coast summers, so I made a plum tart.

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A delicious and eathern Bengali dessert from 

'Little Bengal / East Pakistan Re-settlement Area / Chittaranjan Park'

Development: causing problems or fixing them?

Woman working in a medicinal plant nursery in Chhattisgarh, India.

On my visit to Chhattisgarh, people had warned me to be careful of the on-going tension between Maoists rebels and the Government. The 'Red Corridor' that stretches down eastern India is a high-risk area, especially for foreigners. Development in the forests and tribal lands of India has led to unjust displacement and destruction of India's natural environmental. Consequentially, tribal peoples have become polarized and extremist groups have formed. Just 4 days ago, 24 were killed in an attack on the state Congress party.

Within this context, projects such as those run by the UNDP in India, seek to address this tension by providing opportunities to marginalized groups, including women and unemployed youth.

However, we need to ask the question - are these schemes likely to ameliorate the problem as claimed, if other, destructive development problems (i.e. mining) continue unabated?


Check out this good documentary on Maoist 'revolution' in India: http://redantdream.com/

Boiling and Buzzing: summer life in Delhi

things are starting to really heat up here in delhi. working as a documentation and communication 'focal point' for the UNDP has taken me to some incredibly culturally and ecologically beautiful areas of remote India (see photos from Chhattisgarh below & this 'In the Spotlight' poster and project factsheet i made..wee!). I am throwing my heart into work my hardest for the next 1 and a half months until my contract sums up in July, and that means digging really hard for the stories, processes, and lessons of the Energy & Environment Unit's Medicinal Plant Project. Unfortunately, UNDP policy has (yet again) trumped the fun and now has a rule that restricts me from travelling - despite the fact that i am supposed to document good practices, etc, i cant go anywhere!

so, i'm bringing everyone from our project states, to me.
gotta work with what ya got.

but really, besides work bubbling up, the city is getting HOT. for environmental, philosophical, and logistical reasons, we are still not using the AC at night. despite the fan, our mattress is turning into a waterbed (sorry, but really, so much sweat!).

the heat makes those daily life jobs that degree (or 10 degrees), more difficult. i.e....
1. waking up in the morning?
2. or one step further.. how about, waking up early in the morning to wash all your clothes by hand in the poorly ventilated bathroom?
3. cooking of all the activities can now be marketed as a cleansing activity in terms of how much liquid loss and replenishing water drinking takes place. and everytime i eat something that has been cooked, i graciously acknowledge the toughness of the chef to stand over any flame - (and honestly try to accept that there is most likely a fair amount of sweat in whatever i'm eating,  main kya karuuuu?!)

but on the other hand, there's something great about it.
perhaps i just like being a roast potatoe.

in anycase, even if i love the heat, i've been craving mountain coolness. This afternoon, i'm going to catch a bus up to Dharamshala and dunk myself in the Himalayan hills.

no i dont have a ticket yet, yes i think it will be fine.

 raw chickpea, fluorescent and field fresh

 my colleague Nandini holding 'raw chickpea bush'

(they come in these little shells and you pop them open!)

a fifty-couple wedding was being sponsored by the ministry of Home and Rural Affairs to help reduce the immense costs that swamps poor families for ceremony arrangements.

Part of the celebrations obviously involve wining and dining. An incredibly sustainable set of cutlery will cater this party, plates and bowls made from stitched leaves.

'Mawa' as it is called in local Chhattisgarhi Hindi, is a small fruit that is a large component of non-timber forest produce (NTFP) income in Chhattisgarh. This fruit has a very rapid ripening time, and falls from trees for collection early in the day. By 1pm, it will ferment. 

In Batawa village, i had the privilege of drinking some 'mawa wine' that was made directly in the upper branches of the tree in a dried gourd vase - yummmmm.

( i dont know what to say, some of the houses in the villages of India are just stunning)

 sweetest lil pea! the kids, just like the grown-ups in these villages tend initially to be very shy. they go to school (as evidenced by boy in uniform behind), but often have never seen a foreign person. another important note about the uniform is that these are some of the poorest villages in all of India, where it is common for the school uniform to be the only clothing a child possesses.

 house, Jabarra Village, Chhattisgarh

 a very famous local healer, his moustache is also awesome.

ever see a cat drink from a tap?

ever see a cow drink from a spicket?

men of batawa village, chhattisgarh,

organised to discuss the collection of information for a 'People's Biodiversity Register' that safeguards traditional knowledge by acting as a record of local biodiversity, its uses, and cultural significance.