Visiting Chennai and Madurai

We have been kept very busy over the last couple of days! We received a wonderful lecture on Hinduism, which is an incredibly intricate religion. There is no one secular text in Hinduism but several. Two of the most important ones are the epics, Ramayana and Mahabharatha. They tell stories of the Gods and give examples by which to follow. After the lecture we were able to visit a local Chennai temple dedicated to the god Vishnu. We thought it was beautiful, but we hadn't seen anything yet! We took an overnight sleeper train to Madurai which was definitely an experience. We had to get on the train really fast, and you don't know its your train until it arrives and you can read it. Also you don't know where to stand exactly, you have to guess and when the cars stop you find yours quickly and run on. Once on you have to find your bed, which really isn't much of a bed, and climb in. The scariest part of the train was the fact that we were with other people, there was no where to put your stuff, and you were separated from the rest of the train by curtains. Sleep eluded me. Once in Madurai we went to the Gandhi museum which was very cool, they had the history of British India laid out in panels, and towards the end you saw Mahatma Gandhi come into the picture. They described all that he did for India, especially through his belief of non-violence. After the Gandhi museum we went to the Meenakshi Amman temple, which is a Hindu temple dedicated to the Goddess Parvathy and her husband the God Shiva. The temple was incredible! It was so huge it is unimaginable how people built it with such simple tools. The next day we went to Gandhigram University, a place that works as a university but also a community outreach group. They provide many services by having factories that make soap, cloth, incense and grow food. People in the area can work at these factories. They also provide an elderly home, and orphanage. After the University we went to a palace built by one of the old kings of Madurai. The palace is large and surprisingly open, with beautiful arching doorways. Today we came back to Chennai by sleeper car (again, slightly terrifying!). We then received a dance lecture and demonstration, which was very fun! The dances are so creative and meaningful, every move and hand gesture represents something. We are going to a dance festival tomorrow night and I cannot wait!
Thats all for now! Glad I got caught up!

Warm Welcomes

Everyone here is so hospitable! We have been very warmly received by all here at Madras Christian College. Yesterday we started the morning off with yoga taught by a guru. The experience was a wonderful one, we did a combination of meditation and stretching after which we all felt refreshed. After, we had morning lectures on Ancient and Medieval India, as well as British India. The history here is so rich, it makes the U.S seem even more boring! After lunch we were accompanied by several students to the market place. There the girls helped us to pick out Saris, and we later tried to put them on and failed, they stepped in again to save us. After the market we were invited to a conference room where we were welcomed by the president of the college Dr. Alex. After giving us a brief and very passionate lecture on the college, he invited us to his house for dinner. We arrived to a smorgasbord of food, and friendship. Everyone here is so nice and helpful, they all want us to be as comfortable as possible. After a long day we all headed to bed by 10:00 ready for our next day, and new adventures.

Greetings from INDIA! After a whole day of travel I have finally arrived! The weather is hot and humid! We are currently awaiting our first breakfast here at Madras Christian College, and from there will go explore the campus. Later this afternoon we will be going into town and spending time at the local market. I'm very excited for all the site seeing and hope to upload pictures soon!

My bag is officially packed! After laying out all of my clothes, checking off a lengthy list of to-do's, and putting it all together, I am ready for India.

After receiving advice on long flights from cousins, aunts, and friends I feel I am ready for the long journey ahead. From Minneapolis our group will be flying to Chicago where we will have a short layover, from Chicago will will fly to Frankfurt, Germany. After another layover in Germany we will make our final flight to our destination, Chennai India.

Thank you to all who have given me advice, and kept me in your prayers! I plan to blog as often as possible, so keep an eye out for new posts!

"Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends." - Maya Angelou

Hey everyone!

I cannot believe I leave in 6 days for India! I know it is going to be a trip of a life-time. Already I have made several lists, and have been checking off things daily.
For those who are unaware, I will be traveling to India for J-term. I will be studying my third theology, the course title is Religious Heritage of India. Our class will be exploring Islam, Hinduism, and Christianity and how the three religions work within one country.
I know I will learn so much while I am in India, and my life will be forever changed!

"The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page" Saint Augustine