Jenna and I have been 'on the road' in Northern India for nearly a month now and are eagerly anticipating a measure of relaxation. That will come next week, when we officially leave India on Tuesday. We first fly to Paris, where we will be hosted by my Uncle Kent and Aunt Antha, who are teaching in Europe for a semester. We will also get to hang out with my cousin Leah, who is already a freshman in high school!
After ten days in Paris, we will return to the US on Good Friday. We thought we might be sad to leave India but frankly, we have both been noticing cracks in our traveler's armor these past few weeks--a general tiredness of Indian food, a wariness of touts and auto-rickshaw drivers, exhaustion over the stares of the locals. Not to say that our seven-month adventure has not been life-altering (in so many untold ways), but if 'home is where the heart is' then ours is still firmly in the US.
My last update put us in Jodphur, in the state of Rajasthan. A lot has happened since that time. We spent five days in beautiful Udaipur (still in Rajasthan), and witnessed the country erupt over India's win in the Cricket World cup. Sheer madness.
After that, we took an overnight bus back to Delhi, which was surprisingly comfortable and private. We had our own sleek cabin with beds and tinted windows. The ride was rough but we slept much better than we had on any trains, planes, or cars we have rode in in the past year.
We stayed in Delhi one night and then took a lengthy eight-hour train ride north to the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, twenty miles from the Pakistan border in the province of Punjab. Sikhs are immediately identifiable for their regal turbans and well-manicured beards. Often, they are mistaken for Muslims in the West (to their detriment in a post-9/11 world). Sikhism developed in the 1500s in Punjab as a response to Islam and Hinduism. It combines elements of both religions and propounds a remarkably universal and tolerant philosophy. Jenna and I visited the Sikh holy shine--the Golden Temple. It's dome is encased in more than a half ton of solid gold.
We plan to return to Delhi in two days and then fly to Paris. Then, its home.
This quick post lacks pictures because the Internet cafes I have encountered in the north have very strict regulations about using USB drives. (I don't know if being so close to the border with Pakistan has anything to do with that.) Either way, I have not been able to download pictures. Apologies. I will as soon as I get a chance.
No comments:
Post a Comment