Today was a rather low key day. We met with Fr. Paul in the morning and discussed our plans for the next week. This was cut short when the transport truck showed up, 2.5 days late and the toughened glass truck showed up, a day early, go figure. This worked out well because we had to go pick up one of our ETHOS instructors, Professor Malcolm Daniels, at the airport. He was coming to visit the site and check in on us. This was his second time in India, but first time at this compound. He planned to stay here until Thursday where he would head further south to meet with some Marianist’s and other students also part of ETHOS.
After we picked Malcolm up from Patna airport we had lunch. Oh wait, back up a second, funny story. So as always, wherever we go, people stare. So I’ve been slightly staring back, but breaking the glance after about 1 second, if that, because I either start laughing or I feel really awkward. I’m a strange person to begin with, my girlfriend will confirm this, but it feels like there are all these eyes, it feels like owls staring at me, essentially hooting (another language I can’t understand) at me. So anyways, after about 5 minutes they stopped staring and went about their own airport business. So the people start coming out of the arrival doors and the only flight that had landed recently was the one Malcolm was on. Naturally, we got up and waited for him to come out. More stares, but we had a pretty good position so I didn’t care too much. I had a small amount of space around me to begin with, but I had two Indians squeeze in front of me, one in between me and Mary Ellen, and one on the other side. It was funny because I could still see over all of them but I was like, woah, way to close, I am much more uncomfortable than I am comfortable with. So I stepped back. It was like pulling your hand out of water, the depression is immediately filled by surrounding water, but in this case people. Even if I expelled potentially toxic fumes, I’m not sure if anyone would notice… That’s a hint they need more deodorant. Ok so, were waiting, and waiting, and waiting and finally… a white woman walks out, talking to an Indian lady already. But everyone turns and looks and me and Mary Ellen, like is she with you??!?!? My attention was fully on her though, what was she doing here? SHEs white? So there were two white people on the plane!?! Woah then I stared until she was out of my view, attention now back on waiting for Malcolm.
Wait a second… I just did what every other person in eye sight just did. Stared at someone that looked out of place and wondered what she was doing here. Who she was with. What her plans are. Where she’s from. I GET IT NOW!!! That put me at a little more ease with people staring. It’s really mostly out of curiosity, not plotting mischievous devious plans to destroy me. Cool. That makes sense. That was seriously the highlight of the day. Not that this was that cool, today was kinda a boring day.
So on the way back, traffic was light and Malcolm commented on it, foreshadowing the rest of his time here “my, traffic is rather light compared to other parts of India I’ve been” ha ha haaaaa just wait professor…. Just wait…
We had lunch and dismissed for naps and such. I blogged and worked out. First time in like 3 weeks. And by worked out I did pushups and sit ups in my concrete room. Nothing glorified with weight plates and machines and running tracks… oh how I miss it… but I did listen to flogging molly, an Irish rock band. I’m going to see then when I get back. So excited.
I forget what we had for dinner. I think it was pretty good tho., We talked for a long time about cultures and travel and politics and random stuff. Typical dinner conversation.
We decided tomorrow we would go to the University of Nalanda and Rajgir in Nalanda. So we would need to LEAVE the compound at 5:30 AM whattttttttttt. Well that’s great. Ok it helps us beat traffic, maybe… so I was told.
So I went to bed emailed back and forth with a few people and skyped shortly with Kayleigh and a friend, Laura, of mine who I met last summer in Germany. She shares the same affinity for calculated risk taking and extreme traveling. She is learning to become a master dive instructor in Panama. Well, add that to the list of cities to visit next summer… Set my alarm and went to bed. Or tried. Dint find rest till about midnight. Sweet. Tomorrows gonna be rough… I had no idea how much I under estimated…
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