This might be the way to go next time... India Homestays! We had lunch at two of them. We were fed delicious home-cooked meals (done by the cook, not the matron of the house). Dad came home and spend several hours with us glowering under bushy eyebrows until we warm him up. Then politics, business, family, future, wishes, dreams failures and successes until we are both exhausted. We stayed at two:As this is Communist country down here in Kerala, these families had a very different perspective from the folks that we hang with - the taxi drivers, maids, cooks, laundry ladies and doormen. And if you know me at all, you know that I discovered - by hook or by crook - how many of them are voting on May 30th. India is much more politically savvy than most Americans. And India is painfully aware that the Eastern Indian state of West Bengal has not only been dominated by the Communist party for over 30 years but also has a very poor literacy rate and is one of the poorest states in all of India. By contrast, Kerala has a literacy rate of 100%.
While we're on the subject, 645 million people live under the poverty level in India compared to 410 million in the 26 poorest nations of Africa (this according to the MPI).
No comments:
Post a Comment