People I've Met

 

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They may be people who've actively engaged me, or people who have helped me, or simply people who are photogenic

 

 

 

It's 5:00 in the morning, in the train station in Agra

As I strolled the platform, the eyes of this whole family tracked me

 

 

 

They had some trappings of a poor family, but omigod, such bright-eyed kids

Just look...

 

 

 

Even Papa was exceptionally engaging and receptive to my presence

 

 

 

My bus driver from Pushkar to Agra

 

 

 

Banu and Asha, two sisters who sell textiles from a small street cart in Mamallapuram

I greeted them every day for two weeks

 

 

 

Lakshmi, a friend in Mamallapuram

 

 

 

Riding the public ferry in the backwaters of Kerala, I met Jithin

What a handsome young man!

 

 

 

He wants to be a doctor

I was having dinner in Viva Panjim, a wonderful restaurant in Panjim, Goa, watching this married couple converse animatedly between themselves
 

 

I was so enchanted with their interchange (in a language I didn't understand) that I approached them, and spent the rest of a delightful dinner with Elisio and Helga

All with wonderful Portuguese wine

Don't let Elisio's bored look fool you; he's an ardent conversationalist
 

 

 

I chatted merrily with Suhan and his mother, on the train from Mangalore to Goa

 

When riding Indian trains, I step off the train at every station I can--even if the stop is for only five minutes

And usually I have an immediate audience of fascinated viewers

 

See that little guy staring a hole through me?  I couldn't get a reaction from him no matter what I did--smile, wave, a bit of clowning
But when I was back in my seat and the train started moving, I waved goodbye to him, and he waved back

Then as he was out of sight of my window I went back and stood in the door, leaning out and both of us kept waving like crazy, until he was almost out of sight, and he was finally jumping up and down and still waving! 

Great fun!

 

 

Usha operates a small convenience store in Mamallapuram

Her husband is hospitalized with diabetes

      
 

Manju, Katie, and Tom

Manju and her husband founded Guria, an organization in Varanasi that works to stop sex trafficking and educates children of prostitutes

Katie is an intern, Tom is a volunteer from Ireland

They do good work!

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