Hellooooooo!!! Finally I have some time to share my experiences with you. I know it has taken a bit, but bear with me! I am in travel mode now... finding an Internet cafe is on the bottom of the priority list (sorry!). However, I vow to do my best in keeping the updates and photos coming regularly so that you can follow along on this great ride!
It has been about five weeks since I left the mother land in search of adventure. Currently I am one week deep into Bali, Indonesia, and prior to that spent four weeks traveling around India. Let me fill you in...
India:
What a crazy place. So many people, animals, cars - it's enough to make one mad! Let me start by giving you a brief overview of what life was like in India- just to paint the proper picture.
First off, people are everywhere! No wonder they call it the subcontinent. Millions and billions. It has a life of its own. People sleeping on the street, in trees, on the floor of their place of work. Not to mention the incredible feces problem. The streets are like a patch of grass in DC, full of landmines. Not only are you watching out for dog shit, but you have cow patties and human doo-doos to worry about! And the smell... woof! You know you have been in India too long when you stop caring about a misstep. Just hope it's dried.
Next to humans, animals take up an equal amount of space. Cows and stray dogs line the streets and do what they please. On occasion, traffic is stopped for a leisurely cow crossing. The animals have their role in daily life and as far as I could tell it revolves around eating the mass amounts of garbage strewn about the streets. I guess it's a smart move considering there is no proper waste disposal system in place.
The rubbish here is out of control. Beautiful places are riddled with trash and even designated disposal bins are ignored. It's really sad to see how huge this problem is for India. It's clear that people are not being taught about waste management and how different materials effect the earth. A friend pointed out that, especially in small villages, people do not see the difference between an orange peel and a plastic bag. The mentality is that, like an orange peel, the plastic will eventually disintegrate or disappear. This was definitely one of the hardest things to swallow. Trying to be conscious of our waste almost seemed pointless. Even on hikes into the mountains, 15km from the city, you see trash all the way up along the trail.
Aiding that issue is the constant daily hustle. People are ALWAYS probing you to buy things or give them money. Walking down the street is exhausting. The consumer life is large in India, especially when they think you have money, as they assume with all travelers. Buy and discard- buy and discard. MADDENING! If only they would stop hounding me every time I glanced at a shop window maybe I would buy something. You quickly learn the "head bob" and "talk to the hand." Another misfortune as there are some amazing things to see that get overlooked. And when I am not being talked at, I am being stared at. This is not only me, as any foreigner is a spectacle, but its as if, despite all the travelers, they have never seen someone from another country before! Imagine a dead on, unbroken even by blinking, stare that continues despite you having acknowledged their presence. Being a woman definitely makes it worse. You just learn to ignore, but sometimes it's interesting to get into a staring competition. Although, its just for practice, because you always lose.
Lastly, I will cover transportation. As the name of this blog suggests, much of our traveling, in India especially, was by plane, train, tuk-tuk (auto rickshaws), or buses. Planes are nothing special, but by far the cleanest and most expensive mode of transport. Trains vary in their cleanliness, but are a great way to get around. Each one was different from the next. The Indian Railway is the largest employer in the country and, for the most part, do well to give you good service. They also have people walking up and down the cars offering food and chai, perfect for those 12hr rides! But, OH MAN, the buses! Decent at best. In India, honking is a language all its own, and one that I would abolish if possible. People use their horns when there are 1,000 cars on the road or none. Honking is a constant background noise and buses have the worst and most piercing of them all. Trying to sleep on a 10hr ride with a horn going every five minutes is insane. Also, a sleeper bus should be avoided at all costs. Be sure that I will give you full coverage on that later on. And now for the tuk-tuks. These are mopeds with a wide back prepared to seat three (often getting up to five or six) and a small frame with a roof and open sides. A great way for quick rides as they weave through the jumble of traffic, but be ready to haggle for prices. It's best to know where you are in reference to your desired location as they will almost always try to rip you off.
Now, realize that these things are daily constants and all the rest I have to share is piled on top of that. Marinate in this while I compile more stories and photos to share!
See you soon :)
XO Nadia
It has been about five weeks since I left the mother land in search of adventure. Currently I am one week deep into Bali, Indonesia, and prior to that spent four weeks traveling around India. Let me fill you in...
India:
What a crazy place. So many people, animals, cars - it's enough to make one mad! Let me start by giving you a brief overview of what life was like in India- just to paint the proper picture.
First off, people are everywhere! No wonder they call it the subcontinent. Millions and billions. It has a life of its own. People sleeping on the street, in trees, on the floor of their place of work. Not to mention the incredible feces problem. The streets are like a patch of grass in DC, full of landmines. Not only are you watching out for dog shit, but you have cow patties and human doo-doos to worry about! And the smell... woof! You know you have been in India too long when you stop caring about a misstep. Just hope it's dried.
Next to humans, animals take up an equal amount of space. Cows and stray dogs line the streets and do what they please. On occasion, traffic is stopped for a leisurely cow crossing. The animals have their role in daily life and as far as I could tell it revolves around eating the mass amounts of garbage strewn about the streets. I guess it's a smart move considering there is no proper waste disposal system in place.
The rubbish here is out of control. Beautiful places are riddled with trash and even designated disposal bins are ignored. It's really sad to see how huge this problem is for India. It's clear that people are not being taught about waste management and how different materials effect the earth. A friend pointed out that, especially in small villages, people do not see the difference between an orange peel and a plastic bag. The mentality is that, like an orange peel, the plastic will eventually disintegrate or disappear. This was definitely one of the hardest things to swallow. Trying to be conscious of our waste almost seemed pointless. Even on hikes into the mountains, 15km from the city, you see trash all the way up along the trail.
Aiding that issue is the constant daily hustle. People are ALWAYS probing you to buy things or give them money. Walking down the street is exhausting. The consumer life is large in India, especially when they think you have money, as they assume with all travelers. Buy and discard- buy and discard. MADDENING! If only they would stop hounding me every time I glanced at a shop window maybe I would buy something. You quickly learn the "head bob" and "talk to the hand." Another misfortune as there are some amazing things to see that get overlooked. And when I am not being talked at, I am being stared at. This is not only me, as any foreigner is a spectacle, but its as if, despite all the travelers, they have never seen someone from another country before! Imagine a dead on, unbroken even by blinking, stare that continues despite you having acknowledged their presence. Being a woman definitely makes it worse. You just learn to ignore, but sometimes it's interesting to get into a staring competition. Although, its just for practice, because you always lose.
Lastly, I will cover transportation. As the name of this blog suggests, much of our traveling, in India especially, was by plane, train, tuk-tuk (auto rickshaws), or buses. Planes are nothing special, but by far the cleanest and most expensive mode of transport. Trains vary in their cleanliness, but are a great way to get around. Each one was different from the next. The Indian Railway is the largest employer in the country and, for the most part, do well to give you good service. They also have people walking up and down the cars offering food and chai, perfect for those 12hr rides! But, OH MAN, the buses! Decent at best. In India, honking is a language all its own, and one that I would abolish if possible. People use their horns when there are 1,000 cars on the road or none. Honking is a constant background noise and buses have the worst and most piercing of them all. Trying to sleep on a 10hr ride with a horn going every five minutes is insane. Also, a sleeper bus should be avoided at all costs. Be sure that I will give you full coverage on that later on. And now for the tuk-tuks. These are mopeds with a wide back prepared to seat three (often getting up to five or six) and a small frame with a roof and open sides. A great way for quick rides as they weave through the jumble of traffic, but be ready to haggle for prices. It's best to know where you are in reference to your desired location as they will almost always try to rip you off.
Now, realize that these things are daily constants and all the rest I have to share is piled on top of that. Marinate in this while I compile more stories and photos to share!
See you soon :)
XO Nadia
