I Got a Flag Today

Every time I go to a country for any reason, I make sure to purchase or otherwise obtain that country’s national flag. So far, I’ve gotten every one, and sometimes I even get a good story to go with it. Like the Croatian flag mailed to my house in the U.S. by a hostel owner, or the Austrian flag that I used Spanish to purchase, or the Tibetan flag, which isn’t technically a separate country that I visited, but close enough to count. All flags were relatively simple to find. However, Indian’s flag proved difficult to obtain.

It’s been nearly six months since I arrived in India for the first time. In fact, by the time I fly out of India on Wednesday, 14 July, it will have been exactly one day short of a six month stay, because I have six month validity on my visa and purchased my plane ticket for the day before it expires. I remember on day two or three, when I was with Atul in the Jaipur market, I told him that I absolutely needed to find a flag before I left. He told me that it would be difficult to obtain, as Indians don’t usually display a large version of their national flag in their homes. It’s not exactly forbidden, as tiny versions of the flags are widely available, but the large ones (which are a must for my collection) are usually handmade and for government use only. That’s not to say that they’re completely unavailable, but it would definitely be tricky.

I even remember Atul said that it might not be possible, and that I should just go to a tailor and hire him to sew together green, white and saffron cloths. Not quite the same, don’t you agree?

Today, I finally got a flag from Mr. Rana, the foreman for KLB’s new building that’s still under construction. I guess he knew a guy who knew a guy who had some government contact, and I only was able to find this out last month. Even then, it took a month to get the flag. I was a little worried, but the delivery made up for it. So far, every flag that I’ve purchased cost me 20-30 USD, varying a few dollars either way depending on the currency. It was about 5000 forints in Hungary, 18 Euros in Austria, 15 pounds in the UK, 150 Kuna in Croatia… you get the idea. In addition, all of the flags have been roughly the same quality: nylon or some other synthetic material. Since these are the type of flags commonly available in each country, I had no problem with it.

My Indian flag surprisingly broke the mold. It was handmade cotton, very thick and durable, very heavy for its size. I could hang it outside for ten years without much change in quality. It was also 600 rupees, which translates to no more than 13 USD; half the price of my normal flags. Quite the deal, if I do say so.

I finally have my flag. And I leave India in five days. This is as much of a reflection as you get from this blog. I know I haven’t written in awhile, and I may have written something along the lines of me being less and less culturally surprised by India and therefore not having as much writing fodder for a cultural blog. Does that mean that I’m now, after six months, completely acclimated to the Indian culture?

Not. Even. Close.

I’ve written about a hundred posts on this blog, and while I will definitely relish the opportunity in later years to go back and read everything that I’ve written, now doesn’t quite seem a right time for it. Mostly because that’s a lot of writing that will take way too long. Besides, every day feels like a reflection to me. Every day I have to use the cultural and practical knowledge that I’ve learned here to survive in this dynamic environment. I can’t say how I’ve changed, but I have. I know that for sure.

Therefore, instead of me offering a reflection, I’d like to hear your side. You’ve read this blog. You’ve gotten to know me, if you haven’t already. I’ll be seeing some of you very soon when I get back from Europe next month. So you tell me, how have I changed? I’d like to hear it. I have my ideas, but I can’t be sure until I get back into a more familiar cultural environment for an accurate comparison.

My Indian adventure is wrapping up. I’m leaving soon. I got a flag today, and now I can leave happy. Thank you, India. It’s been a hell of a ride.

Namaste.