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My trip to India

Started by wasp_f15ting, April 26, 2004, 04:02:58 PM

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wasp_f15ting

I just came back from my trip to India yesterday... It was an amazing experience with not one exception. Everything I expected was surpassed and exceeded. It was a superb few weeks which have made a lot of things clear to me which were not before. So much so I am going back indefinitely on the 2nd of May, I have dual citizenship which means I can do this without much fuss.. I think the only reason I might come back is to earn some more money to fuel myself. As some of you may know I am at uni doing law / politics. Which I am officially going to differ for a year, since I am 1st year my lecturer informs me I can take the exams whenever I comeback. If not I'll just start back from scratch.

Why the sudden and drastic move? You may ask, I just felt really disillusioned of "things" when I was there of my life here. The amazing thing was me not missing many of the technologies I take as granted here, and thought I could not live without, i.e. broadband, 24hr online surfing, my collection of music / films etc. All of this was annulled and the need for escapism taken away by the very landscape and surrounding, if I felt low or bored I just went into my garden and looked onto the hills for solace. I never thought this would happen.. We have a pretty decent PC in my dad's surgery there in India, but the amount of time I spent on it equals the time I have spent since I arrived yesterday afternoon..

I have a good home theatre and a plethora of DVDs etc here, all of which I thought I'd miss, but not for a moment did I think, "I'd rather be watching a dvd than hiking 10 miles on a gorgeous mountain" I missed nothing or no one, even close friends here became wisps of gas in my head. I really did not miss my weekly beer sessions, or Indy film watching, it all just kind of became insignificant. I know that if I go down my present route here I'd end up getting a job, a mortgage and a contracted job in a law firm, all things which will tie my feet to a few hundred square miles, and if I am lucky 21 days of holiday in a year. With a grey concrete jungle as my habitat.. Compare this to miles and miles of empty space, spacious mountains, lots of culture / spirituality and its easy to see which line one would go down.

I am taking a year out like a gap year I guess.. but in reality I don't want to do law or politics anymore, since the area for making a difference or doing something positive for the world is little to none in both fields, the things you do change are so petit on the larger scale of things, i.e. intellectual property (sigh...)

So instead I will come intermittently to top up my sterling account through any job on offer whilst staying at some infested hell hole for my own financial independence etc, though I fail to see why I'd need this since the things I'd usually waste money on have no meaning or relevance there. Our house there is a palace compared to the crowded uninteresting houses which surround me. When the heat gets to me I flick on the aircon ;) my dad worked all his life, and retired just 2 years ago, and the troubles and constant worries that plagued him came through a culmination of his lifestyle etc, things which I know are bi products of the way we live here. Anyhoo so I am off on Sunday for a long period (I hope) and hoping to return in the future to pull some cash in when required, though my current savings should last for a year.

Sorry for the long interlude, now to the pics, first should be of me lazing with my flip flops..



Classic India...



This group of people are going uphill to a Hindu temple to worship their god of preference, this god of preference is a god that is the "root" god that everyone worships from where they were born etc, so many people across India travel from everywhere part of the country to worship their "root" god. This is usually a very holy event where the rich and poor a like share their joy with food dancing and "prathana" / worship.



This is the Karaayar dam which was built by the British during colonization for better crop harvest for those living down the slopes of the dam. As you can see it is pretty dry, it has not rained in south India for any long period for 11 years :( which is quite bad since the back bone of the country is agriculture.


Inside



This is one strange church by all counts.. I don't understand the idea within the person who built it, it was built in 1976, and is near the sea side. Its an RC church. Christianity is quite big in India, several million if not more Indians were / are born Christian, our family was christened 300 years ago, thus the Azariah bit being there. The village I live in has been Christian for around 140 years.  



This is my Grandma, she won't can't say a bad word about the British, she worked under the missionaries in a hospital as a nurse. She hates Indian rule now, and is very Christian. Strange she supports the British when my Granddad:-



Fought with the INA that is the Indian National Army, the people responsible for fighting against the British Raj, he is proud bastard who hates the British by all counts, for those not versed in History of that era in the 2nd world war, the INA formed an Alliance with Imperial Japan to fight against the western Alliance, for the INA sought freedom through the loss of the British fight. Obviously they didn't read the Japanese mentality well.. but my granddad was apart of the group that attacked Malaysian colonies with the Japanese, the colonies under British control were taken over by his garrison and later joined with the Japanese, he was imprisoned when power was taken back by the Brits, but he fought for a year and a half in Burma which has with it some of the most horrific witnessing of human nature. Horrid stuff. Anyway, these days he gets a handsome pension of R/s 4,000 (around £60) which is a lot of money in India, considering someone working as a bank manager only gets R/s 3000. He is an active bastard at 83, he cycles 15 miles and walks 7 just to go and have tea at his old joint which he has visited for 40+ years.



This is a shot that I found relatively pleasing, it was taken on a hike through the Ghats, unfortunately some of the pics from that trip seem to be corrupted :( I am recovering them one by one, and will add more when I find them.




This is the Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai S.India, a famous temple of which I know little about :(  The guide was mentioning something, but the heat (hovering around 40c) made my attention somewhat weak. Now one observation I did make though is the shape of those lions, and how similar they look to those Chinese dolls used in Chinese festivals. The music present in all e-asian and s-asian countries share something I can't localize that easily. But there is a common thread. The influence of Buddhism has something to do with it. Buddhism originates from Hinduism as you all know. So more than one link runs through Asia as a whole.



This is Doddebetta point, the highest point in Soutth India, coming in at 8600ft+ another great accomplishment by the British, the British chose (Ooty) as a summer resort, they laid the roads down etc, during the Raj the servants of the white officers where allowed there, or high ranking officers, my Granddad (who fought with the Brits / my dad's dad, the other one is my mom's dad) was stationed there for 3 years, we have some property there which I am looking to develop for my leisure :)







These are all shots of Ooty, the Tea plantations are a many there, I am not sure who buys the tea that goes to your tea pots, but they are for sure one of the largest tea producers in the world. Miles upon miles of hill area are covered with them. Well thats a short and a small percentage of what I saw/ did. I havent gone through the several discs of CDR which I burnt pics on to yet. I'll post more if I see them to be good.

Des Nilsen

Gorgeous pictures Waspy! :)

Wow.

-

smoker

yep, looking at some of those pics i can easily see why you'd like to escape there for a while.

Cerys

Ooh, waspy, you lucky bloke!  Wow, frankly.

Um - I'm a bit stuck for anything else to say, apart from several more wows, and an observation about how brilliant your grandparents' faces are.  (I love brilliant faces.)

Is 'prathana' Sanskrit?  Because if I remember rightly 'prana' is, and means 'breath', which makes for interesting ponderings about etymology and other word-related ... um ... ponderings.

mr rou-rou

I'm packed and I've had my jabs

I've offered before but would you like a white skinned devil as a novelty servant?

El Unicornio, mang

That really does look fantastic, wonderful landscapes.

The only thing that puts me off is the crowded cities, not sure if I could handle walking around being sardine'd by a load of strangers, especially in the summer. Also, and this might just be certain parts, but my cousin worked there for a few months and said that the streets were really dirty, he didn't dare touch anything or put anything down. Mind, he's one of those obsessively clean people.

sproggy

Welcome back Waspy, you are a fortunate man with your whole life ahead of you.

Quote from: "wasp_f15ting"I am taking a year out like a gap year I guess.. but in reality I don't want to do law or politics anymore, since the area for making a difference or doing something positive for the world is little to none in both fields, the things you do change are so petit on the larger scale of things, i.e. intellectual property (sigh...)

I suspect you'll end up taking more than a year out, don't you?  Do what your heart tells you, don't make the mistake I did and end up stuck in a rut.
From the sounds of it you will probably have a much more rewarding life in India, go for it you big ugly bastard!

monkhouse terror

Lovely shots waspy, it looks like a bloody wonderful place and I can understand why you'd want to gan back there.

Also when you're back be sure to tell your grandparents that they are extremely photogenic.

ccab

super photos, waspy - especially the two portraits. i'm looking forward to seeing the next batch.

Cerys

Quote from: "ccab"especially the two portraits

Aren't they great?  Without wanting to sound like a pretentious arty twat, those portraits live.

Smackhead Kangaroo

The more I look at your gran the more I suspect that you told her to make that comedy "I'm wily" pose.
It's the sort of pose loads of people make when taking the piss on cam. Of course if it's a natural pose she must BE EVIL.
she's schemin' I tells ya

Oh one more thing, looking at some of those pictures for some reason I find it very easy to realise in my mind the approximate smells of the places.

wasp_f15ting

Thank you all for your kind words :)

Here is the second batch:-

To begin with the cliché shots of sunrise/set etc ;p





On the second pic I love the greenish hue hovering over the orange. The last one is the view from my garden. As you can guess thats coming over the water, the beach is around 30mins from my house, its the kanyakumari point where the three oceans meet (1.Bay of bengal, Indian Ocean, Arabic Ocean)

I took a few shots of the malls in India, but I hate them, here is something that'll give you an idea of how the 300+ million middleclass consume....



Those of you near me in Manchester will have been to the Trafford centre, now imagine that. Multiply it by 2, and you have this place :S crazy fucking place where people spend money like water... I suspect the big spenders there are people on R/s 1m or more a year (£20,000).

Since some of you liked my other portraits I thought I'd show you a couple more of people who work at my house and a family member, my little sister to be precise.



This is our head cooking lady, there are 3 of them all together, she kind of supervises the food and all. Great lady, the stories of her life are stunning and great to listen to. Her daughter ran off with one of our drivers just before I went to India, so she is kind of sad and melancholic a lot of the time now.



This is Golden, yes that is her name, Its not made up.. I thought it was Golda at first.. she is one of three nurses at my dad's rural clinic, she was the only in on the day I went down to the clinic to take pics.. shy little creature.



My little sis, I am sure she will kill me if she knew that I was posting pictures of her on the net... I hope to god she doesn't find cab..



This is our mud hut, albeit with 27 rooms and air-conditioned heh ;p see the coconut leaf palm thing on the top, it ads to that mud hut "feel" ;p



This is a shot from the back of our house in the hill resort of Kodaikanal, its near a carrot field etc, gorgeous views, and the air smells of wonderful eucalyptus  :D



another shot of another part of the Ghats.

More to come before I get disconnected and get ready for India :)

mook

And you're going to swap Manchester for that....Are you mad?
winkywinky.


Lovely pics Waspy. I still reckon my sussex sunset is better than yours though. ;¬)

Nearly Annually

Very interesting, waspy, and beautiful. Can't understand why you'd want to leave this septic isle though - where will you get your rain, grumbling, celebrity gossip and ID cards? Do stay in touch sporadically while you're there, matey, even if your grandad has to peddle harder to keep you online.


Edit: ooh, new piccies while I was posting. How mucha for da sista? Eh? Eh?

joFFeman

this is the obligatory 'your sister is hot' post. sorry. if i didn't make it someone else would, 'cause it's true.

she's hot, y'know.

mook

JoFFeman, I thought you were a lefthander!

wasp_f15ting


mr rou-rou

.... an old maid then

.

post some more pics then, what else do you have, any skimpy sari shots?

hencole

Quote from: "wasp_f15ting"Shes 14.....

My thoughts exactly. Do we get a discount then?

Lovely piccies their waspy. I can almost smell the eucalyptus, though that could be my chewing gum. Notable in it's absense are any pictures of YOU! Not scared are you?

Nearly Annually

Scary, more like. This from the self portraits thread. You might have to save it and brighten it. Good teeth.

Quote from: "mook"JoFFeman, I thought you were a lefthander!
Ambigudextrous I think.

Vermschneid Mehearties

Quoteshe's hot, y'know

It probably doesn't help echoing his cries. I'm 17 though, and whether you think that makes it any better is up to you. *wink*

Quote
I hope to god she doesn't find cab..

You'd better.

I'll have probably ruined any chance I have of this, but can I have your permission to use that photograph of the sun over the clouds for personal use?

wasp_f15ting

Vermy: here is the full size pic:-
http://img22.photobucket.com/albums/v66/azariah/sun.jpg ?

And Hencole I aint to photogenic :(

Vermschneid Mehearties

Thanks waspy! And even after all those things I said about your sister! You're a star. I didn't even notice that boat in the distance (at least I think it's a boat). That just makes it even better.

I think Cerys mentioned some photography site that you can join which lets you upload your photo's to be viewed by the public. Apart from your personal ones (obviously), I think those definately merit an upload. Maybe Cerys can reprovide the link. I haven't visited it since I saw Cerys' Aberystwyth photo's a while back.

hencole

Quote from: "wasp_f15ting"Vermy: here is the full size pic:-
http://img22.photobucket.com/albums/v66/azariah/sun.jpg ?

And Hencole I aint to photogenic :(

Quite, I just looked at that link AY posted. Frightening very frightening.

Cerys

Quote from: "Vermschneid Mehearties"I think Cerys mentioned some photography site that you can join which lets you upload your photo's to be viewed by the public. Apart from your personal ones (obviously), I think those definately merit an upload. Maybe Cerys can reprovide the link. I haven't visited it since I saw Cerys' Aberystwyth photo's a while back.

http://www.sxc.hu - it's a great place for finding source images for monging, too!

joFFeman

Quote from: "wasp_f15ting"Shes 14.....
oh, then i mean.. she's not 'hot', she's 'shaping up to be quite an attractive young woman'. wouldn't wanna make myself look like some sort of deviant, i've an image to uphold. (that's me, bottom center)

Cerys

Filthy; yet oddly endearing.  Time for more medication, methinks.

blue jammer

Some good piccies there*, looks like an ace place by the way :)

* The camera worked well then, and a wee bit better than those big chill piccies ;) hehe

I can't understand why you'd want to go back when you've got the delights of scally central to be content with ;)

Ambient Sheep

Quote from: "joFFeman"wouldn't wanna make myself look like some sort of deviant, i've an image to uphold. (that's me, bottom center)
Never mind you, what's Abbie doing in there?

fanny splendid

Quote from: "Ambient Sheep"
Quote from: "joFFeman"wouldn't wanna make myself look like some sort of deviant, i've an image to uphold. (that's me, bottom center)
Never mind you, what's Abbie doing in there?

Do you not recognise that chin and jaw?