Deepavali Festivities

For several days, every street corner was the scene of bombs blasting, crackers exploding, bottle-rockets whizzing, sparklers sizzling, and flower pots cascading, but now it has died down to a quiet buzz only heard in distant parts of the city when I stand on my rooftop.

Even though the bombs, crackers, bottle-rockets, sparklers and flowerpots are probably made by child labor and are extremely polluting, I lit my fair share over the last few days, admittedly with some guilt, but also a lot of excitement and adrenaline. Originally, Prev and I had plans to head out of town and explore Ooty, a Tamil Nadu hill station, but after the bus accident that didn’t sound like a very good idea, or very relaxing. Instead, I chilled in Chennai and I was invited to spend the Deepavali holiday with two families. And both homes ardently support celebrating deepavali with fireworks. But we also celebrated one of India’s biggest holidays by eating, sleeping, wearing new clothes, taking an oil bath (oil head massage), watching TV, and of course lighting more fireworks!




It was a relaxing and festive weekend! Lots of time at home watching episodes of ‘Friends’ and ‘The Office’ balanced with family festive time. I also managed to get our new futon, buy a cover for it and cook a few tasty meals too!

Urging Fellows NOT To Take Night Buses

I’ve been trying to visit Madurai, my ‘native place’ in India since I arrived. It hasn’t worked out for lots of reasons, but last weekend I was finally able to book bus tickets. I actually hate taking overnight buses and avoid them whenever possible. Only under very unusual circumstances would I ever consider taking a bus between Madurai and Chennai (10-12 hrs!), but given the upcoming holidays all the trains were booked. It was either now, or wait until November. So I booked an overnight sleeper (full bed) on the way and a semi-sleeper (reclining seats) for the return.

Sadly the excitement and anticipation of my weekend trip to Madurai to visit friends and family was quickly dashed at 6am on Saturday morning when my bus crashed into a Toyota Qualis carrying young men to a DMDK (political party) rally in Chennai. A few people in my bus were injured, but five people in the vehicle were killed. They were all my age.

The front of my bus, notice the windshield fell out.

The back of my bus off the road! Thank god we didn't land on our
side or continue down the ravine.

The Toyota Qualis totally unidentifiable. This pictures has been cropped
to remove gruesome details.

I was sleeping when we hit them and went off the road. I realize I had nothing to do with the accident and I am not at fault (although my bus driver was arrested and was driving on the wrong side of the road). But the fact remains that I was in a vehicle, which was responsible for taking 5 lives. The accident could have been much worse for our vehicle, but luckily it wasn’t. I feel very lucky to be alive, and to be physically fine. But five others young people were not so lucky. There are families, wives, children, and friends that are grieving for them.

The typically Indian response is to ‘move on’, ‘it happens’ or ‘deal with it’. And those kinds of responses drive me mad. I realize those are the things I need to do…and I will do them. But I’m trying to figure out exactly HOW to do that…HOW to honor and remember lives lost. HOW to process my own feelings about being at the scene of a deadly accident. And HOW to make sure I’m not sweeping it aside as so many Indians seem to think I should do.

AIF has offered to help me find a local counselor to talk to. I do appreciate their concern and support, although I think this is something I would rather deal with on my own. And from now on I’ll be taking trains wherever I travel.

Article in The Hindu

The little things

Last night while I was watching Taare Zameen Par, a Hindi movie about a child with dyslexia, it poured outside—nullifying my attempt at drying laundry on our rooftop. But with the rain the temperature cooled dramatically. When I got home, I sat on the rooftop and ate my dinner while watching the lightning bolts shoot across the sky as the storm clouds moved on. It was wonderful! Coming from Portland, I’ve missed the rain.

The movie, part of the ‘Frame of Mind’ film festival sponsored by SCARF Schizophrenia Research Foundation, was also wonderful. It was just the kind of meaningful yet light entertainment I needed at the end of a long week that included working on Saturday! It had the typical Hindi song and dance numbers but the story was about a child struggling with a learning disability and how he overcame it and found acceptance. It was sappy but the child actor was so convincingly good I admittedly shed a tear (or maybe two).

This morning, I lay in bed and listened to the downpour for several hours. It was magical, especially because our original apartment would have totally prevented me from enjoying those kinds of moments! I absolutely love the sound of rain, especially hard rain. And the cool breeze carried the intoxicating scent of rain, which lulled me into such a deep sleep I slept through my alarm. My alarm was set so I could attend be back at the SCARF film festival by 9:30 to get a ticket for Hiding Divya. Lucky for my cross-city by bus travel plans, the rain stopped and I arrived at the film dry. It wasn’t nearly as entertaining as the previous film, but had an equally important message about acceptance of people who are bipolar.

Even though I only had a 1-day weekend, it was enjoyable and productive. I saw two movies, slept through a loud rainstorm, and did some necessary clothes shopping. Tomorrow it’s back to work and it looks like my project is going to get up and running this week…eek! Lots of work to be done for sure!

My rooftop yoga session got cut short this morning because the rain continues…its wonderful!

Budgeting a Night on the Town

(The pasta bar at Aqua at The Park Hotel in Delhi)

During orientation we were wined and dined at some of Delhi’s fanciest restaurants, including a new Japanese restaurant that actually served sushi! Yes, I ate raw fish in India. The food was fabulous, plus there was an open bar and basically we were totally spoiled!

(Team Tamil Nadu)

But as a fellow we are asked to live simply and our stipends encourage a simple yet comfortable lifestyle. We are asked be conscious of our spending and live modestly. Fine! I’m used to living on a budget, I’ve been doing it for a long time. So, I’ve found a local fruit and vegetable stand that is very reasonable, a significant price difference from the fancy air conditioned fruit/vegetable markets. I’ve been cooking in my flat-rice and rasam, oatmeal, tea/coffee, curd and fruit, etc. And I’ve been taking the bus to/from work whenever possible (i.e. when it isn’t pouring). I have not tempted fate with street food yet, but it is something I’d like to incorporate into my life. As a foreigner in India, it is easy to live the high life. To eat at 5 star hotels, shop at American-like supermarkets and hire help to cook and clean. But on our stipends, that lifestyle isn’t possible, especially in a big expensive city like Chennai. Being forced to interact with India on a budget is empowering. It makes me appreciate the splurges even more and makes me realize how unnecessary some of the splurges are—like paying more for food just to shop in an A/C store.

The financial reality of working at NGO in India, is such that even with our “stipends of simplicity”, as fellows we receive more than many of our co-workers earn as salary. Therefore, many of my co-workers are also fellow bus riders and know the system well. However, a few of them seem not to know the system at all and are surprised that I’m getting along so well. On the way back from a field visit one of my co-workers said, “Someday, I’d like to try and take the bus.” And then she texted me to make sure I’d made it home via bus without any problems. Cute! Obviously, not everyone is dependent on the NGO salary. I work with an interesting mix of people from a variety of backgrounds and I’m enjoying all the interactions. Living on a budget allows me the flexibility to mingle at multiple levels and I appreciate that.

(Riding the Bus in Chennai)

Living on a “stipend of simplicity” also encourages innovative planning and finding all the deals in town! So, even fellows can still have a night out, especially when it’s ladies night and drinks are free! Team Chennai enjoyed a few tasty treats at the Taj Hotel this week. Fun times!!

(Team Chennai at the Taj)

RoomS with viewS!

Bay of Bengal, can you see it?

It’s now a fact—we have a flat!
In fact, we have a flat with a view.

We have 6 windows,
In four directions:
North, South, East and West.
Palm trees, laundry lines, and crows.

Up above, our rooftop is an added bonus.
Doing yoga, eating dinner, or washing clothes,
We enjoy the city commotion below.
And if we stand on our tiptoes,
We can even see the ocean!

We have 4 rooms:
2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms,
1 hall and a kitchen.
Ants in the corners,
Mosquitos buzzing,
And a super sweet aunty down below!

Everything we need:
Clean, simple and safe.
It’s our new home,
And it has roomS with viewS.

Our Hall


Our Fabulous Red Fridge


Our Front Balcony and Door

Rural & Urban School Visits

Almost two weeks in

Good news is we found a great flat and our furniture is being moved today. We aren’t sure yet how AIF will help us financially as we had to incur some costs for the deposit, etc. but we moved and have a safe, well ventilated flat on the 2nd floor of a home. Feeling a little closer to being settled in--thankfully!

As for my ‘work’ in the last two weeks I’ve mostly sat and surfed the Internet and read documents. But I’ve also visited several schools (both rural and urban), attended several meetings and almost have a project proposal—but not quite.

The best part of the rural school visits: getting out of Chennai and riding a bicycle around a village.
The worst part of the urban school visits: being witness to corporeal punishment over and over and over again.

Rural Visit:
The first school visit was very exciting because I got out of the office and out of Chennai with my co-worker. We chatted on the commuter train, shared food and got to know each other. When we turned up in Minjur (a community North of Chennai) we took an auto to the NGO office and met the representative. She showed us to our bikes and off we went. Cycling through villages is always amusing, especially for my co-worker who enjoyed not being the center of attention. She translated for me some of the comments expressing ‘awe and surprise to see a foreigner’ from the villagers as we cycled by. But she didn’t translate everything, and that is probably for the best. We visited two schools, both one-room classrooms with one teacher. The students were busy with the ABL (activity-based learning) program when we arrived but put their cards away and prepared for their English class. My co-worker and I observed the lesson as the representative and sometimes the homeroom teacher taught. Ideally, there is a CD component to each lesson and the schools have been supplied CD players and speakers. Sadly, one school’s CD player broke and the other was having problems with the connection. The storybook was also left at the office, so the representative improvised and demonstrated a semi-typical lesson. At both schools we were served bright orange Mirinda—sugary sweet orange soda.

In Japan I was always the one teaching, with others watching! Now, I’m the one sitting in the back observing. I decided against taking notes since it was my first visit and I really am in learning mode. There were about 25-30 students in both classrooms of various ages. They were pretty eager to participate. They stood up and spoke when asked. They played pass the parcel. They identified corresponding flashcards. And they practiced introducing themselves. Interesting overall!

Finally we watched a focus lesson, which was similar to the first but with the audio component included. After the sugar high of the Mirinda and seeing a similar lesson for the 3rd time, I almost passed out. The ‘ladies compartment’ of the train coming back was packed and we stood most of the way. It was fun to watch the female venders get on and off with all their goods—selling to everyone in the car. The most popular item on this particular trip were the banana stems and flowers, they were going like hotcakes.

Urban Visit:
One of my co-workers teaches a focus class at a local government primary school in the same neighborhood as our office. I asked to observe her lesson to learn more about her approach, the kids, the school and what might or might not work in the Indian classroom setting. She has been teaching phonics everyday afterschool for 1-hour to a group of 4th standard students. And what a group they are. I’ve never seen anything like it…except for one of my classes in Japan that was highlighted on national TV for its misbehaving: throwing chairs, sleeping, swearing, hitting, yelling, etc. The class that I observed here brought back the horrors of teaching that group of students in Japan. The children in this class were throwing water bottles, pencils, pens, and even each other. They were hitting, kicking, punching, and pulling hair. They were talking, yelling, screaming and so engaged with other activities I couldn’t hear the teacher at the front in a small classroom. I lost count of how many times my co-worker had to go and fetch the head mistress, their homeroom teacher or another teacher to quiet them down. In each case, they brought a stick or ruler with them and hit whoever was acting up on the hand, arm, shoulder, back, head or leg. The kids would wince and quiet down for a second, but as soon as the teacher left the room, they would be back at it again. I never saw a student cry from the pain of being hit, apparently they are used to it. Shockingly, my co-worker uses the same method although had even less authority over the students.

Knowing that my presence alone was probably contributing to their acting up even more, I dared not say or do anything. I just had to sit by and watch it happen over and over again. It was both brutal to watch and legitimate brutality toward the children. Honestly, I would want to drop out too if my teachers treated me like that. Given that most of the kids come from impoverished families probably living in slums and have life experience beyond their age, their need for appropriate attention is critical. But the schools are understaffed and corporeal punishment is seen as the only way of managing the problem, creating a cycle of abuse, neglect and acting out.

I had grand ideas of teaching myself. But this has made me think twice about it. Let’s see what happens. But maybe staying in the office isn’t such a bad thing.

Food, toilets, clothing norms, bugs, etc. aside, these are the real issues that make living and working in another cultural context difficult.

A room with a view

(Window picture taken in Tibet, 2007)

Orientation in Delhi was exciting, overwhelming, exhilarating and exhausting. It was too much information that left us with lots of questions. It was meeting engaging speakers and getting to know the very dynamic group of AIF fellows. It was boiled eggs everyday for breakfast and sitting on plastic chairs for 6 hours. It was two fancy dinners out with an open bar at Delhi’s most exclusive restaurants. And it was two weeks of constructing and reconstructing expectations of the coming months while being told not to have any expectations.

But is it really possible to expect nothing? I thought I was a blank slate of zero expectations. But apparently I wasn’t. At expecting ‘nothing’, I’ve failed. That doesn’t mean I’m disappointed with my experience thus far, I’m just adjusting to it and readjusting my expectations without creating too many more future expectations that may be unrealistic.

I expected to move into my flat immediately and set up house. It’s been almost a week, and I’m staying with my roommate’s family. The hospitality and the food are fabulous, it is so comfortable here, but I was hoping to have my own place by now. I expected my flat to have windows, air, light, a view of something—anything green, but it doesn’t. But I can (if I were staying there) walk to the Bay of Bengal in 15 minutes. I expected it to have running water all the time, but it doesn’t. I expected it to be clean, but there is garbage on the floor, moldy sheets in the corner, and stained pillows. Maybe the new fridge, stove and utensils were supposed to make up for what it was lacking. But honestly, my heart sank when I walked in and saw my new ‘home’.

The most frustrating part of the housing situation is being caught in the middle, trying to negotiate between all the different players, all who have their own opinions and ideas and don’t want to consider the alternatives. Local family members say the flat is unsafe and unhygienic (looks like we might have to pump corporation water), my NGO is convinced it is VERY safe, and I’m worried I’ll have a mental breakdown if I don’t have any light or air for 10 months. And to top it off, AIF wants proof of these things…intuition and our observation apparently aren’t enough.

I think the biggest adjustment of moving to India this time has been trying to manage my expectations, and adjust to scenarios I could not have expected. I’m trying to be okay with living in a dark hole, but ultimately it makes me really sad. Maybe posters, plants, and a few extra lamps will help. But I’m hoping we can pull out of the lease and find a brighter, cleaner and safer place—fingers crossed!

All that being said, I’m slowly feeling my way around my NGO. I can almost taste the project proposal and I’m excited about it. And while I know I’ll be busy in the coming year, the office is very laid back and flexible, but oddly enough, my office doesn’t have any windows either.

Looking for a room with a view--any view!

A Visual Corpus of my MA dissertation

For anyone who is vaguely curious as to what I spent the last few months locked up in my parents house writing about, below is a visual representation of my MA dissertation. It is much more interesting presented this way. And saves several hours of reading. Plus, the fact that I took the time to do this proves exactly how nerdy I can be! Gotta love academia and linguistics.

(grammatical lexis not included).

Created using http://wordle.net/

Salvador Molly's Friends & Family Night

SAVE the DATE!!

Monday, Sept 22nd!

Come...Dine 'for' us - the kids at 'SEED' (tutoring) centers in southern India!

Come to Salvador Molly's - Monday, September 22nd!
For directions, click here.

Salvador Molly's has generously offered to donate 20% of their sales that evening to support education for slum children in Madurai, India through Asha, a non-profit agency. Click here to make an online donation. Please specify that the money is "FOR SEED - Madurai (Adams)".

See you there!!

சென்னை சென்னை சென்னை

I'm moving into my new apartment in Chennai tomorrow! Since my last post I've been to India, finished my MA dissertation, flown back to India, attended a 12 day AIF Service Corps orientation, met amazing people and am about to leave for my site! I've been on the move for over a year, and I'm really ready to settle in and unpack my bags. I want a 'home' for 10 months!

Pictures, stories and more about life in Chennai coming soon!

July in South India

I have this long blog story all written out in my notebook about my experience on Greyhound in May--worthy of a long long blog entry, believe you me!! Unfortunately, I haven't had anytime to post it. Someday.

From July 3rd-27th, I'll be in South India with SAGE: Studies Abroad for Global Education. I'm co-leading the Arts & Religion program and taking 11 teens from around the US! It promises to be an exciting adventure! I won't be posting anything here, but we have a trip blog. Check it out if you are interested in our Indian adventures!

This blog will remain inactive through September while I finish my MA dissertation and prepare to go back to India as an AIF Service Corps Fellow. However, once I am settled in my new home in Chennai, Tamil Nadu working for AID India, I'll start posting again.

Coming to a state near you

My round the world post-JET tour is coming to a close. I'll be leaving the sunny British Isles tomorrow, but that doesn't mean I'll be unpacking the bags and calling it quits for good! I'm coming 'home' (a.k.a. Portland, OR) and will settle in, but will have the bag by the door ready to travel most of the summer. Here is a list of places I'll be headed from May-August, if I happen to be passing through your neck of the woods, maybe we can meet for coffee or a meal.

New York City
Washington, D.C.
Birmingham, AL
Minneapolis, MN

The Quad Cities, IA & IL

Fargo, ND
Fort Collins, CO
South India
Vancouver, B.C.
Seattle, WA

And hopefully there will be a hike, a few camping trips, and a weekend or two at the beach in there as well. But oh...I can't forget, I still have a bloody dissertation to write! Frick!

As soon as the dissertation is sent off and submitted, I'm officially headed back to India from September-June as an AIF Service Corps Fellow! Exciting news!!

So much to be thankful for these days!

Another 4,000 written, only 12,000 words to go!

That's it folks! I've finished my 6th module or assessment essay for my MA course. Feels good to have that out of the way. Just have to run to the library and print it and submit it and I'm done!

This one was about the global spread of English, otherwise known as 'englishization' which I might add is not in any dictionary or referenced by hardly anyone other than academics (and mostly linguists at that)! So, in my mind it doesn't even really exist as a word, at least not in mainstream media yet. So, if you haven't heard of it...don't worry, neither has anyone else!

Time to pack up, say good-bye, fly home and start the dissertation! Eeps!

In Memory of my Great Uncle Vern

My love, hugs, thoughts, and condolences to family as they celebrate Vern's long and full life. I am reflecting on and remembering all the wonderful visits my family has had to the lake cabin. We always enjoyed our visits and always looked forward to seeing Vern's latest gadget, gizmo, creation, or garden. Of course one of my favorite times was helping collect the tree sap and watching it being boiled down to the most delicious maple syrup I've ever tasted. Making it was fun, but enjoying it on pancakes was always a treat!! As we sat and ate, we listened to his stories which was always a highlight of each visit. In his last week, he was able to get out and watch the guys boiling down the syrup for this year's batch. He also enjoyed sitting in his chair overlooking the lake, enjoying the view and making plans for his next project.

In honor and celebration of Vern's life I made a big pancake breakfast with REAL maple syrup in his honor. It's not the liquid gold he is famous for, but it's the best I could find here! I think my sister and parents are doing the same in their respective corners of the globe. Thinking and remembering Vern's life! He is missed and will always be remembered!

Snow from Tibet

This week protesters have stood in support of Tibet and Tibetans at the Olympic Torch Relays in London, Paris, San Francisco and will stand again in Buenos Aires on Friday.

When I woke up Sunday morning (April 6th), for the first time all year, there was several inches of snow on the ground! It was like waking up in the Himalayas of Dharamsala or the plateaus of Tibet. It was a beautiful scene and it felt like the snow Gods of Tibet were watching over the UK that day. It continued to snow on my 3 hour bus journey to London and off and on throughout the protest. I arrived at the 3rd of the protest meeting points along the torch relay route. It was a very large and active demonstration, probably 2000-3000 people at the point I saw. As I stood there chanting with the crowds slogans of "Free Tibet", "China Out" and booing as the Olympic sponsors like Coca-Cola drove by, I also watched several people jump the security fence and be taken down by the police. As the torch came closer, the crowd grew louder, the police more nervous and the tension was high. It was impossible to see the runner, only the top of the flame go by because there were so many of the 'blue men' or Chinese paramilitary running around the torch as well as the police surrounding it on all sides. It was only when I stood up on a wall that I could see the expanse of the crowd. It was an endless sea of of Tibetan flags, banners, and signs with messages of 'Free Tibet', 'Stop the Killing', 'Save Burma', etc. And an endless sea of police trying to keep the peace. But in the end over 30 people were arrested.


It was striking to see the diversity of people standing together for Tibet. There were families who held signs together. A father with his young daughter stood on a high wall and chanted together, even when the crowd stopped. Teenagers wore hand-painted T-shirts and had painted there faces with the Tibetan flag. Couples held each other with the Tibetan flag wrapped around the shoulders to stay warm. A group of Buddhists sat on the steps to a building in silent meditation. And while everyone was chanting in English, you could hear different languages throughout the crowd.

Later at the rally, several politicians from the British government, an actress, musicians and Free Tibet organizers spoke in support of Tibet. The Tibetan Freedom torch was lit and will follow the official Olympic torch on it's course around the world. I hope that the protests continue and that they continue to gain the attention of the media, governments and citizens around the world. But I also hope that it continues to be peaceful.

I'm not a professional photographer, but here is the link to all the photos I took in London: http://www.flickr.com/photos/94801434@N00/sets/72157604459296337/

Peace to you, your families and for Tibet!

Another 4,000 written, only 16,000 to go

Finished one more assessment for the MA. This one was the most boring of them all. It was a critical analysis of two articles from the Journal of Intercultural Communication. Blah!

Only one more essay and then I can start the dissertation. And if I write the next paper the way I want to, it will be the lit review and background for the dissertation! Ah hah!!

Diversity Exploring Part II

A Few Residents from Asbury Overseas House

(Countries Represented include: India, Venezuela, China, Italy, UK, USA,

Congo, Egypt, Vietnam, Korea, Norway)

Since I’ve moved in, my Sri Lankan, Ghanaian, Russian, Korean and French floor mates have moved out and been replaced by an female Egyptian doctor, a Christian Egyptian, a Parisian man originally from Togo, his girlfriend from Gabon and a British woman who lives in the Ukraine.

The Egyptian doctor helped me find the local GP when I was sick. She also brought me a plate of veggies with mayo one night. She studies cardiovascular disease.

I’ve had several interesting conversations about ‘liberalism’ with the Christian Egyptian in our wireless internet room which prompted me to put stickers of Hindu gods and “save Tibet’ on my laptop which prompted him to give me a few interesting looks the next time.

I met an Indian family from Madurai living in my house. And another family that used to live in Chennai.

My sticker of Lord Muruga on my computer sparks lots of conversation among the Indian children when I’m checking Internet in the common room.

During a house potluck dinner I complimented the woman from Madurai on her delicious payasam in Tamil.

Several weeks ago my German classmate invited several of us over to her flat to watch the Eurovision Decision-England. As usual I was the only native speaker among Polish, Spanish, and Korean women.

On the bus to London I sat next to a Muslim Tamil-speaking man from Sri Lanka.

On the bus coming back from London I sat next to a man from Nigeria.

I went to a birthday party for a woman from Iran. She showed us pictures from her wedding and taught us Persian dancing.

Several days later she came to my birthday dinner and brought her Persian music—more dancing with women from Germany, Spain, South Korea, the US and Iran.

While my mom was visiting, several people stopped us in stores to comment on our ‘cute’ American accent. One woman had diamond and gold studs embedded into her teeth.

In the course of my moms four-day visit we ate pub grub, Bangladeshi curry, Persian chicken with tea for two, a Full English, and enjoyed a New York family restaurant.

I gave a presentation on “English as a Global Language” with a classmate who moved here from Algeria when she was in middle school and didn’t speak ANY English. She is now studying to become an Arabic-English translator.

This same friend from Algeria invited me to her house and baked me sponge cake, biscotti, and jam cookies. While I was enjoying tea and cake, we heard the call to prayer and she went in another room and prayed.

I was invited to an Iranian New Years dinner with students from Mexico, Indonesia, Spain, Germany, Italy, Lebanon, the US and of course, Iran.

The next night I went out drinking with the above Iranians. At the table there were Americans and Iranians drinking beer, vodka, and whiskey while comparing international gestures of offense. If only the US President Bush and the Iranian President Ahmadinejad could have a similar light-hearted conversation.

I have had lots of great conversations about fundamentalist Christians with the American on my floor who is studying theology. We were kindly handed Easter ‘booklets’ by our British floor mate.

I attended the St. Patrick’s Day parade in the city center with the above mentioned American. In addition to the dance troops, bag pipers, and every other person with painted green faces, there was a Sikh drumming group and an African music group in the parade.

The rich international community and experiences I’m having in Birmingham continue to surprise me! It is unlike anything I have experienced anywhere in the world. The only sad thing is, I don’t feel like I have many British friends as part of THIS experience. Although I know lots of Brits from my three years in Japan so I don’t feel as if I’m missing out too much! If I had the money I could spend my days traveling the UK visiting them all…alas the funds have quickly disappeared and I’ll be living out my last weeks in Birmingham enjoying the diversity and multi-culturalism.

Save Tibet

The emails from my Tibetan friends continue. The latest round has included some video and photos. I'll post the link to the video below, as I think it tells a powerful story. I'm still deciding what to do about the photos...they are very disturbing images of bodies beaten, shot and tortured. Part of me wants to post them to show people the extent of the violence that is occurring. And part of me doesn't want to even look at them a moment longer because they are so horrific.

Please visit Beijing Wide Open to read about a Tibetan activist speaking out about the Olympics. This woman took the video that I've embedded below. The monk in the video was a student of my dad's and became a good friend. He has a powerful story to tell. Please watch.





If you are wondering what you can do to help please visit the International Campaign for Tibet website. There are links provided to send messages to the White House and your member of congress. Please support Tibet!

Save Tibet

In the last week my family and I have been receiving emails from the Tibetan monks and lay people we met, taught and became good friends with last November/December in Dharamsala, India.

I thought I would share some of their communications (anonymously) for people who are interested and want to hear more of the Tibetan perspective and voice in response to the recent violence in Tibet. They are eager to share their message with the outside world, and I am happy to help in any way I can.

______________________________________

Date March 15th

Here we are very busy at the moment. We are regarding this year a right or unique year for Tibetans living both inside and outside of Tibet. It is because this year Olympic is going to take place in China. Therefore, since the 49th uprising day of Tibetans, which was held on the 10th of this month, we are witnessing big protest going in every country where we have Tibetans living in it.

In particular, this time since this 10th March many protest are going in many part of Tibet, which we are seeing from our news mediums and specially from BBC, CNN and other renowned TV channells. These broad casting brings courage and confidence in the hearts of Tibetans to organize further activities. In Tibet, one of my monk friend also took part in protest and he tried to attempt suicide. He is badly injured and now he is in hospital under chinese arrest.

All in all every Tibetans are regarding these on going events as a door for a big change for Tibet and Tibetans and also for other small countries which are under chinese rule like our Tibet.Here in Dharamsala, we are organizing protest, hunger strike and candle light march almost everyday. I am also sincerely taking part in these moves. All the Tibetans taking part in this on going protest against china in both inside and out side of Tibet, we are demanding freedom for our national and return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama into Tibet.

This protest will go on until the end of the up coming Olympic in China. With this i am requesting you and your close ones to stand for Tibet and take part in Tibetan protest against China going inside your country.

Thanking you!

One Dream, One World, Free Tibet! And Long Live HHDL.

With a big request, Your Friend.

______________________________________________

Written in response to the above email by my father:

To: My Excellent and Wise Student,

We are listening to the news each day and are very sad to hear about the problems in Tibet and in Dharamsala. I have a sign on the back of my car that says, "Support Tibet." We think of all of you and of all of your families and friends. We hope you are all well and that you stay healthy.

However, - - you know, that China is a very powerful country and there will be no immediate change in how they recognize Tibet. The things that you and all Tibetans do to make the world aware of the injustice is good. Everyone must know and remember the injustice. We should never forget and we should not let China lie to the world. The things that you do to keep the world aware are important and will result in change - - someday, - - but NOT today!

You are wise and you know that change will NOT be soon. Many people and many countries support Tibet, but you must know that no one will rise up in support of Tibet against China - - today. Many people in China are also very unhappy about the injustice, - - but they too will not rise up - - today.

As you and your friends help us remember, please, do not do anything foolish. I was a soldier and I fought in a war in Viet Nam. I learned that it is too easy for people to die for an idea. Many foolish people and many cowards can do that. It is much more difficult to learn how to live for an idea and to make it grow. I believe this is the wisdom of His Holiness the Dalai Lama as well! The MOST IMPORTANT THINGS that you and other Tibetans do for Tibet are to WORK, LEARN and TEACH. It takes more wisdom and more courage to work for an idea in the long term than to die for an idea today.

Tibet is so very important! It must live and survive and be a part of a better understanding of all people in the world. But, Tibet IS NOT earth, mountains, buildings, and borders. Tibet is a people with a language and a history and a philosophy that is unique and valuable to the whole world. You say to me "Free Tibet." I ask you to free yourself from small ideas that tie Tibet to a place and to borders that China has violated. Tibet is not a place. Tibet is a people. Tibet is not a problem to be corrected. Tibet is a possibility of peace and love.

For Tibet to survive, Tibetans must be engaged in the world to help us all learn about whom we are and who we can become. For Tibet to survive, it must be as a people with a culture that is compelling and shared. For Tibet to survive, it may not be as a place, even if that beautiful place is sometime recovered in the future for Tibetans. For Tibet to survive, it will be because the beautiful wise people of Tibet see beyond the impermanence of place to possibilities for their people. As you help us all remember the Tibet of the past and the injustice of China, I urge you and your friends to stay focused on the Tibet of the future. We must all WORK and LEARN and TEACH. Tibet is so much more than a place. Tibet is an idea that we must celebrate and bring to the world. Please, help us all focus on this future.

I thank you for bringing Tibetan culture to my life. Your changes & growth can help us achieve "one world."

With regard, your teacher and your student

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Date: March 19th

Hello fd

this is what happening in my mathre land in Tibet.

Recent urgent Tibetan public peace protest against China in Amdo Ngawa on the 16th and 17th Morning of March, 2008

1) In this big protest whole of Amdo Ngawa rose up against china, which includes, Kirti monastery, Gomang monastery, Segon monastery, Mami nunnery, Suwa monastery, Tsen-Nyi Monastery Trotsik monastery, Adue monastery, Dogay monastery, Togden monastery, Dongri monastery and public of Amdo Ngawa, upper Ngawa, lower Ngawa, Trotsik and other left parts of Ngawa, Meruma,Chojyama, Charuwa and other nomadic areas and the Secondary Tibetan School of Amdo Ngawa. All in all around 13000 Tibetans took part in this big Tibetan public peace protest.

2) So far we have known around 20 death casualties including monks, nuns, students and laymen killed in this big protest. Our other sources states around 40 Tibetans got killed. Large number of Tibetans went lost in the protest and their whereabouts are still not known. The some known protesters who sacrificed their lives in the protest are: lhundup tso9student), Atisha(age 23), tsezin(age 33), Tashi(age 23), Gejyam, Lobtse.

3) Many were put behind the bars and when the Tibetans went to demand for their release from the prison, Chinese authorities didn’t listen to them and in return Tibetans turned violent and started breaking the premises of the police custody. Likewise, few other Chinese offices were destroyed by Tibetan protesters.

4) This recent peace protest in Amdo Ngawa, becomes one of the largest peace protest took place in Tibet excluding the protest in Lhasa. It becomes the largest number of Tibetan people took part in the peace protest and one of the biggest peace protest against China in which largest number of Tibetans got killed by the brutal Chinese policemen and the troops.Following slogans are of the recent peace protest taken place in Amdo Ngawa:

a) Long live Dalai Lama

b) Free Tibet

c) Stop torturing in Tibet

d) Release the Tibetan political prisoners

e) Release Panchen Lama

The three main reasons responsible for the outburst of this recent big public peace protest in Amdo Ngawa are:
Firstly, Tibetans have strong wish to see their spiritual and temporal
leader, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Secondly, Chinese government has
been always keeping silence about the peaceful dialogue between Tibet and
China. Thirdly, Chinese government is continuously applying harsh mechanisms
to control the Tibetans inside Tibet.

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Date: March 19th 2008

its the time is very bad as from in the Tibet can start up to need freedom .so chine's police killed lots of the tibetan people .this is very much suffer . in the tibetan people told that we will get peace of the freedom and also democracies . if you want to look it the situation . you watching the BBC NEWS and also you search in the BBC ok i hope you now more than me

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Date: March 19th, 2008

ya.... more than 100 people were died in tibet and here in india.. total 80
people were arrested by the indian police and nepal so much voilence there.

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Date: March 18th, 2008

My resepct teacher i have some bad news. Did you see in B.B.C? Tibetans were protested Chinese everywhere in Tibet frome 10th of March until now. Many Tibetans were killed by Chinese. Yesterday i saw in T.V some dead bodies of Tibetan. That was very terrible. I am deeply sad and worried for my poor country and my family. I don't know anything my family's situation. I don't call to my family if the Chinese know whose are relationship with Tibetan from India they are must arrest. I am only know my uncle was arrested by Chinese he lives in Lhasa. Now i am realized i have no country and home i don't know what i have to do actually i want to go back in Tibet now it is became very diffuclt. Teacher please you give me imformetiom what i have to do. How are you and what are you doing now? Do you still in England? Take care beyyy

Ann...on the loose!

Until I have the time to write and post some pictures, there is a great update on my mom's blog, Ann...on the loose! about her whirlwind visit to Birmingham, my 30th b-day and all the adventurous in-between! It was a fabulous visit!!!