Could you direct me to the blackmarket sari alley?

Today is the last day of a very relaxing and exciting weekend in Jaipur. Today is a digestive system-mandated rest day, as I had some sneaky Gram Masala for lunch in the Old City yesterday. But don't worry, my host mother has a large pot of dahi (yogurt) and water that she says is the best thing for an upset stomach.

Yesterday was exactly the type of day that I've been hoping to have in Jaipur. I decided not to go to the Himalayas so that I could explore the city better. Yesterday woke up early to go play soccer with some people from the program on the fields at Rajasthan University. We were joined by my friend Lindsay's 11 year old friend, Rahul, who was a ringer, and two Raj U students. It was a lot of fun to run around a field again, and I definitely missed Frisbee a lot.

After soccer we went into the Old City, which is painted pink and surrounded by walls. Inside is a huge market divided into separate bazaars and the City Palace. We went to the City Palace, but did not go in because the charge was Rs. 200 for foreigners. We passed by the metalwork section, which had everything from pots to giant hookahs. Then we somehow ended up in this underground alleyway that has a huge selection of fabric and clothing. My friend Nancy was determined to buy a neon pink sari, so we wandered around that area for awhile. I have never seen so many beautiful colors all together before. Most of the fabrics on display were for weddings, so they were very ornate. After that we went to get some chai, and one Indian man followed us in to ask if Nancy (who is Mexican) was Indian. We said that she was, but that she was married. Being married is always safer than being single.

The day before yesterday I mostly hung out at the Jawahar Kala Kendra. The lowlight was when an Evangelic Christian named DJ tried to convert me. Apparently he and my friend Tim had been discussing me. I'm sure that Tim just innocently told DJ that I am the daughter of a Unitarian Universalist Minister and a Buddhist. In Tim's mind this means that I have interesting dinner table conversations. In DJ's mind it meant that it was high time for me to be saved. DJ told me to accept the word of Jesus into my heart. I told him that I had read the Gospels, had heard the word, but believed that it was only one aspect of the Divine. DJ told me that Jesus said that he was the only way, so it had to be true. This is when I realized that a theological discussion was not an option and asked DJ to respect my beliefs as I was respecting his. He left shortly thereafter.

I don't think that what I said scared DJ away so much as how I said it. I've noticed that in India, women do not often speak directly even if they are speaking with confidence. There is a lot of vocal undulations and hand movements, but little looking someone in the face and plainly stating, "I need this..." or "I don't need this..." Being direct is very effective here. As my Program Director told me, in India you can't do what anyone else wants you to do because you're going to have a lot of "I wishes."

Well I'm out for now. Today I hope to go shopping with my host mother. Most of all, I'd like for her to get out. She comes from a very conservation family and she can't go out without her husband very often. She also has to take a lot of critcism and orders from her mother-in-law. But I'm told, "It sometimes happens in India." The more I live here, the more I understand why someone like Rimaji, who is unmarried and Cambridge-educated, lives by not living by other people's expectations.

-Erica