Kolam

As we arrived to Madurai in October which was a big holiday month, we could not help but notice beautiful white and colored designs decorating people's doorsteps. We soon learnt that it was called kolam and it was done by women early in the morning. Since the first week we were waking up way before sunrise due to jetlag, we could see this beautiful tradition being practiced all around our neighbors houses. The kids were fascinated and could not wait to try their hand at kolam. We got some colored kolam powder as a gift from Mr. Selvakumar's family, but after the first attempt I banned it from our house - too messy. Finally we ran into kolam salesman who was selling white kolam powder door to door, and now we have more than enough to play with. Maya has been studying kolam design patterns from Mutamma and as you will see from the photos, she has improved quite a bit. She loves pattern anyways, so this is a great form of expression for her.

Since that's all I know about kolam, below is what I found in Wikipedia about kolam in South India:

Kolams are thought to bestow prosperity to homes. Every morning in southern India, millions of women draw kolams on the ground with white rice powder. Through the day, the drawings get walked on, rained out, or blown around in the wind; new ones are made the next day. Every morning before sunrise, the floor of the owners house ,or where ever it may be, is cleaned with water and the muddy floor is swept well for an even surface. The kolams are generally drawn while the surface is still damp so that it is held better. Occasionally, cow-dung is also used to wax the floors. In some cultures, cow dung is believed to have antiseptic properties and hence provides a literal threshold of protection for the home. It also provides contrast with the white powder.

Decoration was not the sole purpose of a Kolam. In olden days, kolams used to be drawn in coarse rice flour, so that the ants don't have to work that much for to long for a meal. The rice powder is said to invite birds and other small critters to eat it, thus inviting other beings into one's home and everyday life: a daily tribute to harmonious co-existence. It is a sign of invitation to welcome all into the home, not the least of whom is Goddess Lakshmi, the Goddess of prosperity. The patterns range between geometric and mathematical line drawings around a matrix of dots to free form art work and closed shapes. Folklore has evolved to mandate that the lines must be completed so as to symbolically prevent evil spirits from entering the inside of the shapes, and thus are they prevented from entering the inside of the home.

It used to be a matter of pride to be able to draw large complicated patterns without lifting the hand off the floor standing up in between. The month of Margazhi was eagerly awaited by young women, who would then showcase their skills by covering the entire width of the road with one big kolam. The ritual kolam patterns created for occasions such as weddings can stretch all the way down streets. Patterns are often passed on generation to generation, from mother to daughter. Powdered white stone was used for Kolam. Seasonal messages like welcome  is used in Kolam. Volunteering to draw kolam at temple is sometimes done when a devotee's wishes are fulfilled.

Our kolam today by Mutamma

Kolam yesterday by Maya

We were finally able to buy a good amount of kolam powder from traveling salesman. We are testing kolam pattern rollers I got at Kodaikanal

Peacocks! Maya could not be more excited

Raphael is trying his hand at rolling a kolam pattern

First lesson in kolam from Mutamma

I am so glad I took these step-by-step photos

Mutamma finished her first kolam at our doorstep

Kids continue testing kolam patterns

Everyone is satisfied with our heavily decorated doorstep

This is our kolam from last week. Mutamma did the one in the middle, Maya did all the rest

Maya is studying the pattern

Special kolam done by an artist at Maya's school for traditional dance competition

I got the kollam pattern rollers from this street seller in Kodaikanal

Kids' first ever attempt at kolam the first week we arrived in Madurai

Maya's first kolam

Raphael's first kolam

Another early kolam work by Maya

Kolam at the boys' school for Divali celebration

This one is also at the entrance to the boys school

Kolam in our street. And here is Blackie sleeping in her favorite spot

Kolam at Meenakshi temple in Madurai. This one is permanent as it's painted directly on concrete floor

Another kolam at Meenakshi temple. It has birds, therefore it is Maya's favorite

Culture Shock Stage Three

That’s what Eial calls my current state of mind. And I won’t defend myself too much, I am definitely distraught and my frustration levels are overflowing. I certainly don’t know what the definitions are for different stages of culture shock, but I think the description fits me well right now.

The culprit is our constant daily power outages. I’ve been trying to figure them out, to “work” with them, to “plan” for them. Yet they evade me every time like that annoying mosquito that keeps circling around you but you can’t get it no matter how hard you whack your electrified mosquito racquet.

Let me tell you why I hate power outages so much – they are very disruptive. You plan your day, you wake up early, you do all your morning chores dutifully. Three kids are off to school wearing clean clothes, they had  hot breakfast, and their lunch boxes got packed. You’re finally ready to start your day, and then “Boom”, everything comes to a halt. A sudden power outage… The kitchen stops – chutney grinder is not working, water filter is not working, the refrigerator starts thawing, the washing machine stops spinning. If you’re lucky and you had recently filled up your water tank, you’re in good shape. But on several occasions during one of the outages we did run out of water in the house. But the most annoying inconvenience is that my internet stops working! These are supposed to be my sacred hours when I can idle online, write emails, instant chat, blog, and simply follow random leads. Unfortunately on most days, no such luck.

When we first came to Madurai we used to get 2pm-4pm power outage, but the schedule has been changing every week or two. For the last couple weeks as soon as we approach 9am, sometimes even before the boys board their school van, we get a government mandated power outage. It should last two hours, but this week it’s been lasting three. That means that 9am-12pm, when all three kids are at school and I am chipper and productive, I find myself pretty much useless being at home. I can’t even use my power drill that I found with great difficulty, while the hardware salesman was rolling his eyes in disbelief that I would be purchasing such item. 

Last week I was so upset with the outage situation that I called my rickshaw driver to just get out of the house. My driver Mr. Kannan took me to town the scenic route.  He stopped by the river so I could snap some photos of the beautiful outline of Madurai and the river, full of raging waters. It's monsoon season and we've been getting a lot of rain.  When we first came to Madurai six weeks ago the river was mere spots of puddles, with cows grazing in the riverbed and dhobi wallahs (clothes washers) drying yards and yards of cloth stretched out directly on the ground. This fieldtrip to the market did cheer me up and I had a great time with my two faithful companions, Mutamma and Mr. Kannan.

Two-three hours later I was heading back home with my head full of big plans for the rest of the day. That’s when I stopped by my hardware guy to pick up an electric drill, which unfortunately he could not test because there was a power outage. “What do you mean?” I asked in disbelief, “The outage should have been over a while ago”, when it finally dawned on me. It was one of those days when we get a full day power outage. It happens once a month and it lasts 9am to 5pm. Here goes my plan to test my new toaster oven, as I was planning to bake cupcakes for a little girl named Sujitha, who was celebrating her fifth birthday. Sujitha is Mutamma’s granddaughter, but I guess I won’t be able to surprise her today.

Beside morning and monthly all-day outages, we also get an evening power outage. This one is the most difficult to gauge, as the start time is always floating. It can start any time from 3:30pm to 7:00pm, and can last from 30 minutes to two hours. In our household an evening power outage means that as soon as the lights and fans go out, we have three screaming kids in three different corners. We are scrambling to find flashlights, candles and matches. That means we can’t see, we can’t eat, and the kids can’t finish their homework. Worst of all, we have three little hungry mouths circling around the oven like little piranhas waiting for their pizza dinner.  Pizza will still come out, but we don't know when...

Most of the residents on our street are well-off middle class families. Their houses are equipped with Uninterrupted Power Supply, known here as UPS. Every time the lights go out in our house, all other houses are fine.  I was definitely interested in getting a UPS unit purchased and installed ASAP, but after doing some research I have my doubts. A UPS unit is an investment worth $400, but all it would give us is 5 lights, 4 fans and 1 computer. That means the kitchen would still be inoperable.  Now we are on to doing some research on generators, which would provide much more extensive power backup. Issues with power generators are that they are noisy and have carbon monoxide exhaust fumes. Will it be worth the investment and disturbing the peace of this quiet neighborhood? 

So here I am, finally in a place where simpler life I was seeking has finally become a reality. Yet I am so frustrated by the limitations it brings. Instead of going with it, I am tirelessly constructing a comfort bubble, so we forget all about the inconveniences experienced by every day Indians. I don't know what to say, except that internet and pizza are not optional in our family, it is our birthright.

Old part of town built around the Meenakshi temple is on the other side of the river

The river is full of water, a special sight for local people

Men are washing their motorcycles

Washer ladies

A fisherman is trying his luck with a net

A close-up of a washer lady

The main traffic flow crosses the river over the bridge, but on several occasions I got to ride under the bridge

The view of the river and downtown from under the bridge

Under the bridge there is shade and breeze all day long, it's a great place for a stroll

The Rooster Is No More

It's 6:30am in the morning and Yinon and I are walking home after picking up some extra milk packets at our corner vendor. Yinon woke up very early today and I decided to take him out of the house before he woke everyone else up.

We see a man approaching on a bicycle who happens to be a guard of a construction site right next to our house. He is riding his bike holding a rooster by its feet. The poor bird is dangling upside down and banging its head to the bicycle frame. The man recognizes us and makes a quick facial grimace while pointing at his rooster. Oh no, they are heading to the butcher. The rooster wasn't exactly our pet, but we did get used to his presence as he sang his morning cock-a-doodle-dos inside the guard's shed, and spent his days tied to a tree. At least Maya is not here to witness the scene, she would have been devastated.

As we stroll along, we hear sweet devotional music originating from some temple nearby. Further ahead, at the other end of the street, we see two little boys squatting and splashing in the puddles. We can't really hear them, but two of them seem to be having a great time. They also live in a shed next to a construction site, and their shelter which is no bigger than a camping tent is the only perk their father, a guard at the construction site, gets. It sure is the best time to play in the street. It's cool and quiet, there is absolutely no traffic other than sleepy cows and dogs.

Here is Blackie, one of our neighborhood dogs. Maya told me it's ok to pet Blackie, as she has been "adopted" by the kids living in the street. Blackie lives under the bush across from Mallavika's, one of Maya's friends, house. The way I found out was one morning I followed a strange howling sound originating from that bush and I discovered Blackie snoring loudly. Yesterday Maya told me that  Blackie was a mommy. Yinon and I are checking under the bush, and sure enough, we find three black puppies snoozing away piled up on top of each other. The puppies are quite large, they are definitely not newborns. I wonder where Blackie has been hiding them until now.

"You know where our house is, Mama" asks Yinon. "Do you know where it is?" I ask him back. "We go over the puddle, and that's our house!" he tells me confidently. I feel like we are characters from Dora the Explorer's world - over the puddle, passed the sleeping dogs, and that's where we find your house.

I take the freshness of a cool morning in. Everything is quiet, yet a lot of people are awake, doing their morning rituals in complete silence and peace. Women are washing their doorsteps with water and applying fresh kolam designs. Men are wiping off dust of their motorcycles. As we approach our house we are greeted by a man who seems to never sleep. He is a guard at the Maruthu Rukmani school. The guard acknowledges our presence with a quiet nod of his head and a peacuful smile. All is well, we are ready for our day.

Time for morning pooja at a neighborhood temple

This is where the construction guard lives

Distance from our doorstep to construction guard's shed

Sleepy cows on our street

Blackie with one of her puppies

Pale Tail and Mr. Greeners

Pale Tail and Mr. Greeners are our first family pets that haven't been properly introduced yet. When we first told Maya that we may possibly be moving to India, she agreed to go on one condition that she can finally have her own pet birds. As soon as we landed in India, Maya was in anticipation that perhaps today was her lucky day when she could get her birds. Of course, we had no idea where to find them, but we spread the word around and kept our eyes open for a place to purchase birds. Naturally, it was Maya herself who about one week after our arrival spotted a shop with bird cages on one of the side roads.

One happy girl and two lucky birds were united in a quick transaction. Love birds, as they are locally known, were the only kind sold so that's what we got. According to Maya, this species is also known as warbling grass parakeet, shell parrot, canary parrot, budgerigar, or zebra parrot. Maya got right to work crafting some bird toys, feeding them and taming them to hop on her finger. She did some research online about food preferences, and she is dreaming about her birds laying eggs some day. The first day she reported to us that "I am so happy Mr. Greeners is eating because he needs lots of energy to make sperm".


So far so good. Maya has been tending to her birds, feeding them, and cleaning the cage. She even had to overcome her phobias of dirt and ants. I say Pale Tail and Mr. Greeners scored with Maya as their owner. 

We asked the rickshaw driver to pull over when Maya spotted bird cages in one of the shops

The clay pots have a hole on the side and are used for birds to nest in

Maya made her selection

One white and one green, a male and a female were Maya's requests

Lovebirds are riding home on Eial's lap

Raphael gave up his spot for the birds, so he got to ride with Mr. Kannan in the driver's seat

Still quiet and unsure of their new home

We put the cage on the stairs next to an open window

Here is Pale Tail

Maya is showing birds to her new friends

First night in our home, they cling to each other

Here is a painting of Pale Tail and Mr. Greeners in their natural environment watching a sunset

The first item Eial ordered from Flipkart.com (an Indian version of Amazon) was this book for Maya. She's been reading and studying it daily

There is a house in our neighborhood with huge bird cages attached to the tree. We stop by there a lot to watch the birds

This time the owner of the house opened the gate and invited us to take a closer look

One happy village of lovebirds. We were told they started with only four birds, the rest of them hatched from the eggs