Jan 17, 18 (Kashipur, Pantnagar)

We've had a hard time getting connected - very busy the last few days. Here's an update I wrote on the 18th, but was unable to post because the cyber cafe was having server problems. Luckily Jason's stocked with tech toys, so we were able to save what I had written!

Jan 17 (cont)
After lunch at the hotel in Kashipur (Chinese food, sort of), we headed out for a short drive to Pantnagar. Pantnagar is an agricultural town that is really mostly a university campus as far as we can tell. The university is a land grant college, like Iowa State, and the similarities don't end there.

After dropping our bags at the International Guest House, we were given tours of the floriculture and horticulture fields. We tried a little guava, too! We then moved onto an impressive seed processing plant, where we were shown the equipment and given a short tutorial on how it all works. The university has an outreach program of sorts that has a mobile processing unit with its own generator that they take to rural communities. We even saw a few John Deere tractors!

Then we walked around a marketplace and purchased a few American staples -- potato chips and chocolate. After dinner (we ate a real dinner in addition to the junk food), we settled in back at the guest house for a good nights' sleep.

Jan 18 (Pantnagar)
At dinner the night before, we had been offered "bed tea" which sounded like such a lovely concept we all agreed. Really that's a romantic way to say room service, but we'll take it. So bed tea arrived at 7:30 and was delicious. After breakfast, we headed back to the market for calls home and a quick check of the email before we set off for a whirlwind tour of the university.
We saw the molecular biology and genetics lab, the mushroom research lab, and the fisheries lab. We then went to a school on campus where children were participating in a "health camp" -- kind of like the vision and hearing tests we all got in school when we were young, only they also check height and weight and a few others things. Anemia is a big problem, so they're trying to remedy the problem through treatment and education of the parents while the kids are still young. The children were so adorable in their little maroon and blue uniforms. They waited in line so patiently, it was impressive!

After lunch, we knew we had some engagement to attend, but the details were very sketchy. We figured we'd find out soon enough and were on our way. As we turned into a school gate, we realized why the details hadn't been given to us -- the girls' school had prepared a wonderful reception and program for us. Lining either side of the drive to the front of the school were girls around 14 years of age, all wearing identical navy blue uniforms with a white stole, singing and clapping their hands. I tried to make eye contact with as many of them as possible, and they gave such warm and happy smiles, I was touched and maybe a little overwhelmed.

We were given a quick tour around the facility, and then were seated at a table facing the student body in an open courtyard. It was a surreal experience to see all of those young womens' faces, so happy to see us. I kept thinking "We're not worthy! We're not worthy!" My face hurt from smiling. There were several dances performed -- one with younger girls in white frilly dresses, each with a letter from the word "welcome" on the front of their dress. The next consisted of 6 kids wearing what I can only describe as a black witch hat so that it covered their heads completely. A face had been fastened to their bellies, and they were carrying sticks as hands. I am not doing it justice at all; you'll have to see the pictures. Finally we saw a traditional dance performance of 8 of the girls. Four of them were dressed in traditional colorful costumes with heavy makeup and large bangles on their arms, ears and noses. The other four appeared to be dressed as young men. I was mesmerized by the intricate movements and scripting of both "roles." And for those family members who are reading, watch out at the next Thanksgiving dance contest. I have already been practicing the hip movements, and the team says I'm pretty good. :)

As we were getting ready to leave, we were suddenly surrounded by the girls shoving their notebooks and pens in our faces, asking for autographs. I have a new appreciation for those musicians and actors who are forced to deal with autograph seekers on a daily basis.

After a short rest, we were off to the Rotary meeting. It was a short but formal meeting with many members of the faculty in attendance. One of the Rotarians brought a guitar for Jason to use, so he sang one of his songs. Later in the evening, that same Rotarian and his daughter came to our guest house, and we had a music exchange of sorts. She sang traditional folk songs for us, while her father played tabla drums and his friend played a harmonium. Then Jason played a few songs. All in all, it was a fun way to interact and share our cultures.

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Since then we've traveled 13 hours by car to arrive in Kanpur. I'll give more details later when we have a little more time. We're winding down, but still have many adventures in store!