Reflections on India/Nepal

As we made our final drive through India to the Chennai airport on Tuesday, I was surprisingly bittersweet about leaving.  I enjoyed India and Nepal much more than I thought I would.  Some of the things I'll miss most:

1.  Monkeys!  I know they're pests, but they sure are cute to watch on the side of the road.

2.  The beautiful bright-colored saris.  It will be a sad day if/when Western clothing replaces these.

3.  Reading the signs!




4.  Fresh produce stands everywhere.  Beautiful to see and tasty to eat!  Fresh oranges, bananas, pomegranates...

5.  The hospitality.  Once again, we are inspired to be more intentional about this when we return.  In each place we visited, people went out of their way to make sure we were provided for and welcomed.

When we arrived in Nepal, after a long day of driving, many neighbors and family members were waiting to greet us with traditional dances...

...and fresh bouquets of flowers as well as fresh flower garlands.

We were so welcomed into Mike's friend's home in Pune and our girls formed fast friendships with their daughters (and son--who didn't make the picture).

6.  The masala tea.  Black tea with spices, milk, and sugar.  Mmmm!

Our last stop for Indian tea on the way to the airport.

7.  Cows wandering in the road.  They're kind of cute meandering around.

8.  Palm trees

9.  Multi-colored bougainvillea

10.  Garlic naan (bread)

But then, of course, every time you travel, you miss those comforts of home:

1.  Soft mattresses and pillows.  Mattresses are HARD here!

2.  No language barrier

3.  Litter laws.  I remember as a child seeing trash often thrown out a car window.  Glad Woodsy Owl came along with his "Give a hoot! Don't pollute!"

Right inside of Brindavan Gardens was this pile of...discarded urinals??

A beautiful beachfront in Pondicherry, but the rocks were just filled with styrofoam plates and all other sorts of trash.

4.  Walking around town without the paparazzi following :)

 5.  Western toilets, with toilet paper

Long--if you need to sit and stay for a while.  Short--if you just need a quick squat.

A typical roadside bathroom stop--with "short" toilets only.

6.  Hot, forceful showers anytime of the day or night--and a shower curtain.

Most of the showers in India just spray right into the whole bathroom.

7.  Dependable internet

8.  A washing machine always at my disposal.

9.  Horns that are only used for emergency.  Here the horns are used to warn I'm coming around a bend, to get that (cow, goat, dog, chicken) off the road, to tell a (pedestrian, scooter, rickshaw, bus, other car, oxcart, bike) I'm coming around, to warn that I'm headed into your lane, at inanimate objects (speed bumps?) and sometimes just to play music (they have all different tones)  or because I feel like it.

We nicknamed Kumar "Our Horny Driver".  He drove us from Goa to Auroville and used his horn very liberally and long.

10.  Traffic laws that are followed.  It's rare to see a traffic light.  Most intersections are first come, first served--you just have to stick your nose in the mix.  I was amazed in downtown Pune to see a 4 lane road treated as an 8 lane road--by the time you add two shoulders as additional lanes and squeeze two more scooter/rickshaw lanes between the cars.



And whether we're out enjoying a new culture or missing the comforts of home, I'm glad I get to share in it with these five of my most favorite people!