Up on the Roof

The past few days I've spent some time up on the roof of our apartment watching life unfold in our little village. It is truly fascinating. The song "Upon the Roof" by James Taylor keeps playing in my head. "When this old world starts a getting me down. And people are just too much for me to face. I'll climb way up to the top of the stairs. And all my cares just drift right into space."
From this bird's eye view (and the help of my 12x optical zoom camera), I can see so much of daily life here. The difference between the view from the north and south sides of the building is stark and is a microcosm for the differences seen throughout India - rich and poor, developed and undeveloped living side by side. The incredible thing is that it all seems to blend together into the most rich mosaic.



You can see how the kids on each side of the wall around our apartment live and play.

Here is a picture of the school across from our apartment. The kids are being dismissed for lunch.
Many of the kids ran home to get their plates and then back to the school where they were served lunch.

Here are some photos from the other side of the apartment:

As you can see from all these pictures, there is a lot going on in a very small area. When I first arrived, things seemed very chaotic. Things still seem slightly chaotic, but there is an underlying current of order. The way everything functions together is truely incredible. People seem content with life no matter what their circumstances. There is a true sense of community between the people of the village. At night, the streets are filled with people socializing, eating, buying goods, etc. It is a very lively place! We don't venture out too much at night, just across the street to buy water, Kukure (India's version of SPICY Cheetos) or ice cream. Very nutritious I know, but we don't have a lot of snack options! As you can see from the picture on the right, development is moving out this way from the city. The new Bangalore International Airport is scheduled to open in a couple months just north of here. It will be interesting to see how Amruthahalli (our village) adapts to these changes. One thing is for sure, India continues to adapt and evolve!!