Home.

I'm leaving for Delhi tomorrow and will be meeting my Dad on Monday night to travel throughout Northern India! Two more weeks and I'll be back on American soil wearing red, white, and blue for the next 6 months! I'm not sure I'll have internet access for the next couple of weeks, but I'll post pictures of my last trip when I return home. See everyone in America!!

Inventive II...

More pictures of things being transported on bikes.

Inventive...

One of the most shocking, and now most normal, things I see everyday is how goods are transported in India. Space is limited and motorbikes are used by almost every family. It isn’t abnormal to see a family of 4 sometimes 5 riding down the road on a single motorbike. I’ve become so accustom to this it seems almost silly to have less than 3 people on a bike. Why would you waist 10 cents for a rickshaw when you can all just pile on a bike? I’ve also seen some pretty crazy things being transported on motorbikes: computers, doors (yes a front door was seen), coconuts, tricycles, etc. I’ve tried explaining it to people back home and everyone just wants pictures. So that is my goal for the next couple of weeks. Wish me luck…these pictures are difficult to get as I’m usually playing frogger with my life crossing the road or speeding along on a city bus. Here is your first picture…enjoy.

Meet Jack...

I have a nephew!!!!! I was able to meet him over Skype as he slept in his other aunt's lap the entire time. He even yawned during the call...I think my heart melted when I witnessed this adorable act. Four more weeks and I can snuggle with him!!

Hampi and Bangalore...

Four of us took off for the weekend with no real plans in mind. We had train tickets to Hampi and Bangalore, but no real plan in mind. Thanks to Lonely Planet we had some great suggestions on where to stay and places to visit throughout our trip.. Hampi is an old ruined city with lots of monkeys crowding the streets looking to harass tourist. Luckily, we all came through with only one incident that left us all running from a monkey wanting to share Pam’s snack of carrots. The carrots were lost, but we were saved without being attacked. We also managed to rent some motor bikes to cruise around Hampi. The bikes proved to be easy to acquire with me ‘passing’ the driving test with flying colors (I only had to verbally confirm that I had driven a motorbike and had a license for one in the US…neither of which is true, but I was still handed the keys).
We then headed out on a train to Bangalore where we met up with Jim, an American we had met on a previous train ride. Jim and the rest of the group hung around Bangalore all day being dragged around by our ‘tour guide’, which was a man that had a sketchy van. When offered a ride, we immediately jumped in this van and set off on our day of adventure. The highlight of the day wasn’t the beautiful gardens or crowded market, but a BAGEL SHOP!!! That is right!!! In the middle of the city we found a bagel shop where I had my first bagel and cream cheese in months. I was also able to visit a McDonalds!!!! I didn’t my get my usual quarter pounder (remember no beef), but settled with a chicken sandwich, fries, and fountain pepsi. Life is good.

The Nature Whisperer...

I can’t stand The Nature, but I’m learning to love it bit by bit. I’m even considering going camping when I come home much to the joy of many people (Martha Sue and LBJ). However, it still takes time to get use to the idea. This weekend I was in The Nature and loved every minute of it. Well, almost every minute of it. Allison, Bryce, Jacqi, and I drove up to Munnar (don’t worry we hired a driver) to visit the famous tea plantation. It was a gorgeous ride and we even stopped to look at waterfalls and wild monkeys. It was so cute to see little baby ones clinging to their mothers as they crossed the street. After we left the monkeys, we traveled further up the mountain to our cottage to stay the night. Our driver took us on a ‘short hike’ (5km), up the whole way, to a farm where we played with a puppy named Julie and watched one of the farm hands ride a bull. It was really funny and I had a great time petting the animals. The next day we went driving around taking pictures of the tea plantations and shopping in Munnar. I also tempted a dragonfly to land on my finger, but didn't have my camera on me; however, Allison will vouch for me!

Blah...

I feel like every blogger reaches this point. “I’m almost done, I have nothing else to say.” Well, persistent blog readers I have reached that point. Can you believe I only have 6 more weeks left at Rajagiri!!! I leave here on November 5th and will be celebrating Diwali in Delhi with some roomies and a couple of new friends. My Dad will then be flying over to travel throughout Rajasthan for a week and then I’m home to celebrate my favorite holiday….Thanksgiving!!! I cannot believe I’ve been living here so long and been able to experience so much in such a short about of time. My friends and I have planned a jammed packed 6 weeks full of weekend trips throughout Southern India. I promise to post pictures and have funny stories. In other exciting news my sister, Jennifer, will be having her baby boy next month!!! I’m so sad I cannot be there to hold him, but the moment I get off the plane in America I’m heading to Philly to hold my little nephew!
This past weekend we took another boat trip on the backwaters with Jen (Jacqi's best friend who came to visit) and had a blast. We all just had a good time hanging out and telling funny stories from college. We are heading to Munnar this weekend to visit a tea plantation and hang out with some elephants. I'll post pictures when I get back!


(Jen and I practicing some yoga moves)