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I just got back from a long overdue trip to India. It was my first visit to India and my first time in Asia as well.
One trip isn’t enough to see all that India has to offer as every state is different and there are also significant differences between north and south. We’ve only visited the northern part on this trip.
It’s a fascinating country, very vivid and full of contrasts. For example, the city of Agra is home to the magnificent Taj Mahal. But it is also a home to extreme poverty, water and air pollution, and dirtiness. Most other big cities are no different. Exquisite temples, palaces, and forts as well as world-class hotels are surrounded by homeless, sick, and beggars living on the streets below. For a westerner, it can be a gut wrenching experience, but one must look past it to be able to appreciate the good parts of India. I’m not suggesting that one becomes immune to human suffering, but you must not dwell on it too much or else it’ll get to your head and prevent you from enjoying the other sides of India. You have to experience both to get the full picture.
This trip was not meant to be a relaxing vacation. It was meant to be an eye opener to put some things in perspective and to develop more appreciation for the things that most westerners take for granted – clean air, water, access to a bath and a toilet, roof over your head. That is how majority of the world’s population lives, and since most of them don’t know any better, many actually appear to be quite content with the little that they have. We in the US (as well as other western countries) tend to complain quite a bit, but our complaints are usually laughable when compared to what many others in Asia or Africa struggle with every day. Poverty in the US and poverty in a country like India are on a completely different scale. I highly recommend a trip like this to see it firsthand. It’s a humbling experience.
As for driving in India’s cities, I call it organized chaos… trucks, buses, vans, cars, rickshaws, small motorcycles, scooters, bicycles, pedestrians, beggars, cows, goats, donkeys, pigs, dogs, all intertwined, coming within millimeters of each other in daily traffic. Yet, with nearly complete disregard for traffic signs and light signals, armed with a horn which is the most important part of any vehicle, they all seem to coexist and move quite smoothly for the most part. I’ve seen it on TV, but to find oneself in the midst of it is quite something else.
DISCLAIMER: I know we have quite a few Indian BITOG members. I hope my “firangi” observations don’t step on any toes. The people of India are very friendly and welcoming. I loved the trip and will be back for more.
I just got back from a long overdue trip to India. It was my first visit to India and my first time in Asia as well.
One trip isn’t enough to see all that India has to offer as every state is different and there are also significant differences between north and south. We’ve only visited the northern part on this trip.
It’s a fascinating country, very vivid and full of contrasts. For example, the city of Agra is home to the magnificent Taj Mahal. But it is also a home to extreme poverty, water and air pollution, and dirtiness. Most other big cities are no different. Exquisite temples, palaces, and forts as well as world-class hotels are surrounded by homeless, sick, and beggars living on the streets below. For a westerner, it can be a gut wrenching experience, but one must look past it to be able to appreciate the good parts of India. I’m not suggesting that one becomes immune to human suffering, but you must not dwell on it too much or else it’ll get to your head and prevent you from enjoying the other sides of India. You have to experience both to get the full picture.
This trip was not meant to be a relaxing vacation. It was meant to be an eye opener to put some things in perspective and to develop more appreciation for the things that most westerners take for granted – clean air, water, access to a bath and a toilet, roof over your head. That is how majority of the world’s population lives, and since most of them don’t know any better, many actually appear to be quite content with the little that they have. We in the US (as well as other western countries) tend to complain quite a bit, but our complaints are usually laughable when compared to what many others in Asia or Africa struggle with every day. Poverty in the US and poverty in a country like India are on a completely different scale. I highly recommend a trip like this to see it firsthand. It’s a humbling experience.
As for driving in India’s cities, I call it organized chaos… trucks, buses, vans, cars, rickshaws, small motorcycles, scooters, bicycles, pedestrians, beggars, cows, goats, donkeys, pigs, dogs, all intertwined, coming within millimeters of each other in daily traffic. Yet, with nearly complete disregard for traffic signs and light signals, armed with a horn which is the most important part of any vehicle, they all seem to coexist and move quite smoothly for the most part. I’ve seen it on TV, but to find oneself in the midst of it is quite something else.
DISCLAIMER: I know we have quite a few Indian BITOG members. I hope my “firangi” observations don’t step on any toes. The people of India are very friendly and welcoming. I loved the trip and will be back for more.
