Archive for the 'India' Category

24 Hours in Delhi

Published
by
elizabeth
on September 12, 2008
in India and Stress
. 2 Comments

Thursday, September 11, 2008

 I’ll be honest:  the idea of coming to India - especially Delhi — scares the bejezus out of me.  Sure, it sounded fine and dandy from the air conditioned comfort of my Albuquerque living room.  But as our departure date grew nearer, the mere thought sent chills of panic down my spine.  What’s so scary about India? 

  1. You can’t talk to anyone who’s been here without eliciting wildly varying reactions. “You will either love it or hate it,” everyone says.  Which camp would I fall into?
  2. The crush of humanity, the sheer volume of people, freaks me out.  “If you thought Istanbul crowds were bad, just wait until you get to Delhi,” said a friend of mine. 
  3. I fear getting sick.  Everyone I know who has traveled to or lived in India has been violently ill. Even the flight attendant on our plane, who was Indian, said she gets sick when she comes to Delhi.
  4. We are in the tail end of monsoon season, and I am convinced that every day will bring 90+ degree weather with 90% humidity, and that I will be perpetually cranky. 
  5. This is an overwhelming place to come without plans.  We have no plans. 

 I think the biggest reason, though, is that India represents the final frontier of independent travel.  Just like New York, “if I can make it here I can make it anywhere.” Many RTW travelers skip India because it seems like too much to tackle.  I can’t help but wonder what “qualifies” me to be here.  I constantly feel like I’m not cut out for this type of travel, that I don’t have the skills and demeanor required to be successful on the road.  A place like India makes me feel all the less secure; if any place tests my limits, this will be it.  “Maybe we should have gone to Thailand instead?” I asked Maikael, weakly, this morning.  

 Regardless of what I should or shouldn’t have done, we find ourselves in Delhi today. In the last 24 hours, the following has occurred: 

  • We were deloused on an airplane
  • Maikael made best friends with the gentleman who we refused to change seats with on the plane
  • We discovered at 5 am, as we were driving down the wrong side of the street through the darkened streets of Delhi in an ancient cab, that our hotel had moved to an undisclosed location. The phone number we used a week ago didn’t work.
  • We saw three cows lounging on the side of a busy road, and one peacock perched on an apartment balcony
  • We ate a large lunch for two at the cost of $4
  • Our hotel room was briefly invaded by crickets
  • Maikael was led to (yet another) ATM machine by an Indian man
  • I was stared at continuously while walking down the street

 The highlight of my day was reading The Hindustan Times which, as far as I can tell, is India’s answer to USA Today.  Such informative headlines read, “Don’t worry, we are safe,” and the ever-reassuring, “Injured Indians in Lanka:  These things happen.”  I flipped to the weather forecast, which was as delightfully mystical as I would have expected.  “The morning may be pleasant, with an uneasy afternoon.  There are chances of thundery development.”  I’m also up-to-date on all the latest Bollywood gossip.  And if I’m bored this evening, I can watch “Ruby Duby Hub Dub” on television. 

 I’m not sure what I’m in for. 

Reading Rainbow

Published
by
elizabeth
on June 22, 2008
in Australia, India, Indonesia, Planning and Portugal
. 1 Comment

As July 13 quickly approaches, I find that The Trip has taken full residence in my brain. For months it was safely confined to the guest house, making occasional visits inside, but with The Trip so near I can’t seem to think about anything else these days, which has manifested itself in a variety of ways. On my recent trip to Seattle I made it a point to see a play, as I always do when I’m in town, decent theatre being the thing I miss most about not living there anymore. The only one that caught my eye was Namaste Man, a terrific one-man show about a guy who spent his childhood overseas as a State Department kid.

Try as I might, I find I have very little energy for engaging myself in anything that doesn’t pertain to overseas travel. This has become particularly true for reading preferences. For months, the only thing I’ve read is travel-related literature, including memoirs, novels, and guidebooks. Here is a list of a few books we’ve read recently that we’ve really enjoyed:

Chasing Che: A Motorcycle Journey in Search of the Guevara Legend by Patrick Symmes. This memoir follows one man’s journey by motorcycle through South America, retracing Che Guevara’s famous, epic journey over the same terrain. I bought this book for Maikael for Christmas and he loved it. He would often read me passages out loud, my favorite being Symmes’ experience at a Bolivian border crossing (he and a border patrolman have an entire conversation that goes like this: “Cuzco?” “Cuzco.”).  Highly recommended for anyone planning a trip to South America, or interested in learning more about this region of the world.

A Small Death in Lisbon by Robert Wilson. I am embarrassed to say I knew very little about Portugal, and wanted to learn more before we went. I had a hard time finding a travel memoir for Portugal, so, at the recommendation of Lonely Planet’s Portugal guidebook, I opted for a work of fiction set in the country. Billed as a crime novel (it won the UK’s prestigious Gold Dagger award in 1999), it reads more as historical fiction, providing a fascinating look into Portugal’s history from World War II to present day. An intriguing read with a complex narrative, whether you’re planning a trip to Portugal or not.

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. This book needs little introduction, given its placement on the New York Times Bestsellers List week after week, but I can’t speak highly enough of this travel memoir. Gilbert recounts her travels to Italy, India, and Indonesia, and I was particularly intrigued by her experiences in Bali. In fact, our inclusion of this country on our itinerary is due solely to reading this book.

In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson. One of the best travel writers out there, Bryson writes poignantly about his experiences traversing Australia, from large coastal cities to obscure outback hamlets. I walked away with a greater understanding of what this wonderful country is all about, which really got me in the mood to visit and learn more.

Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World by Anthony Doerr. I picked up this book on a lark at the University of Washington Bookstore, and am just a few chapters in, but I’m already hankering for delicate pillows of pumpkin ravioli.

One goal I’ve set for the trip is to read at least one book that pertains to each country we’re visiting. What recommendations do you have for books for us to read? Send us your ideas!

Visa: It’s Everywhere You Want To Be!

Published
by
elizabeth
on June 3, 2008
in Documentation, India and Planning
. 1 Comment

I just mailed off the applications for our Indian visas.  Here’s how it breaks down:

taj.jpgConsular Fee:  $120
Outsourcing Fee:  $26
Shipping Fee:  $20
Sending package by registered mail:  $14
Seeing the Taj Mahal at dawn:  Priceless

Visas, we’ve learned, are a tricky thing.  More than half of the countries we’re visiting don’t require a visa, and most of the visas we do need can be obtained upon arrival at the airport, averaging between $15 and $25 per visa per person.  Our most expensive visa, for Chile, costs a whopping $131 per person!  The cost and complexity of visas often has a great deal to do with current foreign policy.  If the US increases visa prices for, say, Brazilian visitors, so, too, do American tourists to Brazil get squeezed.  It’s a checks and balances thing. 

Being clear on visa requirements and costs is a really important part of the planning process that’s easy to overlook.  Without doing your research, you could waste days waiting around a capital city for a visa, or worse, be denied entry after you’ve flown halfway across the world.  India was the one visa we were required to obtain in advance.  It’s good for six months from the date of issue (not the date of entry, which is an important distinction).  In order to obtain said visa, we had to send off a bundle of documents, two passport-sized photos, a credit card number, and our passports to — I kid you not — an outsourcing agency in San Francisco.  (It’s true!  We outsource to India, and India outsources to the US!) 

I was a little nervous to send along my passport, the only thing I really need for this trip that I will be embarking on in less than six weeks.  Apparently this is fairly common practice, but I still felt a little strange letting such an important document out of my possession.  It’s not unlike the ticketing agent at the airport asking if you have let your baggage out of your sight since packing:  relinquishing my passport felt illicit.  But with any luck, we should have our Indian visas in about two weeks.