Incredible India

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My time in India cant not be put into words, there are no word or exclamation that can fully share India unless you have experienced yourself. However I will try to chare as much about my experience here as I can. Im sorry if you dont enjoy to read, becuase I have a feeling that this may be a long entry, but if you have the time and patience I think that it may give you a little insight into India. First I will start with the plane ride to Dehli, it was just a little India taste, The leering men and the curry dishes! I arrived into Dehli at 9 at night on the 18th of Mar. and was told not to get into any cab but th prepaid ones, and as my first encounter with Dehli the taxi man tried to keep the change...so getting into the realy India. I spent the first day wandering around the town. May I remind you that there are currently 25 million people living in Dehli, and there is no way for there to be that many people, that many jobs, and that many homes, so the poverty level is above none!! I will share parts of my journel entry to help decribe my time. This first entry is heading up north to Chandigarh on the train...local style!
Never have I seen such poverty in the most disgusting way - the pitch black water slowly ozzes past the mountains formed not by nature but by garbage. 10M wide on each side of the track, covered with all garbage, but one ditch dug along the way where hundreds of people squat butts hanging over - sitting waiting to dispose - hundreds!! childrean in tattered remnents of cloth play along in the ditch barefoot, dodging peoples rear ends. A baby sat down with garbage pilled around - one hand playing with an old car battery and the other with three fingers in her mouth. Wild pigs sort through the plastic bags and human waste to try and find any food not reached first by human, cow, or monkey. Little ones go down to the slimly still black stream to fetch their daily water. A stll and suffication layer of "fog" (pollution) covers the land and stiffle the sun. But the people are happy.

I Got up to Chandigarh and caught a bus into town to the bus station. Caught the next bus heading out to Rishikesh. Ended up being a very...very local bus! absolutly FULL of men!! there were two girls including myself. This is a mans world, there are very few women seen on the streets but in the markets. so I paid my three dollars and hopped on the bus, now the roads are not really roads, but more of a clearing from the surface of the moon, not sure there was a smooth part on that road! and with the lovely metal seats it was oh so comfy! and the honking.....now there is honking in western worlds, more to warn of your pressence, then there is honking in India....constant, and not little beeps but a constant noise coming from the horn.
So two hours into this bus ride I asked the other girl sitting in front of me how long it was to Rishikesh, she was going to Hardiwar which is about an hour away from Rishikesh, and she informed me that it was an 8 hr ride......So when we were almost to Hardiwar she turned around and asked me if I wanted to go to her place to spend the night becuase it was going to be dark by the time I reached Rishikesh, and her reply to my questioning of how safe it was to stay on the bus after dark was..."well 50/50 chance nothing will happen....." yeah so I went to her place for the night. Very sweet family! Taught me how to make Naan bread and their traditional breakfest, mashed potatoes between bread.
Got up to Rishikesh the next morning by tuktuk, bumping my head everytime we went over a bump - it was built for 4 passangers, but we managed to get 9 plus four in the front with the driver.
Rishikesh is one of the most religious places in India, it is where the river Ganga runs, which is one of their gods. So there are many garbed in orange attire and is the 'yoga capital of the world'. So the first day I got there I went wandering into the back streets a bit, really rough looking kids and families, but all laughing and happy! I was asked by a couple of young girls if I would go back to their house, so we went back a few more alleys and into this very simple but cleanly kept block. The most adorable family! parents and 7 kids. So I hung out there with them for a few hours, they cooked up their normal meal, deep fried potatoes and fat peices. The kitchen was set up at the base of the staircase just for making meals then put away again. In those few hours I was invited to one of the girls wedding in a month, and set up for an arranged marriage myself in a week they said if I had to leave soon....he seemed nice...
Wandered around the more yoga center and religious center the next day, Many people bathing/worshipping in the river. Part of the ritual is to drink some of the water, and it is the shared water of human and animal...The animal situation is horrible! the skin and bones that are meant to represent an animal walk around the streets and eat whatever they can find left, including cardboard containers, paper, and attempts at plastic bags.
India is definetly a full on place where poverty meets extreme wealth as well, (although that is harder to find) it is intense, but it is amazing! The amazing hospitality of the people far outweighted the other experiences that have not been mentioned but are better left. I was given a bed, I was fried a meal using the last of the oil, and I was given rides. I have heard and been told that once you travel in India you can travel anywhere, and I completely agree. If your coming come with a very open mind and a deep desire for adventure!

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