My last 35 days

The images of the trips are not necessarily the ones that I was able to captures on camera. I wish I could take a picture of the little shops: the one with just the space for the old shop owner and his sewing machine, an old black Singer as my grandmother’s one, the other next to it that sold from cell phone to battery and who knows what else, then the textile store and the carved statues of all dimensions. The most memorable are the markets, of a rare beauty of colors and abundance, the mini banana hanging all around the stand, and the flower stall close to the temple. Oh the jasmine smell is so incredible! I put some of my hair last night, and every time I was doing a head movement the smell come to me. Now I understand why all these women have it constantly as part of their hairdo. It is the appreciation for little things that makes Indians so special, their easiness to communicate, their smoothness in staying close to each other with gentleness, they refusing aggressiveness, they are amazing me! Going back to the Western world it seems really painful right now. I feel to connect to a level of humanity that seems so much more harmonious. Even the food in the plane is good and I just realize that you can almost judge a country by the quality of the food in the plane! (That’s say a lot about the US where now they don’t even serve you any food at all!) I could spend hours watching the people, and for some much the landscape has its interest, the cities have not. Small and medium size towns have grown in big city almost overnight without any rational urbanization, however they don’t have the feel of the city but little town attached to one another, with their little community and temples and neighbors. The man I was talking to at the airport just confirm it, wherever you live in India you are immediately part of a community, everybody knows you and you know everybody. So at the end it does not seem inevitable that as people become more urbanized they have to become more individualists. Probably young urban couples will not choose to share the household with the husband extended family as it is traditionally done but it doesn’t mean that they don’t do their outings together. The restaurants always set up this long table which means that large groups are common. My impression of India is that is a positive country and their attitude is contagious. The ex president died few days ago and he was considered such an inspiration that he was able to unite an entire nation, the number of posters I saw about him was unbelievable and it was decided an official day of morning with every school and office and most of shops and offices closed. They have a way of assembling a nation at a personal level. Politically their biggest problem is Pakistan, economically China, and internally the corrupted politicians. Everybody seems to agree on these three points. They know their country is moving forward, and probably their biggest asset is to have instilled in society that education is the way to move forward not only as individual but as a nation. I am fascinated by their mix of common sense, traditions and tolerance. In NY tolerance is translated in indifference, here is on respect for others. That same man at the airport tells me that they like to celebrate all holidays even the ones that don’t belong to their tradition or religion. That means something! I have to come back, I am not even gone yet but I have to come back.