Natural Beauty In Auroville 

Our digs in Auroville, the American Pavilion, with hammocks…

Tour with Ross, an Australian Aurovilian.

Finally, the beach!

Unofficial mandala.

This group has a good sense of humor.

Hello Everybody!

We are officially back to air conditioning and shower land…it was definitely nice to get clean after three and half days without running water or electricity…we decided to blog to remove some of the burden from Avery

So, the villages were amazing…the view from our roof (which we all slept on) was breaktaking….mountains on all sides…we had some really awesome experiences and learned some sick new dance moves from our favorite new manly man-Nangaji (Mr. Naked) we went to schools and talked to villagers and went to meetings for GVK (village development fund)….we’re definitely missing the serenity and the awesome people we met….

Got to go to dinner

Sam and Cait

Well, we’ve all just returned from a four day stint in a small rural village in Rajashtan.  The work that Seva Mandir is doing there is truly phenomenal. The villagers were very hospitable and the Seva Mandir staff that resided with us at the Regional office we were staying at were very hospitable. All of us will remember the fun times we had with Nanga-ji, the most intense night watchman in existence. Time is running short as we have to catch some Autorickshaws for dinner at some unknown location in Udaipur. In an attempt to sum up the experience, I shall say we had an invaluable chance to engage in an introspective analysis of our lives and the lives of those less fortunate then us. The humble, modest nature of the people of Dhar and the neighboring villages juxtaposed with their sincere hospitality was an amazing thing to witness.

As for details, I’m sure another, more dedicated “blogger” can elaborate.

 - Vivan

Hey everyone, Carolyn here—

    We just got back from Dhar which was abslutely amazing.  No running water or electricity but we got along fine.  Except when they say “western style toilet” they do NOT mean an actual western toilet, but rather a toilet seat covering a hole in the ground, which is just a cruel joke.

   But Dahr and the villages we visited were abosolutely gorgeous.   A lot of the time when you think of India you think desert and dust, but it was all lush mountains and green grass.  I touched a water buffalo AND a goat, though have yet to touch either an elephant or a cow. We all have our goals though, right?

    Vivan, Sam and I went to a little Non Formal Education Center in a little village and played with the kids.  I was a bit worried that ot would just be a big mess, what with none of us being able to speak Mewari, but it wasn’t at all–plus we cheated and had a translator.  We helped them with their numbers and played duck duck goose and red light green light.  At first they were all a bit shy, but once we broke out the games all was good.

    Everyone in the villages were so friendly and generous.  We went to a town meeting in one of the villages and this old lady started speaking to Sam and me in rapid Mewari(even though we tried to explain that we didn’t know a lick of hindi, nevermind Mewari) so we just smiled and nodded–turns out she was inviting us back to her home for some roti!  The town meeting was so much fun, after they went over their budget and all of the serious stuff the men started drumming and singing and the women were dancing and pulling us up to join in.  It was So much fun.  There was only one man dancing but he was Incredible!

 I actually wrote this next bit a while back on facebook, but i felt bad that i hadn’t blogged, so i’m just going to add it in here:

India is Amazing! it’s ridiculously hot/humid of course–being the first bit of monsoon but so much fun. I spent 3 nights in Delhi, then a day in Jaipur and overnight-trained it to Udaipur which is where i am now. Let me just say that Indian overnight trains are kind of a bit hilarious–i slept like a rock, but they’re seriously sketch.

Cows, stray dogs and babboons are EVERYWHERE. especially in the morning there are hordes of baboons, which is absolutely crazy. There are even elephants being ridden around in the street. When we were in Jaipur we were going to go for elephant rides but the elephants were gone, and anyways it’s kind of animal torture. The cows just wander through the streets which is kind of hilarious. They’re not like cows back home, they have a weird hump for pulling farm machinery around etc.  And it’s illegal to kill them! They’re really cute, but they shit everywhere. meaning that where ever we go is swarming with flies. and mosquitoes waiting to suck your bood and give you malaria.

The only problem is that the airline lost my bag, meaning that up until yesterday when we went shopping i really only had one pair of clothes. i mean, i borrowed stuff, but you do the math, 1 set of clothing over 6 days=ew.

And the poverty here is devastating. that’s the only thing i hate about india. people are just passed out in the streets, sleeping under the trees or whatever. i felt hrrible pining for my suitcase when they don’t even have enough food for one meal a day. which isn’t me exagerating, they really don’t.

it’s ridiculously hot and dusty–way more than my little white girl skin can handle, so i’m totally sunburnt, which is just great. At first India smelled–especially that first night/day in Delhi, but now it’s not even noticeable–unless of course you step in elephant poo, and then you’re kind of screwed.

Everyone here is really cool, it’s weird to think i’ve only been here a week. there are 40 ruppees to the dollar making everything really cheap. When we were in Jaipur i bought this crazy painting painted on an old deed from when the brits were in charge. it was 3,000 rs, which sounds mucho expensive, but really it’s only $69. which is still a lot, but i felt like spoiling myself and it’s reallly awesome.

i think i’m going to sign out, don’t know when i’ll be able to write next, tomorrow we’re going to Dhar, a little village about 50 minutes away from the city–no running water or electricity. god, can you imagine me there? but i’m really excited it will be fun.

forever and always,
–Carolyn

Hey! So I couldnt figure out how to write a new post on this computer…And it looks like Ive been appointed official blogger heh

We are in Udaipur ‘venice of the east’ at the moment. Tomorrow we leave for the village. I cant decide whether Im more excited or freaked out at the thought of no electricity or water or basic appliances. Oh well, it should be an interesting experience…
Im also worried because Ive been sort of ’sickly’ for the past few days. I went to the doctor today and they prescribed some meds that should help me out when living the rural life.
Right now we are staying in a relatively nice hotel with a tv, fridge, decent bathroom and LEOPARD PRINT SHEETS. The moment they opened that door it was like a light shining in from above, haha. Last night we ate in a beautiful hotel/restaurant/palace overlooking the waters and the lake palace. There are a lot of places like that around here making Udaipur one big tourist attraction. The people here are also more friendly and I have yet to run into any beggars.
We have been shopping a lot recently and Ive bought quite a few things and also gotten MAJORLY ripped off. Luckily Ive been assigned a bargaining partner so we’ll see how it goes next time!
Anywho, Elliott and I are in a local internet cafe which is basically like a little room with one computer and 3 guys waiting around starring. I think Elliott wants on so Ill say my goodbyes. I dont think Well be writing for the next week or so…
BYEBYE

AVERY