out of my 5 weeks away, i've only had 2 crap days. not bad at all considering but the following may have been the worst (besides the sick day).
after my blissed out experience in pushkar, i decided it was time to head for the hills. my time was limited and as much as i would have loved to have spent a whole month in pushkar, i wanted to check out the mountains (my favorite) before i left india. i had some friends from the bombay shoot up in dharamsala (where the dalai lama lives) who were shooting footage of all the free tibet protests happening there. it sounded like an interesting place to be and right next to the himilayas, so i made my game plan to get there.
i was going to go from pushkar to jaipur then jaipur to agra (to see the taj mahal), then agra to delhi all by bus... then take a night train up to dharamsala. that was a lot of ground to cover but i was up for the challenge. got to agra just fine (with a few painful bus journeys but what else is new?). got there in time to see the taj at sunset. reeeeally cool and glad i made the effort to see it. incredibily touristy but i actually got goosebumps as i walked through the gate and saw the milky white perfectly symetrical architectural masterpiece in the distance.
the guesthouse i was staying in didn't make train bookings so i thought i would brave the train station myself. big mistake. had some guy trying to help me the whole time who i thought was just trying to make a buck, so i wasn't trusting him (although i think he was just being nice... who knows!). ended up waiting in a big line only to find out the train i wanted was booked. so in order not to wait in giant line again, decided to go for the 6am train to delhi where i could catch the night train later that day.
got up at 5am after not really sleeping and headed out of my guesthouse. the gate was locked! so trudged all the way back with my bags and had to wake someone to let me out. the streets were pitch black and as i made my way down the street i tripped and fell right on my face. HARD! this was going to be the start of a great day. UGH!
it really hurt but i managed to get up and find a ricksaw to take me to the train station. got on the train fine.
as we got into the city and everyone started to get their things, i figured this was my stop so i got mine too... without question. another big mistake. after asking around, i realised i got off at the wrong station! UGGGGGH!!!! i was so flustered. had no idea how far i was from the station i wanted and got talked into taking a taxi for MORE than i paid for my friggin train ticket from agra! bastard. i was so upset that i just said fine. couldn't deal with argueing with the jerk and honestly had no idea how far i really was.
after driving through the streets of delhi for about 20 minutes we got there. yep, total rip off. fuckit... just wanted to buy my tix to dharamsala, check my bags in left luggage and wander around til my train left that night. got my tix just fine. then had to take a rickshaw to ANOTHER station to leave my bags. got all the way there and found out fucking left luggage closed at 4:30pm and my train wasn't until 9:30! i was going to have to wait around the stupid station for 5 hours. AAARRRRGGG!
so for my few hours of freedom from the bag, i wandered around the crazy streets of old delhi. wasn't really feeling it at all. tons of men staring, too much hubbub for me to handle. found my way to an "internet cafe" where i thought i'd waste some time. i'm telling you, i would win the amazing race... winding through insanely tiny mazes of alley ways, i found the "cafe" which was a cement block of a room with a couple crap computers from 1995. mid-way through my last blog post (pushkar) the electricity goes down. nothing, done. i was SO over this day!
left feeling very defeated. got back to the train station, had a crap lunch at the station restaurant, got my bag and headed to the "ladies retiring room." and just waited. the sitting around was killing me. i had an anxious moment of scrapping the whole trip to dharamsala and trying to catch a bus to rishikesh instead. but then a nice girl from the US came in the waiting room and we had a long chat while she was waiting for her train. after moaning about my indecision, she convinced me to keep my plan, so i did. just needed some guidance at that point.
she left for her train and i still had 3 hours to kill. ended up befriending a nice group of bengali women who were fascinated with my white skin. just kept pointing at my arms saying "beautiful." then a group of school girls came over and they each wanted their photo with me. guess i was the novelty white girl in the waiting room. it was amusing and passed the time.
finally my train came. i had to rush to find my correct car. i was stoked to find it was just me in my 2nd AC compartment (plush city) and just as i was about to stretch out over the whole space, a sikh man came in. eesh... i wasn't in the mood to watch over my shit and deal with more staring. turned out the guy was totally friendly and spoke perfect english. we ended up chatting for a good portion of the night. he was fascinated by the western way of relationships and asked some VERY personal questions. i had read all about indians being very frank in their questioning and had experienced some of that but nothing like this.
he wanted to know if i had a boyfriend (lied and said yes), how many boyfriends i'd had in the past, when i lost my virginity (!) AND the topper... how often i had sex with my current boyfriend (!!!). HA! i couldn't even answer that one and almost felt like asking how often he banged his arranged marriage wife, but thought better of it. i wasn't into the sex topic with this dude but he was totally innocent about it. just curious and probably trying to prove the theory that us westerners were big old sluts.
ANNNNYWAY, long story short, finally got some sleep and arrived in pathankot where i had to catch a 4 hour bus to get up to dharamsala. made it there after a nutty gov't bus ride through the windy hills. the scenery was very beautiful and i was happy to be in the cool mountain air with greenery all around. got to mcleod gang (where dalai lama lives) and got a room where my friends had suggested. a few minutes later i got a call from sam (who had worked on the shoot in bombay), asking where i was. we discovered we were in the same hotel, then the same floor, then opened our room doors and realized we were staying right next to each other! so funny.
we got lunch (delicious tibetan dumpling soup) and caught each other up on our last weeks. i passed out for the rest of the afternoon having been through the travel ringer the last couple of days. soooo needed it.
we got dinner, more chatting, then more passing out and woke up to a horrible rain storm outside my room. the morning was a wash. crazy downpour. not happy but not particularly upset either. sam and i made it through the rain to have yummy lattes at her favorite spot and then after hearing the rain wasn't going to stop we both decided to find a travel agent and leave.
so much for my big trip to dharamsala. it seemed really nice but i had absolutely no regrets. i wanted to spend my last week somewhere beautiful but preferably with sunny weather. so i booked another overnight train to rishikesh. i got to see the buddhist temple and where the dalai lama lives and plenty of tibetan monks before leaving.
got on the train last night, had a bit of sleep and arrived in rishikesh 10 hours later. no muss, no fuss. i gotta say, india is pretty easy to get around. has made all this hard traveling not terribly difficult (save for a few hellish buses in rajasthan). in any case, rishikesh is GORGEOUS. just what the doctor ordered. perfectly sunny skies, maybe 80 degrees with a cool breeze, the bright green ganges river running through lush hillsides. temples and ghats along the river with suspension bridges going over. it's ideal.
i'll be staying my last week here... getting some peace and quiet. maybe take some yoga and meditation classes, take a walk to the waterfalls, perhaps do some white water rafting. it's all good. everything is perfect, just the way it is.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Thursday, April 03, 2008
peace and quiet in pushkar
pushkar was like a dream. it was just what i needed to recharge the batteries and refuel my love for india. a very serene and spiritual place... buildings set around a small lake with desert hills surrounding. it was very laid back and definitely drew a hippie crowd. i almost felt like it was india's version of burning man a couple times. saw plenty of neo-hipies with crazy dreads and bizarre fashions. who knew?
getting there was quite an adventure. the bus ride from jodhpur turned out to be desent. it was air conditioned and i had a seat to myself. and the meds the frenchies gave me worked! i managed to get all the way to pushkar without crapping myself (although the stomach cramps were pretty awful).
the crazy part of the story was when the bus desided to drop me on the side of the highway. the guy just pointed to me and said "pushkar." i followed a couple others having no idea where i was or what i was supposed to do. the guidebook said this can happen sometimes but it didn't say how to find the connecting bus. i asked a nice looking man "bus to pushkar?" and he sort of motioned to come with him. he hopped in a ricksaw so i came along. figured it must have been close.
minutes and miles go by. no one speaking english. just me, my backpack and no sense of what to do in the middle of some random city WITH stomach cramps and a possible diarrhea attack. YEEES! as we continued on, the man i followed finally got off. i wondered if i was supposed to get off too but he made the motion to keep going. ok, i thought. seriously, no clue.
as we kept going and the streets and noise got more congested, i started to worry a bit. did this driver know where he was suppose to take me? then a big family piled in. they all just stared and laughed at me. next 4 school boys climbed aboard. with no more room for my backpack, one of the boys just picked it up and held it for me. i think there were about 10 of us in that tiny ricksaw at that point. luckily one of the boys spoke english and apparently i was going the right way. i asked him to tell the driver to make sure and it was all good.
finally made it to the ramshackly bus station. again, no english or white people anywhere. and no clue what to do. another kid from the ricksaw who i didn't even notice popped up and told me what bus to get on. ha! too much. this was my first gov't bus. it cost about 5 cents and i know why. they packed about 100 people in there. literally men were hanging off the sides. i was so tired and sick but really amused and loving it. a sweet older woman sat next to me and we shared a giggle when she was trying to push back some of the men falling in her lap. i made the elbowing motion, signalling to her to tell them to back the fuck off. she LOVED that.
about 30 minutes later another random bus stop. the woman yelled "PUSHKAR" and i grabbed my shit and got off quickly. again, no idea. just started walking and asked a few people for the white house (yes, ironically my guesthouse was called the white house). after getting only slightly lost, i finally found it. SUCCESS. i seriously felt a huge sense of accomplishment for making it that far all with a sick belly.
the guesthouse was perfect. clean white sheets with a soft bed AND squishy pillow and a window AND a balcony AND a hot shower. bliss! i slept so soundly that night and was over my illness.
next morning, up on the roof of my place for breakfast, i met a lovely dutch girl, laura, who offered to show me around the town. so we went around. i grabbed loads of photos (coming soon!). she was keen to do a camel trek. i'd heard not the greatest things but when i heard you could do short walks it sounded cool for a sunset ride. so we booked it and i'm SO GLAD we did. turned out to be one of my favorite moments of the whole trip.
desert silence. open spaces. little farms and workers in the fields. total peace and serenity. my guide spoke maybe 5 words of english and tried teaching me some hindi words for what we were riding past. very sweet. at one point, the english speaking guide asked if we'd like to stop for chai. sounded great but where were we going to find chai in the middle of the desert?
soon enough, our camels took us to a little shack where i could make out a woman in a bright pink sari was waiting for us. she walked over to a goat tied to a post and began to milk it into a metal pail. i was amazed! she was milking the goat that was going to be in our chai! a huge smile came across my face. this was too cool.
next, she knelt down over a small fire pit and began to break up sticks and started a fire. she stirred the masala ingredients together with the goats milk and soon enough, we were sipping the most indulgent chai ever. a few men from the fields came over along with another gypsy woman with a giant nose ring attached to her ear. we all sat around sipping chai. i was the happiest girl on earth at the moment.
we said our shukriyas (thank yous) and namastes (goodbyes) and got back on our camels, bellies full of warm chai and rode off into the sunset. as we rode, the sky turned from pink to dark blue and a few miles ahead, the stars came out. i sorted wished we had booked the whole night to stay over in the desert. it was a much cooler experience than i imagined. but i took notice of myself in that moment and i felt 100% content. nothing can ever take that moment away and i'll remember the feeling forever (sorry to be all gushy about it, but it's true!).
getting there was quite an adventure. the bus ride from jodhpur turned out to be desent. it was air conditioned and i had a seat to myself. and the meds the frenchies gave me worked! i managed to get all the way to pushkar without crapping myself (although the stomach cramps were pretty awful).
the crazy part of the story was when the bus desided to drop me on the side of the highway. the guy just pointed to me and said "pushkar." i followed a couple others having no idea where i was or what i was supposed to do. the guidebook said this can happen sometimes but it didn't say how to find the connecting bus. i asked a nice looking man "bus to pushkar?" and he sort of motioned to come with him. he hopped in a ricksaw so i came along. figured it must have been close.
minutes and miles go by. no one speaking english. just me, my backpack and no sense of what to do in the middle of some random city WITH stomach cramps and a possible diarrhea attack. YEEES! as we continued on, the man i followed finally got off. i wondered if i was supposed to get off too but he made the motion to keep going. ok, i thought. seriously, no clue.
as we kept going and the streets and noise got more congested, i started to worry a bit. did this driver know where he was suppose to take me? then a big family piled in. they all just stared and laughed at me. next 4 school boys climbed aboard. with no more room for my backpack, one of the boys just picked it up and held it for me. i think there were about 10 of us in that tiny ricksaw at that point. luckily one of the boys spoke english and apparently i was going the right way. i asked him to tell the driver to make sure and it was all good.
finally made it to the ramshackly bus station. again, no english or white people anywhere. and no clue what to do. another kid from the ricksaw who i didn't even notice popped up and told me what bus to get on. ha! too much. this was my first gov't bus. it cost about 5 cents and i know why. they packed about 100 people in there. literally men were hanging off the sides. i was so tired and sick but really amused and loving it. a sweet older woman sat next to me and we shared a giggle when she was trying to push back some of the men falling in her lap. i made the elbowing motion, signalling to her to tell them to back the fuck off. she LOVED that.
about 30 minutes later another random bus stop. the woman yelled "PUSHKAR" and i grabbed my shit and got off quickly. again, no idea. just started walking and asked a few people for the white house (yes, ironically my guesthouse was called the white house). after getting only slightly lost, i finally found it. SUCCESS. i seriously felt a huge sense of accomplishment for making it that far all with a sick belly.
the guesthouse was perfect. clean white sheets with a soft bed AND squishy pillow and a window AND a balcony AND a hot shower. bliss! i slept so soundly that night and was over my illness.
next morning, up on the roof of my place for breakfast, i met a lovely dutch girl, laura, who offered to show me around the town. so we went around. i grabbed loads of photos (coming soon!). she was keen to do a camel trek. i'd heard not the greatest things but when i heard you could do short walks it sounded cool for a sunset ride. so we booked it and i'm SO GLAD we did. turned out to be one of my favorite moments of the whole trip.
desert silence. open spaces. little farms and workers in the fields. total peace and serenity. my guide spoke maybe 5 words of english and tried teaching me some hindi words for what we were riding past. very sweet. at one point, the english speaking guide asked if we'd like to stop for chai. sounded great but where were we going to find chai in the middle of the desert?
soon enough, our camels took us to a little shack where i could make out a woman in a bright pink sari was waiting for us. she walked over to a goat tied to a post and began to milk it into a metal pail. i was amazed! she was milking the goat that was going to be in our chai! a huge smile came across my face. this was too cool.
next, she knelt down over a small fire pit and began to break up sticks and started a fire. she stirred the masala ingredients together with the goats milk and soon enough, we were sipping the most indulgent chai ever. a few men from the fields came over along with another gypsy woman with a giant nose ring attached to her ear. we all sat around sipping chai. i was the happiest girl on earth at the moment.
we said our shukriyas (thank yous) and namastes (goodbyes) and got back on our camels, bellies full of warm chai and rode off into the sunset. as we rode, the sky turned from pink to dark blue and a few miles ahead, the stars came out. i sorted wished we had booked the whole night to stay over in the desert. it was a much cooler experience than i imagined. but i took notice of myself in that moment and i felt 100% content. nothing can ever take that moment away and i'll remember the feeling forever (sorry to be all gushy about it, but it's true!).
Saturday, March 29, 2008
travel dazzle wearing thin
last night i got the dreaded delhi belly. this all leading up to my least favorite day of the trip thus far. it was the icing on the cake if you will.
i was in mount abu the last couple of days to escape some of the desert heat and check out some cool temples. the bus ride from udaipur to mount abu was intense to say the least. it was my first bus (thank god) so i had a pretty good sense of humor about the experience. when i booked the ticket the man told me that the only seat available was in the cabin with the driver. i had no idea what that meant and just figued i'd be next the driver with a good view the whole way.
was i wrong! the "cabin" was basically the area up front where they stuffed as many people as possible. in about a 10 x 12 space, there were 8 of us, crammed in for a 5 hour journey. OY! luckily i had a hilarious japanese guy next to me who spoke english and had been traveling for months in india. he was wearing a t-shirt that said "rock and roll" as this was his travel shirt. cracked me up. super uncomfortable, i chuckled my way through the trip. the craziest bit of the ride was going along streets that had been roadblocked by big rocks which were placed by small bands of gypsy kids. when the bus slowed down to go across, the kids would throw mud and colored water right at us. apparently post-holi shinanagans. that meant we had to keep our window closed and it was boiling in that little cabin. like i said, i managed to find the humor in it but was happy to be done with the 5 hour ride.
the mountain town had little to be desired. it definitely had nice fresh air but the town itself was stuffed with cheesy "resorts" and restaurants. i had met a nice austrailian couple on the bus who were going to my same guesthouse. they only had a few rooms left and man were they dismal. the one i got was dark and had a hole in the floor for a toilet... AND NO SHOWER! just a water spicket. all i wanted was a shower after that bus ride. arrrrgggg. the nice aussies said i could shower in their room, thank god.
my dingy room actually grew on me... i weirdly found the beauty in it's hideousness. took lots of pics of it. after a really shitty night sleep thought (worst pillow in the world) i switched rooms that had a western toilet and a shower for about $1.50 extra. nice upgrade.
took a nice trek the next day and met some more nice travelers... a kiwi chick and a girl from brooklyn no less. had a nice day with them trading travel stories and getting good tips. even with my $1.50 upgrade i still managed to not sleep through the night. i don't know what's up with my sleeping but it's not happening. drag city.
the following morning, i groggily packed up my bag again to get on another bus to jodhpur along with the aussie couple. this bus seemed ok a couple hours in, but a shady operation was happening. this was apparently a "private bus" but along the way, they stopped and picked up random rural people. the bus was full, so i had a plethora of gypsy women packed into the aisles right next to me. i felt like i was sitting next to a page of national geographic. they had the most weathered faces, gaping holes in their ears which were decked out in ornate silver jewelry. and their faded tatooed arms were filled with bracelets from shoulder to wrist. it was a cool sight to see but the comfort level on the bus was waning and more and more people got on and the heat crept in.
we finally arrived in jodhpur and i caught a rickshaw with the aussies as i was going to try to get a room where they were going. after navigating through the narrowest, windiest, traffic-filled street imaginable, we got the the place. i was already not really feeling this town. yes, it was interesting, but it seemed really intense and i wasn't in the mood for it. we got dropped off at the guesthouse and of course, they rad out of rooms. i was stuck.
i phoned another place in the bible (lonely planet) and found something else. whatever. i just wanted a shower. got to my new place and what a trip! it was an old haveli decked to the nines in ornate decorations (crystal lamps, dusty wall hangings, faded fake flowers, and goofy paintings on the walls. the nice boy showed me the rooms and i picked the lightest one with the biggest bathroom. i needed to sleep goddamn it and feel clean.
i had traded numbers with the aussies as we said we'd try to meet up for dinner. for some reason we couldn't get through so i thought i'd go back to their guesthouse to find them and eat (i hadnt' really eaten all day). i argued with a few rickshaw drivers over a few pennies to get me there and when i arrived they were gone. :(
thought i'd eat at the restaurant but that was closed. double :(
defeated i headed back to my place and hoped the guy could recommend something close. it was already getting dark and didn't want to find my way alone through those confusing streets.
he gave me half-assed directions to a place that was "really close." i walked out and felt scared for the first time being alone. i didn't like where i was. rows upon rows of men sitting in their tiny shops. i didn't like the smells of the strange spices or the weird looks i was getting. i felt lost and thought i'd just forget it. i don't know if it was the lack of sleep, the heat, my hunger, having just been with a fun group and now on my own again or what but i was done. i turned back the way i came, boughts some fruit and water and called it a night.
i went back to my room and ate feeling sad and had a little cry (pms on top of it). just felt overwhelmed that day and wanted a comfy bed and a nice shower. i don't know if i'm cut out for this rough and tumble travel. i think i can do it for a few days and then i need my comforts again. i really don't know how people do it for months and months.
did some journalling, read my book and hit the hey, only to be woken up with violent stomach pain. a few minutes later and i was on the toilet letting it all out. terrible. to make matters even more pleasant, the toilet didn't flush! arrrrrgggg.
another sleepless night. got up this morning for more fun on the toilet. joy. i didn't know how i was going to get on a bus later today. i was also supposed to meet the aussies for breakfast and canceled. will probably never see them again. i debated buying a plane ticket out of here but thought better of it. made my way downstairs and the lovely woman who runs this place set me up on her couch and brought me water. a french girl sitting in the room gave me medicine that she swore by (and i think it's actually working!). so i'm basically just chilling here until my bus to pushkar leaves at 2pm. i pray that i make it through... it is my worst nightmare to be stuck on public transport and have to go.
i'll let you know how it goes.
i was in mount abu the last couple of days to escape some of the desert heat and check out some cool temples. the bus ride from udaipur to mount abu was intense to say the least. it was my first bus (thank god) so i had a pretty good sense of humor about the experience. when i booked the ticket the man told me that the only seat available was in the cabin with the driver. i had no idea what that meant and just figued i'd be next the driver with a good view the whole way.
was i wrong! the "cabin" was basically the area up front where they stuffed as many people as possible. in about a 10 x 12 space, there were 8 of us, crammed in for a 5 hour journey. OY! luckily i had a hilarious japanese guy next to me who spoke english and had been traveling for months in india. he was wearing a t-shirt that said "rock and roll" as this was his travel shirt. cracked me up. super uncomfortable, i chuckled my way through the trip. the craziest bit of the ride was going along streets that had been roadblocked by big rocks which were placed by small bands of gypsy kids. when the bus slowed down to go across, the kids would throw mud and colored water right at us. apparently post-holi shinanagans. that meant we had to keep our window closed and it was boiling in that little cabin. like i said, i managed to find the humor in it but was happy to be done with the 5 hour ride.
the mountain town had little to be desired. it definitely had nice fresh air but the town itself was stuffed with cheesy "resorts" and restaurants. i had met a nice austrailian couple on the bus who were going to my same guesthouse. they only had a few rooms left and man were they dismal. the one i got was dark and had a hole in the floor for a toilet... AND NO SHOWER! just a water spicket. all i wanted was a shower after that bus ride. arrrrgggg. the nice aussies said i could shower in their room, thank god.
my dingy room actually grew on me... i weirdly found the beauty in it's hideousness. took lots of pics of it. after a really shitty night sleep thought (worst pillow in the world) i switched rooms that had a western toilet and a shower for about $1.50 extra. nice upgrade.
took a nice trek the next day and met some more nice travelers... a kiwi chick and a girl from brooklyn no less. had a nice day with them trading travel stories and getting good tips. even with my $1.50 upgrade i still managed to not sleep through the night. i don't know what's up with my sleeping but it's not happening. drag city.
the following morning, i groggily packed up my bag again to get on another bus to jodhpur along with the aussie couple. this bus seemed ok a couple hours in, but a shady operation was happening. this was apparently a "private bus" but along the way, they stopped and picked up random rural people. the bus was full, so i had a plethora of gypsy women packed into the aisles right next to me. i felt like i was sitting next to a page of national geographic. they had the most weathered faces, gaping holes in their ears which were decked out in ornate silver jewelry. and their faded tatooed arms were filled with bracelets from shoulder to wrist. it was a cool sight to see but the comfort level on the bus was waning and more and more people got on and the heat crept in.
we finally arrived in jodhpur and i caught a rickshaw with the aussies as i was going to try to get a room where they were going. after navigating through the narrowest, windiest, traffic-filled street imaginable, we got the the place. i was already not really feeling this town. yes, it was interesting, but it seemed really intense and i wasn't in the mood for it. we got dropped off at the guesthouse and of course, they rad out of rooms. i was stuck.
i phoned another place in the bible (lonely planet) and found something else. whatever. i just wanted a shower. got to my new place and what a trip! it was an old haveli decked to the nines in ornate decorations (crystal lamps, dusty wall hangings, faded fake flowers, and goofy paintings on the walls. the nice boy showed me the rooms and i picked the lightest one with the biggest bathroom. i needed to sleep goddamn it and feel clean.
i had traded numbers with the aussies as we said we'd try to meet up for dinner. for some reason we couldn't get through so i thought i'd go back to their guesthouse to find them and eat (i hadnt' really eaten all day). i argued with a few rickshaw drivers over a few pennies to get me there and when i arrived they were gone. :(
thought i'd eat at the restaurant but that was closed. double :(
defeated i headed back to my place and hoped the guy could recommend something close. it was already getting dark and didn't want to find my way alone through those confusing streets.
he gave me half-assed directions to a place that was "really close." i walked out and felt scared for the first time being alone. i didn't like where i was. rows upon rows of men sitting in their tiny shops. i didn't like the smells of the strange spices or the weird looks i was getting. i felt lost and thought i'd just forget it. i don't know if it was the lack of sleep, the heat, my hunger, having just been with a fun group and now on my own again or what but i was done. i turned back the way i came, boughts some fruit and water and called it a night.
i went back to my room and ate feeling sad and had a little cry (pms on top of it). just felt overwhelmed that day and wanted a comfy bed and a nice shower. i don't know if i'm cut out for this rough and tumble travel. i think i can do it for a few days and then i need my comforts again. i really don't know how people do it for months and months.
did some journalling, read my book and hit the hey, only to be woken up with violent stomach pain. a few minutes later and i was on the toilet letting it all out. terrible. to make matters even more pleasant, the toilet didn't flush! arrrrrgggg.
another sleepless night. got up this morning for more fun on the toilet. joy. i didn't know how i was going to get on a bus later today. i was also supposed to meet the aussies for breakfast and canceled. will probably never see them again. i debated buying a plane ticket out of here but thought better of it. made my way downstairs and the lovely woman who runs this place set me up on her couch and brought me water. a french girl sitting in the room gave me medicine that she swore by (and i think it's actually working!). so i'm basically just chilling here until my bus to pushkar leaves at 2pm. i pray that i make it through... it is my worst nightmare to be stuck on public transport and have to go.
i'll let you know how it goes.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
the hard sell
it was late in the evening and i had promised my new friend raja a tea on the roof of my hotel before going to bed and leaving the next morning. we had had words earlier in the day and i felt a strange obligation to him to see him one more time. apparently he was upset that i didn't go to see him the day before like i said i would. i tried to explain that i was a free woman and wanted to do what i felt like doing, that i was out all day and it didn't occur to me that i had made a promise to him about it. the exchange was complicated with broken english and i couldn't quite decifer what he was getting at.
i figured he tried to make friends with as many western woman as possible. must get pretty boring sitting outside a fabrics shop all day trying to make a buck.
anyway, i had spent the evening with these other two local boys i had met earlier in the day. i was planning to take myself to dinner and when i ran into them on the way to the lonely planet recommended restaurant, the one boy, adil called my name. it threw me off as i couldn't imagine someone already knowing my name in udaipur having only been there for a couple days. but then i recognized him from the handicrafts village i had been to earlier that day. we had a special bond because he had a girlfriend named megan from NY (yes, i saw the proof).
i told them i was starving and they said they were on their way to eat and asked if i wanted to join. there went eating alone. perfect. i hopped on the back on adil's bike and we went zooming through the narrow city streets, wisking past cows and goats, women carrying baskets of goods on their heads and hoards of beeping ricksaws. i was loving this.
we showed at some place that was definitely not in the lonely planet. they told me it was the best place in town for dosas but the decor looked like a bad version of coco's. terrible lighting and mismatched vinyl seats. eh, if they said it was good. we ordered and chatted. adil was obsessed with his girlfriend, showing me her text messages to him. the other boy, rajesh was a quite type but very sweet. he was an artist and also had a french girlfriend. hilarious. i got the feeling it was "the thing" to have a white chick.
after dinner they took me back to rajesh's art studio to show me his work. they insisted that he draw my eyes for me. it was too much! but quite sweet. after chatting some more, i knew i had to do my duty to have that final tea with raja.
when i got back to my hotel he was outside waiting for me. ugh, this was going to be a long night. we went upstairs, found a little table and he asked if i wanted beer. i said i didn't and didn't even want tea as i needed to rest before my early bus. he was really offended that i didn't want to drink with him but i was not planning to give him any ideas or fuel his desires. honestly at that point, i still was unsure of his intentions. it was all very muted and he wasn't expressing himself to the fullest... JUST YET!
as the minutes ticked by and i was getting more and more sleepy he finally got the nerve to confess his undying love. leba and other friends had mentioned that indian men are particularly passionate most likey due to bollywood films being over the top romantic. i couldn't quite imagine the words that were about to come out of raja's mouth and when he started waxing poetic, i just about died. laughing.
i'm not joking when i tell you his exact words:
"OH this feeling i have."
"you are not like anyone i have ever met in my life."
"you are first person to make me think."
"you see the hair on my arms, it is standing when i'm near you."
"my heart, it is pounding so fast in my chest."
"i had just asked for love in temple the day we met, and when i walk
back to my shop, i see you there. it is god's wish."
"i feel like i am in heaven right now."
it was over the top and quite possibly the hardest sell for some action i've ever heard in my life. i felt bad, but i was uncontrollably laughing. and i wasn't laughing at him... i just couldn't believe the lines and knowing that a western guy would never ever ever say those things. i tried explaining this to him and i hope he understood. part of me thought that this was the shit he feeds to every white girl he meets but i'm not so sure. i mean he was practically crying with every rejection i threw back at him. i was really trying to push that fact that i had a "boyfriend" back home and that he wouldn't approve.
that didnt' stop him. he said he had a girlfriend and everyone cheats. and who cares if you are feeling "these feelings." i was really trying to be polite about it but after saying no for about 2 hours, i finally got really blunt. i said "you may have these feelings, but i don't." a trickle of a tear. i told him we could be friends, walked him down to the door and said goodbye. and STILL after all of that, he said "you'll call me?"
JEEEEZ! what does a woman have to do to get her point across. it took waaaay too much energy but at the end of the day, it was a great story and some of the funniest pick-up lines EVER.
i figured he tried to make friends with as many western woman as possible. must get pretty boring sitting outside a fabrics shop all day trying to make a buck.
anyway, i had spent the evening with these other two local boys i had met earlier in the day. i was planning to take myself to dinner and when i ran into them on the way to the lonely planet recommended restaurant, the one boy, adil called my name. it threw me off as i couldn't imagine someone already knowing my name in udaipur having only been there for a couple days. but then i recognized him from the handicrafts village i had been to earlier that day. we had a special bond because he had a girlfriend named megan from NY (yes, i saw the proof).
i told them i was starving and they said they were on their way to eat and asked if i wanted to join. there went eating alone. perfect. i hopped on the back on adil's bike and we went zooming through the narrow city streets, wisking past cows and goats, women carrying baskets of goods on their heads and hoards of beeping ricksaws. i was loving this.
we showed at some place that was definitely not in the lonely planet. they told me it was the best place in town for dosas but the decor looked like a bad version of coco's. terrible lighting and mismatched vinyl seats. eh, if they said it was good. we ordered and chatted. adil was obsessed with his girlfriend, showing me her text messages to him. the other boy, rajesh was a quite type but very sweet. he was an artist and also had a french girlfriend. hilarious. i got the feeling it was "the thing" to have a white chick.
after dinner they took me back to rajesh's art studio to show me his work. they insisted that he draw my eyes for me. it was too much! but quite sweet. after chatting some more, i knew i had to do my duty to have that final tea with raja.
when i got back to my hotel he was outside waiting for me. ugh, this was going to be a long night. we went upstairs, found a little table and he asked if i wanted beer. i said i didn't and didn't even want tea as i needed to rest before my early bus. he was really offended that i didn't want to drink with him but i was not planning to give him any ideas or fuel his desires. honestly at that point, i still was unsure of his intentions. it was all very muted and he wasn't expressing himself to the fullest... JUST YET!
as the minutes ticked by and i was getting more and more sleepy he finally got the nerve to confess his undying love. leba and other friends had mentioned that indian men are particularly passionate most likey due to bollywood films being over the top romantic. i couldn't quite imagine the words that were about to come out of raja's mouth and when he started waxing poetic, i just about died. laughing.
i'm not joking when i tell you his exact words:
"OH this feeling i have."
"you are not like anyone i have ever met in my life."
"you are first person to make me think."
"you see the hair on my arms, it is standing when i'm near you."
"my heart, it is pounding so fast in my chest."
"i had just asked for love in temple the day we met, and when i walk
back to my shop, i see you there. it is god's wish."
"i feel like i am in heaven right now."
it was over the top and quite possibly the hardest sell for some action i've ever heard in my life. i felt bad, but i was uncontrollably laughing. and i wasn't laughing at him... i just couldn't believe the lines and knowing that a western guy would never ever ever say those things. i tried explaining this to him and i hope he understood. part of me thought that this was the shit he feeds to every white girl he meets but i'm not so sure. i mean he was practically crying with every rejection i threw back at him. i was really trying to push that fact that i had a "boyfriend" back home and that he wouldn't approve.
that didnt' stop him. he said he had a girlfriend and everyone cheats. and who cares if you are feeling "these feelings." i was really trying to be polite about it but after saying no for about 2 hours, i finally got really blunt. i said "you may have these feelings, but i don't." a trickle of a tear. i told him we could be friends, walked him down to the door and said goodbye. and STILL after all of that, he said "you'll call me?"
JEEEEZ! what does a woman have to do to get her point across. it took waaaay too much energy but at the end of the day, it was a great story and some of the funniest pick-up lines EVER.
greetings from udaipur
ok, i think i've died and gone to heaven. i'm on day 3 of the solo portion of my travels and am having the time of my life. it was a bit hectic getting out of goa and up to rajasthan but i made it, a bit sleepy, but it worked out just fine. basically i left goa at 5am with a one way ticket to delhi and didn't have the rest worked out (annoying websites not taking foreing credit cards). i was a little scared i might be stranded in delhi with no place to go but i figured out how to get from point a to point b, got my tix to udaipur and i was off (amazing race!). only after staying in the airport for a good 3 hours and eating the best mcdonald's mcveggie burger EVER. why don't we have those????
anyway, i got into udaipur around 4pm. a really nice driver brought me in from the airport chatting the whole way. he invited me to his house for dinner while i was here. so sweet. made it to my guesthouse which i randomly picked out of lonely planet (lots of places were booked so this one seemed ok). it was a beautiful old haveli (big old house with an open middle) with little balcony nooks overlooking the lake. my room was on the top floor past the rooftop restaurant. the room was decent but didnt' have a view which was a bit of a bummer but it would do just fine for the night.
after a quick nap i took myself out to the restaurant for the best chai ever, just in time for the sunset over the lake. HEAVEN I TELL YOU. i was blissed out. decided to take a walk around the neighborhood, feeling brave and confident to be on my own. as i passed by men from shops called out saying hello, how are you, where you from? i just kept walking saying hello as i passed. i wasn't nervous but was keeping my guard up as this was the first time walking alone at dusk. i walked over the bridge to see a different view of the city. twinkling lights from the buildings glowed off of the lake. this must be one of the most beautiful cities ever. i was content.
as i headed back to my hotel, a man in a shop asked if we could talk. he seemed kind so i walked over to him. he pulled out a stool from his shop and we started chatting. that lead to him inviting me to a rooftop restaurant for tea. we talked politics, religion, relationships all in a matter of time. another lovely intro to my journey. i didn't want to give him the wrong idea (just in case) and mentioned my boyfriend. hehe. we chatted some more and that was that.
next morning i switched hotels as i realized my place was quite pricey compared to others (and i wanted a VIEW, a room with a view!). my new place is much cheaper and the room is great. yesterday was a LONG ONE... i really packed it in. started at the city palace which was incredible architecture and history. then took a boat ride to an island palace on the lake. wandered through the narrow streets meeting more shopkeepers and taking their photos. i met 3 sweet muslim boys who became my fast friends. we did a full photo shoot on the river bank with bathing women in the background. they took my to a hindu temple where i watched a mini-ceremony. there were the perfect companions as i was able to see some of the off-the beaten track areas and took some amazing photos of the people hanging around. i can't wait to show you all the pics!!
anyway, ended the night by seeing a touristy but beautiful traditional music and dance show. then had dinner on another rooftop where they were showing "octopussy". apparently you can see it every night as it was filmed here. HA! it was hilarious. i went for one more view on one more roof before heading to bed (i was pooped) and then ended up haing a long chat with an american guy who had just finished the army--pretty interesting stories from him.
let's just say i feel like i've done more, seen more, experienced more in the last day then the whole time i've been away. phew! i'm LOVING THIS!!!!! big thanks to karina for encouraging me to come to rajasthan (i worried about the weather but it's totally fine... hot during the day and cool at night. i can totally deal with dry over humid). i think i'm going to check out mount abu tomorrow but nothing is set. the nice guy at the hotel is going to take me to the markets this afternoon. i want to buy everything (but don't want to carry it). oh the dilemas!
anyway, i know that was way too long. sorry i haven't responding to individual emails but thanks for sending them. it's lovely to hear from you.
missing you all but loving it here.
anyway, i got into udaipur around 4pm. a really nice driver brought me in from the airport chatting the whole way. he invited me to his house for dinner while i was here. so sweet. made it to my guesthouse which i randomly picked out of lonely planet (lots of places were booked so this one seemed ok). it was a beautiful old haveli (big old house with an open middle) with little balcony nooks overlooking the lake. my room was on the top floor past the rooftop restaurant. the room was decent but didnt' have a view which was a bit of a bummer but it would do just fine for the night.
after a quick nap i took myself out to the restaurant for the best chai ever, just in time for the sunset over the lake. HEAVEN I TELL YOU. i was blissed out. decided to take a walk around the neighborhood, feeling brave and confident to be on my own. as i passed by men from shops called out saying hello, how are you, where you from? i just kept walking saying hello as i passed. i wasn't nervous but was keeping my guard up as this was the first time walking alone at dusk. i walked over the bridge to see a different view of the city. twinkling lights from the buildings glowed off of the lake. this must be one of the most beautiful cities ever. i was content.
as i headed back to my hotel, a man in a shop asked if we could talk. he seemed kind so i walked over to him. he pulled out a stool from his shop and we started chatting. that lead to him inviting me to a rooftop restaurant for tea. we talked politics, religion, relationships all in a matter of time. another lovely intro to my journey. i didn't want to give him the wrong idea (just in case) and mentioned my boyfriend. hehe. we chatted some more and that was that.
next morning i switched hotels as i realized my place was quite pricey compared to others (and i wanted a VIEW, a room with a view!). my new place is much cheaper and the room is great. yesterday was a LONG ONE... i really packed it in. started at the city palace which was incredible architecture and history. then took a boat ride to an island palace on the lake. wandered through the narrow streets meeting more shopkeepers and taking their photos. i met 3 sweet muslim boys who became my fast friends. we did a full photo shoot on the river bank with bathing women in the background. they took my to a hindu temple where i watched a mini-ceremony. there were the perfect companions as i was able to see some of the off-the beaten track areas and took some amazing photos of the people hanging around. i can't wait to show you all the pics!!
anyway, ended the night by seeing a touristy but beautiful traditional music and dance show. then had dinner on another rooftop where they were showing "octopussy". apparently you can see it every night as it was filmed here. HA! it was hilarious. i went for one more view on one more roof before heading to bed (i was pooped) and then ended up haing a long chat with an american guy who had just finished the army--pretty interesting stories from him.
let's just say i feel like i've done more, seen more, experienced more in the last day then the whole time i've been away. phew! i'm LOVING THIS!!!!! big thanks to karina for encouraging me to come to rajasthan (i worried about the weather but it's totally fine... hot during the day and cool at night. i can totally deal with dry over humid). i think i'm going to check out mount abu tomorrow but nothing is set. the nice guy at the hotel is going to take me to the markets this afternoon. i want to buy everything (but don't want to carry it). oh the dilemas!
anyway, i know that was way too long. sorry i haven't responding to individual emails but thanks for sending them. it's lovely to hear from you.
missing you all but loving it here.
greetings from goa (and I'm 33!)
and now a quick follow up. i've survived my 33rd birthday. here in goa with leba, having a FAB day!!!! i wasn't sure about goa at first (strange place) but it's totally grown on me. leba knows the spots here. i definitely don't think i would have enjoyed it as much without her. first off, it really is beautiful land. the beaches are stunning. palm trees, find sand beaches, cute little beach huts lining the coast. and the FOOD! yummmm. we're staying in this really sweet place in north goa, it bit off the beaten track. super mellow. not much around. we have our own little beach hut with 2 little beds and a toilet outside. it's rustic but nicely done. and the water is about 20 steps from the door. and did i mention the food? ha!
total bday treats today... woke up late, yummy breakfast at our beach hut, followed by a chill out on the beach and a swim (water almost too warm!), then into town for a little shopping (bought a super cute skirt... was already feeling super grungy and on my last pair of underwear!), then massages (soooooooooooooooooooooooooo good!!), then cocktails on the beach at sunset at this super snazzy joint, and now a little emailing, followed by dinner at leba's friends spot. finally feeling like this is a vacation.
still undecided about what's next. leba and i are both staying here til sunday and then i will most likely start my solo journey north. rajasthan is calling my name but i'm reserving the right to head for the hills if it's too hot (btw it's about 100 degrees here in goa in the day). insane. major sunblock action for the whitey.
anyway, all is good and i will write again when time permits.
total bday treats today... woke up late, yummy breakfast at our beach hut, followed by a chill out on the beach and a swim (water almost too warm!), then into town for a little shopping (bought a super cute skirt... was already feeling super grungy and on my last pair of underwear!), then massages (soooooooooooooooooooooooooo good!!), then cocktails on the beach at sunset at this super snazzy joint, and now a little emailing, followed by dinner at leba's friends spot. finally feeling like this is a vacation.
still undecided about what's next. leba and i are both staying here til sunday and then i will most likely start my solo journey north. rajasthan is calling my name but i'm reserving the right to head for the hills if it's too hot (btw it's about 100 degrees here in goa in the day). insane. major sunblock action for the whitey.
anyway, all is good and i will write again when time permits.
bombay con't
all good in bombay. first time i've had to myself with the computer and internet (that's been slightly annoying but probably good not to be attached to internet). bombay is NUTS! i have a love hate thing going with it. really amazing people, tons of interesting sights but it's sensory overload. the pollution, the honking, so so dirty, the poverty living amongst the richies. weirdsville.
but being here with leba and working on the shoot has been really really cool. leba of course already has a million cool friends. we partied with a bunch of her peeps last night and had a ball. drinking and dancing after party at one of the guy's apts (after a crazy karaoke night... go figure!). so silly and fun. they are all SO SO SO SWEET and helpful. like go out of their way to be nice. it's totally refreshing.
i did this insane tour yesterday. it was called "reality tours" and it took people through the asia's largest slum area called dharavi (apparently it's one of india's 7 wonders!). millions of people live there and there is tons of industry that comes out of it. one of the first areas they showed us was the recycling factories (if you can call them that... they were really just small sheds with rusty old machinery). basically it's where america and england send their trash and the indians process it for us. it was fucking mind-blowing. people working day and night for pennies in some of the worst conditions you've ever seen. we went through the dwelling areas which were tiny little alleyways that were almost pitch black in daylight. millions of people live like this! and the rural people go there to MAKE MONEY from all the industries (living off of about $1 a day). it wasn't just recycling factories either... they were making packaged pastries, embroidered jeans, laptop bags, leather for our shoes all stacked on top of each other. NUTS!!! but the craziest thing was that the people working there were actually welcoming to us checking it out. i was feeling weird about being a rich white person coming to gawk at them but they seemed happy that we were interested in what they were doing and how they lived. i guess most people in bombay could care less about them so i think they appreciated that there were people who were interested in them, you know? the people were all so gentle and warm, inviting us into their tiny factories to see how they worked and lived. it just broke my heart. how could someone live like that and have a giant smile on their face??
the tour ended in a person's dwelling who served US chai! so we all sat on the floor of their teeny tiny home and i drank the most amazing chai ever. what an amazing experience. talk about sensory overload.
anyway, leba has decided to come with me to goa tomorrow for my bday. we're going to this nice chill spot she knows about which sounds exactly like my speed. we'll probably chill for a couple days and then i'm going to start my journey north. i don't think kerala is going to happen this time. but who knows. i'm having decision making problems on where to go as there is just so much but i've already decided that i'm going to have to come back. it's true what they say about india having that effect on people. i've got the bug bad already and i haven't even left the city! ha.
ok, must stop computing and catch the late afternoon light for pics (got some goodies).
here is a link to a few flickr pics from the shoot:
panty raiders in bombay
how great is this pic?:
my favorite pic so far
he was our helper for the day. just invited himself to be our PA. SO SWEET!
but being here with leba and working on the shoot has been really really cool. leba of course already has a million cool friends. we partied with a bunch of her peeps last night and had a ball. drinking and dancing after party at one of the guy's apts (after a crazy karaoke night... go figure!). so silly and fun. they are all SO SO SO SWEET and helpful. like go out of their way to be nice. it's totally refreshing.
i did this insane tour yesterday. it was called "reality tours" and it took people through the asia's largest slum area called dharavi (apparently it's one of india's 7 wonders!). millions of people live there and there is tons of industry that comes out of it. one of the first areas they showed us was the recycling factories (if you can call them that... they were really just small sheds with rusty old machinery). basically it's where america and england send their trash and the indians process it for us. it was fucking mind-blowing. people working day and night for pennies in some of the worst conditions you've ever seen. we went through the dwelling areas which were tiny little alleyways that were almost pitch black in daylight. millions of people live like this! and the rural people go there to MAKE MONEY from all the industries (living off of about $1 a day). it wasn't just recycling factories either... they were making packaged pastries, embroidered jeans, laptop bags, leather for our shoes all stacked on top of each other. NUTS!!! but the craziest thing was that the people working there were actually welcoming to us checking it out. i was feeling weird about being a rich white person coming to gawk at them but they seemed happy that we were interested in what they were doing and how they lived. i guess most people in bombay could care less about them so i think they appreciated that there were people who were interested in them, you know? the people were all so gentle and warm, inviting us into their tiny factories to see how they worked and lived. it just broke my heart. how could someone live like that and have a giant smile on their face??
the tour ended in a person's dwelling who served US chai! so we all sat on the floor of their teeny tiny home and i drank the most amazing chai ever. what an amazing experience. talk about sensory overload.
anyway, leba has decided to come with me to goa tomorrow for my bday. we're going to this nice chill spot she knows about which sounds exactly like my speed. we'll probably chill for a couple days and then i'm going to start my journey north. i don't think kerala is going to happen this time. but who knows. i'm having decision making problems on where to go as there is just so much but i've already decided that i'm going to have to come back. it's true what they say about india having that effect on people. i've got the bug bad already and i haven't even left the city! ha.
ok, must stop computing and catch the late afternoon light for pics (got some goodies).
here is a link to a few flickr pics from the shoot:
panty raiders in bombay
how great is this pic?:
my favorite pic so far
he was our helper for the day. just invited himself to be our PA. SO SWEET!
shooting in bombay
since that day i last wrote (which already seems like ages ago), i've
had a complete 180! i LOVE INDIA. hahaha. i laugh at myself.
i've been working really hard on the film and am physically and
mentally exhausted, but also feeling quite energized by all that is
around me.
i can't write for too long because like i said, i'm POOPED. we've been
shooting for 2 days now in sweltering heat and i haven't properly
slept yet, so just a quick little bit.
we shot the first day in colaba (which is a neighborhood in mumbai).
it's quite a touristy area but also feels very "real"... in the sense
that there are tons of your every day working man/woman. i don't know
how to explain... brain is not functioning very well. anyway, we set
up our shoot and had TONS of interested and curious people surrounding
us. once i started talking to the people, i just felt totally at ease
and loved hearing them and what they had to say. especially
politically. so so fascinating. anyway, we had a couple men that
wanted to help out and they were just the sweetest, funniest most
sincere people you could ever meet. LOVELY.
then we did a set-up in front of the big gateway of india (big tourist
attraction... lots of indians). we were all dressed up in these
ridiculous pink suits, had video camera and these big banners and it
seemed like all of india wanted to know what we were up to. i swear,
in about 5 minutes there were over 200 people surrounding us to see
what we were doing. i felt like a true celebrity, pictures being
snapped, people talking about it. it was just an invigorating and
magical experience. we were all very high from that.
today we shot on a college campus which also went very well but didn't
quite have the magic. the people were more educated on the politics
but they were all quite shy. and the day was very long and hot. the
shoot has been great but i'm really tired and ready to get my travels
on.
i'm still not certain where i will end up next but i'm not nervous any
more. i've made friends with a couple of canadian women that leba
recruited for the shoot who have been travelling for 4 months or so
and have been a wealth of information. i'm actually staying with them
tonight and they gave me my first lesson in how to eat indian food
properly (yes, i've been here for 3 days and hadn't even had indian
food yet!). so needless to say, i'm anxious for what's next. i will
probably be in bombay for 2 to 3 more days and then it's either to goa
or kerala (heard about a wonderful ayervedic place that i might go to
do my relaxation before heading north but nothing set in stone just
yet). we have one more day of shooting and then i want a couple more
days to do some more bombay stuff which i haven't had a chance to get
to yet.
bla bla bla.
the real adventure hasn't even begun and i have SO many more days. WOOHOO!!!
had a complete 180! i LOVE INDIA. hahaha. i laugh at myself.
i've been working really hard on the film and am physically and
mentally exhausted, but also feeling quite energized by all that is
around me.
i can't write for too long because like i said, i'm POOPED. we've been
shooting for 2 days now in sweltering heat and i haven't properly
slept yet, so just a quick little bit.
we shot the first day in colaba (which is a neighborhood in mumbai).
it's quite a touristy area but also feels very "real"... in the sense
that there are tons of your every day working man/woman. i don't know
how to explain... brain is not functioning very well. anyway, we set
up our shoot and had TONS of interested and curious people surrounding
us. once i started talking to the people, i just felt totally at ease
and loved hearing them and what they had to say. especially
politically. so so fascinating. anyway, we had a couple men that
wanted to help out and they were just the sweetest, funniest most
sincere people you could ever meet. LOVELY.
then we did a set-up in front of the big gateway of india (big tourist
attraction... lots of indians). we were all dressed up in these
ridiculous pink suits, had video camera and these big banners and it
seemed like all of india wanted to know what we were up to. i swear,
in about 5 minutes there were over 200 people surrounding us to see
what we were doing. i felt like a true celebrity, pictures being
snapped, people talking about it. it was just an invigorating and
magical experience. we were all very high from that.
today we shot on a college campus which also went very well but didn't
quite have the magic. the people were more educated on the politics
but they were all quite shy. and the day was very long and hot. the
shoot has been great but i'm really tired and ready to get my travels
on.
i'm still not certain where i will end up next but i'm not nervous any
more. i've made friends with a couple of canadian women that leba
recruited for the shoot who have been travelling for 4 months or so
and have been a wealth of information. i'm actually staying with them
tonight and they gave me my first lesson in how to eat indian food
properly (yes, i've been here for 3 days and hadn't even had indian
food yet!). so needless to say, i'm anxious for what's next. i will
probably be in bombay for 2 to 3 more days and then it's either to goa
or kerala (heard about a wonderful ayervedic place that i might go to
do my relaxation before heading north but nothing set in stone just
yet). we have one more day of shooting and then i want a couple more
days to do some more bombay stuff which i haven't had a chance to get
to yet.
bla bla bla.
the real adventure hasn't even begun and i have SO many more days. WOOHOO!!!
greetings from bombay
so first off, i'm a bit in shock to be honest.
i got in yesterday, leba picked me up from the airport which was
great. she showed me around her neighborhood called bandra (upscale
part of town but you wouldn't really know it), then we got to work. if
you didn't know, i'm working on her little documentary film where
we're interviewing indians about who they would vote for in the
american election. so yesterday and today we did a lot for that...
getting info together, buying supplies, location scouting, etc. it's
actually been a pretty good way to see the "real bombay" i think.
we pretty much stayed around bandra last night. went out to meet some
of leba's friends (locals) which was cool. then surprisingly, i ended
up staying out and going to a club with some of the guys. NOT WHAT I
EXPECTED. i could have been in LA for god's sake. bad techno and weird
rich indian men dancing. depsite all that, it was fun and i met a nice
guy from jaipur that owns a hotel, said he'd "take care of me there"
whatever that means. HA!! no, i think it was genuinely nice, just not
sure if i'm up for that.
today was location scouting for the shoot. that was a very good way to
see the city. we went down to colaba which was really intense for me.
i don't know if it's that i was overly tired (jet lag and staying out
late) or the heat or just being in the place that i've only seen
pictures or read about or imagined, but actually being IN IT was
pretty indescribable. i had an odd combination of nerves from being
stared at and then just seeing what i was seeing. i'm obviously having
a hard time putting words to it. i think i was sort of beating myself
up for feeling the way i was too because i was mad at myself for the
shock i was experiencing. leba and her friend sandra made me feel more
at ease when they said it was totally normal to feel this way on the
first day and to just go with it. that i would eventually get used to
it and start to see the beauty in things. and it's true. on the taxi
ride home i found myself smiling and laughing at scenes of babies
riding on the front of motorcycles, kids playing with skinny goats on
the side of a busy street, chickens flying off of tin sheds, a man
sorting out a giant stack of newspapers for who knows what reason.
just taking it all in, taking it all in.
to be perfectly honest after the feelings i experienced today, i'm
scared to go off into the country by myself. the people are totally
nice and mean well but i think it's mostly just being scared of my own
feelings, if that makes any sense. i was really allowing myself to
FEEL the nerves and discomfort walking through the amazingly dirty,
smelly streets and being asked for money from a one-eyed deformed man.
at this very moment i feel like i'm a little bit crazy for taking this
trip, but i KNOW in my gut that will change and i just have to go with
it. this is my first full day.
i don't want to make anyone nervous (mom and deb!) because i know i'm
going to be fine, i'm just putting my true feelings out there for my
favorite people to read. i have a pretty good feeling i'm going to
head to goa after the shoot to do a little chill out. i was
considering going straight to rajasthan and "get my travel" on but i
think after the chaos of bombay and the shoot, i'll want to relax. i
wonder if the people who live here ever get a chance to relax? it's
seems 10 million times more hectic that any other city i've ever been
in. constant honking horns, people everywhere, the heat, the smells.
all of it. i know i'm not painting the best picture. it's absolutely
fascinating. i was so so so tired on the car journey home, but my eyes
were maybe the widest they've ever been.
and i'm ready for more... just need some sleep.
ok, signing off for now. i'll write again when i can, hopefully a
little more rested and a little more at ease.
i got in yesterday, leba picked me up from the airport which was
great. she showed me around her neighborhood called bandra (upscale
part of town but you wouldn't really know it), then we got to work. if
you didn't know, i'm working on her little documentary film where
we're interviewing indians about who they would vote for in the
american election. so yesterday and today we did a lot for that...
getting info together, buying supplies, location scouting, etc. it's
actually been a pretty good way to see the "real bombay" i think.
we pretty much stayed around bandra last night. went out to meet some
of leba's friends (locals) which was cool. then surprisingly, i ended
up staying out and going to a club with some of the guys. NOT WHAT I
EXPECTED. i could have been in LA for god's sake. bad techno and weird
rich indian men dancing. depsite all that, it was fun and i met a nice
guy from jaipur that owns a hotel, said he'd "take care of me there"
whatever that means. HA!! no, i think it was genuinely nice, just not
sure if i'm up for that.
today was location scouting for the shoot. that was a very good way to
see the city. we went down to colaba which was really intense for me.
i don't know if it's that i was overly tired (jet lag and staying out
late) or the heat or just being in the place that i've only seen
pictures or read about or imagined, but actually being IN IT was
pretty indescribable. i had an odd combination of nerves from being
stared at and then just seeing what i was seeing. i'm obviously having
a hard time putting words to it. i think i was sort of beating myself
up for feeling the way i was too because i was mad at myself for the
shock i was experiencing. leba and her friend sandra made me feel more
at ease when they said it was totally normal to feel this way on the
first day and to just go with it. that i would eventually get used to
it and start to see the beauty in things. and it's true. on the taxi
ride home i found myself smiling and laughing at scenes of babies
riding on the front of motorcycles, kids playing with skinny goats on
the side of a busy street, chickens flying off of tin sheds, a man
sorting out a giant stack of newspapers for who knows what reason.
just taking it all in, taking it all in.
to be perfectly honest after the feelings i experienced today, i'm
scared to go off into the country by myself. the people are totally
nice and mean well but i think it's mostly just being scared of my own
feelings, if that makes any sense. i was really allowing myself to
FEEL the nerves and discomfort walking through the amazingly dirty,
smelly streets and being asked for money from a one-eyed deformed man.
at this very moment i feel like i'm a little bit crazy for taking this
trip, but i KNOW in my gut that will change and i just have to go with
it. this is my first full day.
i don't want to make anyone nervous (mom and deb!) because i know i'm
going to be fine, i'm just putting my true feelings out there for my
favorite people to read. i have a pretty good feeling i'm going to
head to goa after the shoot to do a little chill out. i was
considering going straight to rajasthan and "get my travel" on but i
think after the chaos of bombay and the shoot, i'll want to relax. i
wonder if the people who live here ever get a chance to relax? it's
seems 10 million times more hectic that any other city i've ever been
in. constant honking horns, people everywhere, the heat, the smells.
all of it. i know i'm not painting the best picture. it's absolutely
fascinating. i was so so so tired on the car journey home, but my eyes
were maybe the widest they've ever been.
and i'm ready for more... just need some sleep.
ok, signing off for now. i'll write again when i can, hopefully a
little more rested and a little more at ease.
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