I have a Pinterest board that I titled "Bucket List" and it lists things I want to do before I die. My pins are lacking variety, though, because a good 75% of them deal with traveling. Like the classic, stereotypical American woman, half of Europe is on my list along with Bora Bora and other beaches. There are a few random items, such as kayaking in a clear kayak and owning a tiger (if Princess Jasmine in "Aladdin" could own one, I think I can too). I was able to complete one of my pins when I studied abroad in India.
I went with about 20 students and professors from different universities throughout America and we studied at Christ University in Bangalore, India for four weeks. Six girls from the University of Mount Union went along with two of our professors. There were many class options and I took Intercultural Communications and Yoga.
First of all, let me say that India is nothing you would ever expect. No movie, book, or powerpoint presentation can prepare you for the sights, smells, emotions, or anything else you may experience. All of my learning occurred outside the classroom (sorry, Professor Capuzza). If you ever travel to India, it is best to not have any expectations; that was Lesson #1 for me. Lesson #2, adapt quickly or you will not enjoy yourself.
The nice experiences:
1. Eating the ice cream. India's ice cream is SO sweet and it far surpasses any ice cream in the United States. The same goes for their tea and coffee which I could not get enough of, even though it was about 100 degrees every day.
2. Riding in their various means of transportation. My favorite was the rickshaw because they felt fast and dangerous. There seem to be no traffic laws in India, as long as you stay on your side of the road. The rickshaws would zoom in and out of traffic and they would brake inches from the vehicle in front of them. The drivers would get so close to each other that you could literally touch the people in the rickshaw next to you. However, the drivers would try and rip us off because we were obviously tourists. Lesson #3: act confident in what you are doing. If the driver would tell us a price we thought absurd, we would stick to a price we thought reasonable until the driver agreed. We also rode in the new train system the city is beginning to build. The train goes above the city so you really get a nice view of everything.
3. Visiting the elephant camp in Coorg. We watched elephants get baths in the river and we got to pet them. Why this was so cool does not need much explanation, I feel. The camp was also in the country, so the fresh air was a nice change of pace.
4. Shopping. Everything is gorgeous and relatively cheap.
5. The people. Everyone was extremely friendly and helpful, which I guess something South India is notorious for, or so I have heard. The students at the university were so nice and would always share their lunches with us so we could get a taste of the native cuisine. Upon meeting us and the questioning of her henna, one of the girls invited us to her cousin's wedding even though we had only known her for five minutes. At the wedding, the hospitality continued at dinner when the guests around us would answer our questions and the catering staff kindly brought us silverware to eat with (Indians eat with their right hands). Lesson #4: People in the world are generally good and for the most part, you can trust them.
6. Finding American food in Bangalore. This was particularly nice when we just couldn't eat any more curry. Bangalore had a McDonald's, Subway, Pizza Hut, Pappa John's, Hard Rock Cafe, and other restaurants. However, the menus differed from American menus. For example, McDonald's did not have any hamburgers, just chicken and "veg" options. The only cheese option at Subway was the local "paneer".
7. There were so many different types of fruit you could eat and juices to drink! My favorite was getting watermelon juice.
8. Visiting the temples and churches. They were gorgeous and the respect that people have for all types of religion is very obvious and admirable.
The hard experiences:
1. Seeing the poverty everyday and everywhere. Children would follow us for blocks trying to get money or food. Men would be using bricks as pillows in the middle of the sidewalk during the day and the only thing you can really do is walk around them.
2. Adjusting to the chaos. When waiting in line, there was no "line". You simply pushed your way to the front until you got service. Also, in order to cross the street, you kind of have to just close your eyes and run with your hand out. That is the only way drivers will stop for pedestrians. This is all VERY different from American life.
3. Eating the food. The trip completely turned me off from any type of Indian food and some Asian food. I ate enough Asian airplane meals to last me a lifetime.
4. Getting sick. Food sickness was sort of a daily thing because we would often get brave and eat something we probably shouldn't. Lesson #5: No type of Indian food is good for an upset stomach.
5. The lack of reliability that does not exist in America. Often times our internet would stop working and when we would call to get it fixed, the answer we normally received was, "Oh, we will send someone out soon to fix it!" When translated into Indian language, this means, "Oh, that is too bad. There is nothing we can do about it, but we don't want to disappoint you, so we will tell you someone is coming to fix it, but in all reality, no one is coming." This leads me to my sixth point....
6. It is so important to people in India to not be embarrassed and to not embarrass you that they will "misinform" you of some things (I would just use the word lie, but that implies malicious intent and there is nothing malicious about it). For example, if you ask a rickshaw driver if they know where something is located, they will tell you "yes" even if they have no idea. Then, they will drive you around until you wise up and realize they do not have a clue where they are going. It is hard to determine the truth in all of this.
All in all, the experience was "awesome" in all senses of the term. India is terrific and extraordinary. In one second you can think it is the best place in the world and in the next you can be thinking, "Wow, there really is no place like home."
Pinterest (and life) Challenge: Success! Study abroad!!!!!!
