Sunrise Sunset

The view from my hammock.

Here we are in Goa, the last leg of our trip. This trip hasn’t been the smoothest, easiest, most relaxing travel experience in the world. In fact, Ian and I are beat. Luckily Goa is just slow enough to accept the fact that all we want to do is sleep all day in the sun only occasionally dipping in to the ocean to cool off. It is nice to have sun and sand and beach to end some amazing, but stressful travel.

Let me give you the highlights since I last updated you. Amritsar was such a blessing to us. We made many friends there and it seemed as if half of our Guest House was on the bus we took to Dharamsala. When most people think say they are visiting Dharamsala, they actually mean they will be staying in McCleod Ganj. McCleod Ganj is the sleepy mountain town that houses the Dalai Lama’s temple and is inhabited by many Buddhist monks working with the exiled government of Tibet.

As we drove up in the bus, the Himalayas hit me straight in the heart. I have been wanting to see the Himalayas for my entire life, and let me tell you, they don’t disappoint. I literally felt like crying or laughing hysterically the first time I saw them.  They are that immense and enchanting.  The first day we were there we went on a hike to a beautiful waterfall in the nearby town of Bagsu. Strewn with shops and prayer flags, the mountains were warm and welcoming.

The next day I woke up feeling bad….really bad. I struggled with a fever and chills the whole day, alongside some serious stomach issues. Everyone will tell you that you’ll get sick traveling in India. It’s something I thought was a bit of a myth. Yeah, I’ve had some issues in Kerala, but most of them had to do with my personal carelessness. Traveler sickness is a real thing here, but you can avoid it by being careful. I was so excited about traveling that I forgot to be careful about my eating. So if you are thinking about coming to India for travel, DO IT!!! Just don’t eat from a bus stand like silly old me. I am fairly certain that’s what gave me my little 48 hour bug.

Sunrise over Delhi

Anyways, I was too sick to travel so we stayed an extra day in McCleod Ganj and rearranged our plans a bit. My plans were to be having a rooftop dinner in Agra on the evening of my 23rd Birthday….instead we boarded an overnight bus to Delhi that was driven by a man who must have had something chasing him. He drove faster and crazier than I ever thought was possible in a big chartered bus.  It was a jarring experience to say the least. We arrived in Delhi at 4 a.m. dazed and ready to get some actual sleep. The sunrise over Delhi was a beautifully peaceful way to arrive.  Delhi seemed like an entirely different place by the dim glow of morning.

In Delhi we recooperated, had a nice evening at a big shopping mall, ate at Hard Rock Café and Hagen Daaz, and we took a crazy day trip to Agra.

The day trip was crazy not only because we saw the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders of the world, but also because the minute I stepped off the still moving train in Agra, I fell and sprained my ankle.


In a crowded train station where no one speaks your language, it is pretty crazy to be injured, cursing and crying.

 Luckily, we made a helpful friend who also had a taxi service. He took us to a medical store and got me ointment and a cloth wrap for my ankle.

He then took us to the Taj, and to a beautiful workshop where traditional Mughal marble work is still being done. We got back just in time for a crowded train back to Delhi.

Another crazy travel experience came promptly after my ankle sprain, a 4:30 a.m. train to Jaipur.  Once we found our train car, Ian and I slept until we had almost reached our destination.

The morning train thing wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated. We rested all day our first day in Jaipur and enjoyed our beautiful hotel, which also had a delicious restaurant. We ate there for every meal.

Monkey at the Monkey Temple

In Jaipur we got lucky and found a driver who would take us to all of the big sites in 2 days for a decent price. We saw The Amber Fort, The Monkey Temple, some Mughal Tombs, The Central Museum, the Jantar Mantar, The Palace of the Winds, The Water Palace and many roadside markets.

We figured out that the autorickshaw drivers who offer to take you on a tour generally have a few friends who own nice shops. They take you to these shops to support their friends. It is a pretty clever way to help out your buddies. Take some gullible tourists to “insider” shops and they will most likely buy something. Ian and I splurged and got wall-hangings for our homes that are hand embroidered and made with vegetable dye.  I also bought too many earrings from a silver jewelry shop.

Jaipur is in the state of Rajasthan which is said to be one of the most beautiful states in India. I loved seeing the women dressed in bright colors.  They were great accessories to the beautiful desert sunsets. I would love to travel around Rajasthan more and get to see the “real desert” which is further inland. We Texans are quite partial to desert-style- beauty. It seems that almost every place we have been, I have told myself that I will return someday. There is so much to see in India. So much that swings open the doors of your mind and soul. I can’t help but know that I am meant to come back here. India is telling me all about it.

Sunset

We actually took an easy flight to Goa and gave ourselves a break on the intensity of our travel. We got to Goa easily and we are staying in Goa easily. Everything is incredibly laid back. Most of my days have been spent laying in the sun reading books, so it has been the perfect way to wind down.

Goa is also a little strange. Sometimes I feel like beaches transport you into a different world. My experience of Goa is no different. It is like an alternate universe where you forget you are in India.  It is endless blue water, clean sands and foreigners, so quite literally it feels like we could be somewhere in Europe right now.  It is nice to have this little escape, but I am happy to return to Kerala in a few days. I have missed the place I call home.

So things have been shocking, difficult, new and strange. Things have also been incredibly beautiful, meaningful, and transformative. We have met so many brave, interesting, friendly travelers along the way. They have inspired me with their willingness to put themselves outside of their comfort zones and just go out there and take on the world.

Meeting so many travelers has also made me thankful for the opportunity YAV has given me to really get to know one place. There is no way that I could absorb the individual culture of Rajasthan after staying there for 3 days, but with Kerala, I have learned the language, fallen in love with the community, and adapted to many parts of the culture. It is amazing that in this program we get to first develop a new sense of the word home, then go out and see how others make their homes in India. I wouldn’t trade either experience for the world.

My quote comes in the form of a photo today. This was carved in the marble at the Central Museum in Jaipur: " 'Tis from the soul the man within, that actions all their value win; No outward state, whate'er it be, affects an action's quality." - from the Mahabharata