Chota Chota

I wish I could have written more within the last few days but honestly the Wi-Fi sucks. I have been trying to get this to post from my phone and my laptop for two days. And I also was away from Varanasi for a few days on a weekend trip to Lucknow. It was a wonderful chance to get away from Varanasi.

Lucknow and Varanasi are really different places. I have already described how Varanasi looks in my previous post. In Lucknow, there are paved roads, cows and stray dogs are a rarity and most people wear more western styles of dress. And unlike Varanasi, the majority of the city is not impoverished. 

Now I wish I could lie and say that the whole trip was rainbows and butterflies but I can't. It was this weekend that I felt the most uncomfortable since my departure from America. The fact that I am a "foreigner" was so apparent in Lucknow. I am slowly becoming used to the stares that I get as I walk down the roads. However, the intensity of the stares seemed stronger. Not only that but people wanted pictures of us. That whole concept baffled me. As we waited for everyone to finish their purchases at the gift shops outside of the big Imam Bargah, people either tried to sneakily take pictures of us or they were brave enough to ask for a picture. There were two kids who plotted together to get a photo of us. The boy pretended to be taking a picture of his sister who posed wherever we stood. Finally, the girl staying with us for part of our stay told them to stop. Even worst was when we went to a celebration for the birth of Krishna and the press surrounded us trying to get a picture of the "foreigners" that came to the Hindu celebration. I was so uncomfortable that I was downright angry. I felt attacked. I am simply minding my own business until I was surrounded from all sides by at least 6 men shoving cameras into my face. 

I was told by one of my teachers here that I should just stare at the people who stare at me. I have tried this out but I just couldn't do it. It is a nervewrecking thing to do. If I were to have a staring contest with someone in America it could seriously end in a brawl depending on the person.

Enough of the negative stuff though. Overall, the trip was wonderful! I was able to see some amazing sites, eat delicious food, take plenty of pictures and meet some great people. We went to a mall in Lucknow after sightseeing and I felt like I was at home in America. The stores are pretty much the same, there was a movie theater, a big food court (best food I had all weekend hands down). To get to and from some of the sites, we were carted around by a horse! After a long, full day of sightseeing, I realized that being a "tourist" is a lot of work. I was literally dripping in sweat the whole day and I think I went through at least 2 huge bottles of water. When we returned to the home we stayed at in Lucknow, we all just laid across the beds too tired to do much else.

Explanation of the title: So, as we were walking around the small Imam Bargah the tour guide asked if we knew any Hindi. Maddie responded, "Chota chota chota Hindi" (small, small, small Hindi). This got a laugh out of the tour guide. From then on, he would call out "chota chota" whenever he began to lose our attention or when he was just referring to Maddie.

"Chota Chota" man at the small Imam Bargah

View from the top of the big Imam Bargah

I have a long weekend coming up so I will be able to write some more. The crew has requested that I write a post about all of the funny things that have been happening here so far!