I just returned to Colombo's blistering heat yesterday after a week long trip to Udaipur, India. The dry heat in Udaipur certainly was a treat and actually reminded me a lot of California!
Visiting India was such an enriching experience for me. I was expecting it to be somewhat similar to Sri Lanka but the two countries are exceptionally different. Being in India helped me realize how much of an island culture Sri Lanka has. Time seems to pass very differently in India. The colors, tastes, climate, landscape, attire, pace, smells, tastes, and language were all clear differences from Sri Lanka. Being in India allowed me to gain a broader understanding of the diversity of Southeast Asia, something I had not yet experienced.
The small city of Udaipur is beautiful. The streets are small and windy. Exploring them brought back memories of walking through the tiny streets in Florence, although a bit dirtier and exploding with color and sweet smells of poori and gulab jamun. The women are beautifully adorned with bindis, bright yellow and red sari's (the traditional Rajasthani colors), and gold jewellery, while the men's simple attire is complimented with a colorful turban. Udaipur is known as the "city of lakes", and although many are dried up (we were there in dry season) or polluted with a green colored sludge, it is still beautiful. The constant trips to the chai wallah, naan, thali, and samosas made my stomach restless but kept my mind and taste-buds happy.
One morning we visited the Eklingji and Nagda temples. Nagda is a temple centuries old that has been left in ruins due to time and flooding. The temple was breathtaking. Feeling the cool marble beneath my feet was therapeutic. The white walls of the temple were gorgeous against the green and brown hills.
The Eklingji temple, although only five kilometers away from Nagda, was remarkably different. The temple has been operating since the 15th century and is a representation of Shiva. It was a special feeling to be walking through temple for prayer exactly as people have done for hundreds of years.
After exploring Udaipur for three days, we moved into the Rockwood Palace hotel to begin the Fulbright conference. The following three days were jam-packed with interesting presentations and discussions led by Fulbright scholars and students from India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. I learned so much and wish there was more time to share experiences. It was exciting to be around so many people who are deeply committed to their work and passionate about learning. Many pushed me to think about my own experience from a different perspective. The conference was filled with much reflection and cultural exchange- keeping true to the Fulbright mission.
Although Udaipur is beautiful and my experience was positive, I still want to reflect on the other not-so-pleasant aspects of the city that I witnessed. Udaipur has many more homeless people than I have seen during my time in Sri Lanka. I do not want to generalize and say that this is reflective of India and Sri Lanka as whole countries because I have not yet visited all of Sri Lanka and have only lived here for 5 months, and also only have one week in India under my belt. Therefore these observations are strictly a reflection of my personal experience. However, the difference was obvious to me. It's always an internal struggle for me when homeless people ask me for money. Especially kids. And this happened on multiple occasions every day throughout the streets of Udaipur. How do you deal with this? On the one hand, I do have the money to give to those in need. But on the other hand, I do not want to promote the idea that Americans, particularly white Americans (or westerners as a whole), have the means to just give their money away to anyone who asks. Also, if I give someone money when they ask- is this really helping? How far will it get them? Is it instilling the ideals that I admire- that people should work hard for their money and not rely on others to just give it to them. But this is coming from me- a person of privilege. Let me know what you think. I'm constantly confused about this.
On top of the homelessness that I saw- it was also clear that Udaipur has a lot of poverty. Walking through the streets as a white tourist and bargaining over 50 rupees for a sari at the bazaar, often filled me with a feeling of guilt. I don't want to be ripped off continually, but I can afford that extra 50 rupees and the shop owner most likely needs it more than I do. Another source of inner turmoil for me that I also experience in Sri Lanka. Feedback please.
Lake Pichola
Outside of Jagdish Temple
Hethipole Vegetable Stand
Traditional Rajasthani Dancers at Shilpgram
Gulab Jamun!!
Train Ride through the Garden
City Palace at Dusk
Nagda Temple
Making Sugar Cane Juice
