back

we arrived back in mumbai early this morning. i feel like ive been away for months, not days. the timing of so many events in the past two weeks has been eerily uncanny.
the city, at least in the north, is quiet and much calmer than i remember. it was raining when we landed. there is a tension in the air, but things are moving. armed police are present, all around the airport and train stations, which is a relief.
it feels good to be back for now. im not sure i can begin to read the papers yet, and its nice to be without the television news that replaced sleep for the last three nights.
all this upset has just secured a sense of gratitude for safety, in friends and family and communication. this place has been a good home for the last 8 months, and its heartbreaking to realize its vulnerability, and the degree of violence it was subjected to. im not sure what it will be like to stay here for the next few months, but i want to give it a chance.
someday, maybe, there will be an understandable explaination. but in the meantime i want to trust that things will start to rebound, in strength and spirit.
thanks to everyone who is out there, helping all of us feel less alone.

safe

the timing of the fall fulbright conference means many of us are safe in ahmedabad tonight.
i hope the violence in mumbai will be over when i wake up.
please please stop.

halfway

today is the just-past-halfway mark for distance (24k), and relative training time for the race. thanks to better weather and some increased motivation marine drive is turning out to be a pretty good place to run these days.
crowds of adolescent males aside.
one day, ill go back to a place where a female can go for a run, mostly without harrassment.
but for now, im trying not to let that part of the adventure bother me, and to always have some extra air in my lungs to yell. at least it makes me have to break into a faster pace every so often.

'a national catharsis'

as reported by the new york times, and followed by one homesick girl in mumbai.



a little disbelief, a little suspicion, a little relief. lots of hope.
due to the time difference, it felt a little like christmas.

progress check

a lot has been done, planned, scheduled, and thought about over the last month (and more), and finally there seems to light at the end of a very hazy tunnel.
or at least a clarity of structure to the remaining work and things-to-do.

some ideas:


some pictures:


some inspiration:




and some fun stuff from this book of maps.




in another week i leave for delhi, to meet my parents for a quick trip in a world they have never seen. shortly after that, there is a conference in ahmedabad, and then it will be december. its amazing how time flies, and i am very conscious of the fact that without the extension, i would be headed home in 6 weeks.

im grateful for the reminder, at the same time realizing that in so many ways, id like to stay, i want to stay. ive become fond of this place.

so back to work it is.

daylight nightmares

diwali is kind of amazingly beautiful and terrifying at the same time.

at eye level and above, imagine hanging lanterns, lots of lights, fireworks everywhere, crowds of people dressed for the holiday, festival tents at all the major temples.
at street level, more fireworks, dogs running crazy because of the noise, quiet little oil lamps outside of doors, fruit and nuts and sweets to buy, sparklers that spin just a few inches of the pavement, and little kids with noise-maker pistols.

running on marine drive at the beginning of the week was a treat, and a challenge, because while focused on the amazing fireworks all over the sky, i sort of forgot that a lot of them also originate on the pavement, and if not careful, quite close to your feet. also, at least in most places, all the trash is left behind. which makes for some amazing rubbish piles until the rubbish sweeper comes along.

yes, its pretty. but sadly, the air is possibly the worst ive experienced here, and the noise is incredible. for the first time, waking up to daylight was almost scary, because for a moment, it was hardly clear if the light was from the explosions that i fell asleep to, or actually the sun.

it was nice just to stay in.
and also nice to go out in the middle of it all. kind of like running around in a video game.

these ladies went out:

im not sure if its holiday dress, or out to zenzi for ladies night (the picture does not do justice), but the outfits were as glittery as the rockets.

jelly shoes are out

rain rain go away. and now its gone. thank you for the fantastic storms we had all september. please come back soon!

ready set go

some months back, a few very nice billboards advertising 'running for a cause' stood up over marine drive. the advertised cause was clean water, and the advertised run was the mumbai marathon. a couple of weeks later it was the topic of discussion over dinner, and a day after that, i signed up.
so i am running, or will be running in january.
id like to find a good charity to raise money for.
in the meantime, there is a training schedule that i like to play drag and drop with on my calender all week long.

and then there were none

the aftermath.
and again the scene in the north. more hauntingly, beautifully captured here.

paper elephants

it was surreal.
this was the scene downtown. safe and ive heard relatively calm. my pictures don't do it much justice.
(i came across these pictures from the beach in juhu, which are much much better).