FROM BMW'S TO BEGGARS

               17, July 2011

            Mumbai. Whenever I think of Mumbai, I think of three words: hot, humid, and crowded. It was a blast of heat as I walked off the plane. It wouldn't have been so bad, but there was not a gate available for our plane. We had to unload onto the runway and take a shuttle to the actual airport. I couldn't help but laugh at how the flight crew was being sarcastic in every remark about, "How nice the weather is," or, "Don't even worry about a shower, I'm taking a bath in my sweat." I was able to meet a woman from Montana who was originally born in India, and we helped each other through customs and the security checkpoints. I then waited at the baggage claim for at least 20 min before I realized that my bag had already been pulled off and was waiting for me in a pile of luggage. I quickly grabbed it and waited in the 30 min line to have my bags x-rayed for customs. Then I was finally free. Well, not yet.

            I was so glad that my flight was late in its departure and arrival; that way my family would no doubt be there to pick me up. As I walked to the glass, I DID NOT GO OUTSIDE. I DID NOT TALK TO ANYONE. I scanned the crowd of people and saw my host father and my host sister waiting for me. It was so nice to see faces that I actually recognized and they even had a sign for me saying, "WELCOME TO INDIA, HARMON!" I quickly walked to them and we formally introduced ourselves with handshakes and half-hugs. They then swept me away to the car waiting for us. When we were outside I was immediately sweating and I was wishing that I hadn't been wearing jeans and my Rotary blazer. I was disgusting. We made it to the car and I met a Rotary official that is very involved with exchange. He is going to visit past exchange students that came to Pune for two months and then return. Once in the car, it was so different that the steering wheel is on the right side and not on the left. Also, I automatically started to buckle my seatbelt out of habit, but then Aishwarya told me that I didn't need to. It was odd to be able to move around freely.

            The traffic was horrible! I heard more horns in my first 10 minutes outside of the airport than I have in my whole life! There were cars, vans, motorcycles, rikshaws, and people everywhere on the streets. The social classes were told by the vehicle or lack there of. One moment you would see a very nice BMW or Audi, and the next you would see a man with one arm begging for food or money. Frequent stops in the middle of the street are not uncommon due to the masses of people and vehicles. We would swerve in and out of the tiniest places, cut people off, speed up and then slam on the brakes. Very different from driving in Owatonna, or even the cities. Not to mention we were driving on the left side of the road. We were making small talk, having just met each other and now I know why people talk about the weather in all situations. The drive from Mumbai to Pune was 3 and 1/2 hours with traffic, but most of the ride I was sleeping.

            We finally made it to our home at about 3:00 in the morning. I was surprised to see both my host mother and host sister awake, but they told me that had been sleeping earlier. Before I could enter the home, I had to remove my shoes and socks. Shilpa poured warm water on my feet to wash them and then blessed me with incense. I was then allowed to enter with my shoes off, to keep the floor clean. I wasn't very hungry, but they kept one offering me food, so I finally accepted and ate. Shilpa had prepared some rice and curry for me. My first Indian meal. It was surprisingly good. She then showed me the house. A master bedroom, the girls' bedroom, my bedroom, the living/family room, and the kitchen. Each bedroom has its own separate bathroom. It is small by American comparison, but very nice and well kept, I like it a lot. Before too long I could see that, they were all getting tired so I let them go to bed, and then started unpacking. I unpacked everything and got my room situated the way I wanted it to be. Then I went to bed around 5:00 in the morning.