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I went to another soccer game yesterday with a few people. It was Nepal vs. Sri Lanka. I don’t know what the score was, but I read Hindi from this girl’s textbook and she corrected all my pronunciations. What fun these football games are! I love that there’s no admission fee too.

CIEE has been running these seminars to make us more culturally sensitive and aware. They actually are very interesting and make you think a lot about your perceptions etc. People aren’t very invested in it though. We’re to get a certificate by CIEE upon having completed these seminars, something to put on your resume etc., but people are planning a revolt because of the inconvenient seminar times and annoying homework assignments. If we *all* won’t go, maybe it’ll be ok. I’m interested to see what CIEE does in such a case.

Yesterday I didn’t pee before I went to bed, although I had been drinking a lot of water. In the morning I had to get to yoga, then breakfast, then class and had no time to pee. Right after class I was engaged in a conversation about the US and India etc. etc. that lasted three hours. Despite the pain, I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity. It’s unrealistic how little I know about the US compared to some of these people. Sirvesh would as me questions like *how do you feel about the US foreign policy toward Iran…what about Cuba?* Then he’d start going on about presidential administration history. I talked some about things that I’ve experienced though, like what kind of jobs we get (being 16 to 20 years of age) or how our education system works. He also enthusiastically answered questions I had about India...Bindis (dot on the forehead) originated as a physiological symbol of nervous system unity throughout the body; although it has its originations in science, its significance evolved into a religious one as it became a punishable sin not to wear one. I kindof picture parents stressing to their kids the importance of eating vegetables and fruits by threatening God’s wrath if they didn’t. And that’s how it became religious. Sirvesh also explained how a significant part of going to the temple was asking for forgiveness of misdeeds and sins. Additionally, the offerings made at a temple go to philanthropic causes like school construction and medical treatment, not to the religious institution itself. Lastly he explained the evolution process as Hindus believe, manifested in the ten Vishnu avtaras, starting with the cell, then fish, tortoise, pig, half lion, small child, man with bow and arrow, then axe, then plow, and Krishna as a ruler, then lastly the punisher/enforcer of the law. Interesting evolutionary destiny. Thanking him for the discussion, I waddled back to the guest house and peed. People looked at me strange as I entered the house kindof hunched over and not breathing right. The sacrifices one makes for the sake of cultural exchange.

Lunch that afternoon was eggplant…I’ve been waiting for this since they first served it. Yes, I had such an unhealthy amount, but it was so good. On my way to class a small boy ran up to my side, put out his hand, and said *biscuit.* I responded with a “no” and he continued to say *please, sir, rupee.* “I shook my head, raised my eyebrows, and gave him a grin like ‘sorry, I’m actually not going to give you anything.’ He stopped and turned to go, throwing his hand in the air and waving it at me with a lot of energy. As he ran back he happily shouted *Ok, bye!* I smiled, waved, and said ‘bye’ too. It felt like we were friends who had made exciting plans to play together tomorrow. I walked away giggling thinking of the idea of such a parting in this manner with a homeless person in the States.

When I got to class, I pressed on the door but it didn’t move. I was already 15 minutes late and had debated whether or not to come at all, suspecting that professor Pande had locked the door, which she had. Professors here are fans of locking the door when the class starts. I could have interrupted the class but decided to get the notes later. I get excited for that class for two reasons. Pande usually comes into the classroom a few minutes late; at that time all the students are sitting at their desks and talking. As she enters and proceeds to the front of the class, everyone immediately stops talking and stands up until she sits in the front. I bet some teachers (Frank) in the States would dirty themselves at such a refreshing student response of respect. Additionally, I like at the end of class when she takes attendance; when names are announced, the students reply with *yes ma’am* or *yes, ‘m.* It’s just amusing not to hear the obnoxious “HERE” or “PRESENT” like in the States. The material of the class is amusing, and so is Pande herself, but these are not as exciting to me as standing up and saying “yes, ma’am.”

I had my first Hindi test yesterday. It was so amazing to see myself take it, two weeks ago all the script would have looked like foreign symbols, now I can transliterate like anything. Lots of students had trouble with the test, maybe though I’ve just had lots of practice with my Indian friends.

So I bought a sitar the other day. There are about 8 people in the SIP program who want to learn it, so the program coordinator had a seller come to the school with handmade sitars. To CIEE students, classes are free and occur twice a week, although I haven’t had any classes yet, I’m able to strum around on it. I’m not positive how I’m getting it home yet, but maybe I’ll worry about that in a few months. I have a fiberglass case for it, so it can be shipped, which may be expensive, but likely my only option as it’s probably too big to carry on a plane, and at the same time I wouldn’t want to risk the potential inflicted damages by checking it. I wonder how many organists play sitar too.

I also had Kathak dance classes yesterday. Again CIEE has arranged free lessons for us. Kathak dance is the dance mainly from Northern India, whereas Kuchipudi dance is from the south. So far it has involved a lot of stamping our feet on the ground and moving our hands up and down with the beat, quite fun actually, although my heels do feel kindof bruised.

Tabla (it’s an instrument like a drum set) lessons are on my list too, it seems that some people are arranging for private lessons once a week, and it could be fun if it fits with my schedule. Tablas are much less expensive than sitars anyway :)

In other news concerning cultural instruction, I’ve enrolled in a Yoga certification class that meets early in the morning. The duration is for 3 months, 6 days a week (each day at 6 am), and about 10 other SIP students are enrolled as well. In the class I’ll be learning the Yoga as well as the theory, philosophy, and physiology behind it. If I’m able to keep up with the early schedule and get the certification than I’ll be able to teach Yoga, although that’s not my goal as much as learning a lot about it.