Passing the one month mark

So, it has been exactly a month since we arrived in Bangalore. It has been an amazing month. We finally got an apartment (well, it is an independent house turned into a duplex) this past weekend, and we are ready to settle down completely :-)

So... here are some things one month of being here has taught me:

1. Don't get excited whenever you see cows on the street --- Right...I realized by now that the cows are everywhere. BUT, I still like the sight of them, especially when they are walking like kings in the middle of a big street with lots of cars :-)

2. Smile even if the guy in front of you looks scary --- Some of the Indian men look rather stern at first, but they are fundamentally really nice guys. Just smile and they will smile back turning themselves into adorable boys :-)

3. Let go of certain things and just enjoy the moment you are living in --- This is exactly the 'zen' philosophy, which was originated from Bodhidharma (said to be born in southern India). 'Zen' has been close to my unfaithful and unstructured philosophy of mine, and the life here actually reminds me of the philosophy just like it does in Japan unlike the lives in the US or in Europe.

4. Get to the bottom of your discussion topic --- The tactic that some Indian folks use is to fuzzy up the conversation so that the end result would be very vague. It is a beauty in some cases, but not in others. If you judged it was latter, steer the conversation so that you can stick to what you wanted to discuss and conclude.

5. Make sure you have enough cash --- India still is a very cash-oriented country. Plus you need small change if you are planning to take a rickshaw.

6. Make sure to apply insect protection before you go out --- Boy, I got bitten so much at first. The worst thing is I have some kind of terrible reaction to the bites, and they get swollen. One time my hand was like a cooking mitten.

7. Don't put on foundation but just apply sunscreen --- It is so humid that the foundation will run off. 

Oh only seven! I am sure the list will expand as time goes by, and I hope so since I really want to dig into this culture, which was the origin of so many others.

# btw, if you want to amuse yourself with google translate quality, you may want to check out my Japanese blog as well: http://indowaindo.blogspot.com/.