They say that you can’t go to India unless you are called there—that it is a place you are invited to go. Well, my chance finally came.
One of my good friends from high school was transferred to India for work. He didn’t reach out to me, but his wife is close with my sister, and they got to talking, and before you know it I was invited to come out.
I hesitated at first since it wasn’t the best time for me personally, but I decided to go and not let the opportunity slip by.
The journey began when we all met in Mumbai. My sister and her Korean friend (the wife of another one of my high school friends) came in from Japan, my friend and his wife live in Mumbai, and I came in from Portugal. The day after we got there, we left my friend in Mumbai and the four middle-aged women set out on their tour of Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, and the surrounding suburbs.
My friend’s wife and my sister are excellent planners, and had already put together a fantastic schedule packed with must-see locations from the start. And they even found a way to integrate additional stops when something else in the area caught their fancy. They had an incredible ability to collect information from reviews and Google Maps and create a full travel itinerary. It boggled the mind to even look at it.
The travel agent who helped us arrange cars and drivers was bewildered by our plan, but in these situations, completing the itinerary becomes a pleasure and the journey itself becomes a kind of discipline—no missions are to be left unachieved.
The group of four Japanese and Korean ladies naturally fell into their respective roles without discussion, exhibiting the masterful teamwork needed to complete their mission. One or the other of us spotted the destinations even before our driver, worked with him to get us there, made sure we weren’t missing anything important on the way to the next stop, checked Google Maps, managed our guide and gave firm instructions to ensure that we traveled efficiently, posted evidence of our trip on Instagram, searched for liquor stores and restaurants that would serve alcohol, took charge of payment, took charge of plane tickets, and on and on. We of course walked quickly—even ran occasionally—pushing ourselves into places just as they were closing. It’s something only our driven little group could have achieved.
The driver who accompanied us for our entire journey was quite handsome upon closer inspection. We became rather attached to him by the third day and were sad to part, admiring how well he kept up with our crazy schedule. When we asked him to take us to the airport on the final day, he smiled at us for the first time, flashing his white teeth. We said our goodbyes, and he disappeared without looking back, leaving the four ladies to bask in the afterglow of their memories.
Even though it was my first time going on such a hectic and frantic trip, I was amazed at how much we were able to see in such a short time and how much we got to experience. I guess it goes without saying that the places we picked were truly outstanding, each one more breathtakingly beautiful than the last. I get totally lost in the pictures now as I take the time to gaze at each one.
What were my impressions of India? For one, it was a far safer country than I expected. It seemed that many Indian people were almost in a state of enlightenment.
And while the caste system has been abolished, it is a concept that was embedded in everyday life for so long that you can still see remnants of it in modern India. Even in the places we traveled to, we saw people working tirelessly for those of higher status. The people they served did not seem to look down on them, nor did there seem to be any sense of envy from those who served.
There were those who seemed to be living on the street, something that I’ve seen in many other countries as well. There are people in places like Latin America and Morocco who live much the same as the poor do in India. But unlike their Indian counterparts, they tend to have a darkness about them, with a piercing look in their eyes. In India, even around people who could be considered unsafe, I never felt threatened or that my life might be in danger.
It may seem cliché to say, but it seemed to me that the Indian people have largely accepted their fate in life, trusting in what karma has dealt them. They have faith in what the next life holds.
What an incredible experience. I miss India so very much.
