24 hour, full power

It has been a lovely week of learning hindi and spending time in Jaipur. This week started out beautifully with a trip to the old city to find a tailor. we spent the afternoon sitting in a 300 year old house that looked like something out of a movie, it was entirely open on the inside, and you could climb stairs and stand out on the roof overlooking the city. it is amazing how easy it is to explore, and meet people in a country where you everyone lives their lives in the open. we stood on the roof with the kids and just basked in the beauty that is jaipur. afterwards, i had the joy of going to part one of three of an indian wedding. thankfully joanna and ian were able to join so as a band of white people we took the dance floor and made absolute asses out of ourselves. Indian dance is so intense and beautiful, there are facial expressions that go along with finger movements. of course since we were the only white ones there, they had to train the camera right on us, so incase we wanted to forget, everyone and their families will be watching that wedding video for the rest of their lives. Indian weddings are far and above anything in the states. the whole point is to be as loud and colorful and energetic as possible. everyone wears their most sparkling sari's, and there is fabric and lights and food for miles. we had a fantastic time to say the least, and seeing as "wedding season" is the nine months of the year when the wedding god it not sleeping, we have a good chance of going to a few more.
the next night i did my first serious batch of laundry in a bucket. its one of those things that makes me appreciate appliances, because when all of your underwear come out feeling like cardboard, you would give an arm and a leg for some fabric softener, and a dryer.
this friday all 16 of us left school, packed a bag for a week, and at midnight, hopped a 15 hour train to jaisalmere. Jaisalmere is a desert city surprisingly close to pakistan, with a BEAUTIFUL fort made of light yellow stone, and that was built 800 years ago. the fort is still lived in, and to this day you can walk through it and shop at little hole in the wall stores with fabric pouring off the shelves. we arrived half way through the day on saturday after a train ride that will probably haunt me for years to come. we chose to travel like only students and natives do, which means in a sleeper train with hundreds of bunks facing each other, and a whole mess of army men. i fell asleep to the sound of someone singing in hindi and the horrid snores of a train full of men. to be honest i was happier when they were alseep, because if they were awake they tended to just sit in silence and stare at us. my friend arianna woke up at 2 am to a man standing at the foot of ber bunk looking at her...she is blonde, poor girl.
when we arrived in jaisalmere we checked into a small hotel that helped us hook up with a camel safari, and sent us out into the desert. we all rode camels out into the sand dunes which is hilarious because camels, while being really peaceful and content looking, make some of the most hilarious noises i have ever heard. they all have anklets and bells around their necks, and many have really pretty patterns shaved into their fur. to be honest we are pretty sure that camels are just as effective as a form of population control as much as a mode of transportation, and i for one have been limping around for two days. when we got out into the middle of nowhere we then made a fire and ate dinner. we spent most of the night in the desert just talking about how amazing it was to be in the desert. words can hardly do the experience justice. the next day we spent in the city, and mostly inside the fort. we made quick friends with a guy named cool raoul who took us around and made us laugh histerically. we ate lunch overlooking the city in a small restaurant and basically just took it easy and talked about the way of the world. I am lucky to be here with such amazing and independent people. its like everyone is here to find themselves, and find their passion in life, and that leaves no time for social issues. that night we went back into the city to get dinner, and found ourselves sitting in a three person window alcove that stuck out from the wall of the city and was entirely open. we got to eat dal and paneer overlooking all of jaisalmere and it was the perfect way to end our trip.
again we got on a train and today at 5 am we ended up in bikanir which is a bizarre little town that pales in comparison to the beauty and charm of jaisalmere. we are here and in jodhpur for the week to see some ngo's and spend time in an area of the country where water conservation is a huge issue. i must say that showering out of a bucket is a stellar way to conserve water, and you havent really lived until you have done so.
much love from india, and thank you to everyone who has been sending me emails it is amazing to hear from you all. much love.