Post-India

It has been a week since we left India. Janet and I stayed in Canterbury for two days decompressing, since our flight on British Airways took us through England, and now we are in Spain for 5 weeks. My time in India has made me aware of and appreciative of many simple things, like the ability to communicate fluently with others, the orderly flow of traffic and calmly crossing the street safely, cool spring weather, (not sweating continually) and green landscape, bus schedules and punctual transportation that runs smoothly (and having your own seat/space), overall cleanliness and much less trash and pollution, the abundance and often times excess of food and products (the supermarket is still a little overwhelming for me), drinking water from the tap without having to worry if I am really tasting chlorine or just imagining the water supply has been treated somehow for the public safety, and the general ability to blend in as a normal person (not being a celebrity-like foreigner everywhere I go, with so much special attention).

With some rest and relaxation, and the ability to engage in physical exercise again, I have begun to recuperate from the physical toll my trip exacted on my body (although I don't know if my daily breakfasts of chocolate croissants and assorted pastries is the best diet for this recovery). When I left Los Angeles I weighed between 175-180 lbs. When I weighed myself for the first time here in Spain my weight had dropped to 157. I think I also endured a parallel emotional ordeal, although without the ability to measure it dramatically. I removed the auspicious red cord one of the temple priests tied around my wrist and that Hindus typically wear for protection from evil and I have also finished my week of taking post-malaria zone medications without exhibiting any symptoms, so hopefully this means I am free of the parasite! Janet also seems to be doing fine, having lost 5 pounds during her India ordeal. She has recovered completely from her extreme digestive issues and is doesn't have malaria or swine flu or TB or any other nasty tropical disease (just a slight cold).

I enjoyed my 10 weeks in India and feel like I really got to know some of the experiences the sub-continent has to offer. I always felt very safe and welcome; the Indian people treated me very well - like a special guest. I now realize that my spartan way of living and traveling might have been a little too intense for Janet and my dad on their short three week visit (this is reinforced every time I hear my dad recount his India stories to his friends here in Spain emphasizing all of the hardships he endured) and that I should have tried to incorporate some of the conveniences available, but seven weeks of trying to adopt a simple Indian lifestyle made me oblivious to these amenities. Luckily we all survived despite a couple of nasty bouts with digestive track illness, and I think even my dad appreciates the closeness to the Indian people and special insights made available from our attempts to experience the country the normal Indian citizens know.

As for post-India plans, Janet and I will be serving in Peace Corps Mozambique starting in the end of September, supporting the education sector. I think the summer heat of India will have been good training for the tropical weather, although most of the conditions of infrastructure will likely be less developed in this poor African nation. We started our own Peace Corps blog (janetandluc.blogspot.com), although it won't get interesting until we actually depart for Africa. Until then we will be in Spain, and then starting in July back in California for the summer.

It has been fun keeping a blog of my India experiences; thank you for reading and sharing in my experiences!

Last Day in India

We are back in Delhi, which means we are back to the heat (and it is really hot!), the pollution, excessive honking, general crowdedness, mosquitoes (especially at the evening sound & light show at the Red Fort in Old Delhi, near the swampy sewage infested Yamuna river; hopefully none with the malaria parasite!), raw sewage everywhere, overly persistent hawkers/autorickshaws, and everything else that comes along with a metropolis in the developing world. Still, despite it all, we feel a little reluctant to leave tomorrow (but only a little reluctant, we will definitely leave, Janet has been fantasizing about chorizo and green salad for the past week!). We spent the day trying to finish up last minute business, like purchasing some gifts (although most gifts seem to be female oriented, sorry males), taking Janet's camera to the camera hospital (supposedly its fixed now after replacing the power supply board), sending postcards of the Taj Mahal (luckily they sell these in every city in India!), visiting the largest mosque in India (where Janet had to wear a bright orange muumuu since she was "inappropriately" dressed), and making various trips to the national museum (dad, in an absent-minded moment, left his fancy progressive lens glasses at the audio guide desk, but we recovered them). Some of us wanted to have Indian food for our last meal, some of us (aka Dad) specifically wanted to avoid said cuisine. We compromised and had Indian for lunch and pizza for dinner. We just sent dad off to the airport from the pre-paid taxi stand, and tomorrow it will be Janet's and my turn for a 4:30AM trip across town for Indira Gandhi International Airport. Next stop London Heathrow (don't worry, we will try not to breathe in the airport to minimize the potential exposure to swine flu). Janet and I will try our best to find Indian food in Canterbury (but fish and chips sounds really good right now!).

Himalayas part II

We were reluctant to leave Shimla, such a clean and enjoyable city with cool cool temperatures, but after a delicious breakfast in our lodge terrace overlooking the valley we were off for Dharamsala. We had reservred seats on a semi-deluxe bus to make the 10 hour trip a little more comfortable, only to find out that our bus had been canceled; the transport corporation was willing to transfer our seats to the ordinary bus and all the adventure that implies. The trip took us through beautiful mountain scapes and green river valleys with beautifully terraced slopes on a one lane road (one lane total, not one in each direction) and stopped in every single village on the route (much to the frustration of Janet). We almost left her behind at one of the stops since she decided she needed to visit the ladies room only after eating an icecream and debating whether she had enough time or not for several minutes (luckily the busdriver was understanding and agreed not to leave me wifeless). Like always, the bus was crowded; my dad held a baby on his lap for a portion of the ride. Luckily we had seats the entire way, and the high altitude temperatures were still relatively cool, even in the valleys! I had to eat all of the various products we have bought that nobody likes, like the mint flavored patato chips and various other masala concotions. Finally we arrived in the small mountain village of McLeod Ganj (the part of Dharamsala where the Dhalai Lama/Tibet in exile community lives) only to find every other foreign tourist already there, and every hotle booked. Luckily, after a nasty encounter with a very rude tout, a dreadlock freespirit rave promoter guided us to some nearby, but hidden, Tibetan guesthouses - just perfect for us weary travelers. Dharamsala's temperate clime is equally as pleasant as Shimla's (we even had some rain this morning!) and the views of the Himalayas are even more amazing. The Tsuglagkhang temple complex, home to Avalokitesvara, the many armed living incarnation of compassion, is full of vivid murals depicting the Tibetan Buddhist cosmovision. There was also a mandala doing the same thing in sand. People bring offerings to the gods, both money and cookies (it seemed like Avalokitesvara's favorite is Oreos). There is no shortage of Free Tibet merchandise in this town, and we have eaten plenty of delicious Tibetan food (Janet has a new favorite, fried momo's - dumplings) and the streets are packed with monks in red robes (and some westerners temporarily adopting the garb) most using tennis shoes and cell phones. We attempted to use internet phone to call our moms for Mothers' Day, some got actual conversations, others got messages. Tonight we dined at a rooftop Tibetan eatery with beautiful views of the sun setting on the Himalayas! Tomorrow we have one more day in the mountains and then we're off to Delhi (and the sweltering summer heat) for our last couple of days of India.

cool at last

We are in the hill station (mountain resort town) of Shimla. It was built by the British, so it has a very European feel, and served as their summer capital while they ruled the sub-continent. We totally understand why the British would want to flee the summer heat after several weeks of scorching 100+F weather down on the low plains. At over 2000 m above sea level, the tempertures are extremely pleasant here. The entire city is full of Indian honeymooners and families enjoying a break from the sweltering heat plus beautiful views in every direction, including glimpses of the not so distant Himalayas. Janet found us some sweet rooms in the old YMCA (built in 1920). Our room has windows with amazing views looking out over the valley. The first thing we noticed was no ceiling fan and several blankets on the bed (we still have not even used sheets, in the always hot lowlands). We hiked to the hilltop temple dedicated to Hanuman (the Hindu monkey god), all the while keeping vigilant with our monkey sticks for any actual monkeys, which are known to aggressively steal food or sunglasses from visitors. We enjoyed not sweating and the delicious taste of non-polluted air and the presence of vegitation. The entire city is built on a steep incline, so its a hike just walking around, but its a very pleasant way to pass the time since motor vehicles are banned from most of the major streets. We also sampled some local delicacies, including momos (Tibetan dumplings) and Janet's favorite coconut flavored peanut brittle (my dad is still craving pizza, so we might have to visit the local domino's). Getting here, like most travel in India, turned out to be quite an ordeal. We took a 1:30pm bus from Jaipur to Delhi, thinking we would have plenty of time to connect with the 9:25pm Shimla bus, but since it took over three hours just to cross the capital city in some truly horrendous traffic, we just missed our overnight bus. Luckily, at the same moment, a super luxury AC bus covering the same route (which we had tried to book on-line but was totally full) was just pulling out. I accosted the driver on the exit ramp and he told us that they coincidentally had three cancelations, so they took us aboard. I think my dad and Janet really enjoyed the taste of luxury after weeks of ordinary class buses.

Jaipur

having paid our respects to the Taj Mahal and thus dulfilling the one mandatory part of our trip, we were off to jaipur on another long and hot and crowded busride, which Janet managed well thanks to some special meds my dad brought from Spain. we have decided that Jaipur, the so-called Pink City is actually more of an ochre or terra-cotta color. My father has especially enjoyed the covered arcades and the orderly street grids in the old city (so uncommon in this country). A visit to the City Palace taught us about all the glorious Maharajas that have ruled this region, courtesy of an audio-guide included in the 300 rupee admission fee. Particular emphasis was given to the maharajas prowess in polo. For some reason my dad was craving non-Indian food, and since our team was feeling some general home-sickness, we induldged in a visit to McDonald's, were Janet ordered a McMaharaja Mac - the Indian equivilent of the Big Mac, sans the beef obviously (they used spiced chicken patties instead). the fries were exactly the same. While within the shelter of the AC eatery a sudden monsoon like downpour drenched the city, leaving everything muggy and stinky. Tomorrow we are giving up on the sweltering lowlands and fleeing towards the promise of cooler weather in the northern Himalayan foothills. we'll say hi to the Dalai lama if we see him.

poor Janet

Our Taj Mahal plans were delayed due to Janet's major bout of digestive tract issues; luckily she was able to recover in our little hotel room (despite periodic power outages depriving her of the much necessary ceiling fan), gaining enough strength to make it the next day. We suspect it was something in the mango lassi (milkshake) she drank the night before, but here in India there are too many possible disease vectors we could potentially blame to know for sure. We may or may not have pictures of our visit to the Taj since the camera fell last time we were downloading data from it and it hasn't functioned regularly since. Regardless, our sunrise rendezvoux with India's great monument is indelibly recorded in our souls. Although the mouseleum is fairly straight forward, we spent hours just sitting and staring at it, enjoying the cool morning (the slow pace fitted Janet's still weakened state). The 750 rupee ($15, the most expensive site in the country) entrance fee now includes bootie-like shoe covers so there is no need to take your footware off or expose it to would-be slum dog millionaires. There is also an elaborate water purifier that dispenses the most delicious water I have tasted in this country! Even in the off season, the large grounds quickly filled with tourists from all around the world (including several large groups from japan) and many Indian families enjoying summer holiday. Everyone seems to want to take their picture in the same spot to get the best view of the icon in the background. ps- Janet is doing much better now

Taj Mahal

After another long day of travel and all the inconveniences that entails in a place like India, we have had our first glimpses of India's iconic monument. Our hotel overlooks the Taj so we decided to have dinner at the roof-top restaurant to enjoy the views, but all we got was a beautiful silhouette since the marble masterpiece is not illuminated at all like some of us were expecting. The bustling city of Agra (pop 1 million +) is the opposite of our previous days visit, in the peaceful town of Orchha (pop 8,000). We all enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere there and the relatively non-polluted air and water (although the river was still too dirty for swimming, but at least it did not reek of sewage like the river waterhere in Agra). Orchha was full of giant temples and palaces, which took all day to explore (withlots of climbing). In the everning we attended a special Rama celebration in the main temple. We did not know what to expect, but at exactly 8pm, after half an hour of mass chanting, the large silver doors opened revealing the Rama image and a rush seized the large crowd, alnost suffocating Janet against the gate (she is fine, a large police officer helped her escape). Janet has convinced us to see the Taj at first light (6AM) to beat the crowds and heat. Luckily we are within walking distance of the entry gate!