Wednesday. Writing in the evening again. I’ve been very, very tired today, most likely because of the vaccines. I’d still rather have them and feel like crap than get sick and die of something like Typhoid Fever.
I will personally never understand the whole Anti-Vaxx movement, but I’m also a student of history and literature. I’ve always felt that whole “theory” is for sheltered people from privileged backgrounds who have never had to dig a mass grave to pile hundreds of dead bodies in. But hey, if you want to rant about how nobody “needs” a polio vaccine anymore, do your thing, I guess. Just don’t expect people like me to take anything you have to say seriously. After all, your bizarre, misinformed opinion that you acquired from questionable internet sources is not fact. Like, at all. Also, I’m so tired of this line of thinking that having Autism is somehow worse than being dead or disfigured due to a horrific disease. That is just so offensive and ableist towards everyone on the Spectrum! Ew! Talk about Neurotypical problems. “My child didn’t turn out to be the vision of perfection I had in my narcissistic mind! Who can I blame and how can I make myself the victim? I know, I’ll blame something random! Like vaccines! Wahhh!” And now we have a whole movement of this garbage. Yuck.
Anyway, got all my admin stuff done, so I decided to get back to my televised research. Finished The Silk Road documentary. I had three episodes left, all of which covered China, so it was fun to focus in on that topic. Again, somewhere I know relatively little about as the direct result of my richwhitemale-washed education. Sigh. So many gaps in my knowledge to fill. I just don’t even know if it’s possible, but I will do my best to try. Either way, I’m excited to spend my life in the pursuit of more education on the history of the world.
After that, Amazon recommended me a 3-part series on India hosted by James May of Top Gear fame. If you don’t know who that is, he is the type of white male British Baby Boomer who makes one too many nostalgic comments about the “good old days” of the British Empire. It was not for me. His tone was just… icky.
[puts on posh British accent] “Yes, I’m just a bit knackered about everything all the time. I simply cannot grasp how anything in your country functions. Does nothing work properly outside of London? You’ve done nothing to change my perception that this place is pure chaos all the time. I simply cannot understand why you do things the way you do.”
Like I said… icky.
His hosting style was in direct contract to that of Alfred de Montesquiou, the French host of The Silk Road doc. AdM’s style was very much focused on asking questions and hearing the perspectives of the people he encountered. His reverence and respect for the journey, the lands, the people, and appreciation for the fact that he was walking the same path as millions of people did throughout history was quite palpable. JM, on the other hand, was mostly narrating and making weird editorial comments about whatever he was doing that frequently came off as dismissive, judgmental, and inappropriate. I don’t think he hid his racism very well, but that’s just my perception.
One fabulous example of this is the “joke” he made that the sorceress Holika (whose death is commemorated with bonfires at the Holi festival) was “asking for it, Your Honor” when she died. Barf emoji! And of course, the first place he had to go was the slums, because poverty porn! Why focus on the good when you can go right to showcasing the bad in order to feel superior?
I do not recommend this doc simply because the “humor” often came off as that very specific brand of Imperialist British white supremacy in disguise. As an American who can directly trace her ancestry back to the Revolutionary War, I can only handle so much of that shit before I say, “This is why we kicked you guys out with our revolution.” Definitely empathized with the Indians on that one. Ugh. That British Empire, huh? Ugh, they were just so insufferable, am I right?
I turned off the series about halfway through the second episode because I just could not listen to James May talk anymore. That’s when I turned to YouTube. I wanted some information about Goa specifically. YouTube is the place to go! There are so many different perspectives available thanks to Influencer culture. I was able to get a much better grip on what to expect when I’m there as a result.
My biggest concern was fashion, obviously. What am I supposed to wear? Well, most people I observed in the background of the various videos I watched are dressed Western style. I saw women walking around in backless dresses, mini skirts, tank tops, shorts, bikinis, and yoga pants without issue. I also learned more about the touristy, hippie, yoga vibes and what kinds of activities are available to do at what cost.
The diverse perspectives I saw on YouTube gave me a much better understanding of what to expect. I watched one by a young Indian woman who solo travels around her own country. She had a lot of opinions about prices, in particular what she felt was reasonable and what she felt was a scam. Big help! Then I watched a video from a California Gym Barbie-type who went there for her 300-hour YTT. She had lots of footage of her shopping for beautiful clothes and eating at various locations. I saw another one by a “Passport Bro” type who had some helpful information about cards vs cash vs payment apps. Another was a hippie chick who showed footage of a beachside hippie party and showed off her favourite foodie spots. Finally, a British tourist who just kinda went with the flow and ended up getting some great interviews with local business owners.
I was personally excited to see all the different food options. Lots of the famed street food vendors, of course, plus cafes where you can get coffee and French pastries, an Italian restaurant with authentic pizza, and even a bar with an American Prohibition-style Speakeasy that specializes in Negronis. I am obsessed with the cultural mash-up in Goa already. I plan to eat so much food, lol. I feel significantly more confident about that aspect now that I’m armed with all my medications and vaccinations, lol. Bring it on!
Took a break from the Influencer content to return to Amazon to look for a better documentary about India. So far, I’ve found a series called Aerial Asia, which has an excellent episode on India. The drone footage is just incredible. The narrative style is also much better as it’s just straight facts. It covered the history in brief, as well as many modern-day projects addressing problems like overpopulation, environmental pollution, high amounts of traffic, and housing development. This is more of what I want to see. Yes, we know India has problems (everywhere does), but what are the solutions? What positive developments are happening? How is the country working towards moving forward and finding its own identity after so many different occupations? I want more answers to these questions, not just the same old “Look at how gross and terrible these places are! Don’t you just feel so bad for all these dirty poor people? Anyway, thank god I’m an old rich white guy from Britain. I miss the good old days of the Empire, don’t you?” shtick. I’ve had quite enough of that, thank you very much.
I am so excited for my trip. I really feel like it’s going to be a good one. I am so ready for it. I just need a change. I’m ready to make that change.
Back to my research. Can’t wait to get started on the Bollywood portion of my quest. I’ve only had a bit of exposure to it, so I am quite ready for that! I don’t even know where to start, to be honest. All I know is that I have a long fight ahead of me and I’m going to use it to watch as many Bollywood films as I can fit in. The more musical numbers, the better.
Stay tuned for more…