It's been another mostly lazy week for me in India. The touristy stuff has definitely died down. But I have more music to share with you!
We went to what they call a junior college (the girls are 16-17 years old) to hear a famous North Indian musician. They consider North Indian music to be very different from South Indian music. I heard many similarities, but could also hear the differences.
His (man in the center) instrument is called the Sarangi and is used to play Hindustani classical music. He said that it resembles the sound of the human voice more than any other instrument. He allowed for questions at the end and was very friendly.
Here is a sample of the music. Pardon the honking cars and trucks that you can hear outside and the general poor sound quality...but you get the idea!
Last night we went to a dance concert on the beach. It was SO crowded and was a huge event. We really enjoyed it.
Carolyn, Brittany, and Asha
The dancing was really cool. They do these complicated foot movements while twirling their hands elegantly. It would take a lot of coordination!
Okay, now I'm going to attempt to talk about the food and not rant/complain too much...
As I've said before, our food here is very high quality. Everything is homemade and fresh. The thing I can't seem to get over is that they put spices and seasonings on everything! The idea of serving vegetables with a little butter and salt and pepper does not exist in their minds. And I think there's something to be said for just appreciating the simple taste of a food almost by itself or by itself. Everything has some kind of flavoring on it, whether it's spicy or not. Of course there are exceptions, and I am very grateful for those! There are many flat breads that are made out of lentils or various legumes and they are served plain. We also eat a ton of really good fruit.
As a pregnant woman, this has been hard for me. I crave BLAND foods! I even dream about them. And many of the foods that pop into my mind, like a simple green salad, are simply unavailable here. I realized that never before have I been to a place where basic western foods were not available. Yes, we have a Pizza Hut, Dominos, and KFC, but that's it. There's a little food store close by that has some really good crackers, cookies, and drinks and I relish those things. But I fantasize about assembling my own fresh salad, wrap, or eating a hamburger! I never realized I was such an American when it comes to food...South Indian food is very different from anything I've had before, even though I consider myself a lover of foods from all over the world.
Despite all this though, I have been adjusting and slowly getting used to things. I make myself eat as much as I can, and occasionally there are really good days when I really like everything! I think part of my struggle has been getting over the feeling of entitlement that comes with being pregnant. It almost seems cruel that I am denied almost every craving that comes over me! At least that is the attitude that is perpetuated in American culture, I think. But I've had to realize that I can't let that attitude get to me, because if I'm going to be healthy and happy here I just have to eat as much as I can and learn to enjoy it. There is no other option. It's not like I'm not getting enough nutrients or something, I know I am.
Well, if you've made it this far you're a trooper. Thanks for listening and have a great day!
We went to what they call a junior college (the girls are 16-17 years old) to hear a famous North Indian musician. They consider North Indian music to be very different from South Indian music. I heard many similarities, but could also hear the differences.
His (man in the center) instrument is called the Sarangi and is used to play Hindustani classical music. He said that it resembles the sound of the human voice more than any other instrument. He allowed for questions at the end and was very friendly.
Here is a sample of the music. Pardon the honking cars and trucks that you can hear outside and the general poor sound quality...but you get the idea!
Last night we went to a dance concert on the beach. It was SO crowded and was a huge event. We really enjoyed it.
Carolyn, Brittany, and Asha
The dancing was really cool. They do these complicated foot movements while twirling their hands elegantly. It would take a lot of coordination!
Okay, now I'm going to attempt to talk about the food and not rant/complain too much...
As I've said before, our food here is very high quality. Everything is homemade and fresh. The thing I can't seem to get over is that they put spices and seasonings on everything! The idea of serving vegetables with a little butter and salt and pepper does not exist in their minds. And I think there's something to be said for just appreciating the simple taste of a food almost by itself or by itself. Everything has some kind of flavoring on it, whether it's spicy or not. Of course there are exceptions, and I am very grateful for those! There are many flat breads that are made out of lentils or various legumes and they are served plain. We also eat a ton of really good fruit.
As a pregnant woman, this has been hard for me. I crave BLAND foods! I even dream about them. And many of the foods that pop into my mind, like a simple green salad, are simply unavailable here. I realized that never before have I been to a place where basic western foods were not available. Yes, we have a Pizza Hut, Dominos, and KFC, but that's it. There's a little food store close by that has some really good crackers, cookies, and drinks and I relish those things. But I fantasize about assembling my own fresh salad, wrap, or eating a hamburger! I never realized I was such an American when it comes to food...South Indian food is very different from anything I've had before, even though I consider myself a lover of foods from all over the world.
Despite all this though, I have been adjusting and slowly getting used to things. I make myself eat as much as I can, and occasionally there are really good days when I really like everything! I think part of my struggle has been getting over the feeling of entitlement that comes with being pregnant. It almost seems cruel that I am denied almost every craving that comes over me! At least that is the attitude that is perpetuated in American culture, I think. But I've had to realize that I can't let that attitude get to me, because if I'm going to be healthy and happy here I just have to eat as much as I can and learn to enjoy it. There is no other option. It's not like I'm not getting enough nutrients or something, I know I am.
Well, if you've made it this far you're a trooper. Thanks for listening and have a great day!
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