Why India?

Many people have asked me why I chose India as a place to spend my semester and since my responses have been only a few sentences I thought perhaps I would try and give a more thorough answer.

Something about India has always attracted me and I remember wanting to go there for a very long time, although it was always something I was planning to do in the future, maybe after college. The whole go and help poor people in India was always very attractive even though I knew there were plenty of ways to help right here. I guess it seemed like a place where a difference would really be notable, or maybe it was just the stereotype of "making a difference". That may have been a naive view but I do hope that I will have a chance to take advantage of the volunteer opportunities that should be available.

There is something magical and alluring about the country. I've certainly met my fair share of people who have been there and there is a saying which seems to go along with India travelers which is, "There is life before India and then there is life after India." Anyone I have talked to who has gone says it is a transformative experience and very eye-opening. Yes the culture may be shockingly different from what we are used to but isn't that the point? I wanted to go somewhere which would be different and challenging but also enjoyable. I've traveled to a number of places but none so radically different as India. I thought it would make sense to take advantage of the fact that I would have a program to help orient me in a large and confusing country. There are so many places which I would love to travel to but many of them I would feel a lot more comfortable trying to navigate without the help of a well-organized program.

India also appeals to me because of the interesting background I've had growing up. Having spent 8 years at a school which was very heavily influenced by eastern practices and religious texts and having continued to be a part of SOP after graduating 8th grade, I have a well established connection with India. Let's not forget that during those 8 years I also studied Sanskrit, which will be immensely helpful in learning the Hindi alphabet, as they are virtually the same. India is a wonderfully spiritual country and I there's something very attractive about a spiritual cleansing. Time for a bath in the Ganges perhaps? According to the information I got from my online orientation session today there will be an oppertunity to study some classic Indian texts like the Gita and the Upanishads so there is no way I can pass that up! Yay mini philosophy class.

So I guess my motiavtions for choosing India are spiritual, academic ( I'm an Asian Traditions minor), personal and practical or in the in the words of two fine, fine, gentlemen: Meditation, inspiration, motivation, realization, justice for our generation....