En route

"View from my balcony on a rainy day'  Oil on canvas board, 11" x 14"  

Today is the day.  Going home.  I am excited and of course, always a little wary, and will be able to relax once I'm aboard the plane for America in Mumbai.  

Alyssa and I plan to make a little day of it in Cochin before I go to the airport, and that's fine.  I had planned on going straight to the airport, but I would have sat for nearly 12 hours, so why not do a little sight seeing beforehand?  She is staying in Cochin for the evening, so I can stow my luggage in her hotel for the afternoon, and at least have a nice day out.  And then, I'm very happy to be on route home, and to see my family and friends.  For some reason, this trip was harder for me, and it seemed harder to engage with the culture, and by the time I did, it was almost time to come home, so maybe the next time plan a longer trip, and knowing what to expect, I will feel comfortable more quickly than this time around.  I think the experience was SO foreign to me, the culture shock took more time to overcome.  But, experience is priceless, so I am happy for it...all things are a learning experience, and this trip was certainly that.

So, bon voyage to India, and hello to America.  I am looking forward to home :-)

Tomorrow

"Boatsmen in the lilypads"  oil on canvas, 11" x 16"

Going home tomorrow.  It's truly been an adventure, from the horrifying first night in Goa when I got stung by an Asian wasp (super wasp) and the misery of that incident, to the harrowing night in the Margoa train station and the amazing train trip down coast of India....the gray stormy seas at the junction of Mangalore, that looked so ferocious and intense, I thought the waves would wash over the train, that's how close we came to the ocean...

The residency was a very intense experience, but in the end, it was a success in the larger sense of things.  Although I may not have completed all of the works I had intended, I did complete a good amount, and actually, if I count the many sketches I did, and research writing, etc., I actually did more than what I had anticipated. And, of course, there is the other element of the experience of India, and meeting new friends, so yes, no matter what technical hiccups we had along the way, the residency was most certainly successful.

Now, as I sit here an look out on the rice paddies from my terrace, I know I will miss India.  It is a very ancient society that is making it's way into the global arena, but still retains so much of it's varied culture and heritage, and the people, rather than frightening as we think they are with all of the news of rapes and brutality (and yes, that element is very real), are rather endearing and kind.  The people here like to speak to foreigners and are curious and will offer you tea or chai in their home and conversation, so that is the gracious side of India you don't see blaring across the news wires.  Personally, aside from a belligerent panhandler in Margao train station, all of my interactions with the Indian people were very pleasant, and very courteous.  

So, I will have this last night to reflect and contemplate India, and to prepare for my long journey home to the States....

Day 17

"Wash day" oil on canvas panel, 11" x 14  

Day 17--Musical Beds

Closer to home.  Just a few days to go, and I am looking forward to going home and seeing my family and just being home and comfortable.  This is the first time I really feel somewhat homesick on a travel abroad, so it is what it is...alot went on on this trip, so I guess that is normal.  It is still up in the air whether this trip will technically be a failure for me, and that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I was unable to get even half the work done that I had anticipated, due to various setbacks, plus, being in shared quarters, it's difficult, no matter which way you slice it.  I tried to improvise things a bit, but there is a delicate give and take that must be done for the comfort of others as well, so that I was not able to get the amount of work done I would have as if I was on my own, which I originally intended.  For the sake of the residency experience I had made a decision to not leave the compound earlier on, and the group of artists, even though the accommodations were growing inadequate (not due to size, just to maintenance), but now I may regret that decision.  If I had left earlier, I might have had a chance at getting more work done, but that opportunity is gone now too, so either way, even if the accomodations are improved, I will be so far behind there will be no catching up.  I just have to accept and deal with that fact, and work with what I've got when I return to the States, to develop my series.

And, what I have is only a handful of sketches and five paintings, which is pitiful.  Last night, our room reached nearly 100 degrees inside, no breeze, and the moisture in the room was so dense, our pillows were soggy and smelled moldy.  Our air conditioner has not worked in over a week in the heat and intense moisture, but that is due to a maintenance problem rather than electrical issues. We were told that four of the five shared bedrooms DID have running air conditioners, even on the generator, whereas we (my roomie and I) did not have air conditioning for days now, and were told by the men that staff the property that the issue would be resolved, and sadly, it never was.  

After the room reached that zenith of heat, no amount of sleeping in your underwear could make it livable, just left us open to mosquitoes and predators (the human kind) by forcing us to sleep with all windows and even the door open for a little cross draft, so we were forced to decamp in the middle of the night, and join a room of 3 (that was also over original capacity of 2) who were kind enough to invite us into their already crowded quarters.  Now, there were 5 of us in this room, like artist refugees, huddled around the air conditioner, sleeping with our mattresses on the floor, and even though the room is very large, it was still an awkward experience, and one I do not wish to continue with for the remainder of my stay, mostly because I know I will never get a decent night's sleep for any of these nights left, just because I am a fussy sleeper.  This means I will be looking to leave here if the air condtioning situation can't be rectified today.  It's just too many people in a room, although another room of gracious artists did say we could join them (3 in a room), I feel kind of bad about that too, like a gate crasher, as their room is very small, but we'll see how it goes today.

So, that's my situation for now.  I got about 2 hours of sleep last night, and am groggy and grouchy.  I don't see a very productive work day in this weary and disjointed state, but I'm hoping to (again) try to push through the discomfort and get this painting done (it might be the final one here, not sure yet), and if the conditions aren't improved, have to have my hosts arrange for me to stay at another homestay or resort until Monday, where I can have some air conditioner and be able to sleep without feeling like I'm stuck to flypaper.  Not an impossibility in India by the way, as I had it in Goa at that modest little holiday home called "Angels" that I stayed at privately prior to coming to Lilypad.  As I understand, if the air conditioners cannot be fixed for our room today, the owner/ residency hosts will extend us the gracious action of sending us to a hotel a kilometer or so down the road that has air conditioning so we can spend the night in comfort, and then transport us back to the compound for breakfast and working, etc.  That is sounding very good at this junction, and although I like my room and my roomie and I had/have a good system in here, she is opting for the comfort of air conditioning as well...

That's the long and short of it.  Our residency hosts have been trying hard to get everything resolved, and for that I feel sorry for them, as they are also dealing with the gripes and discomfort of a group of 10, all are frustrated in varying degrees, by various issues such as the wifi, etc. and so, hopefully, we can just get this situation fixed today and enjoy the last several days here we have left.....In the meantime, I will try to finish up my last painting, and maybe if I can get another done by Saturday, I will attempt it.  I'll have to see how it goes, depending on the weather, the workspace, etc.

Day ???

 I am so tired, but being that we have been offline for nearly five days, I will post up the first painting I did after we went back to being primitive (without power or internet).  It's amazing how much you can get accomplished when you are offline...and we all laughed about how we knew we were back online: no one talked to each other the moment we went live again.  Pretty sad.  For those five days, we actually became human beings again, talking, laughing, interacting, playing games, watching movies, all the things we did before we went online.  And, once we went on again, it was instantaneous...the room got silent, and all you heard was the clicking of keyboards, and an exasperated mutter here and there as we each sank deeper into our own little universe.

So, I am playing catch up here with my journal.  It was a long lost five days of laying around in the sauna that is monsoon during the long, hot afternoons, awaiting that cool breeze that starts to ruffle the curtains around 4 pm, so deliciously, like a long desperate drink of cold water.  The mosquitoes come if there is no breeze, so we go crazy spraying each other, like a group of monkeys in a wild forest.  The pool filtration system went down too, so that it began to resemble a swamp rather like the backwaters, and swimming became impossible, so in the long sweltering stretches of afternoon, between stripping nearly naked like a savage and painting, then collapsing in a sweaty heap in a patch of shade, hopping a cold shower and repeating the process, I was actually able to produce some work.  A bit strange, but that's the nature of this trip so far, frustrating, strange, yet highly entertaining.  It is such a primitive experience now, I am kind of glad it went this way...I feel like I can honestly say I had an authentic experience, sans any comforts we have grown to depend on: electricity, warm water, internet, AIR CONDITIONING, comfort foods, television, clean laundry (aside what we wash in our own buckets and hang all over the compound like a crazy decorations), ice cubes or even confirmed drinking water...but, it is still very interesting.

A few days ago, as we all sat around lost, lamenting and bewildered, we decided it would be best to do something, so we took a houseboat ride around Lake Vembanad, and it was absolutely gorgeous.  The houseboat was beautiful, and we enjoyed the cool breezes of the lake, and afternoon tea.  It really cheered us all up, and we all had a laugh about getting adjusted to our lack of tech...we are getting there.  It's amazing how much we have grown to depend on it, and how it takes some days to get readjusted to living as we did maybe 20 or so years ago....

Day 9

 "Lake Vembanad before a storm" by Hilary J. England, oil on canvas, 8" x 10", 2015

It's been a peaceful day, and the first one I've really been able to work.  It started off nicely, with one of our artist residents, a young artist named Grace (and also my roomie) giving a very nice presentation of her work, which was very interesting.  She does "projection mapping" (I'm not quite sure what it is still, except that it involves scanning found vintage pornography images into your computer and making an animated collage that comes out looking a bit like a weird cartoon) and she gave a demonstration on this.  Again, quite interesting, but way out of my depth.  I'm just a simple gal who loves to paint, so I felt a little unable to completely grasp the concept of this medium, but that could also be because I'm old haha....at least compared to a 20 year old ;-)  Anyway, it is nice to see other artists and their creative processes, no matter what medium they work in.

I went out and painted this little study of Lake Vembanad from the edge of our property.  There were many reeds and the dense lilypads seem to form surface so solid on the edge of the lake, it seems you would be able to walk on them!  Obviously, that would not be a good suggestion, as you would wind up drowned in lilypads at the bottom of the lake, so I will just stay where it is nice and solid, and paint this lovely little scene at my leisure.  It took about 2 hours, but that was with breaking for lunch and talking with Ru Ru.  For a 2 year old, he has some definite opinions about painting!

So, the others went out to the market, and being that I was still not done with my painting, I decided to stay behind.  The compound is nearly empty, so floating in the pool was quite relaxing and quiet, as I listened to my own heartbeat through the water, I felt I could have been back in the amniotic sac, floating in uetero...the layers of stress just slowly peel away like a snake shedding its skin.

I am looking forward to more work tomorrow, I've made a pact with myself to get "x" number of paintings done (I won't reveal the number in case I miss the mark haha).  In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this little window peek at  Lake Vembanad~

So it begins!

So it begins!!

The journey begins today, officially.  All of the little plans, and little details, the work up to it, everything, is enough to give one butterflies, as this is the furthest I’ve been away from home yet, and for some reason, that thought made me slightly nervous yesterday.  I don’t know why, yet it did.

In reality, I am in even a better position to travel this year than I was last year when I went to Eastern Europe, yet the more relaxed pace previous to this trip gave me more time to think, and to digest all kinds of scare-mongering from well meaning loved ones, hahaha.  I refuse to give in to fear.  It’s against my nature.

So, now I sit here in Newark airport, waiting for the long flight to Mumbai, and then the layover, and then the short flight to Goa.  The check-in process in Newark was incredibly smooth, which is why I really love this airport.  JFK is a nightmare on every front, from the grueling cross town traffic, to the ineptness of the whole check in process…no thank you.  Every time I get tempted by a slightly cheaper ticket over there I just think back to the various nightmares I have endured at that airport, and shudder, and then go with the Newark ticket LOL.

This waiting process is not very hard right now, and I am surprised at the number of women travelers, both solo or as mother/daughter teams.  That is a reassuring observation to me, for whatever reason….maybe it assures me I’m not really freaky for traveling to India solo ;-)

Now, I will change some currency, and just wait to board…I have my books, movies and various games downloaded to my iPad, and I am hoping the smooth trip continues nicely and God remains with me on my travels, and I can lay my head comfortably on my pillow in my air conditioned room in Goa!!  I will update in Mumbai…or maybe even up in the air if I have wifi access!