What is culture?

Culture defines an individual. Societies do not exist without culture. Places are interconnected, as stated throughout the lectures as well as in the textbook. Thus, culture provides us with a sense of unified identity. It’s imperative to take culture into consideration to understand the relationship between places and people. Although economics, ecology, and politics shape the norms of one’s life, I believe that culture plays the most important part in shaping one’s life. A person’s interactions with different cultures shaped their lives and help one understand interconnectedness. As soon as we take our first breath, our surroundings begin to impact us. Moving from India to Vancouver has brought about a huge cultural change. Settling down in a different country has been a learning process that has helped me grow as a person. According to Professor Stolhandske’s third lecture, culture is a two-way relationship in which culture shapes places and vice versa.  Religion, language, and identity are all linked to culture. Religion is a system of belief with a set of practices. It shapes many cultural traits of one’s daily routine. Language is another crucial part of culture. It is a way of communicating with one another. Language is connected to regional identity. Identity includes one’s sexuality and gender (Lecture 3, Professor Stolhandske).

Incredible India

India is known to be the land of rich culture. It has 29 states and seven union territories. Amongst those states and union territories is Punjab, the land of the five rivers. I was born and raised in a city named Banur, which is located in Punjab. I grew up there as well. Although entire India is a lovely place to experience nature, Punjab has a different vibe to it. I grew up in Punjab and have a very strong connection to the place. Ever since I was a young boy, I had mastered the art of sharing. Growing up we were taught to share everything with everyone around us. People of Punjab are the biggest hearted people I’ve ever encountered. Staying in Punjab has taught me how to live my life to the fullest.

(Pictures from my childhood, click on enlarge)

Boarding school was one of the best things that happened to me. From seventh grade to tenth grade, I went to study at boarding school. I met my best friends here. Staying at a boarding school has taught me how to make compromises and how to accommodate with what’s provided to me. Another important life skill that I congregated is leadership. Boarding school also gave me a lot of athletic opportunities. I gathered a lot of different skills from playing various sports. Overall, boarding school was a great experience for me as not only did I lived with my friends and have the time of my life, I also gained various important life skills that I carry with me till now.

(pictures from my time in boarding school, click to enlarge)

Sikhism

Religion is an integral part of culture. I follow Sikhism, a religion know to one of the most peaceful ones. It was founded by Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first guru of the Sikhs, in the 16th century in present-day Pakistan. The main belief of Sikhs is that God is one and everyone is equal. Sikhs go to pray at gurudwaras. At a gurudwara, everyone is treated equally regardless of who they are. Food, known as langar, is served to everyone who visits. This gets rid of any inequality that comes in the way.

One of the most significant places that I’ve visited in India is the Golden Temple, Shri Harmandir Sahib. The Golden Temple is a central religious place for people of the Sikh religion. Not only is it important because it’s an architectural wonder, but it taught me a significant value in life. It has four entrances, from all four directions, signifying that people belonging to any part of the world are welcome here regardless of religion, caste, race, gender, or social status. This promotes equality amongst people as no matter who you are, you have to sit on the floor and eat like everyone else. Whenever I go to the Golden Temple, I feel at peace with myself.

Every country isn’t always pretty. In India, there’s a lot of homelessness. Some people who are not financially stable live in poorly constructed places to a roof over their heads. The kids that come from these family are seen walking around in worn out clothes. Although the living conditions aren’t what seems ideal, you can always find people finding joy in the smallest things. The times I’ve passed through the slums, I’ve realized that no matter how rough things are, you can always find joy somewhere.

In Indian culture, there is a significant discrepancy between men and women. Women are known to be homemakers and men are considered to be the dominant gender. Men are generally more literate than women because parents don’t send their daughters to school in areas with poverty. They believe that girls will get married anyway and go way to their in-laws, so it doesn’t make sense to educate her. Since India is a vast country, every culture has its own beliefs regarding gender gaps. Villages and other places that are still backward are not aware of family planning or contraception to prevent having more children. Lack of education in such places adds to an increase in the illiteracy rate of women.

All in all, India is full of different cultures and is a dynamic country. Being born and brought up in India brings immense pride to me.

The City that Never Sleeps

New York City, the city that never sleeps, has one of the most exciting cities I have been to. I traveled there during January 2019. Till then I had only heard stories of the hectic life in New York. During my trip, I stayed in the outskirts of the city but often traveled to the city itself. I visited the Brooklyn bridge. It connects Manhattan and Brooklyn, two of the five boroughs of New York City. It is known to be the oldest suspension bridges in America. It is also the world’s first steel-wire suspension bridge (http://www.bridgesdb.com/bridge-list/brooklyn-bridge/).

Another place that I visited in New York was Times Square, one of the main tourist destinations. I went there during the night, but there were so many lights that it felt as if the sun had never set. I’ve never seen a city where there are so many people continuing their lives at night. Standing there in the middle of Times Square made me feel alive and feel as if time doesn’t wait for anyone. It doesn’t matter if it’s dusk or dawn, you have to do what it takes to end up where you want. Roaming around in such a crowded place made me experience the diversity of this place. You could see people from different places walking amongst each other.

New York City has a unique ambiance. My trip to NYC taught me many different things that I carry with me now. Firstly, the culture of New York taught me that it takes a lot to get where you want to be and it requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and some sacrifices as well. Seeing so many cultures come together made me feel as if the world might be able to attain world peace one day and learn how to co-exist with different cultures under one roof peacefully.

During my trip, we drove from New York City to Fredonia to meet up with an old friend from high school. During the drive, it was clear that as you move out of New York City the surrounding change. Instead of building now all you could see were trees, the developed area turned to more greenery. After spending a night in Fredonia, we drove to Niagara Falls the next morning. The weather there got chillier as we were next to a body of water.

I traveled to New York again in March for two days. During this trip, I went to see the Grand Central Terminal. It is known to be the busiest stations in the United States. Not only is it a train station but it also has bars and restaurants. It’s a part of the daily routine of New Yorkers. According to deLaski (2018) of the Culture Trip, Grand Central Terminal symbolizes wealth and power which explain why the architecture is very bold.

In the early 1900s, the firm Warren and Wetmore were hired to revamp the Grand Central Terminal, and that’s when they introduced a grand design with huge archways. To add on, a Parisian artist was hired to add carvings and sculptures (The Culture Trip). I was truly shocked, and in awe of all the artwork, I saw at the Grand Central Terminal as I had never seen anything like it. The designs were intricate and showed all the hard work that was put into it (deLaski, 2018).

Information retrieved from https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/new-york/articles/a-brief-history-of-nycs-grand-central-station/

One of the downsides of New York is that there is an ample amount of racism. Before I visited, I had only heard stories about discrimination. I noticed that people in Vancouver are comparatively more welcoming than people in New York. As I walked around New York City, especially in the subway, I saw that people of darker skin color were looked at differently. I was on the train, and a white homeless person came to ask for money and food. Most people on the train had something to offer to him; they gave him granola bars and spare change. Shortly after, another homeless man came, but this time he seemed of African American descent. This time around people seemed hesitant to give him anything. This was just an instance of discrimination, so imagine what the bigger picture would be.

My experiences in New York have been unique and impactful. NYC has so much to offer and is one of the main tourist hubs in the world.

The New Journey

Change can be scary, but you know what’s scarier? Allowing fear to stop you from growing, evolving, and progressing.

Mandy Hale
quote taken from https://boardofwisdom.com/togo/Quotes/ShowQuote?msgid=565933#.XJ5gmJNKi9Y

Coming to Canada was one of the biggest decisions I’ve ever had to take in my life. After I chose to come to Vancouver to pursue further studies, I was nervous about what this new journey would hold for me. Coming to Vancouver has exposed me to new languages, different food, diversified culture, and a variety of people. I have expanded my friend circle which has taught me how to take on different cultures as all of us have something different to bring to the table. Although I knew English when I was back home, I was never exposed to speaking English most of the time because it was easier to communicate in Punjabi with my friends as well as my family. Speaking English for a majority of the time now has helped me better my communication skills. This new journey has brought on new experiences. Leaving my motherland and traveling to a different continent was hard. Leaving my family behind and taking on my own responsibilities seemed to be a burden at first. I had always had home cooked meals and was so used to being looked after by my mother. My father would always provide me with allowance, therefore, I had never thought of working to look after myself. This change has made me independence and taught me how to be self-sufficient. Form waking up and making my own bed, doing my own laundry, cleaning up after myself, to making my own food. It always had made me value all the hard work my parents went through to raise me. When I’d ask them for money, I’d never think about all the hours they toiled hard to provide for me. However, since I’ve started working, I’ve understood how hard it is to earn. Relocation has taught me how to overcome barriers such as language and dealing with situations I’ve never come across before.

Recently, we went on a trip to Vancouver. I saw many different types of neighborhoods. Chinatown. This was one of the more prominent neighborhoods that we went to as it represents the culture of Chinese people.  Another neighborhood that we visited during the field trip was East Side Downtown. This neighborhood is. Known for drug use and poverty. It is one of Vancouver’s oldest neighborhood. We also visited Yaletown. Yaletown is known to be the industrial area. In the past, the restaurants were extremely high priced, but everything has been strategically changed. Seeing such different sides, one being the more developed and rich area and the other being the less developed and poor area. During this time, I saw a lot of homeless people on the streets although Canada is known to be a very developed country. Poverty, drug use, and homelessness are prevalent problems of the city. This field trip changed my overall perspective of Vancouver. Before this trip, I always thought that the entire city of Vancouver would be a developed place. But, when I went on the trip, I realized that every place has two sides to it.

Not only has coming to Vancouver given me the chance to take various great opportunities, but it has also exposed me to a whole different culture.

MY IMPACT ON THE WORLD

These places have impacted me in various ways. However, I feel that I’ve impacted the world in some way or another as well. To start, ever since I was young, my parents would take me to the gurudwara to volunteer. I would help serve food to all the people that would show up to have langar there. After that, I would help my parents clean and wash the dishes. We believe that anyone who does service, also known as seva, is giving back to the community via selflessness. Also, since I’ve come to Vancouver, I’ve visited a nursing home and made donations there. Proving back to the community by selflessly helping those in need is a kind act that promotes the betterment of the community. Also, in Vancouver, I’ve noticed the attempt to separate garbage to support sustainability. I’ve been making sure to throw away the correct type of garbage in it’s designated bin. For example, I throw all my food out in the green bin, all my plastic containers in the blue bin, all Styrofoam made items in the black bin and all clean paper in the yellow bin. I try to eat and shop locally which means less transportation, thus reducing CO2 emissions.

Also, in the future, I would like to donate to organizations that help prisoners reform. Such programs help prisoners get jobs and travel on the path of righteousness. Organizations of such promise another chance which is a great thing for those trying to make a change in their lives. I believe that if people continue to do their part, it makes a difference regardless of how small the step may seem.

Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.

Matin Luther King Jr.
quote taken from https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/199214-take-the-first-step-in-faith-you-don-t-have-to

Disclaimer: All pictures in this blog belong to me unless otherwise stated

References

Professor Stolhandske, Lecture 3

https://www.mapcustomizer.com/

http://www.bridgesdb.com/bridge-list/brooklyn-bridge/

https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/new-york/articles/a-brief-history-of-nycs-grand-central-station/

https://boardofwisdom.com/togo/Quotes/ShowQuote?msgid=565933#.XJ5gmJNKi9Y

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/199214-take-the-first-step-in-faith-you-don-t-have-to

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRThWwbR-rE&t=2s

https://www.mapsofindia.com/maps/punjab/