Yesterday was an amazing day. On the way to school I knew already that I had worn too many layers for the day. Spring was in the air. The sun was out and shining. There was that smell in the air that spring had sprung. That sort of musty, woody smell. Well, by the time that I had wrapped things up to go to our monthly short story reading group things had turned for the worst. Clouds rolled in and the sky was overcast. The air got bitter cold. The smell of spring was replaced by the smell of a cold, cold rain. By the end of the evening rain was coming down pat- pat- pattering on the corrugated sheet metal roof and thunder was heard in the distance.
Now, I've probably mentioned on here some time that I'm a very light sleeper and usually have extreme difficulty getting any kind of a full night's rest. I sleep with a fan on year round for the white noise it's blades and motor provide. I actually welcomed the rain. The area has been so dry since monsoon was virtually non-existent this past year and we really needed it (by we I really mean the people of Mussoorie as Woodstock supplies most of its own water). Also, that pattering on the roof provides great white noise. Sometime in the early morning the storm reached us. Lightning flashes were quickly followed by the loud boom of thunder. Around 3.30 the power got briefly knocked out. Sleeping with the fan on, I quickly awoke when the dull buzzing was cut off. I spent a good, long time moving and shifting, trying to get back to sleep but to no avail. Eventually I must have because I woke up again a few more times as the power came back on and then off again and then on again.
Now, the thing is that I must have been startled out of a dream because I was (and still am) imprinted with images of a dream I had. The dream itself was just so bizarre and disturbing that I really needed to share it. I can't say that I remember very much of it. Just snippets really.
What I really remember was having a sense of dread throughout the dream. Just about everything was in greytones. I was in an apartment building saying something to a group of people that something needed to be done. I remember looking out of a window down into a courtyard. I think I was looking out for something. The next thing I remember was that I was outside. There was a chainlink fence behind me as well as a large, leafless tree. I was startled by a giant flock of birds suddenly taking off into the sky. As I turned around I was further startled by the fact that the entire flock suddenly was turned into a vapourised mist of red blood as if some unseen force had instantly pulverised them all. I turned, thinking, "We need to get out of here. Now." And as I started to move people away there was a deafening roar from above and as I looked up I saw a plane/passenger jet engulfed in flames come crashing down. I remember how close it was to the ground when I first saw it because of how huge it looked. When I saw it hit the ground not far I suddenly felt compelled to run over and help but I quickly stopped. I had noticed that there was already some military vehicles rushing to the scene. Seeing the jeeps and vans I felt more terrified than when I saw the birds or plane. It was only then that I decided to flee. The subconscious can be pretty funny sometimes. The vehicle I left in was like one of those large doubledecker buses you think of going around London. The only thing was that it was much, much smaller. Literally, not much wider than I am. We rushed down the highway at top speed and I guess we got away. I don't really remember much else. There is more to the dream but all I can think of was having to get away again and something about antique quilts. Maybe I'll remember some more later.
So that was my bizarre/disturbing dream from this morning. I'm sure I wouldn't have remembered it if I hadn't been woken up by the power going off. It still gives me the willies. Especially the part about the birds.
23 February, 2010
21 February, 2010
Video
Recently, we have upgraded our internet connection from 2MB/s to 12MB/s. A faster connection means that blogger won't time out when I try to upload videos. Less timing out means I can put up more videos. Here's one of the singing bowl dad gave me while he was here. Buddhists sometimes use these while meditating. Unless I'm mistaken, the symbols on the outside are the mantra "Om mani padme hum" but I can only find it written in Tibetan and it's not matching up. It's possible that it is written in Nepali or another similar language. If anyone can recognise it, let me know.
On the school front, things have started off relatively smoothly. We just had class night on Friday so we took the eleventh graders up to the gym to hang out and have a football (soccer) tournament. There was also a Korean film crew on campus doing a documentary on boarding schools in India. I teach a few of the students they were shadowing so they filmed me for a bit. Nothing big; just an interview, watching me prep and then a lab in class. The part I enjoyed the most was after they filmed the lab the cameraman proceeded to dig his way through the stacks of comics in my room. It's good to see that Spider-Man is really universal.
On the school front, things have started off relatively smoothly. We just had class night on Friday so we took the eleventh graders up to the gym to hang out and have a football (soccer) tournament. There was also a Korean film crew on campus doing a documentary on boarding schools in India. I teach a few of the students they were shadowing so they filmed me for a bit. Nothing big; just an interview, watching me prep and then a lab in class. The part I enjoyed the most was after they filmed the lab the cameraman proceeded to dig his way through the stacks of comics in my room. It's good to see that Spider-Man is really universal.
13 February, 2010
Winter Break Part 5: Don't confuse my endurance with hospitality
I know that I have neglected my friends and family by not publishing any posts recently. School has just started up again and things are crazy. Hopefully I'll finish this post in a reasonable amount of time and not have to worry about it any more. You know things are bad when Becky starts leaving comments on your blog to update.
Anywho, I am avoiding what I should be doing...
Most of the remainder of my vacation was quiet and uneventful. I read, slept, cooked, and walked for most of it. Somewhere in there I was able to finally convince dad that he needed to come for a visit. Somehow he was able to procure a passport and visa in about two weeks. How exactly, I don't know but props to him for that. So, I headed down to Delhi to pick him up at the end of January. I couldn't go into the airport because of heightened security due to terrorist threats but I wore my bright yellow Woodstock jacket and hoped he would follow my directions and find me outside. After waiting for about 1.5 hours and a bit of jumping up and down to get his attention I was finally able to give the old man a hug after 6months.
I had our trip planned out (well, my travel agent did) and we had an early train back north early in the morning so we headed back to the hotel and rested for a bit. That morning we headed to the station and after a bit of confusion we got to our platform and waited for the train to come. We even ran into some fellow Woodstockers as we waited for the train to come (late).
Our first stop was Haridwar, or specifically, Rajaji National Park. I had stayed there last spring during one of our breaks and really enjoyed the camp and thought dad would to. I soon found out, however, that the agent didn't book the camp I wanted. I guess there was something about a fire at the other one and they were repairing it. The one they brought us to was a couple of British built bungalows from the 18somethings all redone and made relatively comfortable.
Now, Haridwar is one of the holiest cities in all of India. This winter it was especially true. Every 12 years Haridwar hosts the Kumbh Mela. A city that is already packed with people starts to sprout tent cities along the river and it really is just a huge gathering of people. Dad and I, however, were there to relax and being tucked away inside the park, we did just that. There was plenty of hot chai to drink, safaris to go on, and sun to soak in while you read. The nights were freezing but I was more annoyed by having to deal with dad's snoring. I managed to get used to it soon enough (thank goodness) but I still didn't sleep very well. After my initial confusion as to why I wasn't at the camp I had requested I settled down and allowed myself to enjoy what was there.
We had another train to catch that would take us over to Amritsar in Punjab. I had set it up so that the taxi would take us to the train station in plenty of time to make our train. The train left at 2.30 so I wanted to be there by 1.45 and being in the park it took a while to get to the station. I asked for the taxi to be there at 1.00. When 1.00 came I was assured that the taxi will arrive shortly and that we should have some lunch. Lunch came at 1.30 so we ate and waited some more. By now I've gotten anxious. I hate traveling enough as it is but start giving me late taxis and I get nervous. Our taxi finally arrived at 2.05 and I was miffed. I was about to tell the driver to forget it and try getting there some other way but he assured me that we could get there on time. Sure enough he got us to the station at 2.25 and I curtly took my bags and found a porter to take us to the train. You know that you're in trouble when a porter looks at your ticket and starts to run with your bags. We made it but had to literally jump on the moving train. I wasn't sure if dad was going to make it but he got on a few cars behind me. The ride was relatively uneventful aside from the begger children that would board at each stop. We got in to Amritsar late and made a beeline for the hotel.
The next morning we got up and had a nice breakfast down in the hotel's dining room. We hired a taxi to take us around and spent the day going to the Golden Temple, massacre sites, and the boarder ceremony. The Golden Temple was phenomenal. I would put it way above the Taj on places to see. There are no lines to deal with and the majority of people are far easier to deal with. The boarder ceremony was a lot of fun. Indian and Pakistani troops get all dressed up and have a very systematic ritual of retiring the colours and closing the gates. There is a huge dance party on either side and lots of fancy marching and high kicking. India's side was by far more packed and lively.
We had an overnight train that would take us to someplace near our final stop on the tour, Dharamsala. After a frightful taxi ride in the wee hours, we arrived at our hotel at 7.00 in the morning and promptly went to bed. We got up in time for lunch and again took a taxi around to various sites. Of course, we would have been fools to pass up seeing the Dalai Lama's temple and went there first. Unfortunately, he was not at the temple at the time of our visit but we did get to see lots of monks and even a museum or two. We spent our time seeing various sites important to the Tibetan community and had a tremendously good time. I really enjoyed this city. It is by far my favourite part of my entire winter break. Personally, I don't think Mussoorie has anything on Dharamsala. It was just absolutely gorgeous (even if it was covered in hippies).
After another overnight train and early morning taxi we made it home to Mussoorie. I crashed while dad skyped with Cindy. Later that night we went into the bazaar to see some places and to celebrate dad's 65th birthday in proper fashion at the Tavern. That week I had to start work so I was stuck in meetings throughout the day and dad spent a bit of time at my place just relaxing. He got out a little bit to visit the scout office in Dehradun and we made it to the top of the hill and out to Flag Hill (even if he only made up half way).
Alas, it could not go on forever and that following Monday I walked him down the ramp one last time to catch his taxi to Delhi. It was a tearful goodbye but I think we both had really enjoyed the visit and would have liked to see it extended a bit. A cold front was definitely coming in that day and it started raining not long after I got back home. It was cold and quiet for the first time in weeks.
Anywho, I am avoiding what I should be doing...
Most of the remainder of my vacation was quiet and uneventful. I read, slept, cooked, and walked for most of it. Somewhere in there I was able to finally convince dad that he needed to come for a visit. Somehow he was able to procure a passport and visa in about two weeks. How exactly, I don't know but props to him for that. So, I headed down to Delhi to pick him up at the end of January. I couldn't go into the airport because of heightened security due to terrorist threats but I wore my bright yellow Woodstock jacket and hoped he would follow my directions and find me outside. After waiting for about 1.5 hours and a bit of jumping up and down to get his attention I was finally able to give the old man a hug after 6months.
I had our trip planned out (well, my travel agent did) and we had an early train back north early in the morning so we headed back to the hotel and rested for a bit. That morning we headed to the station and after a bit of confusion we got to our platform and waited for the train to come. We even ran into some fellow Woodstockers as we waited for the train to come (late).
Our first stop was Haridwar, or specifically, Rajaji National Park. I had stayed there last spring during one of our breaks and really enjoyed the camp and thought dad would to. I soon found out, however, that the agent didn't book the camp I wanted. I guess there was something about a fire at the other one and they were repairing it. The one they brought us to was a couple of British built bungalows from the 18somethings all redone and made relatively comfortable.
Now, Haridwar is one of the holiest cities in all of India. This winter it was especially true. Every 12 years Haridwar hosts the Kumbh Mela. A city that is already packed with people starts to sprout tent cities along the river and it really is just a huge gathering of people. Dad and I, however, were there to relax and being tucked away inside the park, we did just that. There was plenty of hot chai to drink, safaris to go on, and sun to soak in while you read. The nights were freezing but I was more annoyed by having to deal with dad's snoring. I managed to get used to it soon enough (thank goodness) but I still didn't sleep very well. After my initial confusion as to why I wasn't at the camp I had requested I settled down and allowed myself to enjoy what was there.
We had another train to catch that would take us over to Amritsar in Punjab. I had set it up so that the taxi would take us to the train station in plenty of time to make our train. The train left at 2.30 so I wanted to be there by 1.45 and being in the park it took a while to get to the station. I asked for the taxi to be there at 1.00. When 1.00 came I was assured that the taxi will arrive shortly and that we should have some lunch. Lunch came at 1.30 so we ate and waited some more. By now I've gotten anxious. I hate traveling enough as it is but start giving me late taxis and I get nervous. Our taxi finally arrived at 2.05 and I was miffed. I was about to tell the driver to forget it and try getting there some other way but he assured me that we could get there on time. Sure enough he got us to the station at 2.25 and I curtly took my bags and found a porter to take us to the train. You know that you're in trouble when a porter looks at your ticket and starts to run with your bags. We made it but had to literally jump on the moving train. I wasn't sure if dad was going to make it but he got on a few cars behind me. The ride was relatively uneventful aside from the begger children that would board at each stop. We got in to Amritsar late and made a beeline for the hotel.
The next morning we got up and had a nice breakfast down in the hotel's dining room. We hired a taxi to take us around and spent the day going to the Golden Temple, massacre sites, and the boarder ceremony. The Golden Temple was phenomenal. I would put it way above the Taj on places to see. There are no lines to deal with and the majority of people are far easier to deal with. The boarder ceremony was a lot of fun. Indian and Pakistani troops get all dressed up and have a very systematic ritual of retiring the colours and closing the gates. There is a huge dance party on either side and lots of fancy marching and high kicking. India's side was by far more packed and lively.
We had an overnight train that would take us to someplace near our final stop on the tour, Dharamsala. After a frightful taxi ride in the wee hours, we arrived at our hotel at 7.00 in the morning and promptly went to bed. We got up in time for lunch and again took a taxi around to various sites. Of course, we would have been fools to pass up seeing the Dalai Lama's temple and went there first. Unfortunately, he was not at the temple at the time of our visit but we did get to see lots of monks and even a museum or two. We spent our time seeing various sites important to the Tibetan community and had a tremendously good time. I really enjoyed this city. It is by far my favourite part of my entire winter break. Personally, I don't think Mussoorie has anything on Dharamsala. It was just absolutely gorgeous (even if it was covered in hippies).
After another overnight train and early morning taxi we made it home to Mussoorie. I crashed while dad skyped with Cindy. Later that night we went into the bazaar to see some places and to celebrate dad's 65th birthday in proper fashion at the Tavern. That week I had to start work so I was stuck in meetings throughout the day and dad spent a bit of time at my place just relaxing. He got out a little bit to visit the scout office in Dehradun and we made it to the top of the hill and out to Flag Hill (even if he only made up half way).
Alas, it could not go on forever and that following Monday I walked him down the ramp one last time to catch his taxi to Delhi. It was a tearful goodbye but I think we both had really enjoyed the visit and would have liked to see it extended a bit. A cold front was definitely coming in that day and it started raining not long after I got back home. It was cold and quiet for the first time in weeks.
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