Friday, 25 January - 7:00 AM

Okay - yesterday was one of the coolest days ever. We met up around 9:30 at Shoba's house (Elizabeth's host, the one who founded the women's Rotary club.) She's pretty much the Indian version of Oprah Winfrey.

First of all, she started a pre-school out of her home many years ago. The first class consisted of her own two kids and two others. The school has since evolved into a pre-K through grade 12 school on an 8-acre campus, complete with an olympic-size swimming pool.

We spent the first half of the day at the school. We watched the kids assemble on the playground, and each class did a brief presentation of what they will be performing during tomorrow's Republic Day celebration. We all introduced ourselves in front of the 600+ kids and I even got to blow a few "notes" (I use the term very loosely) on a bugle.


Assembly of many kids!

After touring the classrooms and seeing some of the activities, we sat with Shoba in her office. Over her desk hung a large photograph of a man, and attached to the frame was a floral garland. The man in the photograph was Shoba's father-in-law and she explained that it was because of him that the school came to be.



When a woman marries in India, she moves in with the husband and his parents. And most women do not work outside the home - especially not women whose husbands have money. But Shoba's father-in-law said that as long as she did something good for people, he would support her decision to be a working woman. She named the school after him.

In addition to the school, Shoba also started a computer class program out of a part of her house. She offers a 3-month course in Microsoft Office and other programs to "economically backward" people [poor] so that they can learn skills that make them valuable to employers. There are twelve hour-long classes each day, and as soon as one session ends, a new one begins.



Oh, and the most amazing part? THE CLASSES ARE ABSOLUTELY FREE!! Shoba and her husband fronted the money for the computers and the software, and the salaries of the teachers are paid by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Unbelievable. This woman is a dynamo.



Later in the afternoon, we drove back up to the Panhala hill station. This time it was still light out so we could see more of the fort. I got to sit in a cave that a monk lived in 3,000 years ago!


"Hello..? Anybody home..?"


Oooohhhhhmmmmm.........

Around 7:30 PM, we met up with some friends of Shoba's who were attending a course in The Art of Living. They were in the midst of a Level 3 course and had taken a vow of silence. Somehow Shoba arranged for us to have a semi-private audience with the Guru who is like Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's second-in-command.

This guy embodied peace and happiness. You could actually feel the energy of the room change when he walked in, and standing next to him was like standing next to a power plant! We each got to ask him a few questions. I asked, "How do I fill the void? How do I make the longing, seeking feeling go away?"

And the gist of his response was that the most important things in life are love and responsibility.



When the Guru left, a guy came up to me and said, "You had a great honor tonight. You must have done something very good in this life or in a past life, because it is very rare for the Guru to speak one-on-one with people like this. Remember this night."

That really got me thinking. It's all so strange how my trip to India came about. I truly believe I was meant to come here and to have these experiences. The sabbatical - it happened to bring me here. I feel like I have a new light down my path. A better understanding of my dharma... of what is meant for me.

We joined the hundreds of devotees in this huge tent where we all danced around like crazy freaks. Complete strangers were warm and welcoming, and I felt safe and open. It was a high no drug could induce. Then the Guru came in to speak to the crowd. Two young Indian women translated his message to English for me. He spoke of the three elements essential to a good life:

1) Meditation
2) Service
3) Truth

We finally got back to our hosts in Kolhapur around 10:30 PM. My host had saved dinner for me and we sat around chatting. I kind of slept in fits and bits - too excited from all I had experienced that day. It's okay though, we have a long travel day today so I can catch up on some rest. We're meeting at 9:30 today and leaving for Bijapur. I think there are some stops along the way.



Kolhapur was amazing.

Thursday, 24 January - 7:00 AM

I've been waking up on my own at 7:00 pretty much every day. I'd been using my cell phone as an alarm clock, but I had to turn it off because every few minutes, it was alerting me that I have new voicemail. Which I can't retrieve because I don't have international service. So I hope it's not an emergency.

We're scheduled to visit a school this morning and a jaggery factory later in the day. We're also supposed to hear a little bit about Sri Ravishankar's "Art of Living." No, not Ravi Shankar the sitar playing-father of Norah Jones. Apparently there is more than one Ravi Shankar in the world.

I miss yoga. I think my body is enjoying the break from running, but I do wish I could get a little more exercise on this trip. I really only went for one walk and that was back in Belgaum. It will feel good to get back to the Y and back to my Bikram classes.

Alright. I need to shower.

Wednesday, 23 January - 7:00 AM

I'm inside a mosquito net!



When I got home last night, I found my hosts had put one up over my bed. It totally helped and also put my mind at ease so I could get a full night's sleep. It's these little things that bring me such joy!

Yesterday was another fine day. We left around 10:00 AM for a town called Ichalkaranji (itch-al-ka-ron-jee) where they welcomed us with beautiful floral garlands.

The first Rotary project we visited was a mobile medical clinic that provides free medical care to nineteen rural villages each week. We went to one of the villages and got to see it in action. What an amazing, beautiful project. Every day I am more amazed to see what the Rotary clubs do in this country.





From there we visited yet another textile factory. I've finally figured out that our days consist of one or more of the following three activities:

1) Visiting Rotary projects
2) Visiting vocational workplaces of Rotarians
3) Visiting temples

Sometimes we do all of these things in one day. And it seems that wherever we go, people give us tea and biscuits. I gotta say, I loves me some Indian tea. They make it with a spicy tea powder and boiled water and/or milk. I definitely wanna bring some home with me.

Our next stop after the textile factory was to a Rotary Colony. It's a small colony of 25 2-room housing units provided to poor families for a very, VERY minimal cost. Like... pennies. We got to go inside one of the houses. The woman and her kids who lived there looked so happy. And she offered us tea.





And after the trip to the housing colony - visiting the poorest of the poor - our hosts took us to a fancy restaurant for an amazing lunch. It was quite an odd contrast. It's actually pretty weird how the rich and poor live so closely amongst one another here.

After lunch we visited a really cool Jain ashram and got to witness a ceremony where a band played and people kept dumping pots of different colored liquids all over the giant statue of the deity. Even though our guide tried to translate what one of the monks was saying, I still really didn't get what was going on.


Jain temple ceremony.

Next we visited ANOTHER textile factory (Okay I get it!! Enough with the cotton already!!) Here's when I began to get a little cranky. It was hot and humid inside, and little bits of cotton were clinging to our clothes and going up our noses.


No more textile factories!!

Finally we ended up at a Rotary school for the deaf. This was pretty amazing. They build and maintain a school for a population of poor, deaf children. How else would these kids ever get a chance in life? The school is free and teaches them sign language, speech, art and all kinds of other classes. And the kids get a full meal each day which is something they may not be getting at home. We got to meet the kids and they were so excited to see us, and all wanted to shake our hands!

Afterwards, we took a small rest at one of the Rotarian's huge mansion before heading back to the Rotary hall to give our presentation. They had a dinner for us at a restaurant around 10:00 PM and then we headed home (to my mosquito net!!)

Today should be an easier day. We're meeting around 9:00 AM to go sight-seeing, but then have time off in the afternoon. Hopefully I can do some shopping with my host's wife. Kolhapur is supposedly famous for its chappals, and I also need to pick up a new suitcase for all the stuff I've acquired.

I've been here for ten days. Sometimes it feels like I just got here - sometimes it feels as if I've been here all along. India keeps teaching me lesson after lesson: patience, humility, tolerance... but most of all gratitude. I am not who I was when I left New Jersey. And for that, I am glad.

Tuesday, 22 January - 7:30 AM

OMFG. Yesterday was absolutely insane. We spent the day in a town called Sangli. Our schedule was jam-packed from 9 AM until midnight. In truth, I can barely remember all we did, but I'll give it a try...

1) Sangli Rotary Club - We saw their "health club" and the Jaipur Foot project wherein they provide free prosthetic feet and legs to people who need them.








Rotary gives four new people the ability to walk.

2) After that we took another hospital tour.


Great statue outside of the hospital.

3) Lunch at a vineyard owned by a Rotarian. Wine was provided, and now I know why Indians are not famous for their wine.


Bad, bad Indian wine.

4) Tour of afore-mentioned vineyard and winery.


Tasty Sangli grapes!


Bernie has a way with women and wine.

5) Tour of a Rotarian's textile factory, followed by tea.

6) Tour of another Rotarian's raisin factory (Sangli is known for its grapes) followed by another tea.


Lots and lots of raisins in cold storage.

7) Presentation outside the Sangli Rotary Club, followed by a cultural dance performance and a light dinner at 10:00 PM.

We finally got back to Kolhapur around 11:30 PM, but the guy who was driving me back to my host's house got lost. Then he seemed to get mad at me because I couldn't remember which house it was. Um... okay.

Today's schedule looks like a repeat of yesterday's. It seems that every Rotary club we land in wants to show us EVERYTHING! about their town and projects. It's a little exhausting. I think I would feel a lot better if it weren't for these damn mosquito bites.

But I'm trying to view it all as a lesson in tolerance and gratitude. I'm lucky because in a few short weeks, I will be on a plane back to my über-comfy life in my developed country. With both feet in tact. So for me, this discomfort is temporary. For others, not so much.

Monday, 21 January - 6:00 AM

Just woke up. Had a very good night's sleep. Last night my host showed me this plug-in thing that keeps away mosquitos and I apparently had not turned it on the previous night. Live and learn.

I attended a music program last night at 6:00. Rajiv's host had organized a sitar, violin and tabla player and they performed some classical music - a raga - in his living room for just a handful of us. It was really cool! And this guy's apartment was like a museum - all kinds of art all over the walls. Very, very cool.




Sitar player.


Tabla player.


Rajiv's host is the guy on the left with the gray hair.
This is his museum-esque living room.

From there I met up with Rajiv and Elizabeth and we were taken to a Rotary family get-together about 30 miles away at Panhala hill station. There were tons of people there, musicians and a whole lot of food. I tried my first paan and am still not sure what the fuss is all about. People in India sure do seem to like their paan.

I met one of the Rotary past-presidents last night and - as God as my witness - this guy was the spitting image of my late cousin, Julius. He looked, sounded, and acted exactly like him. In fact, I have found that so many people here remind me of people I know back home. I guess Carl Jung was right about archetypes.

I must say that my digestive system has probably been the best it has been in years. I am thinking it's because I am only eating whole, vegetarian food, fruits and a lot of water. I've also had no artificial sweeteners (which means no gum either, and I am a self-proclaimed "chain chewer!")

I just had a shower and then bathed myself in Deet. I am being eaten alive here -- I even have a mosquito bite on my eyelid. Today we're traveling to a town called Sangli and I think we'll be gone until evening. I feel like I haven't even seen my host family here. I feel kind of bad because they have been so nice to me - letting me stay in a big, clean room; feeding me; taking care of my laundry...

I find that every now and then I get these pangs of missing home. Most of the time we are so busy that I don't get a chance to be sad. But last night at the get-together, I felt kind of lonely - even though there were well over 200 people there. I suppose I should get up now and start the day.

Namaste.

Sunday, 20 January - 4:00 PM

Just got in from a fairly busy day. I had breakfast with my host family (corn flakes & banana, but they pour warm milk over it -- and it rocks!!) We met up at Bernie's hosts' around 9:00 AM. From there we went to see a martial arts demonstration which was pretty cool.


Little kids with weapons... never a good idea.



Afterwards, we went to a museum to see an outdoor arts festival. One of the artists drew everything upside-down. He did a drawing of Chhatrapati Shivaji Raje Bhosle, founder of the Maharashtran empire and gave it to me. Pretty cool souvenir! We also walked around in the museum itself.






The dude draws upside-down.

I'm back at my host's again, but only for a little bit. I'm scheduled to go hear a musical program at the home of Rajiv's host. Rajiv and Elizabeth are going to see some cultural dance program, and Bernie is going off on some jungle safari. Misty has come down with some bad bronchitis and is staying in to get some rest.

The host family I'm staying with is very quiet. They have two small kids and they don't seem to talk at all. I think maybe they're shy because at breakfast Vikram said, "Maybe we should have guests more often -- I'm enjoying these quiet meals!" Vikram's brother and his wife live in the house next door with their two daughters, and they are in the process of building a third house on the property for Vikram's mom and dad.

Sunday, 20 January - 7:00 AM

Morning here in Kolhapur. I slept pretty good for a couple hours but there was this horribly annoying mosquito that kept buzzing around my head. I had no idea that mosquitos made noise. But this morning I look like I have the chicken pox -- bites all over my head and face.

I've started reading a book that I picked up at the ashram called, "The Sayings of Sri Ramakrishna."

Last night's presentation was at an outdoor restaurant. It went pretty well except that the power kept going out. That's actually a big problem here in India - there is a limited amount of power and electricity so in some towns, the power goes out for a few hours every day. Chalk it up to another one of those little things that we in the U.S. take for granted.

I met Elizabeth's host, Shoba, who founded her own womens-only Rotary club. Women are allowed to be in Rotary here, and there are some who choose to do so. But the majority of the wives belong to the "Inner Wheel" which is kind of like a ladies' auxiliary club. I'm not sure if there are Inner Wheels in the U.S.


Women's Rotary Club of Kolhapur.

Shoba started the womens-only club to meet the needs of professional Indian women who have to balance their careers and household responsibilities. It's actually a great idea and the club members are all really great. I had the chance to sit and chat with a bunch of them last night and I think we are planning to spend the afternoon with them today.

I have a confession to make. I did a pretty crappy thing yesterday in the car on the way from Belgaum to Kolhapur. Rajiv called Wolf and, in his best Indian accent, told him I was leaving him for an Indian man. Even as it was going on, I knew it was mean. And now my heart hurts because I know that I hurt him. And I'm halfway across the world and cannot apologize properly. I hope he can feel my remorse. I hope he knows how much I love him and how it hurts me to know that I've hurt him.