Last Entry from India

In mere minutes, it will be the day of my departure from India. In 24 hours, I will be sitting in my aisle seat on a Boeing 757 aimed towards a different continent.

Unbelievable. Ten weeks passed so quickly....

Having said that, this is my last entry from India. However, I will continue to update this blog on other topics that I neglected to address during the past month, among them:

• Post-colonialist attitudes;
• Poverty;
• My trip to Varanasi/Banaras (approx. 10 days ago); and
• Anything else related to how Urdu and India are fitting back into my American life.

Again, sincere apologies for slacking on the blogging this past month. I've been touched by the number of people that have taken an interest in this blog, and I've delighted in knowing that what I write has been read by people around the world.

Having said that, today was a really surreal day. We had our Cultural Program at the Institute today, and it featured qiwwali, dances, skits, comedy routines, and poetry prepared by my peers at the Institute. It was really fun to watch everyone do their thing and to have such fun with their presentations. Following our program, we had our first non-vegetarian lunch of the summer at the Institute, a lunch that featured tandoori chicken, mutton kebabs, pineapple raita, parantha, a variety of veggie and paneer dishes, etc. All in all, it was a really nice way to wrap things up at the Institute. And even though I have every intention of returning to India and to AIIS, it was still so bittersweet. While I intend to return, I don't necessarily have control over whether or not I make it back, so for all I know, it could be the last time I ever step foot onto this continent, although let's hope it's not....

The rest of the day was spent running errands, packing, saying good-byes to friends who won't be flying out tomorrow like the majority of us will be, and getting a little bit of HENNA.

I LOVE HENNA.

And now, in the blink of an eye, my last true full day in India for this trip has come to an end, and it's time to be saying "adieu" and zipping up suitcases.

With any luck, I'll be in the United States on Friday....

Thank you for reading this blog over the course of the summer, and stay tuned for afterthoughts. :)