Can you believe that we have been here for over a week? Sometimes it feels like we just got here and other times it feels like we have been living here for years!
Right now, we are all enjoying our routine. (A couple of hectic days in Delhi and a long chaotic train ride would make anyone enjoy a little consistency!) The castle already feels like home and the wandering peacocks and occasional monkeys that visit seem like old friends. The staff has been extremely helpful and friendly and are beginning to participate in some of our group activities.
We also had our first non-work related excursion yesterday. We saw the beautiful Jain temple at Ranakpur, and all of us were awed by the incredible beauty and ornate architecture of this cultural site. Everyone took several pictures... all of which could be postcards.
And lately, we (Ted and Priyanka) have been providing informal Hindi lessons. Phrases like Aap ka nam kya hai? (What is your name?) and Castle kahaa hai ? (Where is the castle?) are rolling off of our students' tongues. Yesterday we gave them their first "test"... a scavenger hunt! We split everyone up into three teams and, with the one castle staff member watching each group, we had them do the following;
1. Find and photograph several landmarks in the town (including mosques, temples, and public wells)
2. Introduce themselves (in Hindi) to a store owner, tailor, and shoemaker. Ask for their names and if they could take a photograph with them.
3. Ask locals (in Hindi) for the words for cow, dog, peacock, water-buffalo, pig, and vehicle.
Both of us thought that it would take at least two or three hours for them to finish, but we have an extremely competitive group of young men and women. All of the teams came back, completely finished with all of the right answers, within an hour and fifteen minutes. We could tell that they all enjoyed the activity immensely and would do another one again in a heartbeat.
On top of the Hindi lessons, we are also teaching the students a popular Hindi song from the hit movie Sholay. For over a generation, the song Yeh Dosti, has been an anthem friendship that is probably more widely known in this country than the Indian national anthem. And the two of us couldn't be happier with the progress our students are making. They actually know the entire chorus! Hopefully we can continue our series of stellar concerts (including "Lean on Me" and "Under the Sea") with this lively and upbeat tune.
So in honor of our newly found Hindi knowledge, we offer you this... Phir Melenge! (We will meet again!)
-Ted and Priyanka
-Ted and Priyanka
