Welcome to India!

Back in India. One year ahead, a year of travelling. It may sound strange, but it is hard to let go, to have nothing to do except relax and enjoy. I want a motorcycle, I want to hit the road, go and discover, be part of the unknown, but there is no hurry, life is too full of beauty and there is one year ahead, only it feels impossible to really grasp such and idea of time and freedom. At the same time I still haven’t caught up with my lack of sleep and sleeping at temperatures of at least 30°C doesn’t really make things easier. We did try out our special anti-mosquito technique which comprises of putting up an inner tent, placing this on top of the bed and crawling into it to spend the night inside of it, snug, warm and fully bug proof if you remember to keep the zippers closed. As it is impossible to take anti-malaria medication for a whole year we figured we should find another solution to protect ourselves during the night. Probably many of you are now wondering why we did not simply choose for a mosquito net, well, the answer is really quite simple. If you have a mosquito net that has to be attached above your bed that quickly becomes impossible with a fan dancing around and no attachment points close by. Some among you will know that we could also use a stand alone mosquito net, but that is about the same price as we paid for our whole tent with the only difference that we can also pitch our tent outside if it would ever be necessary and that you don’t have to sleep directly on the matrass if it would be kind of dirty (and oh yes, this can be the case when traveling in India and trying to stay on a budget).

Anyhow, enough about mosquito nets. India has much more than mosquitoes. For those who have never been to India I can maybe start with some tips and tricks to be prepared:

• Never wait to find an ATM till you are all out of money. There may be many ATM’s around, but these can all be empty. For example, today we went to 6 ATM’s and they were all out of money. Tomorrow we will simply return to check again.
• When you buy a bottle of water, ensure it is still sealed properly. If not, don’t take the risk as it may end with the bathroom becoming your closest friend.
• Drink chai! It provides a great energy boost, you can find it everywhere, it is cheap and it provides the perfect opportunity to relax and secretly spy on the beautiful, colourful clothing of the people surrounding you.
• Probably not everyone will agree on this one with me, but cover shoulders and knees if you are female. It makes life easier and I believe that, if possible, we should adapt to the values and norms of the place where we are the strangers. In general this is also what most people expect when people visit their home country.
• Don’t be afraid to haggle about the price. Keep on smiling, joke around, know what you want to pay before you start and as such it becomes the perfect chance to have a lovely conversation.
• Talk to people! Don’t always trust what they may say, especially not if money is involved, but you would be surprised by the nice conversations you end up having.
• Don’t eat or give somebody a hand with your left hand! Your right hand is your hygienic hand while your left hand is, to be straight forward, to wipe your bum.
• The use of toilet paper is not common so try using water before you run out of toilet paper and when you feel up to the challenge. Don’t get me wrong, you can buy toilet paper, but it can be hard to find and easily blocks the toilet.

Summarized, is India an easy country to discover? Not really, but it is certainly worth the effort. Once you can slow down your pace, once you are able to see through the chaos and once you can let go of how you think things should be only dazzling colours, shimmering light, surprising smells and overwhelming beauty remains.