India

Oh, India. I can't wait to go back to you. I made it it this time to a few of your towns and cities. Somehow I knew I always wanted to go. I was drawn to the ancient philosophy in college when I studied Eastern thought and read the Upanishads taught by an Indian born German educated professor. I learned from studying German how the verb for to breathe was atmen - straight from Sanskrit.

When I finally made it to the subcontinent, I arrived first in Madras, now called Chennai. I went for a business study program to focus on technology and more, but of course I was most interested in getting out and exploring - seeing, soaking in all the sights and smells and more. I had some friends who lived there who I'd known in our old New York days and they took me out for some chaat - street food. Amazingly and miraculously I didn't get sick then, nor the entire trip! What are the chances that a Westerner doesn't - especially this one who has had Montezuma's revenge in Mexico which ended me up in the hospital in Mexico City, also the first year I was in Rio de Janeiro I ended up in the hospital, even made it through Mozambique without sickness but on one of my last days in Johannesburg I drank the water which landed me in the hospital the day after I arrived home. But I digress. We toured the seaside and historical buildings in Madras, had amazing south Indian breakfasts every morning, experienced the mosquitoes and loved the famous classical dance performances we attended. Then it was off to Pondicherry for a weekend trip with friends. A few of the shots are below. It was fascinating as a calm little oasis in the middle of the chaotic yet orderly Indian sea. We drove through a monsoon to get there. We could actually walk the streets, stroll through the famous Auroville and get a look at the ashram. From there I was off to Bangalore.

The first thing I noticed driving into Bangalore from the airport was all the huge billboards advertising luxury properties such as California style resort living - Napa Valley in Bengaluru. I made a mental note to jot that down later as to not forget. There were huge infrastructure projects - bridges, roads and real estate galore - towers, what a construction mess. No need to make much mention of it being a techie city as you can read about that elsewhere. I loved the green - I had friends there and stayed in a boutique hotel that their relative owned and operated. I went around in the tuk tuks by myself, everyone was helpful with directions when we got lost as the numbers weren't linear. I had the best time eating lunch with a friend who took me to meet his older intellectual counterparts - it felt like an old literary cafe or the hangout of a bunch of brilliant and retired minds who got together to discuss important issues. I was amazed by their brilliance and they were so kind and welcoming to me. That was one of the absolute highlights of the trip for me! I stayed in town for a week and went around with my friends, got to eat at their grandparents homes, join them for yoga as one was doing a teacher training and tag along for some local holiday festivals. I was enthralled merely by observing it all. Those friends decided that for the remainder of my time, I should go to Jodhpur in Rajasthan to attend a folk music festival that they'd been to in previous years, which was so special and a rare event. So it was off to Bombay en route to Jodhpur.

Arriving in Bombay or Mumbai now, I could immediately feel the level of hustle rise dramatically. Now I was in the big city. It wasn't Delhi but I heard all about the dangers of New Delhi and the people there. But then again, everyone in the south told me to be careful in the north yet when I arrived in the north they said the same thing about down south - reminded me of my home country the US since I am from the South and lived in the Northeast - just like almost every country in Western Europe too - all the geographically induced isolations that kept regions intact and retain their individual cultures before all this notion of globalization started to spread. I visited the places you are supposed to see in town, most of which were delightful or at least interesting to me since I was half way around the other side of the world, a place I didn't get to that often. I was enchanted as usual by the art deco relics everywhere in this coastal seaside city. It made me imagine this tropical British empire outpost from hundreds of years ago, now showing its age and all the time and climate it had weathered. It made me love it that much more.

In Bombay I learned about the Parsis and their history - I am always fascinated by the cross cultural mix of geography - Persia and its language Farsi and some of the people who left there and ended up in what is now part of India - I'd never studied the entire culture or history and kept learning so much the entire trip. My friends in Bangalore regaled me with their backgrounds as well and jokes about their Gujarati business families and Patel mafias of cousins around the world. It was most entertaining.

Jodhpur was very different as it was tiny and a tourist location, but I loved it because I could walk around. I encountered the usual group of children following me as a foreigner and novelty to be gawked at but just telling them to stop usually worked. Staying at a haveli which I named the hippie hotel was so much fun because I was able to meet other travelers on the rooftop dining area and found friends to travel with and venture out. I later stayed the remainder of the time at a nice boutique hotel where I loved the peace and quiet of the amazingly designed spaces, yet I missed all the warmth and conviviality of the hippie hotel since the groups staying at the boutique place were not co-mingling as it was kind of the too cool for school variety. I got to see both worlds and the advantages and disadvantages of being a solo, female traveler and which parts I most enjoyed given the situation and circumstances. The Rajasthan World Folk Music Festival that my friends sent me to was the most memorable experience ever. Held in the ancient Mehrangarh Fort from the 13th Century, what a magnificent structure with its design, architecture, intricate detail and craftsmanship. I sauntered around and explored all its nooks and crannies while taking in the musicians, the whirling dancers - it was like a magical dream for me.