Meet the staff!

Vannakam! My name is Karmen and I am excited to be the new program assistant at ISP. I first came to India as a student, and have kept returning since then. My experiences here have been formative in my understanding of the world, introducing me to ideas of international development, globalization and how our faith integrates with them. These have gone on to influence what I pursue – from resettling refugees in the US and studying in the Middle East to working for a non-profit furthering education in Central and Southeast Asia. I’m looking forward to being with our ISP-ers as they walk through challenges and new experiences on their journey in India!



Karmen Tam, ISP Program Assistant, exploring Turkey



Preparing for Batch 3

Welcome! We here at the India Studies Program are excited for a new year of learning and challenges. As we head into our second year as a program, the staff is ready to welcome a new batch of students and introduce them to the diverse city of Coimbatore and the beauty of India. Right now we are busy prepping for the Fall 2012 group who will be arriving on the tail of Onam (a harvest festival from Kerala) and we cannot wait to greet you at the Coimbatore airport soon!



BACAS students at last year's Onam celebration
Credit: Kandyce Kingsley Pinckney

Still Traveling. Still Processing (Three of Three)

{image}

“In India even the most mundane inquiries have a habit of ending this way. There may be two answers, there may be five, a dozen or a hundred; the only thing that is certain is that all will be different.” 

- Eric Newby, Slowly Down the Ganges

Still Traveling. Still Processing. (Two of Three).

Holi, the Festival of Colors

{image}

“Creation and destruction are one, to the eyes who can see beauty. And the greatest praise to India is this: not only are her people beautiful; not only are her daily life and culture beautiful; but, in the midst of the utilitarian, humanitarian, dogmatic world of the present day, she keeps on proclaiming the outstanding value of Beauty for the sake of Beauty, through her very conception of Godhead, of religion and of life.” 

- Savitri Devi

Still Traveling. Still Processing. (One of Three)

This is just a small series to let you know that we're still here. Our time in Coimbatore has come to an end but our travel component is just beginning. These next couple posts are quotes about India that allow you to question some of the things that our own students are continually being challenged by. Enjoy, friends!

{}

“In the West we have a tendency to be profit-oriented, where everything is measured according to the results and we get caught up in being more and more active to generate results. In the East -- especially in India -- I find that people are more content to just be, to just sit around under a banyan tree for half a day chatting to each other. We Westerners would probably call that wasting time. But there is value to it. Being with someone, listening wihtout a clock and without anticipation of results, teaches us about love. The success of love is in the loving -- it is not in the result of loving. ” 

-Mother Teresa, A Simple Path

In Pictures: Roof-top Party!

Holi, a religious festival celebrated all over India, is known as the Festival of colors. It celebrates the beginning of the new spring season and commemorates many events from Hindu mythology. It is most commonly celebrated in Northern India but our ISPers were able to celebrate it in the South with a little help from some friends. Ladies and gentlemen, we welcome you to our Holi Celebration:

"Before" 

We began our party at sunset, on the roof of our apartments. T-shirt color of choice: white. (For obvious reasons.)

Getting the "color" ready. The dye in this bucket was used to fill up the squirt guns. 

Ashley and Abraham prepping the colors. There were two buckets filled with color and a bunch of pouches filled with colored powder. (Everyone got their own pouch of powder to throw).
The rules were simple:

1. Avoid throwing color at the eyes and mouth.
2. Have Fun! (Heavily emphasized by Abraham).
3. Observe rules 1 & 2. 

(slow moving) Action shot!

Ingredients for a Holi celebration: colors and friends! (Roof is optional). That's all you really need.

Downstairs apartment. They love each other.  Clearly. 

"After"

Without a doubt, one of the best nights of this semester. These pictures (and our t-shirts) will definitely be some of our favorite things to show off to our friends and family back home. 

Beyond BACAS: Familiar Faces:: Lakshmi (The Dog)

Here’s our second Familiar Faces installment. It might seem odd to you that we’re featuring a dog as our “Familiar Face” but if you walked Race Course every morning, you’d understand why this post is dedicated to Lakshmi.

{Typical Lakshmi pose}

A walk to school would not be the same without a greeting from our favorite Indian dog (dubbed “Jake’s Dog” by the Second Batch of ISP students). Regardless of the time of day or day of the week, Lakshmi can be found on some place along Race Course road. She is extremely friendly…. when she’s awake. More often than not, she will usually be napping on a sunny patch of sidewalk. And while she’s usually found close to one particular store, she was once spotted far down the road, closer to BACAS. Turns out that on that day she had followed Jake Maude to school (he frequently reminds the group of how much he’ll miss her when we leave Coimbatore).

{Have we told you that she's REALLY friendly?}

Come to India! As if you needed more incentive to come join us, you’ll be greeted by this adorable dog every morning.