By: Emma Dixon
July 2019 Trip to Coimbatore, India
Two weeks is a short time to try and immerse yourself into a new culture. This was the challenge I had coming to Coimbatore.
We stayed at the Coimbatore Campus of Amrita University, where I had the opportunity to meet faculty and befriend several graduate students. The campus was nestled between lush mountains and had some of the most beautiful, manicured gardens I had ever seen. Wandering the expansive grounds or taking in the view from the guest house roof was always a good way to start or end the day.
While two weeks exploring the Amrita campus and surrounding area was not much, it proved ample time to learn several important lessons.
Lesson one: Flexibility.
We think that we are flexible in the United States but being willing to reschedule and change plans still requires having a rigid plan in the first place. The first several days, I most likely asked Ramesh what the plan for the upcoming day was several times.
While we would make a tentative working plan for the upcoming day, it was subject to change depending on variables out of our control. The feeling of not having an idea of what will happen made me uncomfortable. It went against everything I had learned in the United States.
Nonetheless, there is a lot to be said for not always having a rigid schedule. Being open to spontaneous opportunities and viewing time as a bendable concept instead of a rigid one allows you to participate in experiences you never dreamed of.
Not getting the taxi you planned on leads to an amazing trip in an autorickshaw (an open-air motorized vehicle with three wheels).
Randomly stopping to talk with a shop owner or farmer prompts an invitation to have tea or tender coconut in their home.
If I had been back in the United States, I doubt that I would have been able to say yes to all of these opportunities, or if they would have even been offered in the first place.
Lesson two: Hospitality
Many people in the United States would not think to invite in a stranger they have talked to for twenty minutes for tea and food, but the hospitality and kindness of many people in India run deep.
I am so grateful for the many people I met and the myriad of ways they showed little acts of kindness. Whether it be making sure I ate good food, giving me a flower or making tea, they showed that they cared.
Lesson three: Spicy vs. Hot
July 2019 Trip to Coimbatore, India
Two weeks is a short time to try and immerse yourself into a new culture. This was the challenge I had coming to Coimbatore.
We stayed at the Coimbatore Campus of Amrita University, where I had the opportunity to meet faculty and befriend several graduate students. The campus was nestled between lush mountains and had some of the most beautiful, manicured gardens I had ever seen. Wandering the expansive grounds or taking in the view from the guest house roof was always a good way to start or end the day.
While two weeks exploring the Amrita campus and surrounding area was not much, it proved ample time to learn several important lessons.
Lesson one: Flexibility.
We think that we are flexible in the United States but being willing to reschedule and change plans still requires having a rigid plan in the first place. The first several days, I most likely asked Ramesh what the plan for the upcoming day was several times.
While we would make a tentative working plan for the upcoming day, it was subject to change depending on variables out of our control. The feeling of not having an idea of what will happen made me uncomfortable. It went against everything I had learned in the United States.
 |
| The view from the back of the first auto rickshaw I have ever ridden in |
Not getting the taxi you planned on leads to an amazing trip in an autorickshaw (an open-air motorized vehicle with three wheels).
Randomly stopping to talk with a shop owner or farmer prompts an invitation to have tea or tender coconut in their home.
If I had been back in the United States, I doubt that I would have been able to say yes to all of these opportunities, or if they would have even been offered in the first place.
 |
| Roast - a dish made from a paste of rice and lenti at one of the three Amrita University cafeterias. Delicious! |
Many people in the United States would not think to invite in a stranger they have talked to for twenty minutes for tea and food, but the hospitality and kindness of many people in India run deep.
I am so grateful for the many people I met and the myriad of ways they showed little acts of kindness. Whether it be making sure I ate good food, giving me a flower or making tea, they showed that they cared.
Lesson three: Spicy vs. Hot
 |
| Puttu, a dish that consisted of rice rolled in coconut & kdalai curry, a side dish made with beans and spices |
Many of the dishes I got to try were heavy on green chili and whole black peppercorn which challenged my spice tolerance, or heat tolerance, as I should say.
While I was there, I learned that spicy food means food rich in a variety of spices, not hot, which is the correct terminology for food that sets your mouth on fire.
Overall, I am looking forward to returning to Coimbatore sometime within the next year or two so that I can learn even more of the culture and human elephant conflict occurring there.
Overall, I am looking forward to returning to Coimbatore sometime within the next year or two so that I can learn even more of the culture and human elephant conflict occurring there.
