India!

India…what a beautiful paradox. From the sensational colors of the women’s clothing, to the beautiful brightness and perfection of the handicrafts sold on the street and in the shop, to the grandiose architecture and structures, India was one of the most eye-catching places I have ever seen...
And from the crippled children begging as they drag their bodies across the floor, to the hundreds of people lining the streets and public areas to sleep at night, to the layer of filth and stench that settled on our clothes and our skin and even throughout the ship, it was undoubtedly the darkest and saddest reality that I have ever seen.

I really, really, really enjoyed India. Although there was a lot of poverty and sadness and disgust, it was such a fantastic cultural experience on every inch of the spectrum. The first day, I just went out in Chennai (where the ship was docked) with some friends to explore the area. We took auto-rickshaws to a bunch of stores to do some shopping, and they were a ton of fun. This is a very efficient way to maneuver such busy and crazy streets, and it was a lot of fun to be able to look out and people-watch as the rickshaw drivers wound in and out of traffic and other road blocks (like cows crossing the street wherever they please- as a sacred symbol in India, they have the right of way!). We got some shopping done but spent more time riding around in the rickshaws trying to get a feel for Chennai before heading out to other cities for the duration of our time in India. That evening, I attended a welcome reception with local students. This was one of the best SAS programs that I have participated in, I loved spending time with the students and talking with them and watching the presentation that they had prepared for us. We all walked in to the reception and were greeted by students dabbing sandalwood paste on our foreheads and adorning us with a type of flower necklace. Inside the reception, there was tons of traditional Indian food, henna tattoo artists, merchants with small stands, and an area to learn how to tie a sari. I ate, had my hand covered in an extensive and beautiful henna tattoo, shopped, and then walked the stage in a lovely sari with a handful of other SAS students. After this, a group of Indian girls took the stage for an incredible dance performance. We were able to witness traditional music, dance, and costumes, and everyone seemed completely blown away by the talent and amazing outfits that these girls were showing us. When the reception was over, we took a bus back to the ship and I went straight to bed in preparation for my 4 AM departure the next morning.

4 AM came way too soon and before I knew it I was on my way to the Chennai airport with a group of other sleepy SAS students. We boarded the plane and flew about 2 hours to New Delhi. Once we were in New Delhi, there was no time to waste and we immediately began a tour of the city. First we went to the Red Fort, which was the capital of the Mughal Empire until the 1850’s, and was then a military camp run by the British until India gained its independence in 1947. The Red Fort is essentially just that- a huge, giant, red fort. The entrance doesn’t even begin to convey how large the fort is and how many buildings can be seen on the inside. After walking through the gates, then the other buildings and total area of the fort can be seen. We spent a good amount of time walking around the grounds and exploring the various buildings before getting back on the bus for a driving tour of the city. After a great lunch, we were dropped off to explore the city streets and do some shopping in the markets and with street vendors. In the evening, we went to the train station to take a train to Agra. There were so many people sleeping on the ground of the train station- men, women, children, and adults, just tons of people curling up with their belongings and sleeping amid the hustle and bustle of a train station. There were also a ton of beggars, accusing us of being rich and therefore obliged to give them money. Many people were taking photos of the people in our group; some were brave enough to come close and ask for a picture of us or to take one with us. One couple even threw their child into the arms of another SAS student and snapped a photo! Our train was delayed a couple hours and then took FOREVER to get to Agra, but around 1 AM we finally got checked into our hotel and went to bed.

It was another early wake-up to visit the Taj Mahal at sunrise. When we finally made our way through the intense security line, and walked through the multiple gates of other structures of buildings, the Taj stood in all its grandeur before us. I was in awe. It was one of those moments when life seems unreal and my eyes seemed to be deceiving me. The Taj Mahal itself, something I have seen countless times in movies, books, posters, standing before me, while the sun began to rise. I stood in complete disbelief before finally beginning to snap some pictures and make my way toward the fantastic palace. Once inside, my feet content in provided booties (a better alternative to removing my shoes altogether, after watching Slumdog Millionaire), we were able to see the recreated tombs of the emperor Shah Jahan and his wife (whom the Taj was built for), Mumtaz Mahal. These are not the actual tombs, which are built below ground and inaccessible to tourists, but still show the public a visual of where these two people are buried. The actual building that most people think of as THE Taj Mahal is only the mausoleum, there are also two other grand buildings, one on either side of the Taj, that serve as a mosque and the other creates symmetry but was thought to possibly also be a guesthouse. There are also giant gates and other areas where Jahan’s other wives are buried. Jahan planned to build an identical black Taj Mahal on the other side of the nearby river, but never was able to create this after being imprisoned by his son and passing away. There are more hallways and areas to walk through in the main Taj mausoleum building, but nothing too entrancing besides marble walls, marble floors, and some colored stone inlaid to make pretty designs. After lots more pictures and staring at the Taj, we went back to the hotel for breakfast. We spent the rest of the day visiting more sites- Fatehpur Sikri (an old Mughal city) and the Arga Fort. At sunset, we went back to the Taj to see the sun setting and for a final glimpse and photo op. It was much more crowded than earlier in the day, so most of us stayed outside and spent our time there taking pictures and just taking it all in. There were a LOT more requests for pictures from Indian people and other visitors to the Taj, which we found amusing and happily obliged to partake in. We left after the sun set to catch our train back to New Delhi…which was delayed…again, so a handful of us went across the street for some familiar American food while we waited, and were happy to eat Pizza Hut rather than the provided box lunches. The train station this time was even worse, with multiple young people and children begging from us, many of them disfigured. A lot of people were crawling on the floor, due to their lack of feet or legs, grabbing at our ankles, asking for food or money. We gave away our uneaten box dinners but had little else to offer these people. It was sad and eerie, and I had a very hard time witnessing this side of India. Eventually, the train came, and it got us to Delhi in about half the time that the other train had taken. Once in Delhi, we checked into a FABULOUS hotel that I plan on visiting again for much longer than a night. I had an incredible night’s sleep in the comfy bed and was not ready to leave in the morning!

After a wonderful breakfast at our hotel, we were all sad to check out, but ready for another day of sightseeing. We stopped by Emperor Humayun’s tomb, which looked like a miniature Taj Mahal. We all agreed that this tomb would have been much more impressive had we not been at the Taj the day before. We took a few group pictures and explored the area, then stopped by another site of ruins (I don’t remember what it was called!) before going to the airport. We had a lot of time at the airport so there was some last minute shopping, and then we all boarded the plane back to Chennai and our floating home.

On our last day in India, I spent the day exploring and wandering with my friend Drew. We did some shopping and lots of driving around in rickshaws, people-watching and just seeing the area. We asked our rickshaw driver to take us to his favorite place to eat and he drove us to a hidden hole-in-the-wall Indian restaurant that we never would have found otherwise! We asked him to eat with us and told him that we would pay if he would order for the three of us. We ate rice, shrimp, chicken, vegetables, and some skewers of various meats. It was really good, even though we weren’t sure what we were having! After our lunch and some more exploring and hanging out with Michael, our driver, we went back to the ship and prepared for another week at sea…