Moment:
June 20th at 1:37pm IST
Dad: We used to stay in Hostel F
Ammamma: What does F stand for?
Broski: F IS FOR FRIENDS WHO DO STUFF TOGETHER
I’m officially moved in and enrolled for classes at the University of Hyderabad! My dad, a UofHyd alum, took my family and I on a tour while they were still here in India, so the campus already felt somewhat familiar to me. He pointed out the hostel where he used to stay on campus, his favorite juice stand, the canteen where he would eat meals, the outdoor theatre where he and his friends would go watch movies and cricket matches, and “Mushroom Rock” (so called because it’s a giant boulder balanced on top of a really small rock) where they used to have picnics.
If I’m being completely honest, I was kind of bamboozled by the campus, because the way Dad described it, it was this cute, small campus, but I guess that was 25 years ago. The University of Hyderabad takes up 2300 acres, so it is about half the size of Texas A&M, but there are only 5000 students. Why is there so much space for so few students? Because this campus is more like a small town, with a school for the children of faculty, two shopping complexes, and even a shooting range. However, most of the campus is gorgeous woodland with lots of wildlife, both cute (like deer and peacocks) and terrifying (like 40 different species of snakes!) There are lots of amazing hiking trails and rock formations to explore, so I’m looking forward to getting into the great outdoors without even having to leave the university.
I’m staying at the Tagore International House, where I have become fast friends with people from America, Spain, the Netherlands, Iceland, and Italy, among others. They are all here doing very different things, including teaching English classes, learning about Ayurvedic medicine, taking tabla lessons, compiling data on various sanitation methods, or exploring ancient Islamic burial sites. All of these different cultures and academic endeavors turns this simple international hostel into a bustling living and learning community. It’s going to be amazing to learn about India during my semester here as well as be exposed to lots of different cultures from all over the world within these four walls.
We went to see the SIP (Study in India Program) office, which is a quaint little building with an open ceiling and green lawn in the center, which is great because when my mom asked me what I miss most about America so far, she was probably expecting a sappy answer like my family or my bedroom, but I literally said grass. My classes with other international students will be held here, and the rest of my university classes will be at the various other departmental buildings across campus.
During our SIP orientation, various professors came in to teach us about various topics in India to help us gain a better understanding of what India is actually like. We got a crash course in Indian history, the religious, linguistic, and demographic diversity, and learned about the unique culture of Hyderabad. Now that I have acquired all of this knowledge in the classroom, I can’t wait to explore what it looks like in the real world.
This is an absolutely beautiful campus, but my favorite building on campus so far has to be the School of Life Sciences building, and not just because I'm a biology major. I’ve been there three times already just to hang out in the cool of the evening and enjoy the artwork and beautiful palm trees that line the perimeter of the courtyard shaped like a “diya,” which are the lamps used at Diwali.
We met our AIFS Resident Director, Sumana, and Assistant Resident Director, Ishmeet, who are both amazing. I felt like I sort of already knew Sumana because I’ve been emailing back-and-forth with her for almost a year to figure out the logistics of my study abroad experience, and she has been so patient and helpful with my hundreds of requests. It’s a really small world, because I learned that she also attended this university, and her dad was one of my dad’s mathematics professors. Ishmeet is a super kind soul, and I’m excited to go on excursions with her and learn how to cook and dance from her (yeah, she knows how to do basically everything). This is an incredible group of people to spend the next four months (that number just keeps getting smaller!) with, and I can’t wait for what this semester holds.
