Sounds!

I thought before I arrived, that India would be a most shocking place visually.
After arriving from Seattle however, I found that I could hear the difference more than bear witness to it.
Quickly my favorite room in (or rather on) the house became the roof. After coming home after a long day of teaching, I found refuge on the roof. It gave me peace amidst the busy town. I could observe Fort Kochi with just my ears, and each sound was something new and different. As the roof easily became my routine I was able to distinguish the different sounds: the gas struggling out from the exhaust pipe of the tuk tuk , the zooming of the motorbikes, the random blaring voices projected from the speakers.
My favorite new sound was the echoing prayers that resonated from the nearby churches and mosques. As a non religious person, I expected to find little interest in the religiosity, yet there is something about these prayers that fills the air and I find an element of comfort in them although I don’t understand a single word.
I found that is where a lot of the beauty of India comes from, that lack of understanding. Such naivety allows for utter confusion to exist alongside the wonder and magic that can be found in a country like India. The constant noise can provide a surprising calm when observed from a distance. It is in this clutter of noise, most unlike my own home that I can feel calm.

Sounds!