Last post in India...

It has been an awesome experience and a great time here in India but it is now time to say goodbye and head out for new adventures in new countries and in a month head back home to a (hopefully) snowy Sweden!

I'm glad so many of you decided to follow my blog during my months in India but for now I will hold off on any further blogging! 

OVER AND OUT FROM MUMBAI INDIA! 

Goodbye IIMC!!!

It is 3 am on the 3 of December 2011 and this will be my last post from IIMC and Calcutta! 

I have enjoyed my time here so much and will forever remember all the people I have met here!!!

I have no great words of wisdom to end this amazing experience with so I will only say.... 

To be continued!  

The end is coming...

Sooner then you think... This amazing experience is coming to an end... 

It is now time to pack up all my things again and leave my "home" here at IIMC... 

I will miss living here!!!

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

Today was a very special day in my life! IIMC got a little visit from The 14th Dalai Lama to talk about "A Human Approach to World Peace!" 

Aman and I in the auditorium waiting for The Dalai Lama to take the stage...

 The Dalai Lama entered the stage to standing ovation before he began talking about the human approach to world peace.

 The first thing The Dalai Lama did before beginning his speech was to dig out a cap out of his bag and put it on... He didn't like the spotlights because they made him "blind" to the people he was trying to talk to... He spoke for about an hour, cracking jokes as often as he could... He may be the Dalai Lama and a Nobel peace prize winner but dude's funny!!! He even showed us how China sees him!!! (To them he is the devil) :-)

After an hour he went back to his seat for some Q&A... 

 The schools art club had made a portrait of The Dalai Lama and asked him to sign it before hanging it up in one of the teaching building here...

It is very interesting to meet someone so well known and so influential and see them for the person they really are... Who knew that The Dalai Lama was such a clown with so much self-distance?! This just once again proves that coming to India was one of the best decisions of my life... I am adding experiences from this trip that I don't think I would have gotten anywhere else!!! 

Three out of three!!!

Freedom is finally here! I have now completed my last exam EVER!

This means that my time here at IIMC and India is coming to an end... It makes me both sad and excited... Sad for all the people I will no longer see everyday... Sad that the experience of India is coming to an end so soon... But excited that my vacation is finally here! For the first time ever I will have the opportunity to travel and to relax without any demands! Six weeks of relaxation!!!

Productive day!

Today has been a very productive day... I had my first end term exam out of three... I then had lunch with Anne at the gate... 

Signed some papers and got my hostel release paper signed... I even handed in a term paper that was due today!

 

I then decided it was time to revenge Aman for kidnapping my mosquito net ;-) Aman has a commonly known nickname (Kinky Pinky) and when you don't lock your door or log out from FB... the nickname will be announced as your new status... If you then after 30 min leave your room unlocked again... The same thing will happen! So yes I managed to announce his name twice today!!!  

After that I had a long discussion with Bora and Aman about India and the perception of this country from the rest of the world... 

And now?! I might start studying for my next exam now.. Or I'll watch a movie.. Let's see :-)

Life as an exchange student in Calcutta, India!

As an exchange student in India your life is filled with travels and parties... But there is another side of the story... The story of the everyday life!

Traveling is an experience in it self and traveling by trains in India is an even bigger experience! For an example the very "nice" and cheap sleepers! :-)

As you all know... Student life in IIMC contains of a lot of pizza... If you don't feel like waiting for the delivery service you get a cab to drive you to Domino's and eat at this fine "restaurant" (while the cab driver waits outside for you!) 

 Campus life goes hand in hand with parties and people getting friendly towards each other! But we are far from the only ones getting friendly :-) These two cats always cuddles right downstairs from my wing!

 On a hot day you can always head to the restaurant at the gate and have a cold one!!!

 Walking back to my hostel I get this amazing view as the sun is coming down on another beautiful day!!! (in Calcutta, everyday is sunny and a high 30 degrees. Even in december ;-) )

 I posted a while back that I went to the spa... Here is the sign in the treatment room!!! I don't know why she is allowed to touch me if I'm not allowed to touch her!!! Spa discrimination;-)

 Namaste let's watch a movie!

These pictures are for my mother who keeps asking me if I actually study or if there are only trips and parties going on!!! So Yes mom... This is what it looks like when we are having a good time doing group work in the library at 11pm at night!!! 

 More students having fun in the library!

 As for what we were working on... That is top secret ;-) 

 And then came the presentations... 1,5 hours of presentations... That's not fun in any country!!!

 After a long morning with presentations, you can always dropped by the restaurant at the gate for a cup of tea!

 More strange signs where found in an department store at South City Mall... For all of you out there dropping things on purpose ... That is not allowed here!!! (even if it was not on purpose)

 Food courts in India are awesome! If you want to have some good old american KFC, you can... And if you are Aman and want some good old Indian food you can!!! As to what he's actually eating?! It's called bhatoora or as I would like to call it... A big ass puri!!!

Bora watching in amazement but all he got was KFC ;-)

  I even saw a ghost in the mall :-)

So this is some of the "normal" thing that you can see and do while on exchange in India! 

The unofficial steppers farewell party

Here are some pictures of the unofficial steppers farewell party... It now seems like there might be an official one on Friday so there is more to come!!!

Chiara and Sara 

 Anne is doing some kind of Norwegian dance for Olav ;-) 

 You might think that having two girls kissing you would be more fun then this Olav?! 

 The boys stayed outside...

 While the girls took to the dance floor inside! 

 Norway and Sweden coming together!!!

 Another wonderful face from Baptiste 

 Christine shows us how drinking is supposed to be done!!! Cheers!

 Good times!!! 

 Steppers mingle in the couches!  

 The very well dressed Einar showed up to the party looking very casual... I almost didn't recognize him ;-)

 I think Anne might have told Amel that parties are more fun up side down (read the Plush post)!!!

Nedräkning åt andra hållet...

Kommer ni ihåg när jag skrev att jag redan hade varit här i en hel vecka... Kommer ni ihåg alla intryck som jag redan då fått av Indien och skolan här! Jag vet inte riktigt vad som har hänt med tiden men nu sitter jag på andra sidan och måste sorgset skriva att det bara är en vecka kvar av min tid här i Calcutta... 

När man är mitt uppe i det känns tid som något obestämt som inte riktigt existerar... Man tror att man har hur mycket tid som helst och att det man inte hann göra den här helgen, kan man alltid göra nästa... Nu finns det inga fler "nästa helg" helger för på lördag nästa helg lämnar jag IIMC och Calcutta för gott... 

Med det lämnar jag det hem jag skapat här med alla vänner jag träffat, Indiska som andra utbytesstudenter... Jag lämnar dem med insikten att jag med största sannolikhet aldrig kommer träffa dem igen... Jag kommer aldrig leva så nära dessa människor igen, vara en del av deras familj och jag kommer inte kunna gå ut genom min dörr och hitta flera av dem i korridoren pratandes om allt och inget... 

Mycket kommer försvinna men det jag kommer ha kvar kommer vara såå mycket värt! Nämligen mina minnen! 

Minnen som första dagarna i Calcutta när vi tog en promenad utanför skolan och nästan blev ihjälkörda av galna busschaufförer...

Eller första besöket till South City Mall där ägaren till fiket körde iväg Indier bara för att hitta någonstans för oss att sitta.... 

Eller dagen på Victorial Memorial där hundratals Indier följde efter oss som om vi vore världskändisar... 

Eller resan till Bodh Gaya där vi besökte några av de vackraste templerna som finns... 

Eller resan till Himalaya som inte gick som planerat utan fick ett mycket tragiskt slut...  

Eller minnerna av mina underbara korridorsgrannar som tog hand om mig när jag mådde som sämst efter Himalaya även fast de var mitt uppe i sin egen sorg... 

Eller alla Subway och Dominos kvällar där vi ätit och skrattat så vi fått magknip... 

Eller spontanresan till havet... 

Eller alla galna tågresor fram och tillbaka... 

Eller resan till Delhi som började med en inställd Metallica konsert men slutade med ett fantastiskt formel 1 lopp och uppfyllelsen av en livslång dröm...

Eller den härliga resan till Agra och Taj Mahal... 

Eller helt enkelt alla "vanliga" kvällar med vanliga minnen... Tex alla filmkvällar, alla kvällar med diskussioner eller alla kvällar med bus där saker blivit kidnappade... 

Jag kommer till och med se tillbaka på alla myggbet och le... Dem har på något sätt blivit en del av mitt Indien äventyr! 

Så vad har jag lärt mig av mina månader i Indien?! 

Livet varar inte för evigt, njut nu och oroa dig senare! 

Tid är väldigt relativt och i Indien betyder kl 8 inte kl 8 utan snarare kl 9:30! 

Det är ingen idé att stressa... Du kommer bara bli ensam om du stressar för ingen annan kommer komma i tid (se ovan)...

Tålamod

Tålamod är nyckelordet i Indien!!! Tålamod med dina studiekamrater, tålamod med skolan, tålamod med taxichaufförerna, tålamod med restaurangpersonalen, tålamod med tågtiderna, tålamod med byråkratin... Dvs tålamod med allt och alla!

Jag har även lärt mig att olika oftast betyder samma... Det vi saknar är tålamod nog för att se att de ytliga skillnaderna inte betyder olika! 

Plush...

I took a little break from studying and joined in on the last party at Plush! Plush means open bar with all you can drink for only 1000 Rs (ca 150 kr)!!! 

Love at first sight (for one of them at least ;-) )

 We like an open bar that makes drinks with fresh fruit ! 

 Cheers! 

 Why not set the bar on fire?! :-)

 Anne is as always very happy to be at Plush!

 I found a cosmopolitan and joined Anne!

 Time to hit the dance floor....

 More love!!!

 And some crazy faces ;-)

 And of course some crazy poses :-)

 Anne decided that the world is a much funnier place up side down!!! 

 Some love and some confusion!

My first and only trip to Plush was a fun one!!! Thanks to all steppers for this time and let's have a great farewell party tomorrow!!!