March 30, 2011
Note: The Indian Cricket team’s uniforms are blue. I have no idea why since there is almost no blue in the Indian flag, but who am I to question the wisdom of the ICC (International Cricket Something or other)?
Ladies and Gentlemen, INDIA is going to the Cricket World Cup final! And they beat Pakistan to get there! Oh my goodness, who knew I would ever be so excited about Cricket? The entire country is now celebrating. There are fireworks and parades and lots of cheering people running down the street with flags and drums. Melinda and I watched the game, and then we were watching the celebration from my bedroom window. (Living on a major road, we get to experience the celebration in full.) So anyway, we were watching the fireworks and debating whether or not to go outside and get a better view, when Melinda says “That’s not a firework! That’s a bomb! Like a cherry bomb! That’s not safe at all…” Of course that settled it. We immediately proceeded outside. At first, we stood near some cops on their motorcycle. Then later, our landlord came down with his daughter, as well as our American friends who live in the same building. The atmosphere was exhilarating. People were dancing and yelling, and we were screaming “Go India!”, and taking hundreds of pictures. (Not me, Emily, but my friends) which I will get and post soon. I saw all these people go by on motorcycles driving fast and not holding on to anything. One man took his took his hands off the wheel and leaned all the way the back so he was looking up at the sky. I wanted to alternate between yelling “YAY India!” and “Put your hands back on the wheel!!!” My friend actually got interviewed by a 24 hour Indian news service. The rest of us were in the background. The reporter asked where we were from, whether we actually understood Cricket, and what we thought about India beating Pakistan. (The rivalry can be just a tad intense.) Since we were being mobbed pretty much throughout the entire interview and could barely hear the questions, I’m sure we looked stunning and sounded incredibly intelligent. It’s now after midnight and I have so much energy it might as well be the middle of the afternoon. The final is on Saturday against Sri Lanka. God save us if we win.
In other news, we toured a mosque last Thursday and my shoes got stolen. My Merrills got stolen which were my most comfortable and practical shoes. Our language coordinator wanted to take us on a cultural outing. So we went to Nakoda mosque, which is over 100 years old and very pretty. Before you enter, you have to take your shoes off, and generally someone guards them. After our tour, we returned to find that my shoes and our LCs shoes had been stolen. We asked the guards, who were in front of the shoe room if they knew what happened to them. Of course not. It’s their job to guard the mosque, not the shoes. Anyway, it turns out there’s a shoe store located in the back of the mosque. It seems a bit too convenient, I know, but I honestly don’t think they had anything to do with the theft. After some debate about whether or not it was ok for a woman to walk across the courtyard of their religious establishment, we set off. I guess our tour guide had already taken us to areas where women technically weren’t supposed to be, so what difference does the courtyard make? I’m sure you all have gathered by now that my luck in this country is not good. To get to the shoe store, we had to go through the men’s latrine. May I remind you, I HAD NO SHOES. My LC was able to use an extra pair but of course, they only had one pair of men’s shoes that were too big for me… The ground was covered in dirt and some of it was most definitely damp. I looked straight ahead and walked as quickly as possible. By the time we arrived at the store, I was determined to leave with shoes. Surprisingly, I actually found some cute ones that claim to be Pumas. My LC paid for them, but even then they only cost about $3. YAY!
Note: The Indian Cricket team’s uniforms are blue. I have no idea why since there is almost no blue in the Indian flag, but who am I to question the wisdom of the ICC (International Cricket Something or other)?
Ladies and Gentlemen, INDIA is going to the Cricket World Cup final! And they beat Pakistan to get there! Oh my goodness, who knew I would ever be so excited about Cricket? The entire country is now celebrating. There are fireworks and parades and lots of cheering people running down the street with flags and drums. Melinda and I watched the game, and then we were watching the celebration from my bedroom window. (Living on a major road, we get to experience the celebration in full.) So anyway, we were watching the fireworks and debating whether or not to go outside and get a better view, when Melinda says “That’s not a firework! That’s a bomb! Like a cherry bomb! That’s not safe at all…” Of course that settled it. We immediately proceeded outside. At first, we stood near some cops on their motorcycle. Then later, our landlord came down with his daughter, as well as our American friends who live in the same building. The atmosphere was exhilarating. People were dancing and yelling, and we were screaming “Go India!”, and taking hundreds of pictures. (Not me, Emily, but my friends) which I will get and post soon. I saw all these people go by on motorcycles driving fast and not holding on to anything. One man took his took his hands off the wheel and leaned all the way the back so he was looking up at the sky. I wanted to alternate between yelling “YAY India!” and “Put your hands back on the wheel!!!” My friend actually got interviewed by a 24 hour Indian news service. The rest of us were in the background. The reporter asked where we were from, whether we actually understood Cricket, and what we thought about India beating Pakistan. (The rivalry can be just a tad intense.) Since we were being mobbed pretty much throughout the entire interview and could barely hear the questions, I’m sure we looked stunning and sounded incredibly intelligent. It’s now after midnight and I have so much energy it might as well be the middle of the afternoon. The final is on Saturday against Sri Lanka. God save us if we win.
In other news, we toured a mosque last Thursday and my shoes got stolen. My Merrills got stolen which were my most comfortable and practical shoes. Our language coordinator wanted to take us on a cultural outing. So we went to Nakoda mosque, which is over 100 years old and very pretty. Before you enter, you have to take your shoes off, and generally someone guards them. After our tour, we returned to find that my shoes and our LCs shoes had been stolen. We asked the guards, who were in front of the shoe room if they knew what happened to them. Of course not. It’s their job to guard the mosque, not the shoes. Anyway, it turns out there’s a shoe store located in the back of the mosque. It seems a bit too convenient, I know, but I honestly don’t think they had anything to do with the theft. After some debate about whether or not it was ok for a woman to walk across the courtyard of their religious establishment, we set off. I guess our tour guide had already taken us to areas where women technically weren’t supposed to be, so what difference does the courtyard make? I’m sure you all have gathered by now that my luck in this country is not good. To get to the shoe store, we had to go through the men’s latrine. May I remind you, I HAD NO SHOES. My LC was able to use an extra pair but of course, they only had one pair of men’s shoes that were too big for me… The ground was covered in dirt and some of it was most definitely damp. I looked straight ahead and walked as quickly as possible. By the time we arrived at the store, I was determined to leave with shoes. Surprisingly, I actually found some cute ones that claim to be Pumas. My LC paid for them, but even then they only cost about $3. YAY!
I am gonna need you to grab me a few pairs of "Pumas" before you come back...I'll pay ya! ;)
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