12th September

Woke up this morning feeling like someone was using my forehead as a bouncy castle. Not an overly pleasant feeling. I have extra class this morning as well, and I don’t think this bodes well. Forced myself to have breakfast in the hope that the sugar will perk me up or something.
It didn’t.
Managed to get through one of my extra classes. It was on Samuel Johnson, for literary theory. It was quite interesting, and I think I could write a coherent answer on it in relation to Romantic theory or Aristotelian theory, which is always a nice sensation. I think we are only doing the Preface to Shakespeare, which is probably the longest tract, but I wouldn’t have minded doing some of the other stuff that is in the Norton as well. I might just go through it myself and use ‘wider knowledge’ as a secret weapon come exam time.
I didn’t make it to Udaya Kumar on Plato. I couldn’t…I was suffering too much in that damned room with all the damned aircon on and me freezing and in pain. I couldn’t even muster the energy to speak to my lecturer about my essay, so that can be Monday’s task instead. I feel more than a little bit pathetic, but I do not care. I am beginning to worry about these essays, especially seeing as I also have a history one due and then a timed question for English to do in class. I am sure I will get them done. I just hope they are actually good though. Here, 60% is considered an A, and seems virtually unattainable. The usual marks are in the fifties. It seems so strange to us, who would consider 60% ok, but not great. They think it is amazing. One guy I spoke to told me the highest mark he knew of was 75%. At home that is pretty good, but here that is mark of genius.
After English I met Amanda and Egle in Connaught Place. I had to be directed to the music shop they were in, and so this very friendly Indian guy took me there. It was really very nice of him, I hadn’t asked for a guide, only directions! He said what they all say: Indians are more famous for their hospitality and helpfulness than Westerners. This is true, but you still have to look out a bit. He had thought he had seen me the night before in a club (not as bad a line as “I saw your face in Connaught Place…*cringe*”) so perhaps he had slight ulterior motives. Either way he took me to the music shop and wandered off. CDs are very cheap here. It is about a fiver for the most expensive I saw, which was Dire Straites Live. An odd CD to have in an Indian music store but there you go.
We were in Connaught Place to find the yoga centre that we had seen advertised in First City, an amazing magazine that gives you complete listings of all the restaurant and bar deals going on and any free cultural events round the city. It turned out to be quite far from CP, and closer instead to Patel Chowk. We found it eventually, though the main entrance is secreted up a back street (as per.). When we got there the guard told us to go away as there was no one in and everything was locked. What was funny about this was that there were people inside the building wandering around. Not a very good lie when the building is made partly of glass. After five minutes of arguing, a man appeared and told us to follow him. Shocking how people come out of the woodwork and suddenly materialize inside locked buildings isn’t it? We got a timetable for yoga, and there is a class on every day at 4 to 5 or 5 to 6pm. Amanda and I can only go to one three times a week, so we are thinking Tuesday, Friday and Saturday or Sunday. It’s hatha yoga, so it should be nice and relaxing. I hope they don’t mind the fact that I am the most inflexible person on the planet and not able to touch my toes, let alone bend into shapes. It is only 100Rs for a month, so even if we don’t make it all the time, it is most definitely worth it.
By this stage I was feeling most definitely worse, so we came back to the hostel and went to AIM, where I had a restorative cup of ginger tea. That tea is like a lifesaver. Very spicy, very sweet and generally amazing for any cold. I think I should try to find some of it before I leave.
I came back to the hostel before the others and went to sleep until dinner. Dinner tonight was fairly exciting: there was a potato dish we had not seen before that is apparently the sort of thing you are meant to get in dhosa. To be honest, anything is exciting when it is different. We have decided that we need to begin trying properly in Hindi, so we are copying our notes out nicely and starting afresh. Perhaps we may even learn something.