hello all, I’m in Taipei for a bit right now where there’re computers available for free internet and free massage chairs on the otherside. woof.
June 29, 2007
I’m back in Mumbai and since the Internet usage rate is ridiculously expensive, I’m just dropping a few lines to let people know that I’m ok( seriously, I’m not online for LESS THAN TWO DAYS during my BACKPACKING JOURNEY ACROSS INDIA and I get whole bunch of ”are you alive” emails)
I knew I was going to hate Agra and I did. Taj Mahal was soooo BORING. I mean I knew I was going to miss Varanasi & my previous destinations since I tend to hate huge tourist-attractions..Taj Mahal was ok and all(I don’t even feel it was pretty) but the whole place was so bleh. The best part about that place was though going through random street market where I could spot no tourists and people stared and smiled at me just for the sake of doing that (instead of my rs10) and flying a kite for 10 secs(gah I sucked) during which all the neighbors laughed at my lack of skill. I’m a city kid, what do you expect.
I’ve decided to make another trip to India next September, somehow….and volunteer in McLeod Ganj for a month and live in Varanasi for 1-3 months, marry a hot Brahman, taking sitar lessons and playing guitar by the ghats….yea it’s called wistful thinking but who knows, according to some wise man, “god chose (me) to be here, and he’ll choose you to come back.” woof. love this place.
major (and proper/detailed) updates coming up in 24 hrs. god I never hated going to Korea as much as today.
The Untouchable June 27, 2007
I’m in Varanasi for four more hours before heading back west to Agra(ugh)
Things didn’t turn out the way I had planned out(didn’t see dolphins) or I changed the plan on purpose but new things kept on coming up along the way and I must say, it was far more meaningful than the mediocre plan I had, such as chilling with Brahmans. hahaha.
I also met the untouchables one of who spoke better English than most people I met here. He told me how people literally don’t touch him but now I’ve “chilled” with a few of Brahmans here(haha) I don’t really understand what he meant because…who really touches other people? I mean I too am an untouchable here(since foreigners don’t have a caste, they are all considered untouchable as well) but I shook hands(does that count as “touching?”) with Brahmans and it was fine, no one said anything. I mean there was hell a lot of staring but that’s nothing new. Funny how I expected Brahmans to be these larger-than-life beings who snubbed everyone, but apparently I was the snub(what else is new) because one complained that I ignored his saying Namaste the other morning-here, I usually reply to “namaste” but rarely to greetings in other languages because it is usually followed by something money-related. I didn’t see any foreign face among the large crowd that morning and all those people staring at me kind of freaked me out.
Another unforeseen event? After waking up at 4:30 this morning, having passed out around midnight from the heat, to attend the morning puja, I came back to my room around 8 and decided to take a nap with the door and windows to the balcony open-which I was advised to keep them close before I leave the room. A monkey picked its head in and it went away when I stomped my foot but since it was really hot I decided to keep them open anyways and keep the valuables close just in case. About 10 mins into light-sleep phase, I hear some noise and when I opened my eyes, a little sticky paw was going through the pile of stuff on the bed next to me. It took out the Himalaya cream(damn monkey with expensive taste!) from my medicine pouch and ran out the door. The little piece of….I mean the darling creature decided to STAY RIGHT BY THE DOOR, almost mocking me and chewed its way through the box and hissed and charged towards me when I tried to scare it away. I just took pics of its struggling with the tube and a few minutes later when I checked back it has disappeared, leaving traces of the cream squeezed out here and there. haha
I wrote 14 long postcards under 2 hrs yesterday which I’ll be sending out in a bit. I’ve walked around to find places with A/C but it seems that “the power is out”(how is this computer working then?) and I’m just dripping sweat non-stop. argh.
I adore this place so much.
waterworks June 26, 2007
I’ve never seen a better example of water release from the body as I’ve witnessed the “waterworks” since I got here yesterday. Basically, as soon as you drink something, it just turns to perspiration and it feels like I’m drowning in my own sweat. Since I had arrived in India 10 days ago(time really flies) I’ve been drinking 2-3 liters of water a day (Probably 4 liters in Varanasi) and I feel the need to go to bathroom only like once a day, the rest is released through my skin.
As I have mentioned before, basically people here say three things if their knowledge of the language is insufficient:
“hello”
“what’s your name?”
“where are you from?”
apparently the last question, my country of origin really throws people off, I mean it has been that way ever since I was little but I’ve never gotten so much variation-most people assume I’m Japanese, including Japanese people themselves, then there are Korea, U.S.A., and um, Malaysia, Australia, and India(oh he was so pushing it, how I look “Indian, you have good hair.” lol) when one lady asked me if I was from Malaysia, I assumed that I must have gotten really dark(for my skin tone) -I see some brownness ha-but apparently I’m still white as a ghost since many travelers I’ve met along the way told me that they thought I had just arrived since I look so pale.
Anyways, Ganga is more than what I had expected. It’s really not as dirty as I had assumed it would be, it’s comparable to East River, I suppose. I’m so tempted to just jump into water, not because I feel particularly religious but because it’s insanely hot here. I woke up at 6 to attend the 2 day festival that started last night but it’s best to stay out except at sunrise and after 3, when it isn’t as hot. Last night’s aarti at Dasaswamedh Gaht( where I fell for a Brahman-how typical of me haha) was incredibly beautiful and I’m quite bummed out that tonight’s will be the last for this trip.(they do it 365 days a year, even in rain and storm) Like all the other places I’ve visited(even parts of Delhi and Mumbai) I want to stay here longer and just take sitar lessons and attend aarti every night.
I’ve recorded a few clips last night and burned them into CD’s so maybe I’ll upload them before I return to Korea. who knows.
burn burn burn June 25, 2007
hello all,
I’ve arrive in Varanasi this morning and right now I’m by the Ganges River. You may ask, what the hell am I doing at an Internet Cafe when the holy river is right here?
um it’s 40-45 degrees (C) outside and I’ve never experienced such heat in my life. It took me forever to find the guest house-ripped my pants by slipping on what I’m hoping to be a puddle of mud on the way- (where monkeys greeted me upon opening the door to PRIVATE BALCONY) and I passed out for 4 hours in the room after taking a long long shower. oy. more than ever, I miss Himalchal weather.
Not doing much for the next few days, just strolling along the ghat and taking boat trip at sunrise. woooo. If you are expecting a postcard from me, expect it from Varanasi.
brief break June 24, 2007
I’m in Delhi for the day and will be heading east to Varanasi around 6 pm. Although I haven’t finished the tourist-routine sight-seeing here in Delhi, I don’t feel like going around since I’m not too fond of Delhi(or Mumbai for that matter)
A few days ago, I LOVED being here but it was because I had planned to come back to Delhi on the 29th. There’s something about big cities here that really turn me off.
I just came back a few hours ago from a journey up north to Himalchal where I visited McLeod Ganj and Manali for a few days. One thing that really struck me about India is that it has so many faces.
Ok so rewind up a few days and start from back here in Delhi.
I tend to book everything the last minute, which(fortunately) has turned out semi-fine until now but I have gotten ripped off many, many times because of that. Because of my laziness and what not, I bought my bus ticket to McLeod Ganj the last minute possible and as soon as I got on the bus I realized that the money I paid (Rs 550) was really not worth what I was in for
I don’t know how else to describe the route to McLeod Ganj other than that it’s a 13 hr-long un-paved road version of “dae gwan ryoung” course in Korea. Add that to the fact that I was sitting in the last row with the seat cushion falling out of its place and you have the 13 hrs of excruciating bumping your head and knees everywhere:which reminds me, WHY IS THERE SUCH A LITTLE SPACE BETWEEN SEATS???? I’m average (um, men’s-> 5′9″) height more or less in many countries and I don’t have freakishly long legs or anything like that, AND I’ve seen sooo many Indian guys here with really long legs: so like do people fold themselves up?? I couldn’t sit straight because my legs wouldn’t fit!
anyways, so it was a ride full of hell a lot of choking(the seats in front reclined so far back, pressing me down-THANKS, BRILLIANT DESIGNERS!) and bumping my head and knees and arms everywhere that seemed to last forever until we reached Dharamshala where mountains under foggy sky can be viewed.
about 30 more minutes or so, I finally arrived in McLeod Ganj where I was greeted by 20904 hecklers asking if I needed a room. As usual I ignored them all, but got lost and kept on walking back and forth looking for the guesthouse I had in my mind-I was there only for a day(leaving at 6 pm) so I just wanted the cheapest room possible- Rs40 for a dorm- and when I got to the place after climbing up and up and up, it was really worth the pain because it was one of the best places I stayed at.
After scrubbing the dirt off for a bit, I washed some clothes and took a brief rest by just lying around in the bed, reading guidebooks, dosing off here and there.. One of the people working there told me to hang clothes up on the roof and showed me the way up and dear god, the view was just breathtaking, it was completely ridiculously surreal! I mean for god’s sake, a hawk(one of VERY FEW birds I love) was gliding its way through the sky with the foggy mountain in the background! haha
I didn’t plan to do much in town but just decided to chill for a bit. Didn’t even bother checking with the tourist office to see if Dalai Lama was meeting people because I didn’t want to go through the whole hassle of queuing up-I found out later that day that Dalai Lama just came back that day. haha
I had this ginormous chocolate truffle and a bowl of Thukpa for lunch and randomly walked around the town. McLeod Ganj, a town mostly inhabited by Tibetan refugee population, including the Tibetan government in exile and His Holiness, Dalai Lama himself, seemed like a different country. The town was tranquil and people, oh gosh, if I say I’ll come back to India for the people, I mean TIBETAN people in India. They were sweet and nice for the sake of being nice.About 99% of people I had met in India either lacked common courtesy or were nice to get something from me. (thank god for that 1%) Has it been always this hard to meet some genuinely nice people?
oh and by the way, as many others have agreed, generally Tibetan people ask for a reasonable price unlike many people I dealt with who tried to rip me off left to right since I got here.
Anyways, after booking the last minute bus(as usual) to head up to Manali that night-paying ONLY RS 210 for a 11 hr ride via a local bus-I visited the temple there where many people have gathered to pray. I just sat in one corner and thought about stuff for a bit before heading out to check out the Tibetan museum and do a Kora-one of the best experiences in my life!
I didn’t realize how young Dalai Lama was(24yrs old) when he escaped from Tibet-I mean virtually he was my age back then and I can’t imagine all the pressure he must have received at such a young age! Imagine, Thousands and thousands of people crossing the Himalayas solely to follow you, while China constantly sends assassins to kill you at any chance they get. I must say, I don’t see a bright future ahead for Tibet since China is becoming so influencial and the rest of the world doesn’t care about anything unless it’s profitable.
I can’t believe Korea denied Dalai Lama’s visa request at the time Kim Dae Jung was the President-a fellow Nobel Peace Prize winner-I mean if Koreans, who KNOW the sorrow of not being able to go back home and being under the colonizing ruling, won’t empathize with Tibet, who would?
Thinking about that and other stuff, I asked around to do kora and it was quite lovely. Ran into some crazy cows on the way, stuffed my face with the rest of the chocolate truffle and talked to the locals for a bit. I did a bit of shopping there, bought some hand-crafted notes for friends and rabbit fur hats for family and myself for cold winters ahead…um..not that I’m planning on going some place ridiculously cold haha.
After checking with the reservation office, I ran down the street to grab some food to take with me on the road-Momo, which I proceeded to stuff down my throat as soon as we got on the bus, with sauce and everything-what the hell was I thinking. I suffered carsickness from the rough ride and undigested food but as soon as I saw the view out the window, I became all jolly and soon found myself struggling to get a snap of monkeys from the fast-moving bus-impossible. damn.
I am no longer travelling by buses for this trip but dear god, I don’t have ONE good experience on public transportation here!
Here’s the case 1:
Imagine yourself (with your legs all bent up from the lack of space) lodged between the sticky wall of the bus and a fat old man who seems to ENJOY pressing his fat-thighs next to yours(um I loathe men who spread their legs AS IF THEY GOT SOMETHING IN BETWEEN TO AIR OUT) spacing himself away from you every now and then ONLY TO LET OUT A FART. AHHHHH!!! FOR 11 HRS!! oh and add to that an annoying bird chirping about nonsense in annoying loud voice in the language you understand. 210 rupees…210…(as oppose to 400-500 private buses) ugh.
It was pitch black when we arrived in Manali around 4 a.m. I stood there a bit dazed and confused, having just woken up from a brief nap(yea somehow I had managed to fall asleep) when I realized that I looked fucking stupid waiting for someone to help me get my bag down from the roof of the bus, so I just climbed up the ladder myself, in my long-skirted glory, and carried my bags down myself
Ok it was fine upto that point. If women out there ask me whether it’s safe to travel alone in India, I would say it’s ok for the most part AS LONG AS YOU FOLLOW THE GUIDELINES in guidebooks. I made a mistake of walking to one direction(towards Old Manali, I assumed) when the guy who has been bothering me since I had arrived in the station came forth in his motorcycle. Since there was no rickshaw or anything around, I took his offer to have me driven up to Old Manali since I had no idea where I was-YES I WAS THAT STUPID, Jesus. We rode on for a bit, but couldn’t find the place I was looking for when he started telling me how I should stay in his room(btw, during all my travelling, I keep on inventing a faux spouse “back home”) and started to say some stupid sexual shits when we started to feel my legs. I told him to stop and he stopped the motorcycle in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE(again, WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING) and started to threaten me about how he was capable of raping me right there and then-if you’re not familiar with Manali-a strong river current runs through the town and once you are on the road, you can’t hear anything but water. He grabbed onto my clothes, pulling it, still threatening me how I should just let him touch my leg because he is capable of doing things far worse. I was screaming in the meanwhile obviously and the only thought in my head was “shit, if something worse happens, my parents will NEVER let me travel alone” Fortunately he left me alone and I got my stuff together, yielding a folding knife in one hand and headed back down the road where I saw a few guesthouses. He kept on coming back saying that it was a long way back but obviously I kept on screaming to leave me alone but on his 3rd time or so, he threatened “to finish” me so I reluctantly hopped back on his motorcycle, still holding a knife in my hand. He “apologized” for his behavior, and how I’m a guest to India and proceeded to say “I’m sorry, Don’t you feel sorry for me too?” I almost stabbed that fucker at that point thinking, ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? Fortunately he just dropped me off at the first building on the way back and rode off.
It was still pretty dark so I just knocked on the random door asking to use phone but it was pretty early to call a cab so I just went to this big hotel thing next door where I asked if I could stay until it got bright outside. I just sat up the steps numb-I was unusually calm, still holding the knife in one hand when someone approached me asking if I needed a place to stay. I just shook my head and asked to be left alone. I started to cry and it really shocked him and the securities at the hotel thought he was making me cry. They asked me to go inside the lobby and wait there instead. The guesthouse owner apparently thought I didn’t speak any English since I was reading Korean at the time he approached me so he woke up a Korean girl at his place and sent her over to where I was to check up on me. After shedding more tears, I apologized for making a scene and went to her place up the steps next door and got a room next to hers where I tried to sleep for a bit before going out for the day
let me say this about Manali-although the way to-and-fro Old Manali was excruciating, I wanted to stay there for a long, long time-that’s how much I loved Manali.
ok I’ll update/edit this tomorrow when I arrive in Varanasi. I’m getting too bored here.
my schedule: 18:25 train to Varanasi tonight, arriving around 7 a.m. 17:20 train to Agra on 27th, arriving around 6-7 a.m. 04:10 train to New Delhi on 29th, arriving around 8, 10:30 plane from New Delhi to Mumbai, arriving around 12-13, leaving Mumbai around 5 a.m. on the 30th.
The bottomline is, I’m fine.
NY story June 24, 2007
It’s quite pathetic that I’m sitting here in an Internet Cafe all the way in Delhi, India, searching for NY apartments, but I hate Delhi so whatever.
From Craigslist:
“It is to be shared with a 65 year old chain-smoking Polish woman. You get the bedroom, she hangs on the couch in the living room. She has lived here forever, but is quiet and won’t bother you. Fans and air filters are a must if you live here, and it’s best if you’re also a smoker. This is to be stressed: she easily smokes a 1.5 to 2 packs a day, does not leave the apartment other than to get groceries or more smokes. She is on disability, does not work, is around ALL THE TIME. She also has very poor hygiene. She does not bathe and won’t allow you to bring your BF/GF over. But, she is honest and will give you Christmas and Birthday presents from the Dollar store. The location and price can’t be beat. Good for student, someone on a budget. “
better than nothing, chum. Better than nothing. haha
Free TIBET! June 21, 2007
hello all,
just a brief update since I only have 6 hrs here,
after 13 hrs of the most excruciating bus ride of my life: dirt road + the last seat in the back + seat cushions falling out of place= NOT GOOD; I’m in McLeod Ganj aka where the Tibetan gov. in exile & Dalai Lama live and I must say, I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT HERE!! I mean seriously, I went up the roof of the guest house I’m staying at (dorm for Rs40 only! and it’s a lot better than the other “hotels” I stayed at) and I saw this hawk gliding through the air down the hill, it was ridiculous! it was totally a NG moment!
the air is so cool and clean and food is nice and dandy and everything~ ahhhhh
well that’s all for now. just letting everyone know I’m still alive.
Delhi Express June 19, 2007
dear ladies and gentlemen,
pardon me for sudden regular updates from the road,
in India, there’s hardly anything for me to do at nights.
I got to Delhi this afternoon after 24 hrs of excruciating train-ride. Before I go into that,
am I the only person who didn’t know New Delhi= Delhi? I thought those two were separate entities such as “Mexico” and “New Mexico” geesh.
Here’s what happened in Aurangabad- I bought a “II” class train ticket to New Delhi thinking, oh I could so mingle with the locals. OH MINGLE I DID.
After a night in Aurangabad sans insect repellant incense I came out looking like a diseased person. I have this insanely insect bites(especially mosquitos)-sensitive skin and if I get bitten,(I have taken pics …you’ll see soon) I look like, as my ex-roomie so delicately has put it, “OMG YOU LOOK LIKE YOU HAVE AIDS,” yes. I look sooo icky. I don’t even know what bit me! I got bitten about 50-60 places total, at least 25-30 on the left arm alone. Toes and fingers are bitten and swollen, and all the locals who dare to approach me keep on asking “What happened?” I DO NOT KNOW, people. I read that bed bugs bite in rows, and that’s what it seems like because I remember feeling insanely itchy all the sudden as I laid down in dark. AAARRGHHHHH.
I feel so dirty…ugh.
so back to the train story, after realizing that I wouldn’t have a signed seat for 24 hrs, a guy who spoke fairly good English-BTW, WHOEVER fucking said you can use English in India, it’s all LIEEEE. About 90% of people I met here don’t understand English, and my friend’s dad who works here informed me today that only 5% of the entire population speaks English!-advised me to get on his cart instead which was the second class sleeping cart(my original ticket was second class sitting cart) and pay extra to the conductor. Having ridden 7 hours previous night from Mumbai to Aurangabad in 2A(first class, second level(4 beds w/A/C) I didn’t like the experience since there was no window in that cart, so I figured hey, this is how people REALLY travel in India, let’s try.
The cart wasn’t as bad as I figured it would be. There were two couches facing one another with one bunk bed above each, and the “back” part of the couch opens up as the 2nd level of the bunk bed for sleeping. After people started to get on at each stop, we realized that there won’t be enough beds for all. Fair enough, I’ll sleep sitting up. The family of four (two little kids, parents) sat across from me, the guy who brought me on the train(yea I don’t bother for names..), and his friend along with two other people-there are suppose to be six people for each compartment. Anyways, so the kids were annoying but the father was all smiley and nice so I offered my space for their meals and all and the father told me “not to worry” that his family will sleep in two(one adult+ one kid for each bed) but the night comes and the two kids DECIDED that they’ll claim DIFFERENT BED than the one they were fooling around earlier in the day-OH and by the way, they didn’t even PAY for the kids, while I paid II + SL- and other people took one and so on, and the guy, his friend and I ended up sleeping for a bit sitting up. Then “the guy” decided to open up the 2nd bunk so his friend and I ended up on the lower one, half-sitting up, half-laying down. He INSISTED that I sleep laying down in the bed and I refused but he proceeded to grab my legs and stretched them out and he laid down the opposite way. I started to suffocate inside since it was insanely hot and I was getting absolutely no air and the friend kept on pushing me further in. I asked to be out since I couldn’t breathe and just stood there between couches/beds getting some air, all while scratching.
so this friend guy offers me the bed motioning(he spoke no English) that he’ll sleep on the floor instead. I refused but he proceeded anyway and so I laid down the opposite way from him(the opposite of the way I was laying down before)so I can get some air/semi-privacy. As I’m scratching my arm, the fucker started to stroke my arm, and obviously said no and moved his hand but he kept on pestering me several times. Then I moved my head towards the windows where his head was at and suddenly, I felt HIS HAND PETTING MY HEAD. Any idea how fucking violated i felt?
I started to freak out and moved his hand and he kept on pestering me so I moved to the other side, this time yielding my folding fan as a weapon(I watched too many Chinese martial art-movies) and I felt something weird so I opened my eyes, and his face was right in front of mine and he STARTED TO STROKE MY ARM AGAIN! I said DON’T TOUCH ME, and he motioned(like before) that he’ll stop then he asked for my water, which was by my feet/window side where his head was so I said fine, whatever, leave me the fuck alone. After he was done drinking, he proceeded to place the bottle next to me, ACROSS my STOMACH, basically rubbing his arm against my stomach. I freaked out and told him to leave me alone but then he GRABS my arm and I felt his beard against my hand, and I flipped-basically, I was awaken from semi-sleeping at this point and those of you who has seen me 2-3 secs after waking up are probably familiar with the pissed-off mood i’m in-he gestured that he will leave me alone and I just turned my back against him, still yielding the fan in one hand to use as a stabbing tool while thinking how I’ll wake up everyone if he touches my arm one more time..I stayed up for about an hour after that and fell asleep-this WHOLE thing happened in the course of 3 hours, I kept on waking up every 30 mins or so becaue I was so paranoid.
I don’t know how many of you reading this know me from way back in High School but back then, Dirty Old Men(DOM) LOVED me, (by “Old” I meant anyone above age 28) and although I was never seriously molested or something, I had random incidents that left me insanely paranoid for a while. I was rightfully enraged by this whole shenanigan and when I woke up at five(having gone to bed around 2) I just sat up and slept through out the day instead and barely said anything to anyone. Thank god I had music with me, it really cheered me up.
For the people who say rubbish like ”oh you asked for it” how it’s all the VICTIM’S fault- FUCK OFF. I wasn’t wearing anything revealing, and if the guy was attracted to my insect-bite covered arm, that’s the cunt’s fault.
Now on a brighter note,
the train ride provided me with a view of ever-chaging sceneries-if you have driven long-distance in the USA you’ll notice that the scenery rarely changes for hours and hours. Here, the weather changed(the sight of lightening in the distance at night was superb) the trees changed, the bulls changed, everything. I felt like a dog sticking my head and hand out as far as I can, trying to feel the breeze combing through my fingers.
How can mere words and pictures describe what I’ve seen and felt. that’s the beauty of traveling. Inspite of the unfortunate event, I don’t regret taking the train because it was a valuable experience. I highly recommend it to others AS LONG AS you have a companion.
I met up with my friend here today who treated me VIP-style. Perhaps to make up for all the hardships I had to face to get here. After taking a long-needed shower in my hotel room(OVERPRICED! damn it) She picked me up with her private chaffeur and her grandmother and took me to dinner in this fancy restaurant where we had lobster(about 840 rs->$21) lamb steaks and pollo a la fungi for dinner…I hadn’t had a proper meal since I got to India so this was a real treat.
I haven’t seen her since November so it was really nice to see her again as she is one of those people who really knows how to have fun. She’s a friend of mine from way back in elementary school but I didn’t see her for about 6 years until last November. Nevertheless we caught up with each other’s whereabouts as usual and made plans to meet up in the future-um…yea more on that coming up below..
the chaffeur took us to a market for the last minute shopping before her grandmother and she left for airport, while I laughed at her usage of limited Hindi to bargain-you just have to love her. In Delhi, beggars come upto cars stopped at red light and KNOCK 0n the windows, begging for money. While the rest of us avoided eye contacts, the chaffeur for some reason just stared right back at them. guts yo, guts. Her dad was in Delhi for business meeting and he wanted to meet me(uh, why do so many people see me when I’m all icky looking?) so we stopped by Sheraton Hotel for quick drinks before we bid farewell.
As of now, I’m going to look around Delhi tomorrow and leave for McLeod Ganj(where Tibetan government and Dalai Lama live) at night by bus and travel upto Manali from there and travel to Varnasi from there…From Varnasi, I’m either checking out the city that has Kama Sutra or just heading straight to Agra and then to Delhi where I’ll catch a plane to Mumbai(it’s way cheaper than the first class 24 hr train!)
I haven’t really talked to anyone since I got here(people say three things to you here: 1. hello. 2. what’s your name? 3. Where you from?) so I’m starting to feel really anti-social. Funny how you can be surrounded by millions and millions of people yet feel so detached at the same time.
…as for my distant future, as people keep on asking me where I’ll be after graduation……(it’s really weird to hear people asking me about my permanent residence! I know I’m at the age but the Bohemian in me keeps on bringing me on the road)
well..this is my plan for now that I’m 90% sure about:
July-end of December: New York
August 16-26th: Atlanta?
9/11-22: Inca Trail/Lima(plane tix are booked)
12/22 or 23- end of January: Tokyo
Feb-May: Alicante, Spain(maybe sometime in Salamanca?)
so that’s about it for now. who knows where I’ll be next, home is wherever I am.
Namaste June 16, 2007
evening all,
I am currently in Mumbai at the moment sweating my fatness off….it’s quite hot and humid here but not as bad as I had expected. It feels like what it does in South Korea during the monsoon season so it’s not something I hadn’t experienced before. Now now, just because you’ve experienced something does not mean that you are able to tolerate it.
I’ve been going crazy since I got here today at 4 a.m. mainly because I’ve been getting ripped off from left to right. I mean the kind of money I WASTED is really nothing compared to my life before this trip but the fact that I paid extra is driving me nuts. UGHH (especially Pashminas for which I paid NY PRICE, that’s right people, here’s a dumbass)
anyways, besides all that spending dramathon, India is nothing like I’ve ever seen before. I can’t believe I actually compared this country to Turkey when my dad kept on pestering me about how dangerous this country is because of its poor status and I kept on replying how I’d be absolutely fine and dandy since I “survived” Turkey. yea, clearly there’s a lack of brain here.
this is definitely the poorest country I’ve ever visited, and I don’t mean that in a criticizing way. When I left the airport around 5 am(again, doing something the guidebook told me NOT to do) I was getting all giddy at the sight of beautiful sunrise as the cab sans side-mirrors(about 90% of the cabs I’ve seen here lack sidemirrors, and of course they change their lanes every chance they get) honked its way through the city area. Along the way, and this coming from someone who’s seen a person living on the streets every 5 blocks or so in New York everyday, I’ve never seen so many people living on the streets. Some have a “house” built along the narrow walkpath, which is more like a collection of rusted metal sheets seconds away from collapsing, some had a little tent-esque things set up as their residence, but there were just so many of them just sleeping on the bare ground outside, and some picking trash underneath bridges. I know I always say that I’m broke and what not but not once in my life I had experienced a real lack of money, I mean when I say I’m broke, that usually means that I have to compromise myself away from leading the favored-lifestyle.
I don’t know, I just fell awful about strolling down the streets with all my American-ness.
Since the outfits I was wearing-a hideous blue/white crochetted-jacket that resembled your crazy aunt’s table doily from the 70’s & dark denim flares-were basically eating me alive, I decided to buy a Sari and wear that like the most women here. …you know, the whole, “blend it, don’t be noticeable” plan.
WELL so much for that, althought it’s a lot cooler than those previous damned outfits, people have been staring hard-core since. People either say “Konnichiwa”(it’s been 4 months since I last heard that) or say “nice Sari” or just plainly look at me and mumble to their company, “Sari(the only comprehensive part) blah blah blah,” and request to take a picture with me. GAHHH! I FEEL LIKE THE STATUE OF LIBERTY!!!
since then I bought other light outfits that will hopefully attract less-attractions…I’m kind of reluctant to take shower now because I don’t feel like carrying a wet towel for 2 weeks..aaaaarghhh. I’m leaving for Aurangabad in about an hour by train and will be in Delhi by the 19th, then up north to visit the city where Dalai Lama & the Tibetan government live(can’t remember the name at the moment) and to Baranashi, then to Agra to see Taj Mahal under full-moon(!) and coming back to Mumbai either from there by train or fly out from Delhi, depending on how much money I have left.
I’m not going to lie, a few hours ago I wanted to go back to Korea and rest for two weeks before I head back to NY, thinking that I’m too young for this trip. People haven’t been very nice(again, I was hoping for Turkey-esque hospitality) and the exhaustion from the lack of stamina and weather was really getting to my head but I realized that I shouldn’t waste such an opportunity and have been trying to remain positive since.
The thought of my mom’s sadly mentioning “I wish I was going with you” keeps on lingering in my head. I guess I feel bad for my parents(I was planning on taking them on a trip to Shanghai in May but because couldn’t because I couldn’t miss my classes) because they can’t afford to travel-as I have previously said, I’m funding my travel with my scholarships and grant money, and yes I’m aware of how lucky I am.
One thing at a time I guess.
on other luck-related news, I’ve booked my flights to Lima 9/11-22 where I’ll be doing the Inca trail for 4-5 days….On other unluck-related news, my main source of grant got cancelled so I went crazy before I left…pray that it’ll be all sorted out….
I’ve only taken a handful of pics since I got here but I’ll post them along the way if I can.
trying to be a person for whose loss the world will mourn..
