As someone who is easily disturbed by germs and uncleanliness, the few days of preparation for India was mildly worrying. Leading up to this port, there were many stories of everything that could possibly go wrong (TD, the millions of diseases from mosquitoes, theft, drugs, scams, etc.), so during preport, I sat in my seat wondering why the heck I was on this voyage. Why would someone ever like me think I could handle all of these countries with their terrifying diseases and GERMS? I could not have been more incorrectly uncertain with myself (despite coughing up black goop after just one day in the air pollution). As I look back in my journal to remember all I did in this port, during my first day in India all I wrote was “I LOVE INDIA” in giant letters across the page – an accurate description of this country.
Our first day, we decided to go to a mall to pick up all the necessities (chocolate), as we were dwindling after being at sea for 12 days straight (quite the experience). Walking into the mall with our incredibly touristy Elephant Pants, I realized just how much we were going to stick out in this country… and the next 4 countries. People would walk up, stand in front of us (maybe 2 or 3 feet away), stare for a moment, and then walk away – just because we were different! It was incredible! I personally did not mind the staring and photos that people took of us, because I realize it is just sheer curiosity, but it definitely set some people on edge towards the end of the port.
About 40 different Indians also have this photo of us (hence the empty background)
After our grocery and toiletry shopping, we decided to get the full Indian experience and take tuk-tuks. As all tuk-tuks do with tourists, despite wanting to just for dinner, they carted us around to random shops and markets where they get a commission. Traffic in India is insane (with 1.7 billion people it’s expected) and traffic laws simply do not exist. So being in a teeny-tiny open rickshaw, swerving through traffic, was an experience of a lifetime. At one point, our driver decided he no longer wanted to go down the one-way road we were on, stopped, turned around, and drove backwards through the oncoming traffic (not going to lie, those few moments were actually terrifying). When he asked if I wanted to drive, I thought he meant sit in the front seat and hold onto the handles as he accelerated and steered, so you can imagine my shock when he let go and sat back to watch me drive. Not only was I driving on the left side of the road, but there were stopped cars and buses everywhere, leaving me to be the one swerving through traffic. I drove for a little less than 10 minutes and was riding the adrenaline high all night.
The next morning marked our exhausting journey to Delhi. Upon arriving to the airport, we unknowingly wandered right past security, a deceivingly easy task despite all the big scary men with guns – it was an interesting process, nothing like JFK. That night we wandered to an adorable market where we found a restaurant that employs deaf and hard of hearing servers. It was an incredible experience that was followed by food so spicy, we were crying the whole meal. If I was uncertain about how much I loved India, it was solidified moments after dinner when I stumbled upon an alley of bookshops stacked to the ceiling with books of every kind. IT.WAS.AMAZING.
Our second day in Delhi we did some more “planned” wandering where we came upon the India Gate, which is a cool landmark signifying fallen soldiers of wars, the National Museum (Kat was in art history heaven), and a local vegan restaurant that apparently does not get tourists (our awkward food review video is on their Facebook page – Vega Restaurant). After a tuk-tuk ride that dropped us in the middle of nowhere, we had the INVIGORATING adventure of crossing FOUR STREETS (aka finding a local old woman, holding her hand, and letting her walk us across the street with traffic that does not stop for pedestrians).
Our next stop was Akshardham Temple, in which we planned to take a taxi to, but really struggled with hailing one (I am a self-proclaimed pro at this). We wandered into a pizza shop where we asked how we could go about getting a car for the 30-minute drive to the temple. One of the workers, Ganga, taking the issue into his own hands, helped us for 20-minutes as he got a clearly confused Uber driver to our obscure location. When we tried to tip him, he enthusiastically refusedmultiple times until he finally said, “If I take the money, it is not helping” then told us to continue the good deed. We were incredibly surprised, as we had dealt with many, many people haggling us minutes before. To disprove other comments I had heard prior to entering the country, Indian people are incredibly kind-hearted and selfless – I have yet to meet “rude Indians.”
When we finally arrived at the temple, our breaths were taken away by the sheer size and beauty of it … and then the major security measures it took to get in. To enter the temple, we had to forfeit all of our belongings – shoes, backpacks, cameras, phones, pencils – except for our passports. After some serious weighing of the odds, we decided to go for it. Completely stripped of everything we needed for the next few days, we walked into what has become a major landmark for all spiritual people across India. The sheer size, detail, and beauty of the Hindu mandir took our breaths away. In the temple, we saw Buddah relics and I met two young Indian sisters who were fascinated with our purpose of visiting the temple. After telling them I am from New York, they proudly proclaimed that they would come visit me in a few years, just as I had visited their home (we have plans for a pretty cool selfie when they visit).
The next day was the day we had been waiting for – our trip to the Taj Mahal! With an early start to our day, we arrived at the Taj at a prime hour where there were not many beggars (it breaks my heart every time I think about how we had to ignore them), short lines, and the sun was low in the sky for minimal reflection off the marble. On an average day, 25,000 people visit this wonder of the world that was built as a monument to the wife of emperor Shanh Jahan (she asked him for it before she died). Because it was only built as a mausoleum and there is controversy about the upkeep of it, the building cannot withstand the amount of people who come and will be closed to tourism in about 15 years (walking inside of it, not looking at it). I consider myself incredibly lucky that I got to have my breath taken away as I walked right up to the detailed white marble and entered the greatest architecture achievement in the whole range of Indo-Islamic architecture (not going to lie – I did nothing but stare at it for a solid 30 minutes). No words or pictures (despite the hundreds I have) will ever do it justice. If ever in India, this is a must-see.
After a couple hours of hunger, I had the best meal of my life filled with LOTS of masalas.
We then wandered over to a marble working shop where they work with the same technique used in the marble on the Taj Mahal. An art form that takes a lifetime to learn, this painstakingly precise work is passed down through the males lineage of a family (our guide was not happy when we asked why women could not take part in the art form). I drank my weight in Masala tea (similar to our chai tea) as I stared at massive pieces of work that took years to create.
My final day in India was back in Cochin with my Social Psychology field class. We learned in great detail the history of the Ghandi Trust and its role in the caste system. A very complex system rooted in history (email me if you want to hear more about it), it still takes a hold socially, despite not being politically enforced and supported. We visited an “untouchable” (a part of the caste system below even the lowest level) colony where we learned even more about the Trust and its role in the people’s lives today. Eventually a group of young women came to perform a traditional dance in ornate outfits – an absolutely incredible dance form. We then started a giant dance party, in the middle of an untouchable colony, with live drummers, as we exchanged “typical” dance moves from our countries. We were drenched in sweat and our ears were ringing, but we all departed with hugs and tears in our eyes from the joy the experience brought us.
India has been a truly eye opening experience that left me without an ounce of energy. I can never describe the plethora of thoughts racing through my head as I took in the sights, smells, and people this country showed me. I will be talking about this country for the rest of my life and will most definitely be back.
(This is my longest entry yet, so if you made it to here say “Garlic Na’an” to me when I get back to the States and I’ll give you a chocolate bar. )
-KA
PS I apologize for the lack of pictures, Cambodian wifi does not like me very much
KellyAnn on Deck 