Today our team left to see what Jaipur looks like in the daylight. The man that is hosting us runs an international college and was nice enough to have one of his drivers bus us around and show us to the old city. The ride there alone was one of the biggest eye-opening experiences of my life. I can't believe how the cows just roam the streets and eat garbage. I asked somebody who they belong to -but it seems that they're wild. I took a bunch of photos of them and the locals seemed to think I was crazy. I wish I could explain to them that the issue was not that I had never seen a cow before, but instead that it was strange for me to see them grazing openly in the streets.
After walking around for a while I thought it might be a good idea to make some friends. I mean -being in a foreign city without my friends to protect me from myself. These guys looked like business so I started there. The sheer number of people everywhere is something to get used to. Imagine the streets of New York during rush hour, make the streets narrower and without a grid, and then add about a billion people. Oh, and then there are the car horns. India doesn't have traffic lights so much as I'm used to, but they compensate for it by sounding their horns as often as possible. This is not a complaint. There are certainly places even in New Paltz where this might work out -like for example the intersection by the starbucks.
My sister Cat and her friend at Lola's Cafe told me to bring back some spices. I will if i can and when I saw vendors like this in the bazaar. The photo is nice, but I wish there were a way to convey the aromas too. Cat and Eddie -it would do you well to pay a visit here some day. And speaking of spices, the food here is amazing. Though I feel horrible stuffing myself with such amazing food while right out my window there are people literally starving to death. It makes the mind spin. What can I do? To be sure, I share what I can and make sure nothing goes to waste. And I should also point out that given the chaos and omnipresent poverty, the people are -as a rule- among the friendliest I've met both abroad and within the U.S..
Alright. I love you all, but after a day like this I need some time to rest and relax. I'll continue to stay in touch as often as possible. If you talk to my mom (because I have no idea if she's reading any of this) please tell her that I'm alright and enjoying what I'm doing here. I'll do my best to keep up with your emails, but if I can't please don't get offended.
ॐ शान्ति शान्ति शान्ति ॐ
-Adam
awesome awesome n some more awesome :)
ReplyDeletenext stop ... jal mahal or hawa mahal? :)
ooooooh or cud it be jantar mantar ... theres tons more places there in the PINK city ....
Nice post - After having lived outside India for four years I've now started understanding somewhat what the poverty can look like to new eyes and how overwhelming it can be. Btw - you haven't seen Bombay yet have you? Its an order of magnitude more of everything that you saw in Jaipur :)
ReplyDeleteHey Dude!
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you've finally made it to India. Enjoy your time there, I'm sure you'll come back speaking better Hindi and Gujarati than I do.
If you need anything, I have a grandfather in Ahmedabad proper, and he also speaks english.
My Dad's parents (i'm sure you've met them at some point) are in a little village outside of Anand (another city in Gujarat).
Enjoy your time, and take lots of pictures!
i'm not there so you go and befriend a militia... typisch!
ReplyDelete