So, how was India?

My journey is finally coming to a close.  After three days of final presentations, I have one more day with the program for our re-entry orientation and the closing ceremony where I’ll get to wear a sari! Wednesday, I head to Mumbai to decompress for a day or so before jumping on my 16-hour flight back to Newark, arriving Friday morning.  After one more short flight back to Boston, I will run into my parents’ arms like I did as a little girl when Daddy came home from his business trips.  I’m trying to prepare myself for the bombardment of questions when I return, so here’s my first shot at answering the big one, “How was India?”

India is a culture of extremes and contradictions.  It was incredible and terrible.  Beautiful and horrifying.  I felt safe and I felt paranoid.  It was an emotional roller coaster, and it was a challenge.  India was an experience I will always remember.

I wanted to step out of my comfort zone by coming here, and I definitely accomplished this.  My comfort zone was repeatedly pushed, prodded, poked and deflated.  I became more patient.  I learned to be flexible and open-minded.  I learned to laugh instead of getting angry (most of the time).  I became a pro at jaywalking without getting hit by the various vehicles and animals on the road.  I got better at negotiating with rickshaw drivers.  I learned to accept the lower level of hygiene whether it was constantly wet and muddy during the monsoons, or constantly dripping sweat during the October heat and not really ever feeling clean because once I took my bucket bath I’d just get dirty again.  I became accustomed to the power outages and using filtered water for everything.  I accepted the fact that I would be sick to my stomach every couple of weeks for any number of reasons.  I became less concerned about cleanliness, for better or for worse, because I no longer had that luxury.  I became more adventurous with my food.  Sometimes a little too adventurous, but I quickly learned my spice tolerance after accidentally consuming a couple of chilies.  I learned to watch where I stepped after falling in a hole, stepping in dung a few times, almost stepping on a homeless man sleeping on the sidewalk, and stepping in fresh cement.  Apparently I’m a slow learner.

I was exposed to so many different things on this trip, good and bad, that it’d be impossible to describe them all.  I visited a couple of tribal villages and I visited the nicest neighborhood of Mumbai.  I traveled to the Himalayas and I did research in the red light area.  I’ve seen wealth and I’ve seen abject poverty.  I’ve seen derogatory behavior and I’ve seen enormous generosity and hospitality.  I will never forget the Kashmiri craftsman who offered me tea every time I walked by in Dharamshala just to chat, or the women who plied me with snacks and chai and protected me while I spent the afternoon in the red light area with them.  I will never forget the girls I met through my internship or the friends I’ve made on this program.  I will never forget how lucky I am to live the life I was given and to have had this opportunity.

People always talk about how they go overseas to “find” themselves.  If we’re being honest, we all roll our eyes when we hear this.  Well, I don’t think I’m done learning about life or myself, but I do think this experience has changed me in a multitude of ways that may be categorized as “finding” myself, if you’re willing to accept that.  I have watched myself adapt and become a new person, and I know there are changes I’ve experienced that I won’t even realize until I’ve been home for a while.  Although India has driven me completely insane at times, I actually feel a lot more sane now than I did before coming here.  I feel grounded, stronger, and sure of myself.  I’ve gone outside of my Western bubble and seen what “development” looks like.  A lot of people say that once you’ve lived in India, you can live anywhere.  I don’t know if that’s true, but I can’t wait to continue traveling and learning.  And I will tell anyone who will listen that if they’re thinking about studying or traveling abroad, they should choose a country that will challenge them and make them question everything they ever knew about themselves.

There are so many things that I will miss about this beautiful country, but right now I am more than ready to come home and be with my family.  Thank you to everyone who has supported me and stayed in touch while I’ve been on this amazing journey! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my adventures.  It's been quite the ride, but it’s time for me to come home.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Until the next voyage begins,

xo A