More on rice, squat toilets and other items that occupy my thoughts

we are in the midst of week 3 and it has been a crazy ride...literally. we've spent the last week travelling around southern india on crowded buses, going over roads with potholes that would swallow my itty-bitty Viv (my ford escort from home). thank goodness i do not get carsick. i have discovered though, that all the jouncing means i end up with a migraine which is just as bad. but it was worth it for our whirlwind tour of southern India. i have officially seen an elephant (and not in a zoo, although we did go to a zoo in Mysore) and i have been to the highest point in southern India (where it was quite chilly). but the scenery has been amazing. outside of Mysore, we drove through sugar cane fields and rice paddies and i actually saw rivers that didn't look like sewage canals (the ones in the city do). the palace in Mysore was also beautiful and amazing but there is beauty to be found in the slums as well. Indian children are cute as can be and it can be heartbreaking to see these children in conditions that are inhumane. but they laugh and smile and are always excited to shake our hands. one of the things we've had to get used to over here as that random people will come up and want to take a picture with us. it can be a little disconcerting as they don't even tell us their names but it's part of the whole experience. there have been moments when i have wished that i could go someplace where i wouldn't get stared at all the time but that too is a good lesson to learn. so i am enjoying my time here but also looking forward to returning to the states. it can be quite uncomfortable with the heat and bugs and the traffic and pollution. i've also been dreaming of salads and french fries :) but i know that i am treasuring my time here and all the memories that i will take with me. and if you're wondering about my subject heading, it will be a long time before i eat rice again and i practically kiss every western toilet i find here (not really, cause that would be gross, but you get the idea) :) two weeks left to go. we are winding down although Calcutta is still to come. one more adventure!