indian head bobble: so I had seen this made fun of in movies, but the Indian way of nodding yes, is really not a nod at all, but a bobble. Its kind of side to side, in a way that could be mistaken for a no. It's really very confusing at first, but then you kind of figure it out. Although I haven't quite mastered the technique... I'm a lot more aware of my head movements though.
shoes off: Definitely in temples, but I've noticed that in a bunch of places, it is customary for people to remove their shoes before entering. At Keivalyadama, all the yoga rooms, the library, sometimes the main office (i'm not sure the determinant for this being a yes or no..), Dr. Kamat's clinic, etc.
painted trucks: the trucks here are really beautiful. Many of them say "Goods Carrier" on them, which is interesting, because aren't they all goods carriers? They also are painted a huge variety of bright colors, often with pictures of people praying, the Ohm symbol, lotus flowers, and various other designs. Many also have metal 'tassles' in the front. and on the back they say "Horn OK Please". I'm still not sure what that means. People use horns here a lot, going around corners, telling someone to move over, etc. Seems like there are horns all the time and i would never know where it was coming from or what it means...
Gul Mohal: is apparently a famous tree of India. I noticed it a lot at first because it had bright orange flowers and sticks out against all the green.
Dots: Women, men and children wear all kinds of dots here. Mostly, it is a religious/spiritual meaning (on the forhead between or close to the eyes). However, some women put a dot up high near their hairline. This signifies that they're married (many married women also wear black and gold beaded necklaces, and a simple gold band ring). On children, sometimes they draw other dots (think- large beauty mark). Gurpreet told me that it is a superstition that if something is too beautiful or cute, it attracts bad things. So the dots are supposed to draw attention away from the cute features of kids.
Veg/Non-Veg: so in the US, the distinguishing factor is if you're a vegetarian. However, here, most people are vegetarian so the question is usually 'are you non-veg". Most times, being veg even includes not eating eggs (but milk is ok, so not totally vegan).
Midriff: So it's not ok for women to show shoulders, or cleavage, or knees, but many Sari's expose a bit of midriff, which seems to be ok. Interesting.
Head Coverings: there is a wide variety of head coverings that are used in India. Most women wear some kind of shawl/scarf depending on their outfit. However, there are other women who wear the scarf over their hair, but their entire face is visible. Other women tie the same scarf around over their nose to hide their entire face except their eyes (this also has a functional purpose- when it smells like pee, when riding a motorcycle etc.) some women also wear the traditional full coverage burqa.
Spitting: is reallllllly common here. I wondered why at first, and then realized that all the shops sell little packets of tobacco. (many men also smoke). I saw a sign the other day that said "Stop TB: Don't Spit".
Orange Hair: Lots of older people have bright orange hair. Turns out, they use henna to dye their hair (like Jen used to). If you look closely at people who are just beginning to gray, you can often see a hint of orange or a darker red. Some old people have completely bright orange hair, which is really weird at first, but now very common place.
Roads: are surprisingly good. Even out into the rural areas (to a certain extent) the roads are paved and barely have pot-holes.
Helmets: In Mumbai/Malavli, it was pretty rare to see anyone on a motorcycle wearing a helmet. However, in Delhi, 95% of the people I saw today were wearing helmets. Not sure why the difference.
shoes off: Definitely in temples, but I've noticed that in a bunch of places, it is customary for people to remove their shoes before entering. At Keivalyadama, all the yoga rooms, the library, sometimes the main office (i'm not sure the determinant for this being a yes or no..), Dr. Kamat's clinic, etc.
painted trucks: the trucks here are really beautiful. Many of them say "Goods Carrier" on them, which is interesting, because aren't they all goods carriers? They also are painted a huge variety of bright colors, often with pictures of people praying, the Ohm symbol, lotus flowers, and various other designs. Many also have metal 'tassles' in the front. and on the back they say "Horn OK Please". I'm still not sure what that means. People use horns here a lot, going around corners, telling someone to move over, etc. Seems like there are horns all the time and i would never know where it was coming from or what it means...
Gul Mohal: is apparently a famous tree of India. I noticed it a lot at first because it had bright orange flowers and sticks out against all the green.
Dots: Women, men and children wear all kinds of dots here. Mostly, it is a religious/spiritual meaning (on the forhead between or close to the eyes). However, some women put a dot up high near their hairline. This signifies that they're married (many married women also wear black and gold beaded necklaces, and a simple gold band ring). On children, sometimes they draw other dots (think- large beauty mark). Gurpreet told me that it is a superstition that if something is too beautiful or cute, it attracts bad things. So the dots are supposed to draw attention away from the cute features of kids.
Veg/Non-Veg: so in the US, the distinguishing factor is if you're a vegetarian. However, here, most people are vegetarian so the question is usually 'are you non-veg". Most times, being veg even includes not eating eggs (but milk is ok, so not totally vegan).
Midriff: So it's not ok for women to show shoulders, or cleavage, or knees, but many Sari's expose a bit of midriff, which seems to be ok. Interesting.
Head Coverings: there is a wide variety of head coverings that are used in India. Most women wear some kind of shawl/scarf depending on their outfit. However, there are other women who wear the scarf over their hair, but their entire face is visible. Other women tie the same scarf around over their nose to hide their entire face except their eyes (this also has a functional purpose- when it smells like pee, when riding a motorcycle etc.) some women also wear the traditional full coverage burqa.
Spitting: is reallllllly common here. I wondered why at first, and then realized that all the shops sell little packets of tobacco. (many men also smoke). I saw a sign the other day that said "Stop TB: Don't Spit".
Orange Hair: Lots of older people have bright orange hair. Turns out, they use henna to dye their hair (like Jen used to). If you look closely at people who are just beginning to gray, you can often see a hint of orange or a darker red. Some old people have completely bright orange hair, which is really weird at first, but now very common place.
Roads: are surprisingly good. Even out into the rural areas (to a certain extent) the roads are paved and barely have pot-holes.
Helmets: In Mumbai/Malavli, it was pretty rare to see anyone on a motorcycle wearing a helmet. However, in Delhi, 95% of the people I saw today were wearing helmets. Not sure why the difference.
Great observations, Kenzie. I remember lots of these things from my time in Uttar Pradesh in the Peace Corps. I especially remember how strange the whole head nodding, bobbing, wobbling seemed at first and how after a while made sense.
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