Visual Sociology in India

It’s January sixth and we’re on our way to Haridwar, one of India‘s holiest cities in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. Theoretically, it’s a 6 hour drive from Delhi, but as we’ve learned, the (bumpy) realities of the roads probably mean this trip will take 10 hours or so, maybe longer. (In fact, as I look at my watch, we’ve been on the bus 5.5 hours and we’re only half way there! But, as Chris has already stated, the journey is the destination!)

Over the past few days it seems almost everyone has developed a cold. A few folks have had various stages of Delhi belly, too. Luckily, while we all could feel much better, we’re troopers and almost everyone has been able to join in our field trips to the Ganges, embroidery factory, Sarnath (site of the Buddha’s first sermon), and on a cyclo-rickshaw tour through Varanasi which was pretty mind-blowing and which offered a very different perspective on Varanasi street life than we would ever get from our elevated tour bus.

Continue reading "To take the photo or not to take the photo....?" »

Posted by Dr. Andi Stepnick at 10:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

We road in rickshaws from our hotel through Varanasi and down to the River Ganges. This is a very authentically Indian form of transit. Because we spend most of the trip traveling by bus, it was nice to be on the back of a rickshaw feeling a part of the hustle and bustle. I enjoyed the rickshaw ride especially because because it was nice to be on the same level with as everyone else--it's a bit awkward looking down on everyone from the window of a tour bus. However, it's also very heartbreaking at the same time to have a man in front of you pedaling you around and knowing that the little tip he gets is his livelihood.

After about a 15 minute ride, we arrived at the River Ganges to witness some traditional sunset ceremonies. The ceremonies along the river only occur from dawn till dusk so we came back the following morning to see some different ceremonies and cleansing going on. That evening we went out on a boat and watched many things happening on shore. Varanasi is a holy city in India with many cremation cites. Ashes and candles are places in the water after cremation. Everyone in our group lit a candle and sent it floating down the river in honor of a wish or someone's life. Every evening along the Ganges the ceremonies are concluded with prayer and music. we watched this through a layer of fog and listened to the bells being rung--the whole experience was surreal. I think it will take a while for what we witnessed to really set in.

Posted by Liz at 11:00 AM | Permalink

New Year’s Eve in Jaipur was nothing short of incredible. We spent half of the day at S.O.S. Villages where I had one of the best days I can remember. As we entered and hung out for a little bit and were led around by a guide, the children weren’t quite sure what to think of us. As our group of about fifteen walked down the sidewalk, I remember one boy, probably age four, just standing still a hundred feet from us, trying to decide what he thought. After a couple minutes of a quick tour, the guide said, “Okay, go ahead.” Many of us were kind of scratching our heads, because the children still weren’t quite sure what to think of us yet, and many of us went different directions.

After about a minute, one little boy came over and started to throw ball with me, and quickly, about a half dozen others joined in. After a couple minutes of that, they said, “Football?” and then (> to get a soccer ball. About twelve of us played soccer in the main field for a about an hour, and it was amazing. They taught me Hindi words and I taught them handshakes. After the soccer, many of the kids played around with my point-and-shoot camera, taking pictures of myself and themselves (a type of visual sociology that I will address in a bit). Then, a couple of the kids led me up to their “house” where their house mother made me a cup of the best coffee I’ve ever had in my life, and they walked around and took pictures and we all danced to some Hindi tunes on the radio. The rest of my time was spent trying to learn how to fly kites, playing hand games, running around endlessly, wrestling, or spinning them while they latched onto my back until they were uncontrollably giggling and I was near a state of puking. The day ended with some quick camera lessons, hugs, a kiss on the cheek I received from 4-year-old Mori, and lots of happy new year wishes.

That evening, after some time at the Observatory (where we heard the beautiful sounds of the Muslim call to prayer in the air), we went to a Bollywood film at one of the best movie houses in India. The lobby was very ornate and decorated, much like the theatre inside. Most of us bought cokes and popcorn, all for 40 rupees, the U.S. equivalent of about 80 cents. I also bought a KING TAT bar, very closely related to its cousin, the Kit Kat bar.

Continue reading "New Year’s Eve: S.O.S. Village, a Bollywood Film, and Visual Understanding" »

Posted by Chris at 08:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Our last afternoon in Delhi was filled with visiting the largest mosque in the city just after the evening prayer time, as well as walking through the neighboring streets and markets. All of these sights, sounds, and smells were so new to me that I spent nearly every moment trying to capture all of these new things on my camera, seeing the entire day through my viewfinder. So, about halfway through the street walk, I was talking with Dr. Stepnick, and I mentioned to her that none of this felt real, like I was actually seeing and experiencing all of this: the immense poverty and beauty on every corner, the dirt-filled streets, the storefronts with locals socializing all around, people so unlike myself and yet so exactly similar. She said, “You should try and put your camera down then.” It struck me with surprise. Here I had spent the entire day trying to “capture” everything, and I was seeing that all the “capturing” was factoring into a lack of quality experience, for the culture to talk to me and show me things to learn, to grow, to change.

Here is an example of some time in the mosque: I spent my twenty free minutes walking around taking pictures of everything I saw. In the corner, there were a few kids playing and running through a large group of birds that had gathered, making them flap and fly in every direction. I went over and stood about thirty feet from them and took some pictures with my film camera. A couple boys, probably around age twelve, came up to me and asked if I could take their picture, to which a half dozen or so other younger children jumped in a posed in a line, smiles all across. They all crowded around me to look through the viewfinder as well, and giggled and laughed. The older boy, who had spoken with me a few minutes earlier, asked me questions about where I am from and how my day was going, to which I replied and asked him the same. I looked around, and seeing that I was late to leave with the rest of the group, had to leave quickly. I thanked him, he snapped a picture with me with his own camera, and we wished each other well.

Continue reading "Photo Lessons from the Last Afternoon in Delhi" »

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