Reflections and farewell to India
Trip Start
May 31, 2008
1
16
33
Trip End
Jul 31, 2009
Mumbai (Bombay),
India
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Well - after 46 days and many a wild ride my dance with India is complete. And what an experience! As I sit here in Mumbai airport waiting to depart for Singapore I guess I feel that on reflection that nothing can really prepare you for India, it's too enigmatic a place for someone who has never been to second guess. You really do have to come and try it for yourself to have the first clue as to what it's really like. And by no means do I consider myself anything other than a beginner with regards to the country, but what little experience I have had has afforded me the ability to make my own mind up about whether it is for me or not... and it IS.
As I was settling in to my train ride from Delhi to Mumbai one of the people in my Carriage was joined by his brother from another section of the train, a retired forces sailor from the Indian Navy. He had travelled a bit, seen some of the world, had been trained and served with the British a bit and one generally got the impression that he didn't suffer fools gladly. He first set about telling me how India is a 'DIRTY COUNTRY', relentlessly berating is people for having a lazy attitude and expecting everyone else to clean up their mess... except nobody takes responsibility.
This is a very true reflection, India treats it's environment like a toilet by and large... and what can be so appealing about that? Well, his next point was that despite this, the Indian people are generally a good people with a kind heart. I think he was trying to say that they have morals. Now, if you experience the extent to which many Indians are prepared to try and take you for every penny you have you might be inclined to argue, but despite this I am inclined to agree with my brief acquaintance.
Not once did I ever feel threatened or intimidated in this country, at no stage did I ever think someone was going out of their way to intentionally harm me. Sure, there are scams and crooks, and every place has bad people, but I think for the size of the population Indian citizens represent themselves proportionately very well indeed. Most of them go pretty much out of their way to make you feel very special. Unfortunately, when you look at it objectively, we (the tourists) ARE special really. The average Indian wage is less than a pound a day, so it's no surprise really that they charge us 9 quid to get into the Taj and try and get an extra 20p in their pockets when they see us coming...
At its heart the allure of India I feel is its character as a whole. I think the best way to describe the place is unstoppable, and when you are immersed in that momentum yourself and can see people from all levels of class, all types of religion and ethnicity living together and just existing in the crazy organized anarchy that is India 24/7 you can't help but admire the way the country continues to grow... it's almost frightening. It is also very real.
Life really does have teeth out here, there is no proverbial parachute in most cases, just freefall and see what happens. From the way people drive (had my first little crash today on the way to the airport! Had to happen. Nothing major. All ok. Apt ending!) to the lack of emergency services, the corrupt police to the lack of education for many of it's children, the cards you are dealt here are generally all pure chance and it is both sad and exhilarating. Living and dying are both very public experiences here, and stripping down the veil over much of the experience we as Westerners have with our Nanny State and Emergency Services, our Insurance schemes and NHS... is actually quite a liberating experience. You become aware that if we didn't have these creature comforts - guess what - the world WOUDLDN'T come to a crashing end! I would go so far as to say that I don't think I've ever properly appreciated being alive until I came here. Seeing the blind and the amputees walk amongst the masses, the mutilated beggers and the kids with no clothes, shoes or anything to eat, seeing people waking up in Delhi and washing in public in the street, people sleeping anywhere there is space including roundabouts and pavements, seeing Lepers drag themselves along the street on stumps and other disabled people dragging themselves around on low trolleys... NON of this is exceptional, non of this is winced at or avoided, never is it hidden. And for this life to be exposed like the reality it is really makes you appreciate your every breath.
As a final tale of India, let me recount my experience of going to the hairdressers.
A normal looking Barbers shop was stumbled into by a very hot and somewhat bewildered Rob within my first few hours of being in Mumbai. A trim was the order of the day, and I took my seat in the chair expecting nothing more. I should have known better.
The haircut itself can only really be described as a few cursory snips around the back and sides with a little off the fringe. I looked smarter and that was the objective. However, in between snips I had my head massaged, my face sprayed with water, my eyes caressed and my back and shoulders were rubbed by kind and somewhat portly barber. MAN - I NEEDED that back rub too! What a great experience... and all for 40p! I didn't even ask for the 'EXTRAS'! ;)
Oh - and I got asked to be an extra in a Bollywood movie yesterday! Surreal...
It's deviations from the norm of Western Culture, amongst the uncensored reality of life that really give travelling in India it's charm I think. I'm sure I'll be back at some stage...
Comments
Nice!
Nice Blog Dude!
Impossible to really summarize india ....cos of all the contradictions and extremes floating about, but i thought you did a good job there. i could almost smell the cow shit!
On with the adventure dude. Enjoy!!!!
Hair
I had a similar slightly more expensive encounter with an hairdresser, I still think yours is special just not that worryingly special. Though the neck rub is something new to me, the bargain of the trip?
Concluding India
Well done Rob for a enlightening and objective conclusion that sounds a very interesting place and one that appeals to the senses - even if some experiences are very unappealing. It definitely puts the credit crunch into perspective though!
Would have been a good reason to watch my first ever Bollywood movie if you'd made a cameo. As you say you never know what lucky card you're gonna be dealt over there!