The Start of a Long Journey

After leaving JFK Airport at 10:40 am I thought I was in for a long and tiresome trip. It's true that I was tired toward the end of it, but it in no way felt like it took a long time. I don't know if it Emirates Airlines is consistently amazing, but for our trip at the least I felt like a celebrity. The time went by fast, the food was restaurant quality, the drinks -free, and the crew beyond friendly. After 12 plus hours (felt like maybe three) we landed in Dubai. The airport was beautiful and what I could see of the city made me want to visit it badly. Awe inspiring wealth everywhere. After a short while it was time to depart for Delhi.

When we got off the plane at Delhi everything was suddenly different. There was no avoiding it -I am in India! It's utter chaos everywhere -though not in a bad way. Picture the hustle and bustle of Manhattan. Just... a little dirtier. So... maybe New York circa the early 80's and a lot more Indian. My friend Maija and I are working on our Hindi. We're both making a strong headway with the written language, but there's lots to learn in the speaking and comprehension department. I'm not worried. If I know myself I know that I'll come home speaking all sorts of Hindi and Gujarati.

We didn't have any time to drive around Delhi because we had a connecting flight to Jaipur. My traveling friends tell me that we were stuck in the plane for hours, but in all honestly I don't remember taking off, landing, or any of the flight at all. It could have been because all that fatigue finally caught up with me or it might have had something to do with a small gift from my friend Katrina. Either way -in what felt like minutes later -I was in Jaipur.

The first thing I had to do when I got off the plane was pee. I don't know if any of you have ever been to a scout camp outhouse, but the bathroom at the Jaipur airport fits along those lines. Oh, and forget toilet paper -all you've got is a hose next to the... well... it's not a toilet -more like a ceramic hole in the ground. Don't take this as me complaining. I'm not. From the get go all of us going have been prepared in what to expect -but I want you to know the difference in the lives lived over here versus back in the states.

Once we picked up our luggage -and yes, all five of us got all of our luggage on time and in the right place (something that astounds me because my sisters airline couldn't handle the same task and they were only going from New York to South Carolina!)- we were met by the group from the Rotary International district that's hosting us and putting us up. They were phenomenal and in their welcome. We were all adorned with marigold lais and hugged like we were long lost family members. I didn't deserve it in the least and felt immediately guilty -especially when immediately to my right was a large crowd of (I hate the term poor, but can't think of another way to put it) poor people just standing there and watching us. But on the other hand -it's a large part of why I want to be here -with any luck we'll be able to make a difference in some of the lives that we touch while here.

On the short trip from the airport to the school where we'll be staying for the next two days (or maybe one, I'm not exactly sure) we passed some of the most amazing scenes I've seen in my life. There were the moto-rickshaws that my Indian friends have been telling me about, the quintessential cows in the streets, pigs rummaging through street garbage, it was the most wonderful. As soon as I get a chance to post photos I will. In the meantime -I can't wait for my team members to wake up so we can get out and begin our day of exploration before they put us to work!