"Out siders"

Remember that sign at Mecca Masjid I mentioned in an earlier post? I returned to Charminar and the masjid today, this time with "A" and "D", and got a photo of it....



I'd seen an "excluding" sign like this (albeit a bit milder in tone) once before at a mosque in Guangzhou, tho' I've never seen one in a mosque in the USA. And I've never seen one on any church, temple, or synagogue in the world.

Thanks to "A" and "D", a lot more attention came our way than in my first visit to Charminar....from child-hawkers, street vendors, beggars, and stares from regular folks. Most were friendly and non-hostile.

But one tense encounter with a random passerby reminded me most of our "outsiderness". Addressing me, this bespectacled, heavily-bearded fellow in his 30's or 40's asked where I was from.

"America", I replied.

Not smiling, he nodded his head toward "A" and "D" (who were unaware of what we were discussing) and asked....

"Are you with them?"

I said yes. He then murmured a question that needed repeating several times, because it sounded really odd and his voice was getting lower....

"Do you trust them?"

I was perplexed. "Do I trust them? Of course!" I said emphatically. He then told me in an exasperated tone that I should "remove the screen from my eyes". He asked if "A" and "D" were "ethnic Americans" (a comment I half-ignored) and then muttered some stuff about the FBI, CIA, etc. It was evident he wasn't fond of Americans, particularly those of Anglo persuasion, like "A" and "D". I made the most of the opportunity to inform him that America was filled with people from all races, colors, and backgrounds, and that there are good/bad in all countries, societies, and races. Tho' unable to argue with that, he didn't seem to soften much. Annoyed, but hoping to disarm him a bit, I had him chat with "A" and "D", which they did smilingly. Our friend seemed a little accepting of "A" and "D" then. Maybe a small breakthrough?

After a while, our friend and I shook hands before parting. I asked him his name. "Zaki", I thought I heard him say. He asked me mine. Upon hearing my name, he huffed disdainfully as he went on his way, "Shouldn't your name be more like 'Ching-Chow' or 'Wing-Foo' or something like that?!?"

I guess Zaki's image of me as a "sell-out" was complete at this point. Oh, well....hopefully, his view of "out siders" is getting a little re-adjustment from our brief encounter. :-)

Welcome, "A" and "D"

"A" and "D" came in today. They're folks from the USA whom "L" knew back in her college days. They're in India as well, long-term, but in a different city. Over email, a visit to Hyderabad was arranged, so they'll be spending the next few days with us.

What's all that noise?

Around mid-day, we heard someone chanting over loudspeakers. It sounded like a bored auctioneer. Curious, I walked over to the source of the noise, only about 100 yards away. It turned out to be a Hindu ceremony at a community gathering place. We looked at the calendar....sure enough, today was Sri Rama Navami (celebration of the birth of the Hindu man-god Rama). Businesses, schools, and offices all had the day off today.

The folks at the ceremony saw me and invited me to join them. I told them I preferred to watch from the outside. They asked if I was a Christian, which I said yes. Even tho' I politely turned down their invitation to enter the celebration floor and to eat with them, they were quite friendly, allowed me to take photos, and, in their limited English, tried to explain to me what was going on. I got bits and pieces, but not a really clear picture. Here's Wikipedia's description of the Sri Rama Navami.



Here's where the celebration took place, just a hundred yards from where we live.



The "pandit" (man without shirt in background) is a scholar in Hindu scriptures. It was his voice we heard blaring over the loudspeakers. He chanted mantras, possibly pieces from the story of Rama's marriage to Sita. I believe the man and woman on the right facing the pandit are playing the part of Rama and Sita, re-enacting their marriage.



Another shot of the celebration. The audience comprised mainly of children. Some of them, as you can see, got distracted by me taking photos. It wasn't long before I was surrounded by them, trying to get a glimpse of the digital photos in my camera or just wanting to check out the "strange-looking Indian".



Later, someone lit a fire on a plate and started carrying it through the group. Wherever it went, people tried to touch the flames. I'm not sure of the significance of this ritual.



The fire made its way to the back for those there to touch. It got a little close, as you can see (whoa). The woman carrying the "plate of fire" around was a 17-year-old girl who recognized me from Sunday's medical camp. She received a pair of reading glasses and had asked me questions about it.

Medical camp

Meanwhile, back at home, the medical camp was taking off! Both "DC" and our doctor-friend saw over 150 people each in about 3 hours time. Almost 1 person a minute....that's a serious clip! A few people from SBF pitched in to translate, run errands, and provide moral support. It was a great success. There is talk about having another one at the same place next week.

Below are photos from the camp. The last pic that looks somewhat unrelated are of two boys who came to the camp and, perhaps inspired by the goodwill shared, offered to help carry supplies back home for us (while requesting a photo be taken of them).

Baptisms

After church this morning, Dad and I went to visit another church in the afternoon, way in the outskirts of Hyderabad. The pastor is a student at Dad's school. The church currently meets in the pastor's home, but they eventually plan to move nearby to another place, donated by a member. The church asked Dad to baptize 9 people. The baptism took place at another site in what appeared to be a watering hole. Singing filled the air as the congregants paraded to the baptismal and as each person was baptized. It was a touching, inspiring sight.


The church's non-descript entrance (circled in green)....


....leads inside to a small room tightly packed with worshippers.


A ladder was needed to descend into the makeshift baptismal...


....before baptism was administered.


The future site of the church meeting, a few yards away from the current one.

Welcome, "DC"

A doctor-friend of ours from Seattle, "DC", arrived by plane in Hyderabad a few hours before our train did. He'll be visiting different parts of India to help out and observe ophthalmologic ministries. Meanwhile, he'll be staying with us for a couple of days. "DC" may also help out at the "inaugural" neighborhood medical camp tomorrow (if he feels up to it).

It's been getting hotter of late....almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit daily. Am told it's unusual for Hyderabad to be this hot this early. This morning, however, we did get a short stint of cool rain. Dad said it was the first in many months! Lasted but a few minutes, tho'....still, we made the most of it. Thanks, "DC", for bringing in the much-needed liquid sunshine from the Pac NW, even if just a sprinkle!

Cricket update #3

Well, the unthinkable has happened....India's pretty much out of the Cricket World Cup tournament, losing to Sri Lanka.

India virtually crashed out in the first round of the World Cup after they suffered a shattering 69-run defeat in their crunch Group B match against Sri Lanka on Friday.

A stunning batting collapse on a good Queen's Park Oval pitch condemned India to a total of 185 all out and allowed Sri Lanka to top the group with a maximum six points.

The 1983 champions were skittle in the 44th over as they failed miserably in their attempt to chase Sri Lanka's challenging total of 254 for six.

India's slim hopes of progressing now hinge on an unlikely defeat for Bangladesh in Sunday's final group game against debutants Bermuda.

Once again, disappointed fans react....

• Angry fans bring players down from pedestal


• Police guard cricketers' homes, restaurants


• 'Clones' duck for cover

Fortunately, we know or have seen no one personally who's taking India's loss anywhere THIS hard! It appears to be a minority of fans behaving this way. Besides, one could make the argument that a difference between India and the USA is that the former riots when their teams lose, whereas the latter riots when their teams win.

The multiple Championships won by the Chicago Bulls Championships in the early 1990’s instigated riots each year. The 1991 Championship was followed by 100 arrests. The 1992 Championship (occurring approximately one month after the Rodney King verdict) was followed by 1000 arrests, hundreds of injuries (including 95 injured police officers), and many burned and looted buildings. These were not the first riots of this type, however. In 1990, 7 people were killed in Detroit after the Pistons won the Championship and one person was killed in 1984 after the Tigers won the World Series.

Almost "downed" at Daund

Sunset at a train stop in Daund, India. Thinking we had time, "L" and Dad got off to shop for snacks, while "B" and I got off to stretch.


Seconds after this photo was taken, the train unexpectedly started to pull away. Yikes!!! With "B" in one arm, I grabbed a railing by the door to haul the two of us into our slowly-moving car. Mom was already on board. But where was "L" and Dad?!? Ack! Should we pull the emergency chain to stop the train? The train was picking up speed. An anxious minute later, "L" burst in....out of breath, but thankfully okay. She'd barely made it on herself. But where was Dad? What? Last seen bartering for bananas?!? Ack, ack!!!

A train employee later came by to tell us Dad made it on the next car. Whew! But Dad had to wait until the next stop to join us, since entry into our AC car was restricted to other cars. An half-hour and one stop later, we were together again. Double whew!

Otherwise, it would've been one looooong wait for another train in Nowhere-ville.

Thumb-printed!

Between acquiring propery in India vs. property in the USA, I'm not sure which process is easier. One difference is that thumb prints were required in India.



Behold!


We all got thumb-prints, including Mom and Dad who also acquired some "Solitude". "B" didn't get thumb-printed, but still wanted to get her digit in the picture.

Prayers in Paud

To register our plot of "Solitude", we had to go to the government magistrate in a small town called Paud, about 30 km outside Pune. Compared to the millions in Pune and Hyderabad, Paud boasts a population of about 21,000. Situated in the state of Maharashtra, where the Marathi language is spoken.....different from the Telugu that Mom, Dad, and "L" speak.

From the get-go, we had difficulties. The "Solitude" sellers communicated poorly with us, not letting us know what we needed until the day of (e.g. photos), so we had to get those taken at a nearby shop. Then our sales rep failed to show up as promised, sending one of his underlings. Once at the magistrate's building, we submitted our signatures on some paperwork, then waited for our number to be called to get fingerprinted on more documents. We waited....10 am...11 am....12 pm....1 am. We were #33 and they were only at #17. We were getting frantic, since we were scheduled to catch the train back to Hyderabad at 4:30 pm later that afternoon, and we needed at least a hour and half to get back to our friend's apartment, pick up our luggage, and race to the train station. To boot, we didn't have seat confirmations for the return train tickets we'd bought. Dad gathered us to pray. To make a long story short, after praying, the train tickets not only got confirmed, but after our friend pleaded directly to the magistrate on our behalf, we got our paperwork processed and our fingerprints in! The magistrate was a gruff, abrupt person who wielded a lot of power. Our friend was quite nervous confronting her, but somehow we found favor in her eyes. The magistrate even chewed out her meeker associates for not expediting our paperwork, given our time-crunch. Miraculously, we made it to the train station on time, marveling and thanking God for His goodness all the way.



Main road going through Paud


Veggie/fruit stand along the main road going through Paud


Stray goats outside the magistrate building that ate the peels from the bananas we bought from the veggie/fruit stand along the main road going through Paud