India

To be perfectly honest, I had no desire to go to India. I was put under the impression (mostly on the ship) that India was incredibly dangerous, having the most terrorism in the world 2nd to Iraq. I am also not a huge fan of Indian food, I do not thrive in massive crowds of people, and the trek to the Taj Mahal (what I actually was excited for) was a 2-hour flight followed by a 4-hour drive from our port in Chennai. In addition, for some reason Marisa and I had decided long ago that India was a place we would travel independently in while it seemed that every other student had decided to take a SAS trip here and the ship crew highly advised us against traveling alone while we could not join any of the full SAS trips. However, my experience in India was amazing and I truly think the people and how they welcomed us washed away all the reservations I had.

They say that India overwhelms the 5 senses. Stepping off our ship into the coal-mining shipyard, I was definitely overwhelmed. Right away I felt the intense humidity and 95-degree weather (which you are not advised to wear anything above the knee or elbow in), I saw incredible filth (in which the natives are running around barefoot), I heard constant blaring horns in the traffic that follows no rules or regulations, I smelled sulfur radiating from the rivers (this is the rotten-egg smell), and, well, I first tasted Pizza Hut which did make me very happy…

Our first day in Chennai, we spent mostly shopping with a few friends. We took a rickshaw (a motorized 3-wheeled cart which seats 2 comfortably) to a mall and later an outdoor marketplace. We quickly learned that there are no traffic laws enforced. There are white dotted lines on the roads, but while it seems 3 lanes exist, you will find 4-8 vehicles across. Weaving is the way of the road, and horns allow those in front of you to be aware that you intend to pass them at raging speeds with no concept of safety whatsoever. And every now and then you will see a cow wondering the streets and as far as I gathered, this is the only reason drivers will stop. At the mall we visited, Spencer’s, we found that many of the stores had signs saying they were giving discounts to the MV Explorer, and we definitely took advantage of that situation. The workers were eager to explain each of the fabrics, how they were made, and show us every single design available. In one store, 4 of us ended up sprawled out on the floor with piles and piles of scarves, wall hangings, bedding, and clothing surrounding us while the men of the store kept pulling out samples from the wall so we could choose our favorites. It was so fun!

Our second day, a few of us visited the basilica of St. Thomas in the morning – it strangely resembled Villa’s chapel, though I think Villa’s is even more gorgeous. In the afternoon, Marisa and I had signed up for a service visit to the Bala Mandir Orphanage with SAS. We also visited the primary schools that the children of the nearby slums attended, and each class had a special performance for us. We got to play with the children and they were enthralled with our digital cameras, posing, dancing, and taking turns using them. The kids were so happy and full of life; I wanted to take so many home! That is one thing I have noticed: the little ones keep getting progressively cuter in each country we visit!

For the remaining 3 days, Marisa, 2 other girls and I had planned a last-minute trip to Delhi to then travel to Agra to see the Taj! We had aimed to also travel to Jaipur but we simply ran out of time. I never thought I would be wishing for more time in India, but it happened. Saturday morning we flew to Delhi on a 6:15 am flight. I was exhausted on the plane but ended up sitting next to a couple from Canada and chatted the whole way. The man was of Indian descent and had traveled to India several times. Both were enthusiastic about giving me advice for our stay in Delhi. Some of their suggestions were immensely helpful. (The couple was in India for a few reasons: he was checking on property he had purchased a few years back, she was attending some conference about self enhancement and they met up to stay at this spa they enjoy located at the bottom of the Himalayas – mom she gave me the website, she said my mom would really like it..) So anyways, with the guidance of our concierge we set up an 8-hour tour of Delhi with a private driver. We saw monuments that included Safdarjung’s Tomb, Lotus Temple, Qutab Minar, and Connaught Place. After a few tours we kindly asked our guide to lead us to some more shopping. It took a few tries but we eventually found exactly what we were looking for! Our guide escorted us through each and every store we went into, and patiently waited for the 4 giddy girls to make our purchases. At first we were having a lot of trouble with his broken English but eventually got him to relax and learned quite a bit about his Indian culture. Over the course of the day, we all grew fond of each other and we received an invitation to come back to India in order to attend his son’s wedding. (His son is 4 years old, so this would be in 14 years.) We exchanged e-mails, so I’ll be waiting for that invite. We concluded our day with dinner at a place the Canadian couple had recommended and it was divine! It was Indian food, but less intense and more familiar.

Sunday we hired another driver and a guide to take us to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. We also visited the fort of Agra and did some more shopping…. Our guide spoke English very well and we had a lot of fun with him. He also gave us some interesting history of the places we saw. More sheer honesty: I just assumed the Taj was some sort of place of worship built awhile back. I was WAY off. The Taj was built in the 17th century by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. When his 3rd and favorite wife died during the birth of their 14th child, she had 2 requests for the king: to not take another wife in order to look after their children, and to build a mausoleum that would show the world how much he loved her. That is passionate love! The Taj took 20,000 craftsmen 22 years to construct. It is made of white marble and parts are inlaid with precious stones. It is also perfectly symmetrical down to the gardens and buildings on each side, a wonder in itself considering they had no form of measurements at this time. Her tomb is located in the exact center of the main building. Apparently Shah Jahan’s 3rd son had a mean desire to be king, captured his father and killed his older brothers and one sister. Out of spite, this son buried his father to the left of his mother in the Taj – this being the ONLY thing not symmetrical in the entire place. (I can remember all of this but I have no idea what was taught in global studies last class…) While wondering around the Taj, the 4 of us were stopped more than 10 times by locals to have their picture taken with us. We’re standing in front of one of the 7 manmade wonders of the world and these people want pictures of us! Apparently they don’t see “the white people” very often. We started talking to one family with several young girls who also invited us to stay at their house if we ever return. We exchanged e-mails and my phone number is floating around India in numerous hands.

We had another early flight back to Chennai Monday morning and considering we slept for maybe 20 hours the whole 5 days in India, I went straight to bed and slept for 20 hours straight. I doubt I’ll ever make it back to India, so I hope to forever remember my visit. While India has a massive population, immense poverty, extreme filth and countless diseases, it is also extremely colorful and bursting with energy. And, I suppose, if I ever do return, I’ll have a place to stay!