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Coming Home

Some final thoughts as we are on the final leg of our journey.

Adventures are fun. But home is good, too. The Teenlet asserted earlier in this trip that he is the most Hobbit-like of the four of us. But I would say that I am very much like a Hobbit, for some of them went on adventures and returned home joyfully to their creature comforts. That is how I feel... glad I went, but done with adventures - until next time.

I said at the beginning of this blog that I expected to see beauty and tragedy interwoven so that they are almost indistinguishable.  That was true. We saw the depths of human poverty, but with a community that is always looking out for each other, and helping each other. We saw the most beautiful building in the world, built as a monument to despair and loss. We saw human dignity that was resilient to the hardest conditions, and the stagnancy that is caused by lack of hope. We saw the beauty of religious expression, and how religion can become the oppressor. We saw how a corrupt and completely hands off government leaves its people in chaos and poverty, but also how a government that drives too much turns its people into little more than slaves (thinking of some of the Mughal kings, there).

Woman, employed to sweep the palace.

Tent slum, along the railway in Gujurat

But I was also very surprised by India. I'm not really sure how to explain that, except to say that the pictures I've had in my mind my whole life were both right and wrong. There were times it was easy to forget that we were not in the United States, and times we felt very out of place. I did not like being the object of so many stares (especially from the men), and it was comforting to have my dad and brother right there with me. In southern Gujurat, I actually felt animosity towards me for being a western female. But I only felt threatened once (and that situation - the aggressive hawkers in Jaipur- was overwhelming for everyone in our party).

Note to self and anyone else foolish enough to try it: 57 hours of straight travel is a long time. Between the 14 hour train ride, 16 hours sitting in the Delhi airport, 15 hours from Delhi to Newark, 6 hours in the Newark airport, and 6 more hours from Newark to Seattle, we are done with all forms of transportation. The Teenlet proved himself, once again, to be a super traveler.

Things I Miss About Home

Mattresses that are more than 3 inches thick
Sleep
Toilet paper (and its correlary, not carrying tp in my purse)
Not wearing a million bags around my neck (security bag for passport & cash, purse, camera)
Soft towels and unstained sheets
Reliably hot showers
Clean clothing
Not worrying about illness from the water I drink or the food I eat
A cute handbag (travel one is very handy but UUUUUUUGGGGGLY!)
Queues, taking turns in an orderly fashion
Not being stared at
Street signs
Quiet, peace, time alone

But most of all... David (and my kitty).

Things I will miss about India:
The prices for foods and goods
Bargaining
The beautiful clothing on all the women - even those in poverty have some gorgeous clothes, maybe only one or two options, but they are so colorful!!

Clothing market, Jaipur

The food
The India head nod
Seeing elephants (camels, cows) walking in traffic

Elephant, walking in traffic, Ahmedabad

Hanging with three of my four favorite guys.

Outside Jama Masjid, Delhi

Walking around Ahmedabad

Today we spent the morning walking around the Riverfront Park, Ahmedabad.  The park is more of a dream than anything else, with a huge expanse of dirt where a slum was cleared out for development. The river was narrowed to build a river walk (completed) which is 6km long, with space above that will be sports complexes, gathering areas, and open spaces. Our guidebook suggested it would have paddle boats for rent, but that didn't look like reality yet.

Riverfront Park, Ahmedabad. 

My brother is meeting with someone, so the other three of us wandered around the park for anwhile before setting off to find the restaurant where we had agreed to meet John. We found it more easily than expected,  and they brought us thali plates practically before we had even sat down.

Thali plate - small portions of lots of different curries (all veg)

We have started to call the Teenlet, "Pig Pen," because he is so grimy (especially his sweatshirt), that I'm pretty sure he is emitting dirt every time he moves. He has showered here, but clearly not frequently enough, and his sweatshirt I haven't dared wash because it is his security blanket. My own clothes are feeling rather gross as well - I did do laundry,  but it took two days to dry so I haven't tried again, though the hotter and drier climate in Gujurat would probably dry it faster than it did in Jaipur (though we haven't been in the same place for two nights since Delhi, which makes it hard to allow it time enough to dry).

Saying goodbye at the train station, Ahmedabad

The end of the day finds the Teenlet and I on our own, on the Swarna J Raj Express train to New Delhi, having left Dad and John at the station in Ahmedabad. We are in 3AC this time, which is almost as nice as AC Chairs class, except with long benches which will turn into sleeping beds later. They aren't very comfortable,  but we get food and looks like we also get blankets and pillows at sleeping time. My fellow travelers have been helpful, though not very talkative (which is fine with me). I am traveling with an elderly gentleman who is reading a little book by his guru, a young woman who is playing a game on her phone, a man who hasn't looked away from his computer,  and another gentleman who keeps getting phone calls. Across the aisle is a family of 3, who have a baby who is just learning to stand. I do not envy those parents on this 13.5 hour journey. My own child has taken up his place on the top bunk and is happily eating all of the snacks we brought for the journey. He is looking forward to eating again - I think he has subsisted on naan and rice this whole trip.

Funny note: the Teenlet managed to surprise one of our seatmates. He came down from his loft (upper bunk) to eat dinner and was sitting there explaining to me exactly what it would take to derail the train, and why heavier trains take longer to brake (simple physics topics, basically). The guy sitting on the other side of him started staring at him with eyes wide... and soon after (when Teenlet had gone back up to his bunk), he asked me how old he is, surprised that he knew so much and could talk in those terms.

Another aside: homeschooling is not legal in India (according to the people I spoke with about it) and seems like a foreign concept. I was asked several times how it works, how can I teach him, etc. 

Back to Ahmedabad

On this trip, we have traveled almost every class in the railroad system. To see  the differences is striking. In the inappropriately named "chair" class, we sat tightly crammed on hard, vinyl benches. Sleeper class had similar bench seats, but with upper berths for sleeping, and slightly more privacy with walls that were floor to ceiling. Our compartment was not full, so the four of us took over the whole thing. It was not comfortable sleeping, and we had to have our own pillows and blankets, and bring our own food. We ate a late lunch that day, and took naan and some candy bars to tide us over.

On our way to Vapi yesterday, we were in First Class. It was a small, doored compartment with a single bench seat and an upper berth. It was equally as uncomfortable,  and as the day grew warmer, the compartment grew hotter, even with the window open. We still had hawkers going up and down the aisle, selling food and beverages. 

A/C Chair compartment on the train -
it's like being in an airplane, but with legroom!

Today, as we return to Ahmedabad, we are in A/C Chairs. Wow, what a difference!  This is like being on  an airline, but with more legroom. We were served a hot breakfast, a snack, and a hot lunch with ice cream for dessert. We each received a liter of bottled water (even the Indians don't drink the tap water). The chairs are padded, and actual chairs, not benches (no encroachment by your neighbor!). You can plug in your electronic devices. And it is air conditioned. Tomorrow we will travel by 3AC,  meaning,  an air conditioned sleeper car with 3 berths high (total of 6 in a compartment, with no door). We have no idea if food will be served, but I guess that's what makes this an adventure! 

We are back in Ahmedabad and in our last hotel for this trip (at least the two of us).