What’s it like?

Who am I, after 36 hours in Bangalore, to answer that question? Better that I answer a more specific question: what are your initial impressions?

Let's start with general impressions of India. It's crowded, hot, noisy, confusing, dirty, and nothing is easily accomplished. Yet it's not without charm. People are generally pleasant and helpful, and all but the poor and uneducated speak English.

I planned to make my next paragraph about Bangalore, but given that (except for a tedious, middle-of-the-night connection in Bombay) Bangalore is the only part of India I've experienced. I'll skip ahead to Christ University. It's a pretty cool campus, right in a busy part of town. Yet despite its decidedly urban surroundings, it's remarkably tranquil. CU's personality is more like that of a commuter-oriented state school (a la Youngstown State) than of a residential "go off to college" institution. The only folks who live on campus are the Catholic priests (who run the place), international visitors (like myself) and a select few female students who inhabit the single dorm on campus. Buildings are locked up from 6pm until 8am the next morning. It's pretty much all business. Enroll for an education. Period.

Now, about the USAC program at CU. There are about twenty of us here now for the first of two summer sessions, and we came together for the first time today for orientation. Most are from the USA. I am the only person in our group older than 40. Our Resident Director (the adult from the host school who coordinates USAC visits) is Jacob Johns. He seems like a genuinely good guy who does this for all the right reasons. He loves his country and his culture, and gets great joy in helping others understand both. He's assisted by Ms. Florence, an Indian female (about my age) who seems to play, quite capably, the "mother" role.

Today, we did the requisite, predictable orientation stuff in the morning. Then we boarded a public bus bound for the center of town and had an awesome Indian lunch. I loved the food, but will cherish the bus trip memories even more. Imagine eighteen jet-lagged 19-22 year-olds, many of whom had never traveled internationally before, boarding a crowded public bus as it careened through the most intense traffic I've ever seen. Their eyes (and mine) all seemed to say, "Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore." Jacob and Florence could have arranged a private University bus, but I'm glad they didn't.