Eat badam, pass exam!

Hello, this is Aadya with the latest installment of our monthly blog.

This month has been filled with anxiety for children across India as it was the time of the ‘Half Yearly Examinations’ - a big deal for everyone except for us ofcourse (and that includes Aarushi as grade 4 pip squeaks were also exempted from said exams). The exams were for all of our subjects (including moral science) and the primary reason why we haven’t been able to get out of Haridwar much this month. But when one door closes another opens. So even though we couldn’t get out and about, our friends from Australia have come to Haridwar to visit us! These include dad’s friend Rod Smith, our family friend Kylie’s sister Gab, and our long-time family friends Anne and Amy Allen. They travelled through Delhi with mum and then joined us here in Haridwar.

Rod and Amy having fun

Here’s a short note written by Anne and Amy about Delhi and Agra.

Red Fort

Amy’s first impressions of Delhi were “very crowded, and definitely hot. The traffic was nothing like Melbourne traffic. In India vehicles do what they want, and cows are similar as well. There are cars driving on the wrong side of the road and speeding past the red traffic lights. My favourite Indian food is roti which is pretty much all I ate for the first couple of days."

A photo of Qutb Minar taken by Anne in Delhi

A 'natural shot' of Rod, Gab, Anne, Mum and Amy

We are very grateful to Shibani and her parents for taking such good care of us in Delhi and making our introduction to this amazing country so seamless. We had a great couple of days in Delhi visiting some of the sights and experiencing the various modes of transport. Our ride home from the market in the autorickshaw made me think that our driver was in training for the next F1 race the way he weaved in and out of the traffic and swerved around corners! However, I was very impressed with the Delhi subway/ train system, very efficient, clean and air-conditioned and most of all on time with a train every 2 minutes…. Melbourne should take a leaf out of this book.

The mentioned 'rooftop dinner'

The iconic Taj Mahal captured by Anne

Our trip to Agra to see the magnificent Taj Mahal has certainly been a highlight so far (apart from seeing all the Mishras again of course!) Our rooftop dinner watching the sunset was great and the sunrise over the Taj will be something that we’ll always remember.

Amy found the heat in Delhi and Agra quite draining but soon perked up when she saw Aadya waiting on the train platform for her when we arrived in Haridwar. We’ve taken lots of photos and noticed that the Indian people like to pose for their photos but not smile. We all had a laugh at how the Mishras have mastered the art of the “Indian Photo” 

Our 'Indian Photo' with us all dressed in 'ethnic wear'

And you’re back with me, Aadya. We have taken the 5 visitors to see all there is to see in Haridwar: the Ganga ‘aarti’ (sunset prayer session), the new Pentagon Mall in the upcoming industrial area of the holy city, and the close-by city of Rishikesh.

In the mall, we took them to ‘Café Coffee Day’ or as the super-cool teens of India call it ‘CCD’. Rod, Anne and Gab were all craving coffee as since they came to India, they’ve only had the horrible watered down, sugary syrup with some traces of coffee powder that is available. (At a restaurant one night, after dinner, Rod asked for a coffee, when the waiter was asked which types of coffees were available, the man replied, “sir, hot or cold.” Rod was horrified but hid it well and asked for the hot coffee. When it arrived, the waiter was extra-careful to point out that it was “hot coffee!”) After the coffee-fix, we took Amy, Gab and Rod to the ‘Horror House’ and then to a Hindi movie in the cinema hall (“Khoobsurat”). They seemed to enjoy the movie very much despite not being able to understand the dialogue.

Rafting on the Ganga in Rishikesh

In Rishikesh we went white water rafting on the Ganga (Ganges), which until we got on the raft, was looking really dodgy and unsafe. We arrived fashionably late (an hour later than we were supposed to) and then they delayed us further with disorganization. We finally got on the raft at about 4:50 for our 2:30 booking and we, after being told that it was a 2 hour session, were afraid that we would be rafting in the dark. As it happened, as soon as we got on the raft, after the worrying safety briefing and learning what to do when we fall out of the raft, we saw another rafter floating down the river in a life jacket and a raft of people, missing a member, coming closely behind. To my amazement, when he finally got rescued, he simply got back in his raft and finished the rest of the rafting trip! (After nearly floating into a group of treacherous rapids around the corner). That made me really respect him for if it were me I would be so petrified of water that I wouldn’t go near it ever again!

Surprisingly, when we got to the calmer, down-stream, rapid-free water, the guides said that we could jump in if we wanted to. I was skeptical at first but then I just thought ‘what the heck’ and jumped first. In the end, only Aarushi and Sudarshan Bhaiya (both of whom are not confident swimmers) were the only ones left in the rafts. Even mum mustered up the courage to jump into the ice-cold river when Rod shouted from the water ‘you can’t miss out on your dip in the holy Ganges.’ After which, mum was straight in.

Rish's 'inspirational shot' of the aarti

At the Ganga aarti we had a real red carpet sort of experience when we were seated 2 metres from the holy river about 5 metres away from the main pandit.

Rod trying to repeat what the pandit is saying to bless his family

Recently, Indian scientists have accomplished something great; the MOM (Mars Orbiter Mission) has successfully reached the orbit of the red planet. India is the forth country to do so and the first country to do so on the first attempt! And in true desi style, this huge mission only took minimal cost; they spent less on sending the orbiter to mars than what was spent on the blockbuster movie ‘Gravity’. Quite a triumph if you ask me.

So you may be wondering about the title; eat badam, pass exam…

To explain, ‘badam’ is the Hindi word for almond and, as we know, almonds are very healthy and good ‘brain food’. So it makes complete sense- eat badam, and you’ll pass your exam! Mind you, badam and exam don’t rhyme unless read in an Indian accent. This saying was created by yours truly, taking inspiration from the ongoing exams and I just channeled what all other mothers are probably doing to make their children pass these ‘very important’ exams.

Soon we will be leaving to go to Sikkim, one of the north-eastern states of India. Supposedly very green, unpopulated and mountainous which sounds like a nice place if you ask me. On the way we will be passing through Delhi, Varanasi and Kolkatta.

To inform you on the travels though the listed places, and surely much more, mum will be writing next month.