Age of Aquarius

I am writing from my posh hostel in Sweden, complete with free internet access and sauna! I can't stop asking myself the question, where am I? I am suffering major culture shock after my 4 month stint in India and SE Asia. To make up for it, and as part of my cultural assimilation I had to get my hair done, for the first time in 9 months! Its a fantastic feeling! But before I go into my Swedish escapades let me finish telling you about the last days of India. I think last time I left off Tony and decided to get out of the heat and head inland to the hill station of Munnar, which is famous for its tea plantations. Driving through these rolling hills was stunning, the tea plants fill the hills as far as the eye can see, so green it looks electric. The plantations are planted in the pattern of a giraffe but have the consistency of shag carpet, and it went on for miles and miles and miles!



Tony and I got a private tour from our trusty rickshaw driver Valu. He drove us all around in his little rickshaw through the winding hills. We saw elephants, ate amazing homemade chocolate from a street bazaar, and drove past cute houses that were so extravagantly painted they could have been the frosting on a cupcake. While in Munnar we met these Israeli girls and had a rooftop party at our guesthouse making faces and a fruit posse of people out of fruit we had bought from the local market, Mr Potato Head style, haha. This lasted for hours and I am not ashamed to admit it, it was fun.



After Munnar we headed to Goa, the real vacation spot of India with pristine beaches and a huge party scene...well, Huge in Indian terms, and it only took us 2 days to cross 3 states in 6 different buses, 4 rickshaws and 1 train. In the 23 solid hours of traveling we saw 2 cockroaches (in our rooms), ate 11 samosas, and 12 bananas. Afterward we were so glad to finally have our feet on a floor that wasn't moving underneath us. The first night staying in our beach side bungalow we met the cutest little Italian couple who actually said "Mama Mia" in the context of conversation. It was adorable! I smoked Rose flavored hookah for the first time in my life and I would have to say it actually tasted more like a potpourri grandma. Tony and I hit up a silent head phones party where we danced our faces off and didn't go to bed until wayyyyyyy too late, waking up wayyyyyy too hung-over for our flight to Delhi. It was brutal carrying our huge packs across the sinking sand with the scalding heat and hangovers. I think the best part though were the cows that wandered on the beach, such a strange juxtaposition.



In Delhi we mostly just shopped, well, I shopped at the main bazaar which is this crazy congested street with rickshaws, cows, people, and scarf shops all rubbing shoulders. Tony and I also went to a Bollywood movie called Aloo Chat, which was a strange mix of Hindi, English, and the strangest sound effects. We were very disappointed that it only had one short dance scene, but at intermission we ate veg burgers that tasted like spring rolls, so that was interesting. Liz and Julia met us in Delhi for a day and I got to see them before Liz took off for vapassana and Julia left for the states.

As an assertion of my independence I decided to travel to Pushkar by myself, like I was going to stay in crazy Delhi. I was a little nervous at first to be on my own in India, but I stayed safe, and took a posh overnight bus with my own sleeping cabin. Legend says that the God Brahma dropped a lotus flower to the earth and Pushkar floated to the surface, which is a very nice tale indeed. Pushkar is a very colorful little city, a holy city with sacred water which people bathe in for cleansing, but sometimes fake priests will try to swindle money out of you by giving you a "Blessing" then asking for 1,000 or more rupees donation. I said screw that and gave 50 Rs which equals 1US dollar, that's enough for a blessing right?



After a few days in Pushkar I had a quick trip to the Agra to see the Taj. These 2 days were so interesting, first I spent the night on a packed to the brim overnight sleeper bus, laying all night on a moist pad that smelled like someone had barfed up their samosa, ruining my sarong which I put down to protect me from the gross wet spot and effectively freaking me out of sleeping the entire night, but at least when I arrived in Agra at 6am I was ready to run as fast as I could to the Taj. I planned it so I would just spend the morning at the Taj and leave the same afternoon since I heard Agra was a shithole, so I saw the beautiful intricate carvings of the Taj, made friends with a huge Indian posse of women, got my picture taken by a bunch of Indian tourists for their collection of white tourists and passed out on a bench snoring my ass off Indian style in the gardens.


Before the train back to Delhi I decided to grab lunch at this rooftop restaurant, where the waiter happened to be a palm reader, so being curious I let him read my palm. This was an extremely interesting and intense experience, although the best parts were my life line and my luck line are very strong and long he said, and Mom you will be happy to know he predicted I would birth little beer fetchers of my own in the future.

One night in Delhi to prepare for my future Europe trip and I had the opportunity to tink about my time spent in India, what I would miss and what I definitely wouldn't, pack up my things and get ready for civilization again. Some things I decided I would miss about India: The rickshaw drivers that pass out in the middle of the day sprawled out in their vehicles napping, head bobbling, erratic balls out driving, turbans, vibrant colored saris, iridescent fabrics, elephants, the everyday inclusion and belief in horoscopes, karma, and superstition, levels of trust among complete strangers especially regarding money, henna, horns that play the tequila song, bargaining, bomb ass thali, crazy mustached men huge elaborate processions for weddings, awesome workout video dance moves, cows goats and chickens roaming around free in the streets munching on garbage, trains, Indian Marie Claire magazine, Bollywood movies and music videos, eating with my hands, not washing my hair for weeks and not even caring about it, crazy colorful Hindu gods on everything from the bathroom stalls to busses, bindis, chai, gypsies with huge mirrors sewn onto their clothes and completely comfoortable conversations about body functions.

Some things I won't miss about India: Public farting and burping, men ogling, non-stop honking, beggar children who follow relentlessly, staring contests, dust and pollution, dowry's that could wipe out a family income, the caste system, hand washing my own laundry, lack of toilet paper and squat toilets, neglected, sick, and rabid dogs that travel in huge intimidating teeth snarling packs, the treatment of women as inferior, rickshaw drivers that take you to a certain guesthouse for a commission, line crowding and cutting, the weird foot fetish/ obsession/ repulsion, lack of soap, fear of infections, the horrible condition of my skin and the mystery dirt under my fingernails, shop keepers laying on the guilt trips, sweating balls, electricity shortages, explosive diarrhea, never getting a direct answer, and someone taking the longest time to analyze anything.

So that is that for India, for now. Im sorry to say though Mom, I REALLY want to go back someday. I feel like I have only scratched the spicy surface and I have fallen in love with the outlooks on life I have discovered while I was traveling. Part of this newly discovered outlook on life may be due to Tony, but regardless of all the bad things I definitely feel a second trip coming.

So now I have made it safely to Sweden. It is so incredibly strange to be in a hostel again, able to cook my own food and do my own laundry. I in a room with 4 bunk beds, sharing my space with two Americans, one who is on military leave from Afghanistan (who coincidentally enough went to high school with my friend Erika from UO, small world), one Brit and a guy from Turkey. The pillows are SO amazingly squishy it is unbelievable, Last night I just rolled around in the comfort of my bed and caressed my face against the supple softness. Unreal. Other things that have been absolutely blowing my mind include having toilet paper in every bathroom stall, actually multiple rolls of toilet paper, and zero rubbish on the impeccably and evenly paved streets. I had forgotten showers have a huge variance in choices of water temperature ranging from scalding to freezing, when driving everyone stays within their designated lines, obeying all rules of the road including buckling seat belts, it's so strange. We have free internet access at the hostel, oh and did I already mention there is a sauna here! Where am I? Yesterday I chewed gum for the first time in four months, drank water out of the tap without fear of explosive diarrhea, and realized I need to buy a jacket because it is FREEZING! My blood is way too thin, my feet are way too dirty, along with every article of clothing I own and my poor long suffering backpack/purse that has been exposed to any and all of the elements SE Asia and India has to offer, that is some SERIOUS dirt and who knows what else.

Tomorrow I am headed to Germany to hang out with Kate and Lisa and their hot military boyfriends... and the 5,000 other strapping young military men on base. I have been informed there will be a block party where mass amounts of alcohol will be consumed along with sided of beef and someone usually ends up either lit on fire or thrown out a window. GOD IM EXCITED!! Watch out Germany, here I come!

More pics:http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2236006&id=11505717&l=991b484f6e