Good Morning from Udaipur

Namaste,

Today is the day we leave Udaipur for Ahemdabad in Gujarat. Hermant, a servant in our host family's home, just brought chai to the room. Chai is tea that is flavored with masala, or spices (mostly black pepper), and is prepared with cream and sugar. Hermant (spelling?) is probably 16 or 17 years old and is a great help in the household. He likes making chai and practicing his English. I showed him my small photo album the other day and he liked looking at pictures of Mobile, St. Paul's, All Saints, and especially Sugar, my English bull dog. According to our host mother, Hermant wants to visit the US someday and I hope he'll be able to do that.

Another servant in the household is Ishwer. He seems to be in his early twenties and is very helpful in the kitchen. His main job for Team India has been to serve as our driver and escort around and about Udaipur. He's mastered the skill (art?) of the traffic pick and roll (see previous post for explanation), and also melodious honking. He does not speak much English other than phrases such as "Hello" and "you're welcome." But, as I noticed in Japan and am noticing again in India, clear communication can occur without words. Last night is a good example. The Rotary meeting ran longer than expected. We were due back at the house at 10:30 PM and did not get in until close to midnight. Ishwer had driven us to the meeting and had waited the entire time for it to finish, per his instructions. As we're heading home, his cell phone rings. Both Will and I knew it was our host family calling to find out where we were. So after the first ring we both mumbled something like "um hm" meaning "we know who's calling." Clearly, Ishwer knew what we meant because he started laughing and, it was indeed the host father because Ishwer uttered another English phrase "yah, yah! We're on our way."

Another feature of Indian culture that is noteworthy for the folks back home is the hospitality. I could go on and on about how Team India has been treated like kings, how kind and generous our host family has been, how attentive the Rotarians in this district have been. But a short vignette again involving Ishwer makes the point. The other day, he was charged with driving Will and me to a morning Team India meeting. As we sat in the comfortably air conditioned car, the sounds of Bob Dylan piped through the speakers. We think Ishwer purposely chose English language music for our enjoyment and benefit. That's hospitality. Enough for now, time for breakfast. So long, PW