Posted in India on July 13th, 2008 6 Comments »
The Mumbai head-wobble (a gesture where your chin acts as the pendulum in a grandfather clock, swaying left to right) appears similar to our Western version of “I don’t know” or “maybe.” This can be very confusing until you realize the wobble is actually a “yes” or “I agree.” It is also a greeting [...]
Posted in India on June 21st, 2008 3 Comments »
My trips to the slums of Govandi in the swampland of Mumbai offer me a snapshot of life there. But only a snapshot. Only a glimpse. I don’t think I can ever truly understand it.
The train stops between two rows of tiny, dilapidated structures that line the tracks. The “nice” houses are made of disintegrating [...]
Posted in India on April 9th, 2008 1 Comment »
Mornings in Mumbai are the quietest the city ever gets. Even the beggars haven’t made their way out to patrol the intersections and sidewalks. The hour in the morning before the rush hour traffic begins is a chance to see how many Mumbaikars live their life.
On one particular spot on the sidewalk, a [...]
Posted in Japan on February 17th, 2007 5 Comments »
Admittedly, even before we moved to Japan, I carried with me a couple of stereotypes about the country and the people dealing with food and education.
First, I had the preconceived notion that they ate sushi all the time. I can assure you that while sushi isn’t quite an everyday thing, they definitely have some [...]