Finally made it to Nepal and Katmandu! It took two weeks of incessant phone calls, news observing, gossip listening and well waiting for the curfew to end to get here. We (Audrey the exec-producer) and I spent two days at the listless, dusty, boring India Nepal border waiting for a flight to Lisbon, um I mean Katmandu. Yes it felt like "Casablanca" but with out Ricks place, the elegance, Ingrid Bergman and a good plot. All that was there was the deperation, trickery and longingness to get out of there. There are hundreds of waiting to go overland but to no avail. Many have been there weeks and many turn back dejected and frustrated. Even getting a flight was hellish and I used all my guile, charm, wit, intimidation, and even bribery skills to get out. We beat out two crazy Ukranians who I had allied with once we thought we were ripped off. We were guaranteed a flight nearly every hour and none occured. We the Ukies and I were going to destroy the town if need be. I already had mentally prepared to make molotov cocktails and to buy some arms. Fortunately it did not come to this. I had threatened a Nepalese or maybe an Indian who tried to extort even more money out of us than they already had. I said "if you want to continue this day to be healty, THAN DONT FUCK WITH ME!" I also told him that "I dont care I I must pay a police man $500 u.s to have someone SHOT!" At the time I meant it for my patience was totally gone. In India, being lied to is a common thing. If they say its hot out you might just want to put on a scarf and hat. Of course these are only the Indians that one money from you which maybe is only ten percent but A billon divided by ten is well…you get the idea. I must say that the times I have "gone Italian" as I like to put it, things seem to resolve themselves. Its like they will push you only so far, as perhaps a child might and than when sensing you have reached your brink they understand and back off. I wont even go to how after all that, the long rickshaw in the heat, the bribes, the lies, the threats, more lies we got to the airport to be told that our tickets were unconfirmed and not valid. After much arguing , smiling, bribing (with cookies) and ofering random Nepalese to buy their seats we got them. This mainly due to the fact that we payed double to what the Nepalese do for the same seats. Fine! I did not care, every plane we looked at with longing and eventually I was the lucky one looking down at the stranded refugee like people on the Sunali border. ….
more on Nepal if interested…..
Friday, December 19, 2008
arrived in Nepal….finally!
more India..
Ah, my dear reader you are still with me. You have stomached the images of dogs eating corpes and I suppose you can withstand more of my rants. As I mentioned this trip is supposed to be about Nepal not India. I did not come here to seek out a Guru or Enlightment. I did come with good intentions to help raise money for Global Action Nepal and I admit to bolster my own ego by producing something. The ego, how this word had developed a new meaning to me. How self absorbed we are! I am, the world, this physical world so full of suffering, joy, misery and wonder. I am trying to be less selfish, and even more so I am examing what "myself" is! The "self", me, myself and I as the song goes. Who, what is it? Why are we here, what is our purpose is posed to me on every corner, by every cow on the street, every begging child that pulls on my sleeve, its is screamed out to me by the blind, the old women with no hands, and by the very wind itself. The Indians are so patient. Nothing seems to upset them at times. They always smile at you. They smile and shake their head. "stop shaking your fucking head and smiling you little bastard" you want to yell at times. You want to say this when they lie to you, cheat you, bring you somewhere different from where you asked and well when its 104 F or (40 c) out, its so hot, dusty loud and they keep shaking their heads and smiling. Than there is the staring which I am totally used to. There are times where I will be a on a train platform talking to someone and a large crowd gathers. They stand no more than 4 feet from me surrounding me and just stare. I am so lucky I am a man cause well they think all western women are whores (I love you all anyway 
In India………..again!
So its been a long while since I have blogged and well its about time I did so. I have so much occuring to me daily that its hard to keep up. I am in India now and Varanassi to be exact. This is a very holy city situated on the Ganges. It is holy for Hindus and Buddhist. I have seen so many things experiences so much so where do I begin? How about the present? I am in an internet place, there is sithar music in the back round, the rooms smells like incense. The man who runs the place has his forehead brightly colored in the Hindu tradition. Sometimes it is my forehead that is painted! When you go to the temples the Brahman will paint your forehead if you like it or not. I like it personally and the other day I had yellow, red, orange dots, lines on the bridge of my nose and forehead. It is easy for me to get drawn into all the goings on spiritually in these places. I have found it to be very moving. In fact the other day I awoke weeping, yes, weeping like a child and this not uncommon here. The Ganges is known to heal all wounds both physical and metaphysical. The Ganga cleans your Karma and washes it away. I might add along with the floating corpses and hopefully not to the otherside where the dogs on the beaches live off eating the remains. Yes, you go to the beach on the other bank and you see bones, hundreds of thousands, and bodies being eaten by dogs. If you watch the burning of bodies as the "Dom" (of the lower caste) turn the bodies over as your dad does a hamburger. Like your bodies crispy? or …. ok not funny. When you seen the torso of a man break off and juices ooze out one seeks humor in their own fragility. The smells are distinct and even if you never smelled it you know instinctually what it is immediately. THose who cannot afford to have their dead burned just toss the bodies in the river and its not uncommon to see bodies floating by women washing their saris while they do not even look up. Yesterday in front of a friends guest house a child dropped dead of what cause I am unsure. The body was still there covered as a man chanted over it. The still figure was small and I found it unsettling but not shocking. Little shocks you here. Surely this street child will not be burned but will be sent down to the Ganges or rather to the other bank to be eaten by dogs. This gives a whole new meaning to "its a dog eat dog world". Having spent the last days among very spirual people and environments I have began to look at the body as a mere vessel. I am not Aaron. I simply Am. The mind, the body and spirit are not the same entity according to the beliefs here. From what I have experienced recently I tend to agree. I did not come here for a Spirtual quest. I came here to make a film for a charity. I will end this entry and start another as to not bore my readers. Contiune to the next if interested…
Not blogged in awhile
Tuesday, November 28th, 2006I have not blogged since may and now it is the end of November. I am intending on starting a new blog at a different site. As for now the newest thing is that I am going to Israel in less than a month on a program to rebuild the North. I am excited about this. I am seldolm on friendster, my latest addiction is flickr.com
There you can find my photos.
Photos up
Saturday, March 5th, 2005I just put several of my photos up and it feels good to be representing my work this way. I will put the captions up later for I am tired and its really late. I hope people enjoy my work.
first post
Friday, March 4th, 2005I am not normally a blogger but I needed to make one to put some photos. So here it goes. Lets see if I ever actually update it! Right now I am adjusting to life back in NYC after being in Argentina and CHile for two months. Its summer there now and the weather is not the only warm thing there…the people.
