For the same price of leaving Delhi for Bangkok, we could go to Mumbai and depart from there. Althought both of us were feeling fatigued by India, we decided to push on so that we could see some ancient caves south of Mumbai in Aurangabad.
On our train ride there, we witnessed our second incident of vigilante justice. A drunken guy offended a lady so her son sought justice by slapping him silly. All of this happened in broad daylight in an overcrowded train. Just as soon as the commotion started, it ended. In a way, it was quite effective to express the anger right away rather than suppress it. Imagine this happening at home or at work. It could definately get ugly!
At Aurangabad, we met a cool British couple Patty and Gary who we went with to the Ellora Caves. The World Heritage Caves were built between 600AD to 1000AD. The 30 plus caves represent the Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain religions each of which have intricately carved sculptures. The Kailasa Temple in one of the caves covers twice the area of the Parthenon in Anthens, is 1.5 times larger, and was hand built starting from the top to the bottom. The caves are definately one of the most impressive sites I have ever seen!
After an "ace" (awesome in Brit slang) day at the caves, we went back to Mumbai for our final 2 days. I was hoping to finish on a high note but that wasn't on in our destiny. I had a major heat stress meltdown walking around the city. I was in near tears as I grappled with the heat, a disgusting feeling of stickiness, and a sense that my brain was cooking in my head. I could not have survived the day without Nico who put up with my craziness and escorted me to the nearest a/c restaurant where we had one of our best Indian thalis (meals)!
Just as we were back on a high, we had dinner at a kebab stand that we had eaten at before. Either it was the kebab or water from our breakfast chai teas that put us flat on our backs with traveller's diarrhea. I was not as sick as my first bout in the Himilayas but Nico was violently ill all night. We spent the next day in bed within a stone's throw from the toilet. So that was the lovely kick ass parting gift that India surprised us with. Merci et tabernac from the Chungs!
Now that I am at the end of this leg of the trip, you may wonder whether India is a place that you should go to. Despite the lows, I would still recommend it. But just as I was excited to arrive, I was even more excited to depart. I felt that it was a really tough trip. Mentally, there was the constant action and sheer volume of people (mostly men) to deal with. Physically, I got sick a few times but met some traveller's who did not get sick once. The heat and the frequent sight and smell of human shit, piss, and garbage are also barriers to overcome. On the flip side, I saw some of the most amazing things and met some of the happiest, helpful, and soulful people.
If you decide to visit, I am sure that your experience will be interesting at the very least and uniquely different from mine.
So that's a wrap India. Now it's back to the creature comforts of Thailand before we head to Indonesia.
On our train ride there, we witnessed our second incident of vigilante justice. A drunken guy offended a lady so her son sought justice by slapping him silly. All of this happened in broad daylight in an overcrowded train. Just as soon as the commotion started, it ended. In a way, it was quite effective to express the anger right away rather than suppress it. Imagine this happening at home or at work. It could definately get ugly!
At Aurangabad, we met a cool British couple Patty and Gary who we went with to the Ellora Caves. The World Heritage Caves were built between 600AD to 1000AD. The 30 plus caves represent the Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain religions each of which have intricately carved sculptures. The Kailasa Temple in one of the caves covers twice the area of the Parthenon in Anthens, is 1.5 times larger, and was hand built starting from the top to the bottom. The caves are definately one of the most impressive sites I have ever seen!
After an "ace" (awesome in Brit slang) day at the caves, we went back to Mumbai for our final 2 days. I was hoping to finish on a high note but that wasn't on in our destiny. I had a major heat stress meltdown walking around the city. I was in near tears as I grappled with the heat, a disgusting feeling of stickiness, and a sense that my brain was cooking in my head. I could not have survived the day without Nico who put up with my craziness and escorted me to the nearest a/c restaurant where we had one of our best Indian thalis (meals)!
Just as we were back on a high, we had dinner at a kebab stand that we had eaten at before. Either it was the kebab or water from our breakfast chai teas that put us flat on our backs with traveller's diarrhea. I was not as sick as my first bout in the Himilayas but Nico was violently ill all night. We spent the next day in bed within a stone's throw from the toilet. So that was the lovely kick ass parting gift that India surprised us with. Merci et tabernac from the Chungs!
Now that I am at the end of this leg of the trip, you may wonder whether India is a place that you should go to. Despite the lows, I would still recommend it. But just as I was excited to arrive, I was even more excited to depart. I felt that it was a really tough trip. Mentally, there was the constant action and sheer volume of people (mostly men) to deal with. Physically, I got sick a few times but met some traveller's who did not get sick once. The heat and the frequent sight and smell of human shit, piss, and garbage are also barriers to overcome. On the flip side, I saw some of the most amazing things and met some of the happiest, helpful, and soulful people.
If you decide to visit, I am sure that your experience will be interesting at the very least and uniquely different from mine.
So that's a wrap India. Now it's back to the creature comforts of Thailand before we head to Indonesia.
Pic 1-4 Ellora Caves
Pic 5 Killer Kebabs
Pic 6 Thali Meal Post-Meltdown. I think I've lost about 5-10 pounds...not good!
It's good to know that you survived India. Definitely lots of great stories from you. Much better than the ones my friends tell me after they come back from India (hardly any good things to say).
ReplyDeleteExperiences... I firmly believe everyone should experience shitting and vomitting within minutes of each other at least once in their lifetime. It definitely makes feeling normal feel extradinary. Ha ha... You're on the road: sleep when you're tired, eat when your hungry, open your eyes and see what is before thee.
ReplyDeleteBeats being in a cubicle :)
Hi Kelly,
ReplyDeleteI'm Louis-Francois Guimont
I'm looking for Nic.
My e-mail is lfguimont@videotron.ca
The old e-mail for Nic doesn't work !
Thank you :-)