19:15 Hrs. Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka, India.
Our last breakfast at MM Hills. This experience has lost its wide-eyed new feeling. Now it seems we travel from place to place, seeing things that grow more and more beautiful. MM Hills is truly a beautiful place. After a bit of rest, we loaded the bus (with a new driver, Manosh) and headed out around 11:00.
Our trip included a Bollywood film that Brandy had bought at market in the morning, played on the bus' DVD player (tour bus). We stopped at Kollegal, which we had passed on our way to MM. Kollegal has the only route to BRT. We had lunch at a delicious local restaurant, including some Slice mango juice, some Massala Chipati, and who knows what else. There we picked up Siddapa, who is accompanying us to BRT. Upon boarding the bus again, a new movie, Ongbak 2 began playing. Though we didn't see the end of the 'guy has trouble getting girl' Bollywood flick, we took a pretty well educated guess... This new movie we're convinced is the purchase of the bus driver. It lost my attention pretty quickly.
BRT is quite the place. 540 km square of very lush forests, scrubs, and grasslands. It reminds me much of the Smoky Mountains, just with completely more tropical vegetation. We arrived at the ATREE field site and guest house the girls would be staying at. Then quickly to the gents' quarters. Decent accomodations. Again Geeta had us prepared for far worse. 3 pieces of wood on sticks for beds with a mattress the thickness of my finger, but a bed and room nonetheless. A western toilet believe it or not, though its functionability is hardly worthwhile. Anyway the community is very homey and beautiful, a faint reminder of UTC without the surrounding hustle and bustle of Bangalore, merely more lush forest. We are truly in rural INdia. The boys' guest houses are at the school ATREE assists at for Soliga people that live in the forest. 57 total tribal villages, 14 of which refused to leave the sanctuaries boundaries after the request from the Indian Forest Service, and continue to live within to this day. The whole place has a feel of small medieval hamlets or villages in the mountains of Ireland, but for some reason, everything is tropical.
We briefly unloaded, then returned to the girls dorms at the ATREE field site. Another excursion in the van to see wildlife. Seeing anything with a group this size (of boisterous Americans no less), in a noisy tourism van seems and had proved near impossible. Though we'd seen animals before on our excursions, never a true spotting worthy of the work our educators had done. Perhpas a combination of having Siddapa with us (an incredible wildlife exper), the time of day and weather of the outing, and the overall beauty and serenity of the place keeping us quiet, gave us multiple spottings. The first was a beautiful owl of immense stature that there is still much debate over its identification. With similar appearance and coloration to a Great Horned Owl, it flew across the road behind the van with deadly silent accuracy. We drove on. Then we spotted the big guns. This whole trip seems to have been planned by Geeta on the trail of the world's largest terrestrial creature. 'Elephas Maximus' moves south through India in its migrations. Coming from central India, they move through Bannerghatta N.P., Biligiri R.F., Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, B.R. Hills, Bandipur T.R., Mudumalai, and onward. It would seem Geeta planned this trip to line up with the towering veggie-saur. And yet until now we'd only heard a far off trumpet from atop Rock Hill. As we passed a small lake, there they were. Three beautiful female elephants, no more than nine feet tall, about forty feet away. As we turned off the engine and very carefully milled about the van to get a good look and take pictures, we, with the help of Siddapa and Geeta, identified their ages and roles in the herd. Sixteen very large and heavily padded feet...a fourth tail flicked out low to the ground. A baby. No more than two-months old. As the elders sensed our noisy and smelly presence, they began readjusting to encircle and further protect the young calf. The furthest away individual retreated a ways to the brush with her tail elevated and turned back to face us directly. She wanted running room. "Go Manosh!" Geeta shouted in a loud hoarse whisper. The elephant let out a loud warning trumpet and picked up speed straight towards us...
Monday, June 14, 2010
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010. - Day 18
09:00 Hrs. Devara Halli, MM Hills, Karnataka, India.
Tuesday was another hiking foray after breakfast. A very long tough hike, but it always ends up being worth it. We reached the peak and could see for miles. The Cauvery River, roaming its way to the reservoir and the bordering state of Tamil Nadu in the distance. BRT to our right and Mysore far off behind us before a very hazy Western Ghats. The view was truly spectacular. That evening we crossed the nearby border into the state of Tamil Nadu and went to an oasis where the Cauvery and Palar Rivers join. No elephants tonight, apparently we'd missed them by a few hours, but the scenery and a conversation with a fisherman floating by laying his net more than made up for it.
Today we leave MM Hills, for Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple (BRT) Wildlife Sanctuary at the south-eastern tip of Karnataka where the Western and Eastern Ghats meet (more or less). We have no idea what sort of accomodations await us, but we've been told it's worse than our past ones. We shall see...
~Trying to shake off a prolonged slump,
- David
Tuesday was another hiking foray after breakfast. A very long tough hike, but it always ends up being worth it. We reached the peak and could see for miles. The Cauvery River, roaming its way to the reservoir and the bordering state of Tamil Nadu in the distance. BRT to our right and Mysore far off behind us before a very hazy Western Ghats. The view was truly spectacular. That evening we crossed the nearby border into the state of Tamil Nadu and went to an oasis where the Cauvery and Palar Rivers join. No elephants tonight, apparently we'd missed them by a few hours, but the scenery and a conversation with a fisherman floating by laying his net more than made up for it.
Today we leave MM Hills, for Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple (BRT) Wildlife Sanctuary at the south-eastern tip of Karnataka where the Western and Eastern Ghats meet (more or less). We have no idea what sort of accomodations await us, but we've been told it's worse than our past ones. We shall see...
~Trying to shake off a prolonged slump,
- David
Tuesday, June 8th, 2010 - Day 17
07:30 Hrs. Devara Halli, MM Hills, Karnataka, India.
I will attempt here to catch up and remain on track. Yesterday we woke up early for yoga on the roof of our guest house. Since we're in a valley there is always quite the strong breeze. After a short walk to the nearby mess hall for breakfast, we boarded the bus with Riaz, and returned back into the mountains from whence we had come.
Once on top, we buddied up and were given assignments of things to monitor as we trekked along a trail. I was to observe chopped trees, identify species and whether it was for firewood or for other purposes with Kristina. An easy task compared to some of the others', we discovered only about five species that were consistently cut..., and we rounded by quite a bit...
Soliga (tribal) people live in this area, and are being taught by ATREE to use the invasive Lantana camera plant (which is EVERYWHERE in India) to weave baskets and furniture to sell. They use the dried bamboo in the forest for much of their home construction. We finished monitoring and continued climbing, first down, down, down into a valley (elephant corridor), then up, up, up onto the next hill. We were told the path we were taking was the old stone path that pilgrims took en route to the holy Halli of Devara we were staying at. The path was about 1000 years old. Each rest stop gave beautiful views, truly stunning scenery. Every time we reach a viewpoint, anywhere in our trip, we have never been let down. I have a bajillion landscape pictures now. The whole region had less than a decade ago, been the domain of Veerapan, a notorious Indian poacher of mostly sandalwood, who often would capture, torture, and/or kill celebrities, trespassers, and foreigners. Fortunately he was poisoned and killed by undercover agents a little while back or we wouldn't have come here.
Finally back at the top of the hill, we snapped a few photos, including one of the whole group I took from atop the bus, and drove back down into the village. We returned to the mess hall for a quick lunch but were soon back out again, this time visiting a small piece of ATREE land, where they are working with the Soligas for agriculture, tree planting, and rain-water harvesting through terraced pits.
As we trekked back to the bus, we had a lovely interaction with some locals, who, upon seeing how excited Papaya trees they owned made us, proceeded to give us four or five, and few pictures as well. We drove just a little ways to the home of a Soliga elder woman, heavily involved in local politics on behalf of her community, to see their homes and be offered delicious jagri-black tea. We 'spoke' with her for awhile and explored their little neighborhood. It very much echoed El Refugio...
Before returning, we stopped at the market outside the gran temple of the city, purchased some knick-knacks and souvenirs, and dropped our shoes off to enter the temple. Personal space truly does not exist in India. Packed like sardines, we herded through the beautiful Hindu Temple, even being blessed with face markings (3 lines and the dot). We've never been more stared at then today. Continuously asked for pictures, I suppose it's a unique experience to see Geeta leading 12 white ducklings with bags and filtered water bottles around. The temple was truly a humbling and spritiual sight. As we exited, a painted elephant was being kept in a barn next door happily chomping away on some bamboo.
Surprisingly, even more people were arriving, as the monks appeared to be preparing a large elaborately decorated chariot. Apparently this is a traditional Monday occurence. As preparations continued the music we had heard the night before, interesting drumming began pounding away nearby. Around 15 or so children were all dancing away surrounded by the crowd. After a long hot rough day where I was even more consistently wondering my purpose on this trip, the lively drum beat was mindless passion and joy. With all the smiles at us, it became impossible to resist. Caution to the wind, I separated from our group and went to join. Pounding my feet and raising my arms embarassingly as I tried to mimic them, I shook out all petty thoughts and aggravations. It wasn't long before I was joined by the majority of the group, as well as more dancers from the crowd, and MANY more spectators eager to see the dancing exotic Americans.
~Exhausted with satisfaction,
- David
I will attempt here to catch up and remain on track. Yesterday we woke up early for yoga on the roof of our guest house. Since we're in a valley there is always quite the strong breeze. After a short walk to the nearby mess hall for breakfast, we boarded the bus with Riaz, and returned back into the mountains from whence we had come.
Once on top, we buddied up and were given assignments of things to monitor as we trekked along a trail. I was to observe chopped trees, identify species and whether it was for firewood or for other purposes with Kristina. An easy task compared to some of the others', we discovered only about five species that were consistently cut..., and we rounded by quite a bit...
Soliga (tribal) people live in this area, and are being taught by ATREE to use the invasive Lantana camera plant (which is EVERYWHERE in India) to weave baskets and furniture to sell. They use the dried bamboo in the forest for much of their home construction. We finished monitoring and continued climbing, first down, down, down into a valley (elephant corridor), then up, up, up onto the next hill. We were told the path we were taking was the old stone path that pilgrims took en route to the holy Halli of Devara we were staying at. The path was about 1000 years old. Each rest stop gave beautiful views, truly stunning scenery. Every time we reach a viewpoint, anywhere in our trip, we have never been let down. I have a bajillion landscape pictures now. The whole region had less than a decade ago, been the domain of Veerapan, a notorious Indian poacher of mostly sandalwood, who often would capture, torture, and/or kill celebrities, trespassers, and foreigners. Fortunately he was poisoned and killed by undercover agents a little while back or we wouldn't have come here.
Finally back at the top of the hill, we snapped a few photos, including one of the whole group I took from atop the bus, and drove back down into the village. We returned to the mess hall for a quick lunch but were soon back out again, this time visiting a small piece of ATREE land, where they are working with the Soligas for agriculture, tree planting, and rain-water harvesting through terraced pits.
As we trekked back to the bus, we had a lovely interaction with some locals, who, upon seeing how excited Papaya trees they owned made us, proceeded to give us four or five, and few pictures as well. We drove just a little ways to the home of a Soliga elder woman, heavily involved in local politics on behalf of her community, to see their homes and be offered delicious jagri-black tea. We 'spoke' with her for awhile and explored their little neighborhood. It very much echoed El Refugio...
Before returning, we stopped at the market outside the gran temple of the city, purchased some knick-knacks and souvenirs, and dropped our shoes off to enter the temple. Personal space truly does not exist in India. Packed like sardines, we herded through the beautiful Hindu Temple, even being blessed with face markings (3 lines and the dot). We've never been more stared at then today. Continuously asked for pictures, I suppose it's a unique experience to see Geeta leading 12 white ducklings with bags and filtered water bottles around. The temple was truly a humbling and spritiual sight. As we exited, a painted elephant was being kept in a barn next door happily chomping away on some bamboo.
Surprisingly, even more people were arriving, as the monks appeared to be preparing a large elaborately decorated chariot. Apparently this is a traditional Monday occurence. As preparations continued the music we had heard the night before, interesting drumming began pounding away nearby. Around 15 or so children were all dancing away surrounded by the crowd. After a long hot rough day where I was even more consistently wondering my purpose on this trip, the lively drum beat was mindless passion and joy. With all the smiles at us, it became impossible to resist. Caution to the wind, I separated from our group and went to join. Pounding my feet and raising my arms embarassingly as I tried to mimic them, I shook out all petty thoughts and aggravations. It wasn't long before I was joined by the majority of the group, as well as more dancers from the crowd, and MANY more spectators eager to see the dancing exotic Americans.
~Exhausted with satisfaction,
- David
Monday, June 7th, 2010 - Day 16
22:00 Hrs. Devara Halli, MM Hills, Karnataka, India.
Saturday was our last day in Forest Trails. We received T-shirts from a staff that was far too amazing to us during our time there. Shoba was the mother of the dancer and mother-in-law of the flautist. Owning and helping Vishnu to run the place, they, along with Nagesh, truly took care of us. We could never repay their kindness. The day was all-day research. Concluding our studies we began the desk work and compiled a scientific paper as well as a presentation with visual aides and everything. Working nearly non-stop through the day, most of our heads began to hurt as we shared our results with Geeta and she indulged in our mistakes. Nonetheless, that evening we all presented our research to the group, satisfied with our findings.
Our final dinner, and Nagesh comes out with YET ANOTHER BOX OF KINGFISHER. This must be how Indians think of American college students, though I suppose he's not far off. After a brief bout between a quickly-drunk bottle of alcohol and my stomach, I stayed up talking with a few people late into the night until all but two of us, 'Harvard' and I, had gone to bed. Another few wonderful hours of venting and sharing, then bed.
Many of us have been going days without showering, as we were encouraged, but one this morning for a lengthy cfar ride ahead sounded great. And felt great for that matter. We left Forest Trails (bittersweet) and drove quite some ways. Our first stop on our way to our next destination was the Cauvery (Kaveri) River. This was India as we had been told. Hundreds of people playing, washing, bathing in the river. We were to cross it. Having been told of the dangers of coming into contact with ANY water body in India, we were all very naturally skeptical. Never failing to keep any future plans from us, Geeta herded us into small bowl-like bamboo and tar rafts that took us half-way across the river. We waded the rest of the way, and boarded a Jitney-esque bus on the other side. We arrived at a stunning gorge 20 minutes later, that the river had carved out. Truly a breath-taking, rocky-cliff filled site.
Back on the Jitney (for lack of a better label...), some Beedi was bought by Geeta and passed around to those who would have it. Beedi is the product of a native plant, rolled in itself, and smoked. Essentially an organic cigarette. Back on the bamboo bowls, and back on the bus and we were off again. Our next stop, after bidding a slightly more serious farewell to Kavitha and Skanda (we'd picked them up earlier, they'll be back later in the trip), was a village known as Kollegal. We had tea, a bathroom (squat of course) break, and bought junk food. My first taste of chocolate in forever it seems (even if it was strangely orange flavored). Back on the bus (I forgot to mention, our new driver is a man named Riaz this time around...), we made the last long stretch of road, up hairpin mountain bends and down into the valley of the MM Hills, arriving late at night to a small holy city (Devara Halli) very late, 'Harvard' half asleep next to me. Not a bad day...
I'd like to mention that Geeta and Lisa had long mentioned that Forest Trials would be the last 'nice' place we'd be in for awhile, and we should be prepared for true roughing it. She could not have lied more. Our accomodations are a beautiful 4th story guest house next to the ATREE office here. Full beds, electricity, bathrooms, the works. I roomed with Deepak this time around. Who knows if we can trust Geeta again...
We had dinner at a nearby mess hall and walked the city after, making our way to a very famous temple in the center. Full of dancing and music and an incredible sight (although there had just been a blackout, typical in India, so there was little 'seeing' done but with our lights).
It's late and I shall have to leave today's events for tomorrow's journal. Sleep beckons me.
~Dreary eyes in a fantasy world,
- David
Saturday was our last day in Forest Trails. We received T-shirts from a staff that was far too amazing to us during our time there. Shoba was the mother of the dancer and mother-in-law of the flautist. Owning and helping Vishnu to run the place, they, along with Nagesh, truly took care of us. We could never repay their kindness. The day was all-day research. Concluding our studies we began the desk work and compiled a scientific paper as well as a presentation with visual aides and everything. Working nearly non-stop through the day, most of our heads began to hurt as we shared our results with Geeta and she indulged in our mistakes. Nonetheless, that evening we all presented our research to the group, satisfied with our findings.
Our final dinner, and Nagesh comes out with YET ANOTHER BOX OF KINGFISHER. This must be how Indians think of American college students, though I suppose he's not far off. After a brief bout between a quickly-drunk bottle of alcohol and my stomach, I stayed up talking with a few people late into the night until all but two of us, 'Harvard' and I, had gone to bed. Another few wonderful hours of venting and sharing, then bed.
Many of us have been going days without showering, as we were encouraged, but one this morning for a lengthy cfar ride ahead sounded great. And felt great for that matter. We left Forest Trails (bittersweet) and drove quite some ways. Our first stop on our way to our next destination was the Cauvery (Kaveri) River. This was India as we had been told. Hundreds of people playing, washing, bathing in the river. We were to cross it. Having been told of the dangers of coming into contact with ANY water body in India, we were all very naturally skeptical. Never failing to keep any future plans from us, Geeta herded us into small bowl-like bamboo and tar rafts that took us half-way across the river. We waded the rest of the way, and boarded a Jitney-esque bus on the other side. We arrived at a stunning gorge 20 minutes later, that the river had carved out. Truly a breath-taking, rocky-cliff filled site.
Back on the Jitney (for lack of a better label...), some Beedi was bought by Geeta and passed around to those who would have it. Beedi is the product of a native plant, rolled in itself, and smoked. Essentially an organic cigarette. Back on the bamboo bowls, and back on the bus and we were off again. Our next stop, after bidding a slightly more serious farewell to Kavitha and Skanda (we'd picked them up earlier, they'll be back later in the trip), was a village known as Kollegal. We had tea, a bathroom (squat of course) break, and bought junk food. My first taste of chocolate in forever it seems (even if it was strangely orange flavored). Back on the bus (I forgot to mention, our new driver is a man named Riaz this time around...), we made the last long stretch of road, up hairpin mountain bends and down into the valley of the MM Hills, arriving late at night to a small holy city (Devara Halli) very late, 'Harvard' half asleep next to me. Not a bad day...
I'd like to mention that Geeta and Lisa had long mentioned that Forest Trials would be the last 'nice' place we'd be in for awhile, and we should be prepared for true roughing it. She could not have lied more. Our accomodations are a beautiful 4th story guest house next to the ATREE office here. Full beds, electricity, bathrooms, the works. I roomed with Deepak this time around. Who knows if we can trust Geeta again...
We had dinner at a nearby mess hall and walked the city after, making our way to a very famous temple in the center. Full of dancing and music and an incredible sight (although there had just been a blackout, typical in India, so there was little 'seeing' done but with our lights).
It's late and I shall have to leave today's events for tomorrow's journal. Sleep beckons me.
~Dreary eyes in a fantasy world,
- David
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Friday, June 4th, 2010 - Day 13
22:00 Hrs. Forest Trails, BNP, Karnataka, India.
Geeta is brilliant. Kavitha, her husband from Bangalore University, whom you may recall from our talk at the biopark, Nagaraja, and their adorable daughter, Pranati, meaning 'light' in Sanskrit arrived. Skanda was with as well, and he bunked the night with Andrew and I, but not before a few more surprises.
While waiting around for dinner, out of nowhere, a birthday cake saying 'Happy Birthday to Andrew' as well as another case of Kingfishers. Not finished yet, Kavitha announced there would still be Chicken Tikka Massala to come. Meat. This night is glorious and I'm convinced Geeta planned this in order to brighten everybody's day and mood. After that and a glorious dinner, we (most of us) went up to the mountain for some data collection. 'Harvard' helped me out and we did some star-spotting (a failed attempt to see Cassiopeia) afterwards.
~Waiting for that change in me,
- David
Geeta is brilliant. Kavitha, her husband from Bangalore University, whom you may recall from our talk at the biopark, Nagaraja, and their adorable daughter, Pranati, meaning 'light' in Sanskrit arrived. Skanda was with as well, and he bunked the night with Andrew and I, but not before a few more surprises.
While waiting around for dinner, out of nowhere, a birthday cake saying 'Happy Birthday to Andrew' as well as another case of Kingfishers. Not finished yet, Kavitha announced there would still be Chicken Tikka Massala to come. Meat. This night is glorious and I'm convinced Geeta planned this in order to brighten everybody's day and mood. After that and a glorious dinner, we (most of us) went up to the mountain for some data collection. 'Harvard' helped me out and we did some star-spotting (a failed attempt to see Cassiopeia) afterwards.
~Waiting for that change in me,
- David
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010 - Day 12
16:30 Hrs. Forest Trails, BNP, Karnataka, India.
First signs of attitude degradation amongst the group. We woke up at five-thirty this morning to go bug hunting. It's exactly like it sounds. Underground traps, mosquito nets, and lot of alcohol ("we must kill in order to learn and conserve..."), and we were expert bug-catchers.
Most of us didn't get much sleep last night due to another torrential downpour. At least the clothes I had hanging outside my tent got a free wash. The large majority of us are starting to feel some exhaustion. Mostly due to heat and lack of sleep; I don't think anyone's hit culture shock yet. Nonetheless I'm trying very hard to keep a positive mood. I certainly miss showering everyday away from the peering eyes of insects and frogs.
After lunch we took a trip to the mountain with Mr. Bug and I sat by one of the larger pools of water up there, (there's quite a few) to watch for frogs. My research study here, is going to be an examination of the behavior of calling male frogs. I sat on a rock in the shallow end and patiently waited in the sun. Amazingly, about eight minutes in, a skidder frog croaked and took a jump towards me. Within fifteen minutes, I had five or six male frogs all no more than 2 meters away from me calling. My mind wnadered to education as I watched them floating. If someone could convince children to patiently wait quietly, one truly becomes part of the environment. All manner of things approach and crawl on you...
Over lunch I spoke with Lisa about her desire to travel and her many study abroad experiences both as a student, and as a GTA. Whatever I end up doing with my life I hope it involves substantial travel. Despite my grievances and missing the luxuries of home, I desparately want to see the world. Already I feel as if what I'm doing is incredibly unique and perhaps once-in-a-lifetime, but I don't doubt something will change in me at the end of this trip, even if miniscule.
We said goodbye to our local guide, Shivarudra, who had accompanied us on the trails. Guides with absolutely incredible local knowledge of flora, fauna, and everything in between accompany us everywhere. A new one arrives today. We only have a few more days here. This is the longest stay in one place we have (10 days). There's talk that this is the nicest of our field sites, mostly from Geeta, and that it only goes downhill from here, luxury-wise. I'll reiterate again that we know next to nothing about what happens ahead of time; where we're going, what we're doing, etc. We are certainly learning a lot though, already I have lots of ideas I'm interested in trying from an education standpoint: i.e. herbariums, transects, cultural interactions, human distrubance research. I'm excited to pursue some research I've begun here even back in the states.
Seems so distant.
Many of the others have said that they have mentioned the other students in the group so I've decided that to ease my story-telling, I shall at the very least give names here:
My roommate both at UTC as well as here asleep on our porch in front of me is Andrew. A hiker, hunter, and nature lover, his twenty-second birthday is tomorrow, and I'm sure something interesting will occur. Andrew, Rhea, and I are the three Ecology and Evolutionary Biology majors, the rest being Environmental Studies. The others in that tent with Rhea include Hayley, our resident blonde, and recipient of many Indian stares, and Monica, a chill, sing-song girl of Egyptian heritage. Next we have Deepak, our resident Indian. When Geeta is not nearby, he is often our source for food and culture questions. Deepak is also into education, planning to be a teacher, and already works heavily with young kids. His roommates are Jason, a delve-right-into-the-heart-of-a-culture kind of guy, and Bradley, our very laid-back music lover. In the final tent to have Kristina, with an incredible knowledge of geography and modern journalism, Melissa, a product of the UKanTeach program, and lover of plants and wildlife, and lastly Brandy, who provides much of the group's sense of humor.
All in all, it's a very entertaining group, and I don't doubt this journal will learn a lot more about them as I do. Tonight we relax, and continue our research (mine: frog-calling, is a primarily evening event).
~Joking around with people I see 24/7 and who will soon probably know me better than many of my friends,
- David
First signs of attitude degradation amongst the group. We woke up at five-thirty this morning to go bug hunting. It's exactly like it sounds. Underground traps, mosquito nets, and lot of alcohol ("we must kill in order to learn and conserve..."), and we were expert bug-catchers.
Most of us didn't get much sleep last night due to another torrential downpour. At least the clothes I had hanging outside my tent got a free wash. The large majority of us are starting to feel some exhaustion. Mostly due to heat and lack of sleep; I don't think anyone's hit culture shock yet. Nonetheless I'm trying very hard to keep a positive mood. I certainly miss showering everyday away from the peering eyes of insects and frogs.
After lunch we took a trip to the mountain with Mr. Bug and I sat by one of the larger pools of water up there, (there's quite a few) to watch for frogs. My research study here, is going to be an examination of the behavior of calling male frogs. I sat on a rock in the shallow end and patiently waited in the sun. Amazingly, about eight minutes in, a skidder frog croaked and took a jump towards me. Within fifteen minutes, I had five or six male frogs all no more than 2 meters away from me calling. My mind wnadered to education as I watched them floating. If someone could convince children to patiently wait quietly, one truly becomes part of the environment. All manner of things approach and crawl on you...
Over lunch I spoke with Lisa about her desire to travel and her many study abroad experiences both as a student, and as a GTA. Whatever I end up doing with my life I hope it involves substantial travel. Despite my grievances and missing the luxuries of home, I desparately want to see the world. Already I feel as if what I'm doing is incredibly unique and perhaps once-in-a-lifetime, but I don't doubt something will change in me at the end of this trip, even if miniscule.
We said goodbye to our local guide, Shivarudra, who had accompanied us on the trails. Guides with absolutely incredible local knowledge of flora, fauna, and everything in between accompany us everywhere. A new one arrives today. We only have a few more days here. This is the longest stay in one place we have (10 days). There's talk that this is the nicest of our field sites, mostly from Geeta, and that it only goes downhill from here, luxury-wise. I'll reiterate again that we know next to nothing about what happens ahead of time; where we're going, what we're doing, etc. We are certainly learning a lot though, already I have lots of ideas I'm interested in trying from an education standpoint: i.e. herbariums, transects, cultural interactions, human distrubance research. I'm excited to pursue some research I've begun here even back in the states.
Seems so distant.
Many of the others have said that they have mentioned the other students in the group so I've decided that to ease my story-telling, I shall at the very least give names here:
My roommate both at UTC as well as here asleep on our porch in front of me is Andrew. A hiker, hunter, and nature lover, his twenty-second birthday is tomorrow, and I'm sure something interesting will occur. Andrew, Rhea, and I are the three Ecology and Evolutionary Biology majors, the rest being Environmental Studies. The others in that tent with Rhea include Hayley, our resident blonde, and recipient of many Indian stares, and Monica, a chill, sing-song girl of Egyptian heritage. Next we have Deepak, our resident Indian. When Geeta is not nearby, he is often our source for food and culture questions. Deepak is also into education, planning to be a teacher, and already works heavily with young kids. His roommates are Jason, a delve-right-into-the-heart-of-a-culture kind of guy, and Bradley, our very laid-back music lover. In the final tent to have Kristina, with an incredible knowledge of geography and modern journalism, Melissa, a product of the UKanTeach program, and lover of plants and wildlife, and lastly Brandy, who provides much of the group's sense of humor.
All in all, it's a very entertaining group, and I don't doubt this journal will learn a lot more about them as I do. Tonight we relax, and continue our research (mine: frog-calling, is a primarily evening event).
~Joking around with people I see 24/7 and who will soon probably know me better than many of my friends,
- David
Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010 - Day 11
14:30 Hrs. Forest Trails, BNP, Karnataka, India.
I could really go for a burger right now. Maybe some cheesecake. Chocolate; something cold. As each day presses on, I start to wonder if I'll have the energy for two more months of this. Still we walk on. I'm shocked to go through each day and find there's still so much more to experience in India.
When we returned to the campsite after a long day of data research and work, our musical guests were preparing. The owner of the campground facility's daughter and son-in-law were a dancer and flautist respectively and had kindly agreed to a cultural performance for us. An incredible experience I couldn't possibly put on this page, the instrumental and dance concert was mystifying. A double-sided drum, flutes, and traditional south Indian dancing, and authentic dress and style made for an evening I will never forget. After purchasing some CDs and bidding goodnight to all, we turned in ready to sleep in.
Yesterday began with the return of Ramu during breakfast. June 1st, as it was, was the first day of classes in much of India. We briefly returned to the field station to reunite with Skanda and Kavitha, and made our way to the school where Kavitha frequently worked. The small primary school (approximately grades pre-5) was a major beneficiary of ATREE's outreach activities. ATREE was helping them and numerous other schools develop sustainable practices. A group of about twenty-five or so school children, all clad in uniform sat patiently while the education system in India and ATREE's role were explained to us. Finally the kids were asked to sing a song for us. A small song and dance ensued, performed by three girls that I'm sure is replicated throughout schools in Karnataka. We took turns singing and dancing to small songs from our respective countries including Old MacDonald, a pretty awful rendition of Lean on Me, and a phrase and half of Day-O. We ended with a joint round of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and bid them farewell. For a group that sings together all the time on our bus rides, we sure weren't prepared for that.
We arrived back at the campsite where our next guest expert, a Dr. Gururaja (herpetologist) was waiting for us. We had a pretty eventful outing to the nearby lake where we caught, indentified, and re-released a few different frogs and returned to Vishnu, an owner of Forest Trails, who had generously provided us with a Unviersity of Kansas-size amount of Kingfisher beer. I think I shall end my description of the ensuing evening here. It is better off forgotten.
More field work the next day, and discussion of research, including a trip to Rock Hill. I haven't seen Scout in a few days...
Gururaj has left us and an entomologist arrives tonight. As my endurance wears thin, so notably too do these journal entries. My sincerest apologies to the reader.
~Why am I here?
- David
I could really go for a burger right now. Maybe some cheesecake. Chocolate; something cold. As each day presses on, I start to wonder if I'll have the energy for two more months of this. Still we walk on. I'm shocked to go through each day and find there's still so much more to experience in India.
When we returned to the campsite after a long day of data research and work, our musical guests were preparing. The owner of the campground facility's daughter and son-in-law were a dancer and flautist respectively and had kindly agreed to a cultural performance for us. An incredible experience I couldn't possibly put on this page, the instrumental and dance concert was mystifying. A double-sided drum, flutes, and traditional south Indian dancing, and authentic dress and style made for an evening I will never forget. After purchasing some CDs and bidding goodnight to all, we turned in ready to sleep in.
Yesterday began with the return of Ramu during breakfast. June 1st, as it was, was the first day of classes in much of India. We briefly returned to the field station to reunite with Skanda and Kavitha, and made our way to the school where Kavitha frequently worked. The small primary school (approximately grades pre-5) was a major beneficiary of ATREE's outreach activities. ATREE was helping them and numerous other schools develop sustainable practices. A group of about twenty-five or so school children, all clad in uniform sat patiently while the education system in India and ATREE's role were explained to us. Finally the kids were asked to sing a song for us. A small song and dance ensued, performed by three girls that I'm sure is replicated throughout schools in Karnataka. We took turns singing and dancing to small songs from our respective countries including Old MacDonald, a pretty awful rendition of Lean on Me, and a phrase and half of Day-O. We ended with a joint round of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and bid them farewell. For a group that sings together all the time on our bus rides, we sure weren't prepared for that.
We arrived back at the campsite where our next guest expert, a Dr. Gururaja (herpetologist) was waiting for us. We had a pretty eventful outing to the nearby lake where we caught, indentified, and re-released a few different frogs and returned to Vishnu, an owner of Forest Trails, who had generously provided us with a Unviersity of Kansas-size amount of Kingfisher beer. I think I shall end my description of the ensuing evening here. It is better off forgotten.
More field work the next day, and discussion of research, including a trip to Rock Hill. I haven't seen Scout in a few days...
Gururaj has left us and an entomologist arrives tonight. As my endurance wears thin, so notably too do these journal entries. My sincerest apologies to the reader.
~Why am I here?
- David
Monday, May 31st, 2010 - Day 9
14:45 Hrs. Forest Trails, BNP, Karnataka, India.
Pre-monsoon is long gone now. As fear of the impending storm rose, we made our way down from 'Rock Hill' (as the mountain spot is now dubbed), the clouds having cheated us out of a sunset. We discussed for awhile our future field projects based on the wealth of new info we had. The goal is for each of us to perform a research project in the area and upon our return, compile them in a professional, scientific manner. Then the notebook can be used by future EVRN-India students to replicate or build from (we are the first; the guinea pigs), creating potential long-term studies.
After dinner our guest arrived, Dr. Ganesh (not the same as from ATREE), an expert botanist and taxonimist. During introductions, the Indian monsoon season kicked in the door and demanded attention. Apparently India wasn't pleased by our scoff at its drizzle Saturday. The wet season had arrived. As we struggled to hear Ganesh over the immense torrent, we pulled out our sweatshirts, ponchos, and umbrellas for the first chilly night. We turned in earlier, trying to sleep to a chorus of frogs, in preparation for another early morning.
During our walks around the hill the next day, we stopped at various viewpoints to see the stunning beauty of India's deciduous tropical forest land and the Ghats shooting up in the distance. As the days press on and the sights, tastes, smells, and experiences become second nature (such as eating with bare right hands and cleaning with the left, gashed though mine may be), I must stress that they never lose their impact. The beauty of this country, both in its land and in its people, is vast and magnificent, and ever present. Every meal we sit down to is an experience in and of itself, as we consume unknown, delicious morsels, struggling to remember the names that Geeta rattles off.
Every member of our group has wonderful traits to bring to our trip and experiences, as well as their own knowledge base, interests, and humor. I'm considering introducing them here in a later chapter perhaps when I know them all better.
~Falling into a pleasant rhythm,
- David
Pre-monsoon is long gone now. As fear of the impending storm rose, we made our way down from 'Rock Hill' (as the mountain spot is now dubbed), the clouds having cheated us out of a sunset. We discussed for awhile our future field projects based on the wealth of new info we had. The goal is for each of us to perform a research project in the area and upon our return, compile them in a professional, scientific manner. Then the notebook can be used by future EVRN-India students to replicate or build from (we are the first; the guinea pigs), creating potential long-term studies.
After dinner our guest arrived, Dr. Ganesh (not the same as from ATREE), an expert botanist and taxonimist. During introductions, the Indian monsoon season kicked in the door and demanded attention. Apparently India wasn't pleased by our scoff at its drizzle Saturday. The wet season had arrived. As we struggled to hear Ganesh over the immense torrent, we pulled out our sweatshirts, ponchos, and umbrellas for the first chilly night. We turned in earlier, trying to sleep to a chorus of frogs, in preparation for another early morning.
During our walks around the hill the next day, we stopped at various viewpoints to see the stunning beauty of India's deciduous tropical forest land and the Ghats shooting up in the distance. As the days press on and the sights, tastes, smells, and experiences become second nature (such as eating with bare right hands and cleaning with the left, gashed though mine may be), I must stress that they never lose their impact. The beauty of this country, both in its land and in its people, is vast and magnificent, and ever present. Every meal we sit down to is an experience in and of itself, as we consume unknown, delicious morsels, struggling to remember the names that Geeta rattles off.
Every member of our group has wonderful traits to bring to our trip and experiences, as well as their own knowledge base, interests, and humor. I'm considering introducing them here in a later chapter perhaps when I know them all better.
~Falling into a pleasant rhythm,
- David
Sunday, May 30th, 2010. - Day 8
15:30 Hrs. Forest Trails, BNP, Karnataka, India.
We decided to go for a bit of bird-watching before our guest, Dr. Krishna, arrived. Armed with binoculars and few bird books we traipsed around pretending to know what we were doing. I truly have a new respect for birders with the skill and patience they must have to retain such a hobby.
While staring through the binocs at nothing in particular, Dr. Krishna arrived. The only way I can think to describe him is as a sixty year old Urkel. In fact I think he solely defined the term 'old geezer'. Nonetheless the man truly is brilliant, with the most profound passion for knowledge I've ever seen. We walked around the area and discussed many a topic, from botany, to behavior, birds, riligion, intelligence, physics, music, monitoring, and so much more. The man truly understood the link between all subjects and matters.
We learned various methods of survey, and even how to trace a leaf rubbing. After a hot day, we turned in early to rest for a very early morning.
We woke up around six in the morning on Saturday to go bird-watching some more. After breakfast with the Doctor, we ventured out once more this time travelling far uphill. A beautiful brown dingo-looking dog had been milling around us for awhile (not that we hadn't encountered many dogs before) and even ran ahead of us on the trail, scouting the way. We made our way with Krishna to the top of the large hill of modified granite to a most beautiful site. The top of the hill was the highest point in the nearby area and allowed a stellar view. Our first sight was the granite quarry on the side of a nearby mountain. It is from here that the booming dynamite blasts that have become a nightly ritual originate from. From there, it is taken and used all over. Granite is everywhere in this place, making it all the more beautiful. As I near the top of the hill, (also capped in granite) the most beautiful sight came into view. Stretching for hundreds of miles in front of us, India's natural beauty reached out to the misty mountains of the Western Ghats in the distance. Scout (the dog had been given a name) led us to a rickety old tower to get a better view. We remained up there for quite some time enjoying the view, until the trumpet of a wild Asian 'elephas maximus' was heard in the valley beneath our feet. The mood instantly shifted as we raced to get down the hill and back to our site before the elephants reached our area.
After bidding farewell to Krishna, we lounged yet again before preparing for the bonfire we had discussed at length. In the process of collecting and breaking firewood, I managed to accquire my first permanent souvenir of India. While breaking a stick, the left side broke and gashed my left hand quite severly. I sit even now with a large piece of gauze taped to my hand. Our next gues, Dr. Arvind, whom you may recall from earlier at ATREE, arrived and began a lecture on monitoring a speicies through the transect method. In addition to an interesting way to gather and analyze diversity, the man was an expert on butterflies and gave many examples of his work with them. Before dinner, we rushed to remove our bonfire preparations, as lightning and thunder was merely a prewview of a twenty minute downpour warning of the monsoons to come. We are definitely seeing more and more cloud cover. Hardly deterred by a brief rain, we enjoyed a decent bonfire anyway, swapping stories late into the night thinking reluctantly about another early start the next day.
Today was data collection and transecting like crazy. Shannon Diversity and Jacard's index, and many other ecological terms later, and we were exhausted. We said bye to Arvind once more and again are enduring the bug-ridden heat of pre-monsoon India. The plan is to return to our 'mountain' spot this evening to watch the sunset and return before our next guest, a botanist I believe, arrives later.
~Already missing family and friends,
- David
We decided to go for a bit of bird-watching before our guest, Dr. Krishna, arrived. Armed with binoculars and few bird books we traipsed around pretending to know what we were doing. I truly have a new respect for birders with the skill and patience they must have to retain such a hobby.
While staring through the binocs at nothing in particular, Dr. Krishna arrived. The only way I can think to describe him is as a sixty year old Urkel. In fact I think he solely defined the term 'old geezer'. Nonetheless the man truly is brilliant, with the most profound passion for knowledge I've ever seen. We walked around the area and discussed many a topic, from botany, to behavior, birds, riligion, intelligence, physics, music, monitoring, and so much more. The man truly understood the link between all subjects and matters.
We learned various methods of survey, and even how to trace a leaf rubbing. After a hot day, we turned in early to rest for a very early morning.
We woke up around six in the morning on Saturday to go bird-watching some more. After breakfast with the Doctor, we ventured out once more this time travelling far uphill. A beautiful brown dingo-looking dog had been milling around us for awhile (not that we hadn't encountered many dogs before) and even ran ahead of us on the trail, scouting the way. We made our way with Krishna to the top of the large hill of modified granite to a most beautiful site. The top of the hill was the highest point in the nearby area and allowed a stellar view. Our first sight was the granite quarry on the side of a nearby mountain. It is from here that the booming dynamite blasts that have become a nightly ritual originate from. From there, it is taken and used all over. Granite is everywhere in this place, making it all the more beautiful. As I near the top of the hill, (also capped in granite) the most beautiful sight came into view. Stretching for hundreds of miles in front of us, India's natural beauty reached out to the misty mountains of the Western Ghats in the distance. Scout (the dog had been given a name) led us to a rickety old tower to get a better view. We remained up there for quite some time enjoying the view, until the trumpet of a wild Asian 'elephas maximus' was heard in the valley beneath our feet. The mood instantly shifted as we raced to get down the hill and back to our site before the elephants reached our area.
After bidding farewell to Krishna, we lounged yet again before preparing for the bonfire we had discussed at length. In the process of collecting and breaking firewood, I managed to accquire my first permanent souvenir of India. While breaking a stick, the left side broke and gashed my left hand quite severly. I sit even now with a large piece of gauze taped to my hand. Our next gues, Dr. Arvind, whom you may recall from earlier at ATREE, arrived and began a lecture on monitoring a speicies through the transect method. In addition to an interesting way to gather and analyze diversity, the man was an expert on butterflies and gave many examples of his work with them. Before dinner, we rushed to remove our bonfire preparations, as lightning and thunder was merely a prewview of a twenty minute downpour warning of the monsoons to come. We are definitely seeing more and more cloud cover. Hardly deterred by a brief rain, we enjoyed a decent bonfire anyway, swapping stories late into the night thinking reluctantly about another early start the next day.
Today was data collection and transecting like crazy. Shannon Diversity and Jacard's index, and many other ecological terms later, and we were exhausted. We said bye to Arvind once more and again are enduring the bug-ridden heat of pre-monsoon India. The plan is to return to our 'mountain' spot this evening to watch the sunset and return before our next guest, a botanist I believe, arrives later.
~Already missing family and friends,
- David
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Friday, May 28th, 2010 - Day 6
15:00 Hours. Forest Trails, BNP, Karnataka, India.
After a breakfast that easily topped UTC, we got back in the van and traveled to Bannerghatta Biological Park. A zoo! Finally, something I could completely identify with. Well..., identify with. The basic setup appeared quite the same and it was certainly a popular attraction. With primarily Indian animals, the zoos population contained what Geeta told us were mostly wild caught animals.
Lions (Asiatic), tigers, chital, sambar, sloth and black bears all appeared to have decent, yet not great accomodations. We took a speedy bus through a safari route and saw many of the afore-mentioned animals in very natural habitat.
The route back was uneventful. Beautiful scenery to be sure, and conversation amongst us that is making most of us start to miss family, friends, pets, and the luxuries of home. But hey, we're about one-sixth of the way done and already have had so many unforgettable memories.
I must continue to return to asking myself why I'm here. Perhpas I'm become less and less sure. Or, perhaps I need not to ponder it in order to figure it out. I have seventy plus days left in Asia so I'm not too concerned quite yet...
During lunch, Geeta shared a number of life stories and stressed the importance of Indian ideals in her life. We are lounging around for much of the afternoon and plan on discussing our studies and guest lecturer who will visit this evening.
~Wandering nature,
-David
After a breakfast that easily topped UTC, we got back in the van and traveled to Bannerghatta Biological Park. A zoo! Finally, something I could completely identify with. Well..., identify with. The basic setup appeared quite the same and it was certainly a popular attraction. With primarily Indian animals, the zoos population contained what Geeta told us were mostly wild caught animals.
Lions (Asiatic), tigers, chital, sambar, sloth and black bears all appeared to have decent, yet not great accomodations. We took a speedy bus through a safari route and saw many of the afore-mentioned animals in very natural habitat.
The route back was uneventful. Beautiful scenery to be sure, and conversation amongst us that is making most of us start to miss family, friends, pets, and the luxuries of home. But hey, we're about one-sixth of the way done and already have had so many unforgettable memories.
I must continue to return to asking myself why I'm here. Perhpas I'm become less and less sure. Or, perhaps I need not to ponder it in order to figure it out. I have seventy plus days left in Asia so I'm not too concerned quite yet...
During lunch, Geeta shared a number of life stories and stressed the importance of Indian ideals in her life. We are lounging around for much of the afternoon and plan on discussing our studies and guest lecturer who will visit this evening.
~Wandering nature,
-David
Thursday, May 27th, 2010 - Day 5
21:41 Hrs. Forest Trails, Bannerghatta National Park, India.
I couldn't begin to describe this day on this page and do it justice. It was a day I will most certainly never forget.
Our day was to start early this morning and a few of us were delaying breakfast in order to help load the van with our stuff. I waited on the steps of the ERCF guest house as many new Indian arrivals relaxed outside. With them were many children, mostly boys, probably ages 6-13. All smiling and grinning at me as I sat there, I called a young boy over and offered my hand. He shook it gently. His older brother (I assume) did the same. I would later discover that handshakes are meant to be a very gentle thing in India. As a few more boys gathered around, I managed to teach them how to do a high five, with a bunch of 'too slows' mixed in. The boys then proceeded to identify my as Peter Parker, Spiderman. Apparently this is how Indians perceived the Tobey Maguire movies.
As the news passed around the camp that Spiderman was present, I received more and more grins and episodes of laughter, from adults and children alike.
The bus arrived and as we began hauling bags there, the boys became unsatisfied with one handshake, or one high five. Eventually I got roped into a few pictures, including one posing as the web spinner, as well as a few 'autographs' on notecards. When all was said and done, the van was loaded and I had some new penpals...
Our first stop of the day was quite literally in the middle of nowhere. We walked a little ways and arrived at the cusp of a dam. To our left, a beautiful reservoir with a gorgeous background. To our right, as the water poured over the dam, solid, frothy white soap appeared to form like a bathtub filled with far too many bubbles. Pollution. All from Bangalore city, and all serving as the surrouding villages' drinking and irrigiation water. We stood for awhile as our guide Kavitha explained the situation. Skanda, the masters student elaborated that the people knew the water was bad, but were unaware of any means to solve it, or even who to complain to.
We continued on and stopped next at a small rural village. (I think it's safe to say Bangalore with it's lighhts, traffic, and pollution was behind us.) This village had tremendous evidence of the caste system alive and well in India. We had been earlier in the day to an ATREE field station briefly where Kavitha discussed the geopgraphy of the surrounding Bannerghatta National Park, Bilikal Reserve Forest, and Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary areas. The whole stretch is now the remnants of a once much wider slephant corridor. We also learned about ATREE's research work in the field, examining demographics and making communities aware of their environment. The village we were now at had large woven panels similar to the concentric circle ball game at many arcades. Inside each level, were many large white silk worms, hard at work crafting cocoons for their hibernation. The cocoons will eventually be boiled, and the silk extracted for weaving.
Our next stop would be at another piece of ATREE land, used for agriculture (sustainable and efficient) for the adjoining village. Trekking down below the plot's bund, we sought shade under a very large tamarind tree (sucking the hydrating sour leaves) and began assisting the locals in preparing day's lunch. Cucumbers, nan, pickle, sambar, rice, curds, Ragi (millet) balls (at which I tried a hand at making myself) were all prepared over an open fire we made ourselves. While lunch cooked, I and a few others got pulled into a game in the field by the kids that had gathered. With everybody in a line facing opposite directions, it is essentially a game of tag, meets a game of duck, duck, goose. After a delicious meal, the freshest of it's kind, and a fairly successful attempt to teach these kids OUR duck, duck, goose as well as many pictures (at the children's request), we climbed the bund and were taught and showed the manual plow and growing process used in most rural villages. And of course, each tried a row ourselves, including Lisa and Geeta! If that doesn't get us on the cover of the KU website, I don't know what would. Exhausted after a 'hard day's work' cooking and farming, we loaded back up and returned to the field station for a short rest. Well that was the plan anyway. The roads became far more narrow in the country and a large bus was headed our way...We began to pull over the the left (that's where they drive) but apparently not slow enough. A flat. Out of the van everybody. Fortunately we had a spare and Ramu went right to work replacing it.
After our rest, we continued through granite country for over an hour, through the national park, to the forest trails campground. This place knocks the socks off of UTC, no offense. Permanent tents in a circle, western toilets with TP, and incredibly delicious food (can you say mango puree?), we are falling asleep under a full moon and bright starry sky far from the pollution of Bangalore. After some adventures trying to ride some random horses meandering around and a violent game of cabardi with Ramu (the odds seemed stacked in his favor) of course...
~Enjoying the night air,
-David
I couldn't begin to describe this day on this page and do it justice. It was a day I will most certainly never forget.
Our day was to start early this morning and a few of us were delaying breakfast in order to help load the van with our stuff. I waited on the steps of the ERCF guest house as many new Indian arrivals relaxed outside. With them were many children, mostly boys, probably ages 6-13. All smiling and grinning at me as I sat there, I called a young boy over and offered my hand. He shook it gently. His older brother (I assume) did the same. I would later discover that handshakes are meant to be a very gentle thing in India. As a few more boys gathered around, I managed to teach them how to do a high five, with a bunch of 'too slows' mixed in. The boys then proceeded to identify my as Peter Parker, Spiderman. Apparently this is how Indians perceived the Tobey Maguire movies.
As the news passed around the camp that Spiderman was present, I received more and more grins and episodes of laughter, from adults and children alike.
The bus arrived and as we began hauling bags there, the boys became unsatisfied with one handshake, or one high five. Eventually I got roped into a few pictures, including one posing as the web spinner, as well as a few 'autographs' on notecards. When all was said and done, the van was loaded and I had some new penpals...
Our first stop of the day was quite literally in the middle of nowhere. We walked a little ways and arrived at the cusp of a dam. To our left, a beautiful reservoir with a gorgeous background. To our right, as the water poured over the dam, solid, frothy white soap appeared to form like a bathtub filled with far too many bubbles. Pollution. All from Bangalore city, and all serving as the surrouding villages' drinking and irrigiation water. We stood for awhile as our guide Kavitha explained the situation. Skanda, the masters student elaborated that the people knew the water was bad, but were unaware of any means to solve it, or even who to complain to.
We continued on and stopped next at a small rural village. (I think it's safe to say Bangalore with it's lighhts, traffic, and pollution was behind us.) This village had tremendous evidence of the caste system alive and well in India. We had been earlier in the day to an ATREE field station briefly where Kavitha discussed the geopgraphy of the surrounding Bannerghatta National Park, Bilikal Reserve Forest, and Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary areas. The whole stretch is now the remnants of a once much wider slephant corridor. We also learned about ATREE's research work in the field, examining demographics and making communities aware of their environment. The village we were now at had large woven panels similar to the concentric circle ball game at many arcades. Inside each level, were many large white silk worms, hard at work crafting cocoons for their hibernation. The cocoons will eventually be boiled, and the silk extracted for weaving.
Our next stop would be at another piece of ATREE land, used for agriculture (sustainable and efficient) for the adjoining village. Trekking down below the plot's bund, we sought shade under a very large tamarind tree (sucking the hydrating sour leaves) and began assisting the locals in preparing day's lunch. Cucumbers, nan, pickle, sambar, rice, curds, Ragi (millet) balls (at which I tried a hand at making myself) were all prepared over an open fire we made ourselves. While lunch cooked, I and a few others got pulled into a game in the field by the kids that had gathered. With everybody in a line facing opposite directions, it is essentially a game of tag, meets a game of duck, duck, goose. After a delicious meal, the freshest of it's kind, and a fairly successful attempt to teach these kids OUR duck, duck, goose as well as many pictures (at the children's request), we climbed the bund and were taught and showed the manual plow and growing process used in most rural villages. And of course, each tried a row ourselves, including Lisa and Geeta! If that doesn't get us on the cover of the KU website, I don't know what would. Exhausted after a 'hard day's work' cooking and farming, we loaded back up and returned to the field station for a short rest. Well that was the plan anyway. The roads became far more narrow in the country and a large bus was headed our way...We began to pull over the the left (that's where they drive) but apparently not slow enough. A flat. Out of the van everybody. Fortunately we had a spare and Ramu went right to work replacing it.
After our rest, we continued through granite country for over an hour, through the national park, to the forest trails campground. This place knocks the socks off of UTC, no offense. Permanent tents in a circle, western toilets with TP, and incredibly delicious food (can you say mango puree?), we are falling asleep under a full moon and bright starry sky far from the pollution of Bangalore. After some adventures trying to ride some random horses meandering around and a violent game of cabardi with Ramu (the odds seemed stacked in his favor) of course...
~Enjoying the night air,
-David
Wednesday, May 26th 2010 - Day 4
22:00 Hrs. Bengaluru, India.
The avid travel bug many of us had upon arriving is slowly wearing down. I certainly wouldn't say culture shock quite yet by any means. We are still abosrbing everything we can, food included. Jet lag, and our 'hit-the-ground-running' itinerary however has started catching up to us. Today we were to return to ATREE for three lectures and lunch followed by some shopping. So where we were given a much needed physical break, our brain capacity was stretched like maternity clothes...
Another employee at ATREE, Harisha, and his wife and 9-month old son, Himanshu, joined us this morning for breakfast at UTC. Many pictures were taken of the chubby youngster with light-up shoes. We were told Harisha had invited us to the naming ceremoney of Himanshu (an elaborate event in India), but as you can tell we missed it by about a week. It's too bad Geeta didn't use it as an excuse to get us out of exams last semeseter. They have also invited us to their home when we visit the MM Hills later next month. A truly compassionate and generious family, like so many others we've met already.
Today we trekked (took our bus, with our old driver and new friend Ramu) back to ATREE for a series of three lectures. I'd like to mention that Bangalore's roads are practically all main roads with walls on the side much like Mexico City. Many of the walls however have beautiful elaborate art of images and symbols of primarily India, but all over the world as well. From wildlife to landmarks and national symbols, to multi-colored, multi-limbed deities, the city's roads are incredibly decorated.
Our first lecture at ATREE was by a man named Arvind and covered the NGO itself. Mission and goals as well as research and education. The next covered some of the types of research work they do, particularly the pollination work of our lecturer, Dr. Ganesha. After a brief lunch, we returned to the classroom to meet the director of ATREE. The man was a brilliant, well-traveled humourous gentelman with excellent English. He sat down and asked us (11 + Lisa) to introduce ourselves! He continued to ask questions: where we were going, what we were studying, our upbringings, our reactions to India. Next he told us a little about the ways ATREE works to go green, particularly architecturally. Eventually it morphed from question and answer to an open dialog about environmental issues in India and their methods all in comparision to other nations.
Next we were asked to return to the terrace four floors up (where we've been eating) and write our first essay summarizing what we'd learned. After racking my brain, and finishing the schoolwork, I sat on a seat on the edge of the terrace and stared at the city sprawled out on a hill in the distance. Being back in the rural village, so high up, staring at this third-world city, I'd never felt so on top of the world, yet so miniscule at the same time. So many people, so different from others, yet struggling for the same thing as everyone else, survival.
Why am I on this trip? It seems I've forgotton. I squish on the floor aisle of the van between two seats as we leave since we're taking a few extra people (India-sardine can style of Geeta says). We stop in a market and half of us go shopping while the rest of us go to a cyber cafe. Waiting for the others to finish on the computer, we soak in our last evening in Bangalore until the end of June at the end of this program. We head out to the field, the forests of Southern India early tomorrow.
~Walking on, and following blindly,
-David
The avid travel bug many of us had upon arriving is slowly wearing down. I certainly wouldn't say culture shock quite yet by any means. We are still abosrbing everything we can, food included. Jet lag, and our 'hit-the-ground-running' itinerary however has started catching up to us. Today we were to return to ATREE for three lectures and lunch followed by some shopping. So where we were given a much needed physical break, our brain capacity was stretched like maternity clothes...
Another employee at ATREE, Harisha, and his wife and 9-month old son, Himanshu, joined us this morning for breakfast at UTC. Many pictures were taken of the chubby youngster with light-up shoes. We were told Harisha had invited us to the naming ceremoney of Himanshu (an elaborate event in India), but as you can tell we missed it by about a week. It's too bad Geeta didn't use it as an excuse to get us out of exams last semeseter. They have also invited us to their home when we visit the MM Hills later next month. A truly compassionate and generious family, like so many others we've met already.
Today we trekked (took our bus, with our old driver and new friend Ramu) back to ATREE for a series of three lectures. I'd like to mention that Bangalore's roads are practically all main roads with walls on the side much like Mexico City. Many of the walls however have beautiful elaborate art of images and symbols of primarily India, but all over the world as well. From wildlife to landmarks and national symbols, to multi-colored, multi-limbed deities, the city's roads are incredibly decorated.
Our first lecture at ATREE was by a man named Arvind and covered the NGO itself. Mission and goals as well as research and education. The next covered some of the types of research work they do, particularly the pollination work of our lecturer, Dr. Ganesha. After a brief lunch, we returned to the classroom to meet the director of ATREE. The man was a brilliant, well-traveled humourous gentelman with excellent English. He sat down and asked us (11 + Lisa) to introduce ourselves! He continued to ask questions: where we were going, what we were studying, our upbringings, our reactions to India. Next he told us a little about the ways ATREE works to go green, particularly architecturally. Eventually it morphed from question and answer to an open dialog about environmental issues in India and their methods all in comparision to other nations.
Next we were asked to return to the terrace four floors up (where we've been eating) and write our first essay summarizing what we'd learned. After racking my brain, and finishing the schoolwork, I sat on a seat on the edge of the terrace and stared at the city sprawled out on a hill in the distance. Being back in the rural village, so high up, staring at this third-world city, I'd never felt so on top of the world, yet so miniscule at the same time. So many people, so different from others, yet struggling for the same thing as everyone else, survival.
Why am I on this trip? It seems I've forgotton. I squish on the floor aisle of the van between two seats as we leave since we're taking a few extra people (India-sardine can style of Geeta says). We stop in a market and half of us go shopping while the rest of us go to a cyber cafe. Waiting for the others to finish on the computer, we soak in our last evening in Bangalore until the end of June at the end of this program. We head out to the field, the forests of Southern India early tomorrow.
~Walking on, and following blindly,
-David
Tuesday, May 25th, 2010 - Day 3
23:00 Hrs. Bengaluru, India.
Where to begin? This day was filled to the brim with India. Around six-thirty this morning, most of us gathered outside the Ecumenical Resource Center (ERC) guest house where we are staying to be taught Sun Salutation yoga by one of our fellow classmates who offered. Deepak, our resident group Indian (besides Geeta of course)is from the US but his parents are from Hyderabad and he's traveled all around southern India a few times. After an exhausting workout, from which I'm still sore, we sat down to yet another delicious breakfast.
Next we were joined by Skanda, the masters student who was with us at the University, and a bus. We headed to a local market area to do a little shopping. There was nothing little about it. Still more masses of people, chaos (organized though it may be), and many of us got lost multiple times. Geeta bought us all some very delicious peanut brittle and somehow I ended up with a large chunk nobody else wanted. While the rest waited at some store, I jaunted across the street, (my life flashing before with the traffic) and tried to hand the rest to a small boy sitting on a table with a few elderly women working with fabric. The boy didn't seem to understand I was offering it, and shook his head. After some exuberant persuading from the women, the young lad finally understood it was food, and happily took it from me.
On another occassion three women in beautiful sarees and crouching on the sidewalk staring at us (who wouldn't?) seemed to be enjoying our presence. Their grins grew as I snapped their picture. After many purchases and hours, we boarded the bus for ATREE and lunch.
The Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, or ATREE, is a major NGO in Bangalore working for conservation. Their office is located outside of Bangalore city proper, in a very colorful rural community. Lunch was had on the roof terrace with a stunningly beautiful view of the city in the distance with its ever present layer of smog hovering just above the city. Another delicious lunch was made for us as we sat on the roof at the level of the palm/coconut tree tops and their raven-looking inhabitants greedily eyeing our lunch. We had a bit of time before our lecture so Kavitah, an amazing employee at ATREE and new friend of ours (long-time friend of Geetajee) and wife of Dr. Nagaraja, the asst. professor who guided us at the University Bio park, suggested we walk to get coffee.
As we left the office gate, our lecturer, Dr. Josingh, a celebrity of sorts, arrived and joined us. All of us instantly became star-struck. Here was the man who had mentored our mentor, who's articles and book we had read in preparation for this trip, and who was a leading scientist in environmental studies and the expert on conservation in India. So we walked to a small shop in the village and had tea and coffee at the counter.
Most of the village was out and about carrying on with daily activities. One young girl, in a beautiful red dress, was dancing by as a dog pranced at her heels. She went into a small shelter and returned with her mother who began fixing her up. I walked over the them and as they smiled politely, I asked if I could take their picture. Both ladies smiled and the woman began fixing up her daughter (who couldn't have been more than seven)for the picture. As I snapped the picture, showed it to them, and began walking away, the dog came running out of the house and barking at my heels aggressively as I walked back up the hill, clearly upset that I had done something demonic to his young companion.
Our two-hour lecture with Dr. Josingh followed and while I shall save the details of its contents for my academic notbeook, I will say that his lecture was enthusiastic and knowledge-filled. A truly brilliant man who we were very lucky to have with us.
Afterwards, we bid farewell to all the afore-mentioned, (they'll pop up again in later chapters...) and returned to our dorms for a short rest. After pulling ourselves together, we ventures out on a VERY LONG walk to dinner. We traveled through much of downtown Bangalore, barreled through markets, high-rises, a predominantly Muslim Quarter, and some extreme child-hagglers, I got labeled as Peter Parker (Spiderman) by a shopkeeper and his son, and arrived at a delicious high class, Pan-Asian meal. Tomorrow we are returning to ATREE and later do some collaborative work with each other to clarify this new wealth of info.
~Miserably full on amazingly delcious food, Nan, and a few banana milkshakes,
-David
Where to begin? This day was filled to the brim with India. Around six-thirty this morning, most of us gathered outside the Ecumenical Resource Center (ERC) guest house where we are staying to be taught Sun Salutation yoga by one of our fellow classmates who offered. Deepak, our resident group Indian (besides Geeta of course)is from the US but his parents are from Hyderabad and he's traveled all around southern India a few times. After an exhausting workout, from which I'm still sore, we sat down to yet another delicious breakfast.
Next we were joined by Skanda, the masters student who was with us at the University, and a bus. We headed to a local market area to do a little shopping. There was nothing little about it. Still more masses of people, chaos (organized though it may be), and many of us got lost multiple times. Geeta bought us all some very delicious peanut brittle and somehow I ended up with a large chunk nobody else wanted. While the rest waited at some store, I jaunted across the street, (my life flashing before with the traffic) and tried to hand the rest to a small boy sitting on a table with a few elderly women working with fabric. The boy didn't seem to understand I was offering it, and shook his head. After some exuberant persuading from the women, the young lad finally understood it was food, and happily took it from me.
On another occassion three women in beautiful sarees and crouching on the sidewalk staring at us (who wouldn't?) seemed to be enjoying our presence. Their grins grew as I snapped their picture. After many purchases and hours, we boarded the bus for ATREE and lunch.
The Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, or ATREE, is a major NGO in Bangalore working for conservation. Their office is located outside of Bangalore city proper, in a very colorful rural community. Lunch was had on the roof terrace with a stunningly beautiful view of the city in the distance with its ever present layer of smog hovering just above the city. Another delicious lunch was made for us as we sat on the roof at the level of the palm/coconut tree tops and their raven-looking inhabitants greedily eyeing our lunch. We had a bit of time before our lecture so Kavitah, an amazing employee at ATREE and new friend of ours (long-time friend of Geetajee) and wife of Dr. Nagaraja, the asst. professor who guided us at the University Bio park, suggested we walk to get coffee.
As we left the office gate, our lecturer, Dr. Josingh, a celebrity of sorts, arrived and joined us. All of us instantly became star-struck. Here was the man who had mentored our mentor, who's articles and book we had read in preparation for this trip, and who was a leading scientist in environmental studies and the expert on conservation in India. So we walked to a small shop in the village and had tea and coffee at the counter.
Most of the village was out and about carrying on with daily activities. One young girl, in a beautiful red dress, was dancing by as a dog pranced at her heels. She went into a small shelter and returned with her mother who began fixing her up. I walked over the them and as they smiled politely, I asked if I could take their picture. Both ladies smiled and the woman began fixing up her daughter (who couldn't have been more than seven)for the picture. As I snapped the picture, showed it to them, and began walking away, the dog came running out of the house and barking at my heels aggressively as I walked back up the hill, clearly upset that I had done something demonic to his young companion.
Our two-hour lecture with Dr. Josingh followed and while I shall save the details of its contents for my academic notbeook, I will say that his lecture was enthusiastic and knowledge-filled. A truly brilliant man who we were very lucky to have with us.
Afterwards, we bid farewell to all the afore-mentioned, (they'll pop up again in later chapters...) and returned to our dorms for a short rest. After pulling ourselves together, we ventures out on a VERY LONG walk to dinner. We traveled through much of downtown Bangalore, barreled through markets, high-rises, a predominantly Muslim Quarter, and some extreme child-hagglers, I got labeled as Peter Parker (Spiderman) by a shopkeeper and his son, and arrived at a delicious high class, Pan-Asian meal. Tomorrow we are returning to ATREE and later do some collaborative work with each other to clarify this new wealth of info.
~Miserably full on amazingly delcious food, Nan, and a few banana milkshakes,
-David
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)