Fresher

Monday was my first day of class at Delhi University. Most students there who are not freshmen there think we (the IES students) are because here you go to your three years of school with essentially all the same people in all your classes, so if there are people you don't know you assume they are new (...and people don't transfer here either). Although it's important to explain we really are 3rd year students to avoid 'fresher ragging' I really did feel like a stereotypical freshman again at least for the first half of Monday. I know I've mentioned it's kind of hot and humid here, but for some reason I was sweating more than usual on Monday, so when I got to Ramjas (the college I'm enrolled in in DU), my shirt was a completely darker shade and my face a fountain of sweat, then I couldn't find room 120...because it was actually room 102, then the people in the room before the class told me the class wasn't held in there (even though it was...) and of course if my sweatiness and lost state weren't enough everyone kind of stared at me because I seemed to be the only white person there on Monday. When class was about to start I was feeling like the stereotypical miserable freshman in high school. I really felt very isolated with my pool of sweat. Then a girl sat next to me, introduced herself as Kritika and asked me my name and where I'm from. When I said America, she said, and I quote "What the hell are you doing here?!" And in that moment I answered quite honestly "I was just wondering that myself." Of course the day got better after that, it was nice to make a friend, she even called me after my next class to make sure I had someone to eat lunch with and it turns out her best friend lives exactly where I live in South Delhi. Friendly people really do make quite a difference. The classes at DU seem like they are going to be easier than I would have expected, but I've been told it's because in India some students are granted admission due to reservation laws (affirmative action) and these students by and large come from terrible school systems so many professors try to make things easier so they can start to catch up. I am a bit frustrated with the seeming ease of the classes, but I've only been to 2 days of class so I'm sure it will pick up a bit...and if not I'll have that much more time to study Hindi and manage my essentially 2 hour commute (one way). The classes that IES is offering will be more demanding I think and hopefully I have an internship or volunteer opportunity once a week, so I think my days will be full enough (even without much class I pretty much collapse at 9 or 10 every night...right after dinner at 8 or 9pm because just getting from here to there is exhausting here). I am glad to be getting into a more regular schedule now and starting some classes, it'll all balance out soon enough.
Some things you don't lose across country lines: I went to see Harry Potter with my host sisters on Sunday. I find it funny how it's quite the craze here almost as much as at home, I even saw copies of it written in Hindi. Juhi thought it was funny that I was so tired after the movie and thought there must be something wrong with me (since I was quiet and calm...), but I was trying to explain to her that in America movies never start at 10 am!
I learned how to make plum juice today, it's wonderful =)