Elephanta Island

One of the few tourist excursions we had planned for our India trip was a visit to Elephanta Island, a historical site on an island in the Mumbai harbor. The caves were used as temples and have carvings depicting Hindu gods; the island itself is named for a gigantic basalt elephant statue (which is now in a museum). Although we were still officially working, and hoping to get some interesting video and photos to use in the project, it was also a chance to have some fun.

We were about to buy tickets from one of the ferry companies with a booth near the Gateway, and found out that the caves are closed on Mondays. Rob had been there before, and assured us there would still be plenty to see, so we paid the fare. Indian tourist attractions have a pricing structure based on nationality, with foreigners paying about five times more than locals for admission to historical sites. It was still quite inexpensive for all of us. I kind of like that locals have to pay less, because it makes these sites more accessible to the general population.

Since the island is about six miles out into the harbor, we had an hour-long boat ride. Photography is not allowed on the boats (by order of the Indian navy), so we didn't take pictures or video on the ride because we are serious rule-followers. Of course, that didn't stop Indians from using their cell phones--especially when a group of seagulls flew alongside the boat, eating the chips some kids threw to them.

Tourist Ferry Boats

Even though I knew to expect to see pollution and garbage in the water, it shocked me when boat passengers threw their empty water and soda bottles, chip bags, and snack wrappers overboard.  It was like a reflex, completely automatic. There was an empty, unused trash can on the boat.

We disembarked onto a small concrete ledge, walked up some steps and were on the pier leading to the island itself. This was the closest we were going to get to the great outdoors on the entire trip, since we were planning to spend the rest of our time in Hyderabad (the 4th most populous city in India). Rob and Biplab stopped to buy cold drinks from a booth on the pier, and then we started the long walk to the stairs leading to the archeological park.

Rob: "You don't have any Mountain Dew? Okay, Coke."

We could have taken the train instead of walking, but we weren't really tired at this point and we wanted to be able to take pictures.  The train reminded us of Deer Acres back home.

 We were greeted by very friendly stray dogs, which tested my willpower regarding my self-imposed "Don't Pet Anything" rule. I think animals seek me out because they can tell that I would take them home with me if I could, and at the very least I will pet them and share my food. The only exception to my benevolence? Snakes. Good thing I didn't see any on the island.

The island has year-round residents, many of whom make their living in part by getting visitors to buy merchandise from their stands. The vendors here sold snacks, hats, clothing, jewelry, statues, toys and a lot of other souvenir items. Everything was reasonably priced, though the quality of items varied widely from one booth to the next. I was completely enchanted, though. I absolutely love buying things from street vendors. I've always been attracted to yard sales, flea markets, thrift stores, etc. because you never really know what's going to be there, and if you don't like the prices you can move on to the next booth.

After this first vendor-gauntlet, we came to a paved area that was a little more open than the previous paths, and I nearly had a heart attack of joy because I saw cows, goats, dogs, and monkeys on the loose and mingling with the crowd. Giving me access to animals is like giving Red Bull to a kid with ADHD--terrifying, slightly dangerous, but hilarious. I wanted to play fetch with the dogs.

I wanted to stare into the rectangular pupils of the goats.

I wanted to pet the cows.













I wanted to high-five the monkeys. All of this, ALL AT ONCE. I know, I am a child. But I've never seen monkeys in the wild, and this was the closest we would get to having an Indiana Jones moment in India.

The sign the monkey is sitting on explains that the island finally got electricity in May of 1989, which helped us maintain a little perspective regarding the infrastructure of India, especially in relation to its population. I was consistently, acutely aware of the differences between India and the U.S., and I have to say that I have great respect for so many aspects of everyday life in India.

I had been warned by various sources that the main crime I had to be concerned about in India was pickpocketing in crowded tourist areas. These monkeys were actually the closest experience we had with petty theft. They were everywhere along the path, jumping from one ledge or building to the next like little acrobats.

I was mostly afraid they would leap onto my back after a trip across one of the tarp ropes. I also didn't know if they would have any interest in the camera.

We watched monkeys snatch drink bottles from people. Some were unsuspecting, but others were willing participants in the monkey-thefts. Biplab's lemonade was only half-empty when it was snatched from him.

And this little guy was guarding his roasted field corn, because there were bigger, badder monkeys nearby. He's sitting on some chairs with long bamboo poles attached to them, which are used to carry tourists up to the caves (for a fee).

This was the monkey-in-chief, apparently. I was slightly afraid of him, because he looked downright menacing when he was picking his teeth and glaring at me. He also swung into the trees above my head and landed on the ledge right next to my elbow in a matter of seconds.

Since it was heading into the late afternoon, many of the booths along the stairway were already closed for the day. And had we known this would be one of our only opportunities to buy inexpensive souvenirs in Mumbai, we probably would have looked more carefully and thoughtfully at what was available. It's hard to think of these things when you're suppressing jetlag. And when you have a long, steep climb to make.

Although some of the stalls sold cheap plastic junk, there were some with handmade items, like this jewelry stand.

Even though the caves and most of the vendors were closed, I still enjoyed trekking up to the top of the hill. Every experience in India was like a gift, and I felt like there was no room for griping or feeling ungrateful, no matter the circumstances. The idea of being there at all was incredible, and I kept reminding myself that since this wasn't a vacation, I had to be content with the moments I had that were vacationish.

Those stairs to the top of the hill seemed to go on forever. They also became progressively steep, which proved challenging for our exhausted  (and out of shape) bodies. Finally, we made it all the way up to look at a closed gate. Rob thought we would at least be able to go into the area near the caves, but everything at the top was closed.

We were thirsty, and a bit sweaty. I paused near the gate to look at the crows convened in the trees above me, and was promptly shat on. Rob followed some men down a trail, only to find that it ended abruptly at a trash-filled ravine, and people were pissing over the edge of it. I could have been annoyed with all of this, but then I turned around and peered through a gap in the foliage to see how far we had come:

Going back down the hill was certainly easier, especially since we decided to buy cold bottles of Sprite and stop in at one of the more established shops to look at carved statues. Although I love haggling and bargaining, I was a little out of practice, so Biplab helped me negotiate with the shopkeeper. I ended up getting an ebony wood elephant for several hundred rupees less than the asking price. Knowing that it had a long journey, the shopkeeper wrapped it in several layers of newspaper and some bubble wrap.

We didn't buy anything else at the shop, although we were sorely tempted by this:

I was under the impression that heat, sunlight, and humidity were bad for film, but what do I know? I didn't check the expiration dates.

When we got to the bottom of the hill, Biplab insisted we take the train to shorten the walk. He was met with no resistance from us, since our calves were beginning to ache from our extended Stairmaster session. We crammed ourselves into the remaining seats at the back of the train. It was an extremely uncomfortable ride, but definitely worth the 5 rupees.

On the ferry ride back to the mainland, we half-slept and enjoyed the slight breeze. We watched the sun start to sink. A submarine surfaced and made its way to port. And then, as we were about to get off the boat, Biplab reached for his phone and couldn't find it. We looked around, and realized we were sitting right above a grate that vented the engine compartment. The phone had slipped out of his hands and fallen below decks, into a puddle. Sigh.

At least the elephant is happy living in my china cabinet.

Production: Day 1

Our first full day in India was also our only full day in Mumbai. It was also our only chance to complete all of the shooting with our celebrity host, Biplab. I'm not being cheeky when I call him a celebrity--he's famous in India. And if you can achieve fame in a country with over a billion people, you must be a stand-out guy (which he is).

Once we finished breakfast, we went back to our room to gather our production equipment. Remember, we were going for minimalist-professional here:

• Two cameras
• Three lenses
• Filters
• A tripod
• iPad
• Microphone
• Audio recorder
• XLR cable
• Headphones 
• Shot list

My job would be to operate the iPad slate/clapper and prompter apps, record audio, take stills, and do anything else Aaron asked me to do; Aaron was in charge of composing shots, shooting the video, monitoring the audio and video results, directing, and otherwise making sure things went as planned.

We met Rob and Biplab in the lobby, then headed out past the security checkpoint to our first daylight encounter with Mumbai. Leaving the hotel is much easier than getting in, but during the day it is more apparent just how seriously they take security at the Taj, because there were at least 12 security guards, bellmen, and other hotel employees stationed outside the building to watch foot and vehicle traffic. Unlike the security personnel we'd encountered at the various airports along the way, these men made eye contact and greeted us, which puts people at ease rather than making them feel like criminals. It also reminded me that while we were safe in the hotel, anything could happen on the streets. It's not that we expected anything bad to happen, we just had to keep in  mind that we needed to look out for ourselves.

The street outside the hotel isn't a busy one, but there was still quite a bit of noise: car horns, horse-drawn carriages (very touristy and all parked near the Taj), vendors selling various types of food and souvenirs, the rasp of brooms from the sanitation workers in the square, pigeons, boats in the harbor. We had expected that it would be hot (the forecast was for 80-90 degrees every day), but since it wasn't humid and there was a slight breeze, the weather was quite comfortable.

Because of changes to security after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, the entire square around the Gateway of India is fenced in with metal barricades. The single entrance, which is on the opposite side of the square from the Taj, is guarded by military/police personnel, and there are separate lines for men and women. We walked along the sidewalk outside the square through an assortment of beggars, vendors, tourists, and taxi drivers ready to snare people for tours of the slums.

We walked into the middle of the square, with the Gateway directly behind Biplab, and began setting up. A non-uniformed man immediately approached us, telling us that the tripod wasn't allowed. We explained that we absolutely needed it, so Biplab began negotiating on our behalf in Hindi. The conversation was just long enough for us to finish setting up the equipment, but we felt rushed and not fully prepared. It was a little frustrating, but in the moment we knew we would have to work quickly to get all of the shots we needed. Biplab turned to us, informing us we had 10-15 minutes before we'd have to pack it up. The man hovered nearby.

We made the most of our limited time, attempting to get as many good takes as possible before were were forced to shut it down. Biplab's professionalism went a long way in making the shoot go well, because he was as concerned with the quality as we were.

The "Candid Professional" Look

After finishing that part of the shoot, we wandered the plaza to take pictures and look around.

 If you're a Westerner and like yoga and/or Hinduism, it is in part due to this man, Swami Vivekananda.

Statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, founder of the Maratha empire and an important figure in the promotion of Hinduism.

Our equipment often earned us some curious glances; at times, people would stand behind me or Aaron to look at the LCD screen on the camera to see what we were shooting--especially when it was video. Sometimes, we'd look up and they'd instantly look away. We'd often invite people to come closer, to get a better look. People were genuinely curious but also very friendly.

Not a Green Screen!

There was a large group of pigeons in the corner of the plaza, and we took turns getting near them. Despite my utter loathing for pigeons (I had some bad pigeon experiences in Rome and Venice), I posed for a few shots. I also tried to chase them. I tried to catch them. I failed.

After we finished this part of the shoot, we went back to our rooms so Biplab could change his clothes and we could save our footage. I had been carrying around the lock from one of our suitcases in my pocket, and had somehow managed to change the combination. I didn't know that when I put it back on Aaron's suitcase, but he soon found out when he tried to get out the laptop.

 "1...2...3...4...5? That's the stupidest combination I've ever heard in my life! That's the kind of thing an idiot would have on his luggage!

Don't worry, it only took him about 20 minutes to get into it. Sorry, Aaron!

Another part of the shoot involved renting a tourist ferry so we could film the host segments with the Taj and Gateway of India in the background. Rob and Biplab handled booking the boat, working with a friendly guy in a peach silk shirt. We worked it out so we would have about an hour on the water, and we were able to tell the pilot exactly where to "park" for the ideal shots.

The boat shoot proved challenging, in that we had to compensate for both noise and motion. Every once in awhile, a helicopter would fly overhead; we also had the sounds of boat motors. In two instances, we had to wait for a motley crew team in a barely-seaworthy boat to row by, complete with shouted commands and chanting. The ferry boats to Elephanta Island and other large boats produced wakes that made it difficult to stand. Since the Maharashtra State Police Headquarters are located to the right of the Gateway, we had to be careful not to shoot in that direction both in the plaza and on the boat.

The final part of our shoot took place on the roof of the Taj (well, on top of the lobby, actually). Rob and Biplab wrangled us special permission with the PR department of the hotel, and they let us set up in an outdoor banquet area with a great view of the Gateway.

All in all, it was a good first day of shooting. We were given permission to do things that we probably shouldn't have been allowed to do. I suspect Biplab's negotiation skills were a contributing factor in all that.

The day wasn't over, though--we still had some shooting to do on Elephanta Island. That part didn't work out quite so well, but it was one of the only touristy things we were able to do while in Mumbai, so it will get its own post.

Breakfast of Indians

We got up around 6:30 on what was, somehow, January 16th. It felt like we had lost about a week in transit, so it was disorienting to know that it was, in fact, Monday and that we would complete a significant portion of our production that day.

One of the benefits of being so sleep deprived and traveling through so many time zones is that when you do finally sleep, it is immensely restorative. Giving in to the exhaustion and jetlag was not an option, anyway, since we had so much to do.

We had a "seaview" room on the 4th floor with our own screened-in balcony overlooking the Gateway of India and the Arabian Sea, and this fact made it extremely pleasant to wake up in the morning. This was our first view of Mumbai in the daylight:

Smoggy but stunning!

Getting ready involved slathering ourselves with both sunscreen and mosquito repellent, dressing in long sleeves and pants, and putting on shoes with good traction, since we would spend a portion of the day on a boat and a few hours on an island. I pulled a George Costanza and wore my Timberlands (and yes, they did make me look taller).

At 7:00, we went downstairs to meet Rob and our Indian celebrity host for the video, Biplab Ganguli. We needed to go over portions of the script and plan out how, where, and when we would be shooting that day, and make sure that we were ready (more on that in subsequent posts). We met at Shamiana, the "coffee shop" (casual-dining restaurant) right off the lobby, for a buffet-style breakfast. This was our first encounter with Indian food, and we were nervous because we didn't know what to expect from an Indian breakfast. Everything was labeled, but that didn't really help because we still didn't know what was in it, whether it was savory or sweet, or even how it should be eaten (Was it finger-food? Should we use silverware?).

Here's someone else's slightly blurry picture of the restaurant. Shamiana is a kind of tent used for weddings, parties, and feasts, so the fabric draped around the light fixture is meant to evoke that.

I've always considered myself a relatively adventurous eater, and when I'm in a foreign country, I figure I should take my chances and eat the local food. I have had a few bad experiences from not knowing the language, most notably in Naples, when I ordered a thin-crust pizza only knowing three out of four toppings. Ten years later, I still know that "alici" are anchovies. In India, my biggest fears were spiciness and improperly washed produce. The former was something I could deal with; the latter would hamper our production schedule, and we couldn't have that.

Aaron is definitely not an adventurous eater. He isn't picky, exactly, he just has a strong sense of what he likes (and dislikes) and tends not to deviate from that. I make fun of him because every time we eat at Big Boy, he orders fish and chips. He looks at the menu, but he always orders the same thing. He also needs to know what ingredients are in his food, in case there's one or more ingredients he strongly dislikes--a sentiment I share, to a certain extent (we'll talk about cilantro, anise, and cloves in a future post). Like me, though, his biggest concern was illness, since we had read on numerous websites that even in upscale restaurants, there was still the possibility of contracting an illness from the water used in food preparation.

There were some typical American breakfast foods on the buffet: French toast, home fries, eggs, chicken sausage, bacon, oatmeal, cold cereal, and fresh fruit. Rob and Aaron seemed to stick to the familiar.  I took a little bit of everything and ate with gusto, because once I started eating I realized just how hungry I was.

Everything I ate was delicious (and this was by no means the tastiest meal we had). I had banana sheera, which was sweet and kind of like oatmeal, but smoother and thicker. I ate something crusted with some kind of legume. The chicken sausage had really interesting spices in it--a faint burn at first, and then a second wave of flavor. We drank fresh-squeezed juice. I joined the clean plate club. I just wish I had brought a pen with me to write down the names of the things I ate, because I'd love to get an Indian cookbook and make some of the dishes here.

A lot of our dining experiences in India involved filling our plates with unfamiliar foods, taking a test bite, letting all of the flavors and textures register for a minute, and (usually) digging in eagerly. Everything was an experiment.

Be Prepared (or, When Boy Scouts Go to India) Part 3

I promise, this is the last post about preparations!

By now, you're probably thinking that it's no wonder Aaron has been very stressed out for the past eight months (and also why we've declined invitations for dinner and hanging out on more than one occasion). It has been the major focus of Aaron's attention for a very long time, in addition to working full-time, running his business, managing our finances, and being married to me (which is no small undertaking). Even with the seemingly detailed, exhaustive blog posts, I don't think I've adequately described the work Aaron has put into this project and how it has (at times) disrupted our lives. I feel like half a person compared to him, in terms of the mental and physical energy he puts into his work.

What I also want to make very, very clear is that we are in no way ungrateful for the chance to even attempt an international production. It's hard to write about the experience without sometimes complaining, but that also means I have the misfortune of sounding like an over-privileged, whiny snot--the ugly American who feels entitled to far more than she deserves, which is really not the case. I also don't want to come off as culturally insensitive about our experience in India; at the same time, I want to convey all of the bewildering, frightening, and fascinating parts of it from what is, by default, the perspective of a complete outsider. What I describe might make you uncomfortable; we certainly were at times. But I firmly believe that learning and growth don't come from places of comfort, and sometimes you get rubbed raw in the pursuit of knowledge.

Training

Having never taken video production, photography, or art classes, I desperately needed Aaron's help to become a competent production assistant. As I've mentioned, I've taken some film classes and I had a basic understanding of shot composition. I've been around Aaron for enough years to have seen how production works. But I'd never really picked up a good camera and tested my abilities, and I was afraid of failure (and of incurring Aaron's wrath). He had the unfortunate task of educating me from doltish ineptitude to passable competency, fighting against my stubbornness and klutz-tastic ability to trip over my own feet, drop things, and otherwise mess things up (like the time I dented his laptop while on our first big roadtrip together--Houston, we have a problem, indeed).

Each armed with a Canon DSLR, we did some outdoor photography training at Giant City State Park. I felt like a blundering moron with very little idea how to use the most basic functions on the camera, but Aaron's a good teacher, and he was able to explain concepts so that they lodged in my atrophied little brain. We also went to Nashville in December (mostly to watch the Red Wings crush the Predators) and did some more shooting downtown. I took a few decent pictures, and a lot of stupid ones. It probably didn't help that I kept saying "Stand back! I'm making ART!" in a dramatic hipster voice. But Aaron could see that I was learning, so he put up with it.

ART!

Double ART!

What was probably most helpful were the six hours of training videos we watched together. I'm usually a book-learner first and then a hands-on-learner, but these videos were excellent for explaining and demonstrating concepts without being condescending or dry. If you want to learn more about photography but can't afford to take classes (and don't have access to someone like Aaron), I highly recommend Lynda.com's training videos.

Other portions of my training included learning how to set up and take down the lights (which we did not take to India); setting up tripods, securing the cameras to them, and using the tilt arm smoothly; figuring out how to use the iPad for script editing, releases, as a teleprompter, as a clapper, and for talent releases; using the audio recorder and microphones; and all aspects of setting up, hauling, storing, and handling all of the production equipment so that I did not damage it in any way. I was expressly forbidden from panicking once we were in India.

Luggage

Accepting that were would be going on a Tourist VISA felt like a demotion, but it also meant that we had to transport our equipment in baggage that made us look less like professionals and more like vacationing Americans. The Pelican cases for the laptop, cameras, and accessories were out; we did keep the microphones, one of the hard drives, and the memory cards in their own small Pelican cases, though. Nope, nothing here but a technology nerd and his disheveled wife, both of whom also happen to be amateur photographers.

Part of my "dowry" (read: crap I brought with me when we moved in together and have kept through our marriage) was a 4-piece set of plum-colored no-frills luggage I initially bought for study abroad. I paid $58 for the whole set back in 2002, and it was worth every penny, in the sense that it has not completely disintegrated in the intervening decade of use and abuse. Well, some of the seams are ripped. The biggest case sports wide bands of permanently ground-in duct tape adhesive. The inner plastic support walls have shattered. The luggage smells funny. Miraculously, all of the zippers still work. But this is not luggage I would trust again on an international flight--especially one that would require the bags remain intact through multiple airport transfers.

After scouting the aisles at a few stores and reading positive online reviews, we decided to buy two of the Heys 4-Motion 29" cases at Target to serve as our checked baggage. I won't go into a big sales pitch, but these bags were really great for our purposes, and having four wheels made it a lot easier to lug them around various airports, through Customs, and into hotel rooms. They GLIDE. No joke. We bought TSA-approved locks with an indicator that showed whether they had been opened by baggage screeners, too, for that inevitable moment when they wonder if that's a tripod wrapped in a sweatshirt or if we're just happy to see them.

For our hand baggage, I already had a decent Jansport backpack with sufficient pockets for the things I would want on a daily basis and on the planes. Aaron needed a way to protect the iPad and laptop, and we ended up finding a clearance-priced rolling suitcase with a slim detachable backpack for him at Target (and please, read the About Us section on the company's website--it's so earnest).

Aaron bought himself a new camera bag, since he had included his old one when he sold his previous DSLR. For "my" camera, we exercised our cheapskate muscles and managed to find a Gillette shaving bag with an inside zippered pocket and two outer zippered pockets at the Carbondale Goodwill--for $3 (it was also full of Mary Kay shaving products!). It didn't have a shoulder strap on it, though, so I bought some D-rings and upholstery thread so I could attach a spare strap. It was just big enough for the camera body, one lens, the filters, and few accessories in the side pockets. I ended up keeping my passport in the inner zippered pocket most days.

Air and Ground Transportation

Booking our plane tickets was tricky because it would mean there was no backing out--and things weren't exactly rock solid in the month and a half before we left. We had to renew our passports, and we couldn't apply for a VISA without them. The VISA application process was not going smoothly due to misinformation. And everywhere we looked, we were advised not to book our plane tickets until we had secured proper documentation.

But we didn't have a choice, and the longer we waited, the more the fares would rise. We wanted to make sure we were on the same flight as Rob getting into Mumbai because we had never been there before, so that meant routing through Detroit and Amsterdam.

We thought we had it (maybe) figured out ourselves, but went to a travel agent just in case. Visiting this kind of business establishment is like time-traveling back to the early 1990s (and where we live, some people never left the early 1990s, in terms of favored hair, make-up, and clothing styles). But do you know what kind of fees travel agents charge? It's obscene. I get that they're trying to stay afloat in a time when computers can do everything for you, but we couldn't justify giving her lots and lots of our money to do what we already figured out how to do, so we went home and booked the tickets ourselves (and enrolled in Delta's SkyMiles program).

When you're faced with the prospect of returning from 22 hours of flights and the accompanying layovers, and you'll be two hours from home when you step off the last plane, the idea of driving yourself home from the airport is an instant emetic. There was just NO way. And though we could have chartered a BART van to drop us off and pick us up, there were some uncertainties and associated expenses we didn't want to mess with. So we chartered a Brenna, using my car. She was kind enough to ride to St. Louis with us, drive our car home to Carbondale and store it at her apartment, and then pick us up at the end of our trip, which was pretty much the best idea ever. And we're going to pay her in food and gifts tonight. It's a win-win all around.

Hotels

We had been assured that arrangements had been made for our lodging in Hyderabad, but we also needed to book a room for the first two nights of the trip, which we were spending in Mumbai. So we stayed here:

"Opulence, I has it."

Actually, we stayed in the tower part of it, which isn't in the picture. Does it look familiar? Here's another angle that might jog your memory a bit:

The hotel was among the sites attacked by terrorists in 2008. Security has been tightened considerably, but staying there seemed like it would be just another way that we were drawing attention to ourselves. We knew we would stand out: our equipment was sure to draw stares and possibly suspicion. We are undeniably, blindingly white, and thus either American, European, or Australian by default. I was a little nervous about what would be assumed about us as it was, and the hotel choice didn't make me feel any more relaxed.

But this hotel was also right next to the Gateway of India and the harbor, both of which we wanted to include in the host segments of the video. It was convenient, and since we didn't have much time in Mumbai, we knew staying this close to our shooting locations would ease our stress and make it easier to transport the equipment (and go back to the room if we forgot anything or needed to stow the equipment quickly).

We weren't scared, necessarily. Just cautious.