A Picture of India

I just returned from an incredible trip to India. I went with my parents who are doing anthropological research in Tamil Nadu. We traveled to Bangalore, Thrivandrum (Kerala), Thiravannamalai (Tamil Nadu) and Pondicherry. We stayed in Amritapuri Ashram and Satya Chetana Ashram. It is really hard to explain how the trip went. Simply I can say it was unreal, being subjected to so many unfamiliar things at once without a break really is shocking. The shock was definately challenging but so fantastic. We bathed out of buckets, slept on the ground, and ate minimal meals. The most significant fact about it overall is that we found these aspects so novel when much of the world lives like this. I ran back into the arms of materialism when I returned. Not in a "so relieved" type of way, but rather with total appreciation. Believe it or not our parents are right that we are totally ungrateful children. After being around complete abject poverty I understand the simple luxury of material wealth. Here are some photos from the trip, I tried to show some that covered a little bit of everything.