When you think of India, what comes to mind?
Poverty? Overpopulation? Pollution? People with diamonds on their foreheads? Curry?
Slander and calumny. There's so much more to the place than that.
First of all, it ain't just a country. It's a subcontinent.
It's the home of some of the world's rarest animals, including the golden langur and the last remnants of the Asiatic lion.
India is the manufacturer of the world's cheapest car, the TataNano , which goes for around $2,000 American dollars. Because of the nutty-bonkers-hundred-percent-off-your-rocker price tag, it's colloquially known as "The People's Car." I remember reading about it in National Geographic a while back, and liking the idea immensely. I remember thinking Huh! Imagine, a small, efficient, cheap car that nearly every family in India can afford! A four-door in every pot!
Speaking of building amazing stuff, another thing I read about in National Geographic was the Golden Quadrilateral, a massive superhighway running all around the subcontinent. It was a massive project, years in the undertaking, but finally finished not long ago. The story of its development read like a small country's revolution.
I've also read that India was home to Asia's first Nobel laureate. And I heard that back in the day some Mughal bigwig built a rather fancy house for his wife. The memory of his wife, to be exact. Crazy, huh?
Oh yeah, and apparently there's people in India who don't truck with victuals, either. Hoopy!
I've heard intoxicating things about India. The railroads that span the entire nation. The deep jungles, where elephants, tigers and (a few) lions still roam. The mystic palaces. Monkeys running up and down the street and bugging you for snacks. Sacred bulls wandering everywhere. Beautiful women with deep, dark eyes, and some of the most colorful clothes seen anywhere on Earth. Epics to rival The Odyssey and Beowulf. Pearls the size of your fist. Veterinary schools that set the world standard. Temperatures that can soar up to 120 degrees in the shade in summer.
Poverty? Overpopulation? Pollution? People with diamonds on their foreheads? Curry?
Slander and calumny. There's so much more to the place than that.
First of all, it ain't just a country. It's a subcontinent.
It's the home of some of the world's rarest animals, including the golden langur and the last remnants of the Asiatic lion.
India is the manufacturer of the world's cheapest car, the Tata
Speaking of building amazing stuff, another thing I read about in National Geographic was the Golden Quadrilateral, a massive superhighway running all around the subcontinent. It was a massive project, years in the undertaking, but finally finished not long ago. The story of its development read like a small country's revolution.
I've also read that India was home to Asia's first Nobel laureate. And I heard that back in the day some Mughal bigwig built a rather fancy house for his wife. The memory of his wife, to be exact. Crazy, huh?
Oh yeah, and apparently there's people in India who don't truck with victuals, either. Hoopy!
I've heard intoxicating things about India. The railroads that span the entire nation. The deep jungles, where elephants, tigers and (a few) lions still roam. The mystic palaces. Monkeys running up and down the street and bugging you for snacks. Sacred bulls wandering everywhere. Beautiful women with deep, dark eyes, and some of the most colorful clothes seen anywhere on Earth. Epics to rival The Odyssey and Beowulf. Pearls the size of your fist. Veterinary schools that set the world standard. Temperatures that can soar up to 120 degrees in the shade in summer.
As you might have guessed, I'm not so keen on that last part. But the rest of it's incredible.
Truth be told, I want to go to India.To follow in the footsteps of Paul Theroux as that loquacious curmudgeon rode the train down the length of the nation. To see the shores with brand-new eyes, as the first representatives of the East India Trading Company must have, all those hundreds of years ago. Take a dip in the sacred Ganges River. Explore the jungles of Sri Lanka. Beat the heat in Calcutta with a glass of gin. Visit the new deli in New Delhi. Swim with the planet's ugliest dolphins.
Even the mere name speaks bewitchment.
India.
Home of a certain bald-headed troublemaker we all know. Home to over a billion people, some of the finest minds and hardest workers on Earth. Producer of high-grade doctors, soccer players, artisans, chefs, and holy men. A center of religious thought, architectural achievement, military might, cultural development, and historical wonderfulness for thousands of years.Not to mention the setting of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, my second-favorite movie of all time. And, of course, the inspiration for the title of a rather good Led Zeppelin song.
Sorry. I just had to throw that in there.
Even the mere name speaks bewitchment.
India.
Home of a certain bald-headed troublemaker we all know. Home to over a billion people, some of the finest minds and hardest workers on Earth. Producer of high-grade doctors, soccer players, artisans, chefs, and holy men. A center of religious thought, architectural achievement, military might, cultural development, and historical wonderfulness for thousands of years.Not to mention the setting of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, my second-favorite movie of all time. And, of course, the inspiration for the title of a rather good Led Zeppelin song.
Sorry. I just had to throw that in there.
6 comments:
Things I saw in India when I was there last year:
A man running and jumping into a moving train
People breaking water mains so they could shower
7 lanes of traffic on a 3 lane road
Death-defying crossings of the road (sans crosswalk, lights, etc)
People eating on the floor, with their hands, using a leaf as a plate
All of that was in the cities of Mumbai, Chennai and Eluru.
I worked in a village called Gummallapadu (building houses). The people were amazing. They don't have much, but they'd give you their last. And the kids are the sweetest things.
India is a sensual explosion. The colours are too bright, the food is too spicy, the traffic is too loud...
But it was beautiful.
(I didn't get anywhere near the Taj, however. )
That's a dolphin; really? Wierd.
I didn't know that was a Led Zepplin song. Cool.
Wow, you really know how to write a travel guide. Makes me want to visit.
Its so great that you not only want to travel the world, but can find beauty in almost any place. You are a treasure PM.
Sorry it takes me so long to get back and forth between visits. (No excuse this time, I was reading a book.) You have such diverse writing skills I'm always amazed at what I miss when I'm gone.
Thank you for the lovely memory of a place I may never get to visit. I hope you do, and bring us lots of pictures and interesting ancedotes about your adventures.
Have a good weekend dude.
........dhole
I LOVE Paul Theroux. The Great Railway Bazaar and Ghost Train to the Eastern Star are 2 of my all-time favourite travel accounts. Right now I'm reading Redmond O'Hanlon's "Congo Journey"... if you are looking for an extremely well written, hilarious, and super informative travel narrative, Redmond is where it's at.
But India.
I almost get shivers thinking about travelling to India. It kind of scares me, and I don't really want to go, but I think I have to. If I didn't go I couldn't live with myself. I think I would try to avoid the major cities, and stick to the breathtakingly beautiful countryside until I worked up the courage to venture into the vortex. Haha. I think if you go it has to be with no expectations, and equipped with a readiness to be shocked. Which is slightly contradictory but I'm sure you get it.
I have a feeling that India (when I go) will be as addicting and intoxicating as it is shocking and repulsive. It will pull me in two polar directions. How exciting.
You didn't mention the tarantulas...big 'uns. And cobras.
Being silly. Their culture is breeding education...and I understand that there higher education schools are phenomenal.
Beautiful post. India is on my list of places to visit when I have time and funds. :)
Claire: Holy crap. Seriously? I mean, I'd heard about water mains, and trains, and road conditions, but the floor was a new one on me. I read in Paul Theroux that the Indians have mastered the art of running and diving through train windows when the train pulls into a station, to secure good seats. Or just seats in general. Whew, nice to talk to someone who's actually been there. Wow, you have been around, haven't you? Next time I suppose you'll have to see the Taj. Everybody's gotta see it once, right?
DH: Yes, it's a dolphin. I couldn't believe it either. Damn thing gives me nightmares.
Glad you liked the review. Appreciate the thought. You're too kind. And reading a book is the perfect excuse. I'd much rather you were reading something good than coming HERE.
Jane: And what's the one he wrote about traveling across Africa by train? I wanna read that one, too. Ghost Train to the Eastern Star sounds INTOXICATING. The man loves train travel even more than I do, which is saying something. Redmond O'Hanlon, huh? Thank you so much! I'm always on the lookout for another good travel tale. I'm trying to find Fitzroy Maclean's "Eastern Approaches" about his illegal travels in Russia, Uzbekistan and Central Asia.
I feel the same way you do. Part of me thinks I'm really dumb for wanting to go to the third world. And the other part of me thinks that the part of me feeling dumb about wanting to go there is the precise reason I HAVE to go there. Adventure. Danger. Totally different way of life than I'm used to. I've never been to anything but a first-world country. Gotta get out there sometime. "Readiness to be shocked"...well said. I think that's the most important bit.
Jerry: Oh yeah! Cobras! How could I forget 'em? I'm going to slap on some goggles and go toe-to-toe with those buggers.
Yeah, that's what I've heard. Their med schools are the hardest in the world to get into, but they're second to none.
sarahjayne! What an unexpected pleasure! Thanks for taking the time to read and comment. I guess India is one of those places that, while it may not have the tourist attractions that Australia or Kenya or Europe does, still can't be missed, just because it's...well, so huge and diverse and historically important. A cultural magnet, a philosophical goldmine, a religious Mecca.
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