Indian Snapshots

My first day or two in South Africa all I wanted to do was shower, walk down the street with no one looking at me, see the ocean, go to a grocery store, have fixed prices, and eat a hamburger. What I wasn’t anticipating was the reverse culture shock. I’m honestly a little embarrassed how long it has taken me to readjust.

Some has been positive:

“How marvelous to have this steel box clean my clothes FOR me.”

Or

“Hot water is falling from the sky on command!”

Some has been less so:

“It's how much?”

I was ready to leave India, I was. But, of course there are some things I miss terribly. Animals, sites and people

The happiest looking animals ever everywhere:

Sharing the road with cows:

Cow In Jaipur
(Alana's Photo)

Seeing elephant rides and camel carts:

Stumbling on sites like this:

Royal Gator, Jaipur

Royal Gator, Jaipur

Royal Gator, Jaipur

Views like these:

Amer Fort, Outside Jaipur

Amer Fort, Outside Jaipur

Amer Fort, Outside Jaipur

Red Fort, Agra

Pink City, Jaipur
(Alana's Photo)

View from our hotel's roof, Udaipur
(Alana's Photo)

City of Udaipur

City Palace, Udaipur
Alana

Temple, Udaipur
Alana's

Lake Pichola, Udaipur

Temple, Udaipur
Alana's

Temple, Udaipur

Temple, Bhangarh
(Vijay's Photo)

Local Women Carrying Sticks, Bhangarh

Bhangarh
(Vijay's Photo)

Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

City Palace, Udaipur

Bhangarh
(Vijay's Photo)

But of course, above all I'll miss the people.
My two closest friends I met here:

Paulette and me at Amer Fort

Vijay and me in Bhangarh

And those that came for a visit:

The last visit was especially special--Alana came to see me for the last time we’ll see each other in 2 ½ years. My incredible best friend is off to a small island off the coast of Madagascar for the Peace Corps. I’m so incredibly proud of her.

Every morning I awoke to the sounds of cows, hindi, bells and the vegetable sellers. One of the vegetable sellers sold potatoes and onions. He would shout, "aloo, aloo, alooooooo, pyaaz!" By the end of my stay, as he could come down the street he'd switch shouting, "potato, potato, potatooooo, onion!"

It's weird things like that that I'll probably miss the most. Oh, and the food.

I miss the food.