India is huge, and every state speaks a different language.
For example, when major corporations are running a national marketing campaign in India there is always the question of what languages to run it in and where...and it can lead to really costly marketing in multiple languages. When Indians travel between states, they aren't always able to communicate with each other.
We are able to get by with English, most people speak basics in the cities for shopping and other things. However, in the slums and rural areas we are working through translators.
Another really interesting thing is the head waggle. The best I can describe it is as a bobble head doll, when you ask a yes or no question the head moves from side to side in sort of a figure eight motion...I'll demonstrate it for you when I get back! It can mean yes or no or anything in between. It's hilarious.
Thanks, Stacy for the questions! Yes, in the first group meeting we went to they had us sit in chairs while they sit on the floor. In most meetings people sit on the floor...but since we were guests at the meeting they had set up their chairs for us. It was awkward sitting there, but if we were to refuse it might be even more awkward.
I've learned that in India there is a saying, "athithi devo bhava" which means something like "treat the guest as God." Perhaps some of you who are more familiar with Indian culture can shed more light on this...but the bottom line is guests are treated very well. Everywhere we go we have been served tea and biscuits (another tradition likely inherited from the English colonization) and we have been treated very well. Even in the slums, we were served hot chai!
And, since I'm a firm believer that every blog entry should have pictures, I'll leave you with a few.
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