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Published: October 3rd 2012
October
As evidenced by the awkward pose in this picture, I prefer to be behind the camera than in front of it. Finding a picture of myself from every month of the past year was quite a challenge. Here, I'm waiting for a ride on the Black Sea, Turkey.As of today, I’ve been on the road for one year. I think it’s only appropriate that I’ll be spending it on a bus crossing back into India. It feels like just the other day that I was at the San Jose airport, being denied my boarding pass to Turkey for not having an exit ticket. Yet, I realized that I’d been away for a long time while I was in the ladies restroom last week, waiting to use the toilet.
The first clue that I’d grown accustomed to life in the East was that I didn’t expect a line, or any concept of first-come-first-serve. We all stood in a large huddle, knowing that the woman who walked towards an opening door with the most confidence would be the one who gained use of the facility. In the West, this system would wreak havoc, but here, no one gets mad. They just wait, patiently.
The second clue that I hadn’t been away from the Western world for a while was that there was an unoccupied Western toilet, but I preferred waiting for the squat toilet. I figured that I was going to be squatting anyway, so I might as
November
Amongst the fairy chimneys, Cappadocia, Turkey. well do it in a comfortable fashion, instead of a thigh-quivering hover over a toilet seat. And why waste all that water on a flush? Whoever thought of turning a toilet into a throne, anyway? My last realization was that once I was done doing my business, I was completely comfortable using water to clean myself. On the few occasions toilet paper is actually available, I’ll still reach for the water hose (and come out feeling much fresher).
And if my left hand has accepted its duty, so has my right hand. I’ve become quite adept at scooping balls of rice and dal into my mouth with my fingertips. The sight of a fork is so rare that I can remember every time I’ve seen one on a tabletop in the past six months. Spoons are often offered, but I like the relationship I’ve established with my food by eating it with my hands, so that’s how I do it. I’ve also developed a strong preference for sitting on the floor. And the last sign that I’ve adapted to life here is that whenever I remember a conversation that took place in a car in the Western world, the
December
Me, Ada, and Omar goofing around in Beirut, Lebanon. driver is always sitting on the wrong (right) side of the vehicle and driving on the wrong (left) side of the road.
It’s been a great year. I’ve met so many amazing people and done so many amazing things that, at times, I’ve wanted to turn around and do the entire trip in reverse. To ride through Petra on a mule with Ada; to hang out on the beach in the Sinai with Hamdan; to do yoga with Anat in Tel Aviv; to get my hands muddy with the guys in Tifzi; to go swing dancing with the girls and learn about the symptoms of scarlet fever with the med students in Beirut; to hitchhike through Turkey and visit Mustafa in Nemrut; to eat to the point of explosion with Sifa and Sali in Sivas; to get a big hug from Yunus in Pammukale; to drink countless cups of tea by the Bosphorus with Cenk, and go salsa dancing with Berkan. Then, to go home; to be close to friends and family; to have a conversation with anybody, young or old, without any language barrier. But it’s not time yet. The East still holds far too many treasures to
January
With the Tifzi boys, Jerusalem, Israel. uncover and lessons to learn. Given enough time, I’ll eventually get where I’m going.
I can’t say thank you enough to all the people who made the last year what it was. Not only to those I’ve met on the road, but also to all the people reading these stories from your homes. Your responses have been the fuel I needed to go on when my tank was running on empty. Thank you. From the bottom of my heart.
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gramma
non-member comment
how i would haved loved doing what you are doing love you lots keep going stay safe and happy