2026 INDIA
ALLEGHENY COLLEGE
ALUMNI TOUR
Allegheny College Faculty Co-Leaders:
Dr. Ishita Sinha Roy (Media & Cultural Studies) and
Dr. Brian Miller (History & International Studies)
Tentative Tour Dates: 13 May-01 June, 2026
Click here to go to the Allegheny College 2026 India Tour website
About Our Explorations
India is a mosaic of varied experiences that defy the imagination and electrify the senses. Every visitor discovers their idea of India in unique and memorable ways. What makes our journey special are the people we are traveling with and those we meet along the way.
As we enjoy cultural interactions and performances, culinary adventures, experiential stays, and more, you are encouraged to keep a travel diary to capture the precious impressions that can otherwise get lost in the kaleidoscope of your unfolding Indian adventure. Through the themes we have identified here -- eat, play, and live -- we encourage you to approach your unfolding story of India with openness and the desire to learn from the newness of it all.
Eating is a religious experience in India. The vivid colors of the sub-continent are reflected in the plates of food on your table. And it is food that has steered India's history. After all, a desire for the Indian Black Gold (pepper) spurred the explorers Christopher Columbus and Vasco da Gama to seek a sea-route to India. In 1498, Vasco da Gama succeeded, and this opened the passage to European conquests.
From Persian, Turkish, and Mongolian invaders, to settlers from the Middle-East, Greece and China, down to the Anglo-Indian descendants of European-Indian unions, foreign influences have been reworked by the Indian palate and brightened by spices to produce a global fusion with distinctly South Asian regional twists. Savor every mouthful, as we have attempted to provide you with a wide sampling of different flavors!
Fritjof Capra, an Austrian-born American author, physicist, systems theorist and deep ecologist, wrote:
"Hundreds of years ago, Indian artists created visual images of dancing Shivas in a beautiful series of bronzes. In our time, physicists have used the most advanced technology to portray the patterns of the cosmic dance. The metaphor of the cosmic dance thus unifies ancient mythology, religious art and modern physics."
The link between science, dance, and mythology is part of how thinking across the arts, sciences, and philosophy, informs Indian innovation. In Rajasthan, the famous Ghoomar/Jhoomar dance -- so-called because of the swirling skirts of the women -- is not only a celebration of femininity but also a demonstration of the dancers' strength and balance. Incorporating aspects from traditional feminine domestic chores (pots to fetch water, fire for cooking, etc.) into the fluid dance moves, the women show how they too are Rajasthani warriors!
Oh Khusrau, the river of love
Runs in strange directions.
One who jumps into it drowns,
And one who drowns, gets across.
~~ Amir Khusrau (13th century Indo-Persian Sufi singer, musician, poet and scholar)
The world may be upside down in many ways, but this trip encourages you to look for connections that can rejuvenate you and enrich your life. New friendships with the Gators you are traveling with, understanding how the very idea of atithi devo bhava ("the Guest is God") is a manifestation of this spirit. Recognizing that service through devotion, and empathy with those more vulnerable than us, opens our hearts, minds, and souls to a richness beyond imagining. As the 13th-century Persian poet Rumi reminds us:
“Moonlight floods the whole sky from horizon to horizon;
How much it can fill your room depends on its windows.”​
