My first impression of Mumbai was the long queue at the airport. I went outside and noticed the intense heat and the palm trees. I was greeted by an ISAC representative at the airport. We took a taxi cab back to the guesthouse which was 45min. away. The taxi cab wouldn’t start right away until the cab driver pushed the car. I arrived at the guesthouse in complete culture shock. It’s a whole other world and was different then my expectations. I guess that I pictured the glitz and the glam of Hollywood transferred to Bollywood, but this assumption was soon gone. There are stray dogs all around. The streets of the suburb are dirty, rickshaws are everywhere. I also expected to see a sea of people, but instead I saw the auto traffic. There was even cattle on the side of the road! The smell is interesting. The good and the bad scents are mixed together, but are not overpowering. I heard that the yoga classes are 45 degrees Celsius. Right now I feel exhausted from the long plane ride. I took a walk around the block and saw a dog with three legs and a stray puppy, a lot filled with garbage, holes in the sidewalk next to huge legolike high rises. I never realize how much of the Western comfort we take for granted and it doesn’t hit you until you’re here. After hearing all of the talk about poverty, I wonder if I’m prepared to see it. We ate lunch at the guesthouse, some spicy rice dish. It was mild spice, but too much for me. I’m having difficulty understanding the accented English and keep having to ask “what, what.” Kate also didn’t know what to expect and we had a conversation about the different cultures. I also saw guys holding hands which doesn’t mean that they’re gay. The girls seem really nice and there are a total of six of us on the two combined programs. We watched some of the films and they seemed pretty simple and straightforward, but I can only imagine how much editing needs to be done for even a short film. I took a lot of great pictures. I was a little bit scared of riding in a rickshaw or getting hit by one, the drivers here are crazy, very aggressive. I feel out of place here and stand out like a sore thumb. Also, I get plenty of stares from the locals. I can only imagine what they are thinking. I’m really excited for the program and am looking forward to the days ahead. I already told Mukesh that I want to extend my flight ticket before we even reached the guesthouse.