200 Days in India

This post is in praise of spontaneity. I have heard a lot of pros but much more contras against traveling alone. A bunch of people said they could never imagine going on a trip just by themselves. And everybody advised me not to travel alone in India, as it is very dangerous for a woman. "Safety first." But on the second weekend after my arrival to Chennai I had 4 days off. And everybody I met in the first days had plans already. So I had to choose between staying home or traveling alone. I didn't hesitate too much when I decided on the latter. As for me traveling alone is exciting; it is a road for self discovery and a way to become more aware of my thoughts and reactions. Plus I really love that I can do whatever I want with my time and do whatever spontaneous things cross my mind. Thursday morning I started off to the closest bus station without knowing exactly how will I get there. But - maybe because I haven't really thought about the options - everythin

One of the best-known stereotypes about India is related to its traffic. And I have to admit that even after more than two months of continuous stay in the country is hard to describe what it is like.  At the beginning whenever my relatives and friends from home asked me about it, I simply said that I don’t have yet the words that can illustrate it. Challenge #1: Crossing the street On my first day I was standing for about 5 minutes on a street corner, looking at the flow of cars, buses, rickshaws, bikes and feeling paralyzed. I was unable to cross despite the fact that I was standing at a passageway. Nobody stopped. Then a local helped me and taught me that: here you just have to be brave enough to raise your hand, start crossing the street and stop the traffic (and maybe pray - if you are religious). Traffic in India is indeed chaotic and hectic. There are just a few general traffic rules - like most vehicles will stop at the signaling lamp

Impressions of the “real India experience” The first three words that came to my (extremely tired) mind when I left the airport were: Heat. Noise. Crowd. Then the first (rhetorical) question: Did I really want to come here? And the first realization: Namaste in not useful at all in Tamil Nadu. Daily crowd I left from -15 Celsius degrees and arrived to 30 degrees – well equipped with winter clothes. With 0 rupees in my pockets (as far as I knew I could exchange money only in India) and without a drop of water (but a lot of good advices on where and what can I drink), it was a great warm-up for my body to bear with the humid heat of Chennai weather. At a first glance it seemed to me that this city never sleeps; between 4 and 5 in the morning there was so much noise in the front of the airport as in the middle of a rag fair. What I first heard was a mixture of human voice, a variety of honks and the sounds of awakening nature. And the crow

Do you ever dream about going to a place?  A country, a city, a beach, a mountain? I did. About a lot of places, but there was one more persistent than all the others and that had a special place in my heart. I have dreamed - and daydreamed - for more than 10 years about traveling to India. You might ask why - as a lot of people did - but there is no answer. Although the idea was born in my head when I was a teenager – the passing days, months and years gave no rational explanation for my desire. … Maybe because I’ve found the concepts of Buddhism and Hinduism absolutely fascinating. … Maybe because I was so many times amazed by the richness of colors I associated with India. …Maybe because as the time passed I have found out that a lot of people whom I find inspiring also lived here for a while or at least visited this country. Or I might have wanted to see if I am really capable of turning my desires into reality. Last year I have felt