Around Dharamsala

Mcleod Ganj

Prayer Flag

This man was playing the Saranghee. He played me happy birthday. It wasn't my birthday.

I love that so many men know how to sew!

My friend Dolma's husband and son.

I passed this guy every day going to town. We became buddies.

Mmmm. momos!

The Barber shop

barber shop

The waterfall in Bhagsu

Blushing bride (right) and entourage

american food.

Dear American Food,

Why do you have to be so big? I mean who can eat this much!

Thank you for your time,

Lizzie

my dreams last night.

I dreamed that cute Cuban boys took me on nature walks to see elusive pigeons who lay red speckled eggs. They spoke to me in Italian. They spoke to each other in Spanish. Eating their esses. I ate mine too and it made them smile.

I dreamed that i drank whiskey with a friend in a non-existent antique bar in Charleston, South Carolina. i thought it was there. The bartender knew what we wanted. We didn't even have to use our words. Glances were enough.

I dreamed that i ran across grass, past hippies with drums beating out the summer. i jumped high and dove into the river. I knew how deep it was and i had no fear. I huddled embracing the cold water and i was its child. I could see from under water the heavy stomachs of 70 year old bus laden traffic making tire tracks over my head. i came up for air between traffic lights and sat in a sunny spot on a rock 12 deep feet beneath the surface trying to imagine what sat above the underbellies of the great beasts speeding along the white waters.

I dreamed that i wanted to sleep a little longer. but not too much longer.

I dreamed that i didn't want to miss the day.

Last Leg

Hello all!

Regretfully, my time in India is drawing to a close. These last few days in Navi Mumbai ( New Bombay) have been peaceful and reflective. Julie and I have spent many an hour talking, relaxing, eating delicious food... she's on quite a journey and listening to her stories has allowed me to reflect on my own experience here and has added a nice balance to the trip. My trip before now was very linear and scientific. It's been nice to find equilibrium emotionally and spiritually.

As my time draws to a close i have been thinking a lot about goals i set for myself when i moved to mississippi and how i've really deviated away from them. everything has been seeming chaotic and disorganized and incomplete. i plan on getting back on track. may mean some big changes. but i think they're necessary.

anyhow, i promise photos are coming. It's a lot of work to get them edited and uploaded and as my wise friend Frode once said, "keep having fun and focus more on your journey than giving us
feedback. most important is wut you experience.." I love you, Frode.

So today on my last full day in the country i went to Julie's spiritual group after a delicious breakfast of papaya with salt and pepper and litchi fruit. We stayed for a good 3 hours then came home and now i'm writing this to you. This evening i'm going to her friend Jyodi's house for a cooking lesson. Sol curry and regular curry. very exciting. Tomorrow i fly to Delhi and will meet some friends if there's time and then i fly back home.

ॐ

another photo cause i feel like it: Abdesh

just feel like posting a photograph: Honora

Bangalore

Hey all! I'm in Bangalore and yesterday and today i am attending an internal research seminar. All of the employees of Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment have been giving short presentations on projects they've been working on. I've met many interesting people and i feel that i'm getting a good idea of what life would be like as an ecologists. Some of the best projects i've seen so far (at least the most interesting to me) are the creation environmentally conscious religious offerings, an ecotourism project in Darjeeling, biodiversity of ground insects of coffee plantations, a study on neighborhood parks as socio-ecological systems, and a conservation project in a hot tourist wetland area in Kerala.

If any of this kind of thing interests you this is their website!!

www.atree.org.

Tomorrow i'm going up to a field station to observe a project that teaches local communities to make furniture and fire wood out of lantana, a very problematic invasive species in India from Central America. so i'm super psyched!!!

On saturday i fly to mumbai to visit my friend Julie and then next Tuesday i fly home. I hope all is well with everyone! and i'll post more soon!