We are back in the U.S. It was not an easy journey back from India (after our struggles with intra-India travel, somehow I [mistakenly] expected our trip back to be much smoother). After 16 hours in the Delhi Airport due to our absolute mistrust of Indian transportation and refusal to pay for another night's lodging for a 4 am scheduled departure time, a 2.5-hour flight delay in leaving Delhi, a mad dash to our connecting flight in Dubai to catch another 16-hour flight (which did not pass quickly, let me tell you), and arrival in San Francisco sans luggage which apparently is resting quite comfortably in the United Arab Emirates until tomorrow's flight, we are finally home.... (luggage being the least of our concerns.... honestly. It would have been, with our connection time and my luggage history, a virtual miracle if our bags had somehow accompanied us to the states).
We owe a huge thank you to Medina, who graciously picked us up from SFO and drove us home to Sacramento, three days earlier than originally planned. So sorry if we were grumpy.
I have NEVER, in the history of my travels or vacations, ever decided to curtail a trip abroad due to lack of enjoyment of the journeys and adventures. I have had some travel challenges and need for flexibility with plans. Two years ago, a trip to Belize was drowned in a tropical depression, which prevented a visit to the cayes (prompting a change in plans to visit Guatemala, which turned out to be wonderful!). During med school, I traveled solo in Latvia and Lithuania, the Baltic States, where I spoke more Latvian than the English spoken by some people I encountered (which is saying A LOT). Right after college, I remember finding myself explaining myself in German (most of which I've lost) to a train official in Leipzig (former East Germany) and getting by just fine. But never have I felt a fraction of the frustration that we felt in India, just trying to get around.
We were given the run-around at railway stations as to from whom we were to buy our tickets. We had railway salespeople refuse to talk to us because were foreigners. We paid for AC fares and then got stuck in the regular cars. We were told "no trains" go on that itinerary, despite knowing that trains certainly run that route, confirmed when we arrived (via very expensive long-distance taxi). We had to specifically ask for our tickets as confirmation of our payments. We paid extra for deluxe buses which ("We promise. No problem") left at a certain time and then were told "that bus is broken down on the highway" and had to settle for the later alternative. An autorickshaw driver agreed to take us from the Delhi bus stop to the airport for the price which was appropriate (1/3 of what he originally was charging us), but conveniently forgot that rickshaws can't go all the way to the terminal; we almost had to take another "taxi" from the entrance highway to the door (for the same amount, to be paid again, to a different driver) before we realized there was a free shuttle.... The transportation struggles just went on and on.
We had one city which never failed us: Jaipur. The hotel personnel were extremely helpful and we could actually figure out the bus station. We could see signs at the bus station for distance buses to Delhi, walk up, and, without lying or hassle, buy a bus ticket for a bus which was deluxe, as it said it was, which left when it was scheduled to leave, and went straight to its destination. Sadly, this was the exception. We found that our vacation, a time when we are supposed to be able to relax and enjoy our surroundings, was being largely spent being stressed at how we were going to successfully get from point A to B (and then out again), without being stranded. We were hesitant to venture very much off the main Delhi/Jaipur road for fear we would never return. We were not sleeping at night. And, despite some fun things we got to do, we were not having much fun overall. So, for a few hundred dollars, we were able to change our Emirates flight from Delhi up from Saturday to Wednesday, to have some R and R time back in the states. Initially I was hesitant to make the flight change, as I am quite frugal, and I hate to be a "quitter" or seem like I was bailing on something that really shouldn't have been so difficult. But what we were doing was "surviving," not relaxing or vacationing and, after being gone over 3 weeks, we were kind of "done" with India.
I am grateful to be back, for many reasons:
Beef
I am not a hard-core carnivore. I don't eat meat every day. I love veggies and salads. But even I had a really hard time eating exclusively "veg" food in India. Luckily, we could track down chicken sometimes when we really wanted "nonveg" food; however, I realize now that I could never be a vegetarian, or a Hindu. We were both disappointed when our "beef" option was not available on the flight from Dubai, but we both extremely enjoyed the Vietnamese beef we had as our first meal "home."
Traffic laws
Driving my car once I got back has been therapeutic. It is lovely to actually be in control of one's own transportation. Driving in the U.S. is also so very peaceful. The constant honking, rickshaws and autorickshaws weaving in and out of suggestive "lanes" in India, as well as the dust and dirt, is rather disconcerting. As both a passenger and pedestrian in India, you get used to it, as well as to dodging various animals on the streets (we saw dogs, cows, goats, sheep, camels, even elephants, but, interestingly, no cats), but I must say, I prefer the much less chaotic streets here.
Clean water
Since getting a nice Katadyn water filter from my Dad last Christmas and being somewhat of a fanatic environmentalist, I am a firm believer in using a water filter while abroad. While I take risks including eating street food and fresh veggies in foreign countries, I don't drink tapwater, but I also hate buying bottled water. My filter was wonderful for the first half of the trip. Water in Hyderabad as well as Mumbai tasted great; however, after that, it was all downhill. Water from Agra, Sawai Madhopur, Jaipur, and Pushkar tasted awful and, regrettably, I became a mineral water consumer. I am thrilled that I am back and can drink (not just brush teeth with) tapwater!
Toilet paper and septic systems (read with caution for the squeamish)
I generally have no problem with public toilets. I don't have problem with squat toilets, which are the most common type in India. I go when I have to go. However, I found it rather annoying to always have to have to carry around your own toilet paper, which is mandatory in India because, with the exception of airports, it is provided in less than 5% of bathrooms over there. And if you didn't know, you can't overwhelm the septic system by tossing TP in the actual bowl; there are (theoretically) supposed to be "bins" next to the toilet where you throw the used TP, which is sometimes the case. Ah; it is so nice to just be able to flush the actual TP instead of worrying about all of the above.
Sleeping comfortably
I think I got one, maybe two good nights' rest while in India. Between the heat, the noise, the pollution, the stress of getting stranded, the critters (in various rooms of ours, I saw spiders, mosquitoes, baby cockroaches, frogs, geckoes, and even mice!), neither Kelvin nor I slept well at all during the entire time we were abroad.
AnonymityWalking down the streets of most places we visited brought a lot of attention. I am a rather introverted person and don't really appreciate conversations from outright strangers on the street; however, wherever we went in India, we were plagued with constant comments like "Hallo," "Do you want......? Good price!", "Rickshaw?", "Where are you going?", "Where you from? Korea? Japan?" (Kelvin apparently does not look Vietnamese and could certainly not convince anyone he was actually a U.S. citizen). I just wanted to walk down the street in peace. It is exhausting to even ingore all of the comments, which is what we had to start doing.
Health
I really do take my health for granted. I usually get a few URIs per year which leaves me coughing for several weeks, but, this trip, I got both a cold as well as a bout of travelers' diarrhea requiring (gasp) both Immodium and Cipro, which (meds) I only use as a last resort.
Understanding
It is really alienating to be somewhere where you don't know the language. Many people in India know English and know it well, so communication should not have been that big of a deal. However, I still felt that not knowing Hindi was a huge weakness in our ability to maneuver India and the way we were getting "played" and lied to.
Honest answers
We really were upset by the number of times we felt that we were deceived in India. While it is understandable that people need to make a living, by trying to get commission by taking you to certain shops/hotels and by trying to sell you goods at a price which profits them, we really hated being outright deceived. We had touts at the train station diverting us to non-official tourist offices, rickshaw drivers charging us 3x the appropriate price and then taking us to the wrong location (and then charging us again to bring us to the right place), and supposedly reputable travel offices charging us for services (deluxe buses etc.) which they "promised" but did not provide. We felt that we couldn't really "trust" the answers given us by anyone-- including people working at tourist offices, because answers were often nonchalant, vague, and actually incorrect when we double- and triple-checked (which sounds paranoid, but which was actually quite necessary). We also felt that, in order to get useful information, you had to somehow pay, which counters everything I believe in. We couldn't just ask someone on the street for directions as they would expect a tip. It was incredibly limiting and frustrating.
So there you have it. A very verbose way to express that I am thankful to be back in the U.S.
There are a few things I will miss about India...
Adventures
Here is finally a picture of Kelvin riding his camel... his first
The Taj... certainly the most beautiful building in the world
Chai ... the milk- and sugar-full tea in India is the absolute best
Fresh lime sodas- a very refreshing drink which served as an acceptable substitute to my boycott on paying for water, and a beverage which I will try to re-create here back in the states
Lassis- yummy yoghurt drink which I love but have no idea how to make
Spices- while curry itself gets old, I will really miss the hot food and variety of flavors... I had some of the best chicken tikka masala I have ever had this time in India
Time to read
I do not know how many books I was able to read on the trip. Between the downtime at Medchal, the various waiting in airports/train/bus stations/on planes/trains/buses, and evenings in hotels (when we had power), I had ample time to lose myself in literature. It was glorious. The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest), are fabulous thrillers if you can stand the graphic scenes and violence.
Hotel Pearl Palace (Jaipur)
The best hotel we stayed at-- great room, great service, and great food. We even got room service here (no extra charge), which was awesome and made us feel, just a tiny bit, as if we were on vacation!
Emirates Airlines
Hands down, this the best airline I have even flown. So good, in fact, that a 2.5 hour flight delay leaving India, a near missed connection, and lack of luggage on arrival in the U.S., could not change my opinion of them. They had the best food I have tasted, the cutest travel kits, great blankets, GREAT entertainment (I, one who usually conks out for entire flights, watched 4 movies on the flight back here, as well as reruns of Glee and Friends, and played a bunch of tetris), and fantastic customer service. I highly recommend trying them out. And maybe next time, we will skip the Asia part of the journey and just hang out in Dubai :)
Escaping reality - although vacation technically doesn't "end" until Sunday, being back in Sac and having consistent internet and phone access obliges us to return to the reality of wedding planning, the job search, residency (EMR- yuck), and "real life". Sigh.
