It’s Official!

What a day! Today was ’officially’ our first day of orientation in India. We were first greeted by a representative from Department of State and many other affiliates from Fulbright and USIEF. Despite how prim and proper I tried to be for this meeting, I was so tired. For the first time jet-lag hit me hard. During the sessions, I took glances at everyone and you could tell how drained/tired we all were. Like it or not, we had to keep up for the full day of sessions. Aside from the jet-lag  I must say that the food we were provided tasted amazing—oh, Indian food J. The only downer was when during dinner the conversation between me and one of our supervisors fell on how different my experiences will definitely be considering that I am Black/African American. From there she mentioned how I should not be surprised if someone asked me what caste I was in to signify that I must be of a lower caste where I come from (note: darker skinned people = lower castes). I did not know what to think/say at first. I just hope that I at least gain respect from my school, co-workers, and students despite my skin color…why does it even matter?? 

HELLO INDIA :)

I’M IN INDIA!! OMG! This is surreal. WOW! I amm sitting here in the nice hotel USIEF booked for the ETA Fulbrights to stay this week for orientation. These past 24hrs have been CRAZY! First Van(sister) and Dad gave me THE longest goodbye hugs before leaving to Miami International Airport via Super Shuttle. Despite how sad it felt to leave them I am OH so glad I am because this (Fulbright) is such an amazing/once in a life time opportunity. From there, things got a bit frustrating when I had to pay $135 for my bags being so overweight (67pds--can you blame me?? my life will be on the other side of this world for 9mnths). Other than that, all went well during my flight from MIA to Chicago. While in Chicago, I did get upset again when Air India made me pay another $133 to check my baggage (supposedly it was a few kg over).  I was not mad for too long because it could always be worse and I got to see a long time friend/Saser Kerry. She drove all the way from work to see me in the departures area—SAS <3! I thank God each and every day for the wonderful people he’s blessed in my life. Sigh, I am grateful!!

From Chicago, I embarked on a 7hr flight to India (about 17/18hrs total from Florida to India). Although some of the other Fulbrights were on the same flight, our seats were all spread out—I did not sit close to any of them. On this long flight, I did not talk much--I am still shocked that I am even doing this. I pretty much watched movies, listened to music, and slept. My biggest highlight on the plane was when this random Indian guy sat next to me and he told me how while in Chicago (his first time in the US) he had many great experiences. The best moments he had were with complete strangers (Americans). Since I was one of the few foreigners on the plane he felt the need to fill me up on tips and advice for my stay in India. As he talked all I could think about is thanks to God!!