1-Year Anniversary: A Look Back
 Mehndi |  Arabian Sea |  Flower market |  Street kids in Agra |  Taj Mahal |
One year ago this month, I was gazing out of the Park Sheraton Hotel window, wondering how long this would be my home.
Now, I can say I've had the full, year-round India experience. I've seen the good, the bad, the ugly, and the breathtakingly beautiful. I've been through the hottest part of the year, as well as the coolest--and found there's not too much difference between the two! :o)
It's been a year of amazing experiences. What have I done these last 12 months?
--Took 5851 photographs
--Made 215 blog entries
--Traveled by autorickshaw, train, rowboat, motorcycle, bumboat, tonga, horse, and elephant
--Experienced scorching heat, a drought, a monsoon, and a tsunami
--Survived a car accident, and lost track of how many close calls
--Saw one of the wonders of the world
--Visited two foreign countries and 6 Indian states
--Learned 100 Tamil words words (but regrettably did not make much progress beyond that) :o(
--Dipped my feet in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea
--Celebrated Pongal, Republic Day, Navaratri, Vinayaka Chaturthi, and Onam
--Wore a salwar, saree, bangles, anklets, mehndi and bindi
--Received 14 wedding invitations and attended 5 weddings
--Learned what is a stupa, prayer flag, butterlamp, pooja, khata, kolam, and lungi
--Saw what cardamom and durian looks like
--Heard the word "madam" a thousand times
--Had a hospital experience, but did NOT get malaria or typhoid (yeay!)
--Frolicked with butterflies and wrestled with lizards
--Saw the world's tallest (at the time!) building
--Lost my fear of Chennai traffic
--Visited hundreds of temples
--Enjoyed a million Indian children smiles
--Shared the road with cows, water buffalo, pigs, dogs, monkeys, elephants, goats, bullock carts and camels
--Walked endless beaches
--Learned how salt is made and how tea is grown
--Shared India with my sister and other American visitors
--Celebrated an Indian birthday
--Swatted a thousand mosquitoes
--Ate meals off banana leaves
--Chatted with taxi drivers, autorickshaw drivers, street vendors, beach-goers, security guards, and baby monks
--Learned to love dosai, raita, and sweet lime juice
--Learned the Indian head wobble
--Sang Christmas carols in September
--Walked barefoot a lot, on cool marble floors, hot summer beaches, and stone temple floors
--Spent 120 hours riding the Indian rails
--Parasailed over the Arabian Sea
--Learned who Ganesh, Durga, and Saraswati were
--Went through an ocean of bottled water
--Tried to stay away from eve-teasers and biscuit bandits, and fended off endless hawkers
--Got spoiled living on the beach
--Saw 500+ crocodiles
--Ate some of the best international food ever
--Went from 3 suitcases of belongings to an entire houseful
I'm looking forward to what the next year has in store for me~
 Child street vendors |  Coconut seller |  Mahaballipuram |  Entrance to Taj Mahal |  Goa beach with Donna |
Sounds like more than a year's worth of experiences!
I just read an interesting article in Discover magazine describing a scientist, Spencer Wells, who is studying via DNA analysis the history of human migration in Asia . I would imagine that you can relate to this paragraph from the article:
"He felt bottled up in Lubbock, Texas, he says, and is drawn to places like India, where you step out of a taxicab to face cows and crowds and people of many colors speaking strange languages: "It's incredible, and it's overwhelming. I love the feeling of being immersed."
I like that line: "the feeling of being immersed"