India page 4 of 4
I can't really explain all of my thoughts, impressions, feelings about India.
I don't even know how or where to start! It is hard for me to write about India when I still don't know what to think about my travel there. India was a life changing experience for me and everyone else. Without visiting the country of India I don't know if you will ever be able to imagine what it's like. I was there for 5 days and had the opportunity to travel to the Taj Mahal in Agra, New Delhi, I also went on the city orientation of Chennai, visited a rural farm, and village where I got to play with some elementary students.
I had so many questions before I had even gotten there. When I took my first step off the boat my nose was filled with strange smells and I was immediately soaking in my own sweat and a scorching heat and the thought of my voyage through India lingered in the back of my mind.�. There were so many different things to look at, so much to take in at once, so many new smells, new sounds, new faces, new places, so much poverty and trash. They told us that India would insult us in every way possible. They told us before we arrived that we should be ready for beggars and poverty but they also told us to be ready to see some of the most magnificent pieces of architecture and temples. As we drove around the town of Chennai City all I could do was try to avoid the horrific smells that I kept experiencing. Most of the people that we saw looked at us with blank faces; I'm sure most of them had burning questions that they wanted to ask us just as we had many things that we wanted to know about them. A lot of the older people asked for money or food and the children ran away in fear or ran at us curious about us foreigners.
The food in India was a whole new experience in itself. I swear all they eat is carbs, so for five days I was on a carb diet. Their food is very spicy; it was interesting to try all the different types. I unfortunately got sick and was throwing up but that didn't take away from my India experience at all. At one restaurant that we went to for dinner we got invited into the kitchen and got to see how they prepared our food. It was interesting to see how different it was from anything at home. We also had our beer with sprite, which is something the women do at this restaurant. We weren't supposed to drink the milk or dairy products, but I think that everyone did. One night we had pizza hut, "some American food" and I think that is what made me sick.
The Taj Mahal was incredible. We all felt like we were at Disneyland. It was so beautiful and astonishing that it felt fake. The one thing that most people do not know about the Taj is that it is surrounded by a huge fort of beautiful red stone. The Taj was a love memorial built by Shahjahan for his wife who died in childbirth. They are both buried inside the Taj. Form the outside it looks huge but on the inside there is one main room with the tombs and a bunch of smaller empty rooms surrounding the center one. I think that there are rooms upstairs but we couldn't go up there. All around the Taj there is a beautiful garden and a river.
The streets of India were filled with people. People everywhere, selling things, entertaining- one guy had a Cobra. Another guy had a Bear on a leash, working, sleeping, doing everything you could think of. Many people slept on the street, and most people that we saw lived either on the street or in tents made of palm leaves. Along with the people in the streets there were also cars, motor cycles, and rickshaws- which were little three wheel bikes with motors. The drivers in India are the craziest drivers ever. We were all so scared ��you would never know that there are passing lanes in the middle of the road, or that 2 lanes are really 5, and that all you have to do to pass someone in India is lay on your horn. I have never heard anyone use their horns so much. Most of the roads were dirt roads. Along side the roads were piles of trash, people dump their garbage everywhere. Also along the sides of the streets were shops selling everything you could think of. The beaches in India are much different than the beaches at home. In India they use the beach as their bathroom. We drove by the second longest beach in the world and along the whole beach we saw adults and children squatting.
While we were in New Delhi City there was a holiday which was called Holi. Before Holi I got to see a carnival take place. Holi is celebrated because it is the end of the harvest. During Holi they celebrate by throwing different colored powders on each other, so while we were there many people, locals and kids from our voyage, were covered in different colors�.bright pinks, greens, purples. Along with the color throwing they also have bon fires that they burn at night and do ceremonial dances around. Each family would make their best food and give it to the gods. India is very religious. In the mornings everyone would wake to pray to their gods for hours, and the women would make beautiful designs outside their doors before the sun rose to ward off the evil eye. Over the five days I was able to see amazing temples, churches, and museums. I think the strangest things to see in the middle of the road are the cattle; the cows are a sacred animal to the people of India. There were cows everywhere, eating trash, lying in the street, walking down the road, grazing off to the side of the rail road. One time while we were at the Taj waiting in line to get frisked, a cow stampeded through our line of girls.
We had to take two flights while in India, which was very scary. At the airport we all got more action than we have gotten the whole voyage. The women at the airport frisked us, felt us up and down about 5 times. So when you go to the airport at home be happy that they only use the metal detectors on you. Another experience that we had was riding a train. This was a new experience for all of us. We sat with the local people in the second class. There were about 10 of us to a bench, we had bars on our windows, the heat was about 110, we had to hold our bags on our laps for 3 hours. But I think the worst part was the beggars that would walk up and down the aisle asking for food or money. One mother even had her son ask us for food, well he couldn't really ask us for food�he would point to his mouth then to his belly.
This was only one of many stories about people begging, who are hungry, diseased, poor, and helpless. I can't even describe some of the things that I witnessed. There were also happy memories too�.while at the Taj people would come up to us and ask if they could take their pictures with us. I don't think they had ever seen a white person before! I bet we looked so weird to them.
Some times I sit and thank God that I was born into the life I lead. People in the US don't realize what they have going for them. We only complain about what we don't have or what we want. After seeing these people and interacting with them I now appreciate what all I have and I realize the things that I take for granted. I can now look at the petty things I do and foolish things I say. To these people we are all rich. They could live off what we spend in one day for months. These people live day by day and when they wake in the morning they have to think, "How am I going to survive today?" How many times can we say we have ever woken up and thought, "How am I going to get by today?" I now wake everyday and I think about what I am going to see today, whose life am I going to observe and be touched by. The people that I have met have changed my life forever. They might have just been a face in the crowd but their eyes tell a story that will last my life time.
I could go on forever. Even after writing this email I still have mixed feelings about India. So I will close now. I love you all and I hope all is well at home. Be safe and try to keep me informed on what is going on over there. We only get to hear bits and pieces. Love, Brie
