culture quibbles, bikinis etc. in Goa

Reggae streaming as i take in the beach parade that goes on daily below my balcony, there are so many random and totally disassociated thoughts that are passing through my mind today. Let's see if I can share a few musings....

First of all... weather. Why does it seem so much hotter yesterday and today than my first two days here? Could it be that my bones and muscles were literally "de-frosting" during my first couple of days here? Well, not LITERALLY, because the temp never drops below zero in Rishikesh, but i could SWEAR that the last couple of days have been sweatier than usual. Mmm, yes, just checked the weather online and it IS 34 today, rather than 30-31 the first couple days i was here, so ya, its hot. There is zero percent chance of rain over the next ten days. The surfers are out even though the waves are closing out, unlike two days ago when there was a decent sized nicely formed right that a couple guys were riding.
Anyhow,
Where to begin?
My skin has sloughed off an outer layer due to being in the tropics, which is quite lovely. I love this. I feel like a snake or an iguana, shedding a new skin. And my new skin is soft and glowing. How confused it must be, going from minus twenty ice and snow to plus 5 cool and windy to now plus 34 and sweaty.


Goa is a trip, as usual.

Every time i see a mother begging with a baby i wonder “why her and not me???” some lucky twist of fate? I just won the lottery and happened to be born into the circumstances that i did in a rich country like Canada? It could have been me. Some might say “karma”, what do YOU say? All smells are equal? Rich/poor, hungry/well fed....

I still can’t get used to the male Indian “sightseers” in Goa, for whom it is a recreation to come to the beach and see all the “loose” foreigners flaunting themselves in their bikinis and some topless Europeans unable to grasp the concept of a conservative culture like India’s. I can see both sides. As the Indian tourists stare, the blonde Scandinavian is thinking “well, its not my problem if he is perverted and twisted. I am comfortable in my body and have nothing to be ashamed of, its his own fault”. While the Indian thinks “well, if she wants to show it all and has no shame, then i am going to look, its her own fault”.

To put this in perspective for the variety of audiences who might be reading this post.... to a conservative traditional Indian man in India, a woman in a bikini would be akin to a North American seeing a woman go topless on the beach in public, and akin to a European seeing a totally nude woman on the beach in Europe, or perhaps even a public sex act. The truth is that for many Indian men, the women they see every day have their legs and shoulders covered. The same way us North Americans would expect women to cover their breasts in public in Canada or the U.S. All of this is subjective, of course. No one can judge based on culture alone.
Still, this dance disgusts me, and i am not sure if i am more disgusted by the Indian male tourist going out of his way to leer at the flesh on display or the foreign female tourist, seemingly oblivious to the customs and norms of the country that SHE is visiting. It’s just an unsavoury situation all around caused by vastly differing outlooks and cultures.

I am reading two things these days: both fascinating.
One is http://www.whiteindianhousewife.com/about/
The other is a book called “the Hindi Bindi club” about second generation Indians living in the U.S. Both offer incredible insights into the cultural differences between India and abroad. My research continues.... I am completely fascinated by how each culture views eachother. I can see the wisdom and rational of BOTH sides, even though those ensconced in either side find it near to unfathomable to understand how the “other half” live. I think that that is what i find so fascinating about it. That it is all a matter of opinion, perspective, and upbringing. That means that anyone, almost regardless of colour or race, can be brought up in ANY culture and thus take on the belief system of said culture according to the ferocity that each society believes in their own system. So ... basically... nothing is fixed, as we sometimes come to believe that it is when we remain unexposed to different cultures, people and beliefs. When we ARE exposed to different cultures, people and beliefs we come to realize that... underneath it all, we are just human, no one way is “right” or “wrong”, we all want happiness, we all want love, we all want health and wellbeing for our families and prosperity.... it is basic to being human. My Jamaican Amazon sociology professor at Capilano College was right, right, right.

I realized today that i was incredibly STUPID not to bring Nakul with me on this trip. I don't know where my brain was at one that one. I don’t think i was thinking straight with all the allergies and cold symptoms i was experiencing ... i don’t think my brain was working. Anyhow, there is nothing i can do about it NOW but i look forward to seeing him again in ten days. We are planning a 5 day trip into the Himalayas if the roads are not closed due to heavy snow.
I miss my sweetheart. I can't help myself.

I'm still having one or two sneezing fits per day but the difference is that things are draining right out of me... I can feel my body shedding toxins thanks to the natural cleansing process of hot weather and sweating. My goal is to become so tired and fed up with hot weather and sweating that I will welcome the cool breezes of my home in Rishikesh once again.