Sep 2006

it's such a pity.. but I still have no time to write about it all… and this is THE most amazing thing that is happening around us - the wedding!

so... 2nd wedding day

after a bit of sights in Kolkata (Victoria memorial) with Husrh and Akshe we went 2 change again - again into Indian outfits

In the evening: great wedding party (no 2). At a restaurant. With great food and lots of dancing (take a look at the video's)! Everyone was dressed up nicely (actually, imagine CHRISTMAS, multiply by 10 - and that’s how many colors of the dresses we could see). It was all bling-bling and amazingly different from what we wear in Europe.

Surprisinly, at the beginning of the party a sort of ''engagement'' ceremony took place. i.e Anamika got a ring from Apoorv (?) - funny, we do all that way earlier in Europe
We had a blast

Oh yes, the motto of the day: sick-ish throw-is up-ish... u can only imagine what happened 2 me . Felt WAY better afterwards

the funniest thing is: u never know what u had it from - from food, from water, from the weather, it could b anything... and we r trying 2 b very cautious actually... we r weak Europeans!

sorry guys, have no time to write - therefore only a summary:

Arrived in Kolkata
Actually. For the 1st time train was early (4 am instead of 4.20)

Got picked up by Apoorv and Hursh
Chrissie and Carmen had already arrived by plane from London

Sleeping: at the apartment Apoorv rented for us - together with Hursh and his friend Akshe

Menno arrived later by plane

PARTY: on the roof with all the friends of Apoorv
Finally met Anamika (bride) and Ekta (Apoorv's sister, with whom we had been emailing back and forth). And the rest of the family. And that's A LOT of PEOPLE! !

It was amazing. Too much to write about. So different from anything we know. Just check the pictures…. (sorry it was so hard to sort them out - I'll put the m together with the last Kolkata entry, mixed up with the following wedding-days

Oh, btw: i could get used 2 all the servants, drivers etc !!! Easily

It was amazing

Despite the fact it was more like a "Japanese sightseeing" (SORRY MAICO ) - as we had only 2h there => we were running around and taking pics

But it was worth it anyway!

We took a rickshaw. Actually, for the 1st time in India it was actually nice that we had someone nagging offering their (rickshaw) services. We hired a rickshaw for a day an d the guy took us all around the places, dropping us off in front of the door so we could c all

Bodh Gaya: this is where a prince was sitting under a tree and got ENLIGHTENED (the enlightened = buddha! - therefore the name). We saw all the temples - also ones made by other Buddhist countries (a Thai one, a Japanese one), and a huge Buddha statue

When we got back to Gaya… Well… this is actually when it got LESS nice…
I guess I forgot to mention that both towns are in the province of Bihar. Apparently THE most dangeroujs proince of India. Later on I even heard from my Indiian friend that they've never been there - BECAUSE it's so dangerous… Apparently there are herds of these bandits that attack cars with tourists (and not only). On the way it all looked as some military terrain - with guards with weapons (and we are talking machine guns!) were walking around every nicer-looking house… nice… we were aware of the fact it was not safe there. But we wanted to see the Buddha-stuff anyway…

So… by the time we got back to Gaya it already got dark. We still had like 3h to our train to Kolkata. We were very hungry and actually wanted to find some restaurant to spend these 3h in. However… Easier said that done.. There were actually NO restaurants there. And we are not talking some fancy places. No. Not even some crappy place where we could sit inside of some building… We started feeling really unsafe. On top of that, there was some guy (clearly mentally disabled) who started following us. He asked for money. We ignored him at first. We picked up pour backpacks from the storage. He kept on following. All the time he was holding a glass with some drink. All of a sudden, when we were walking (and he was behind us) we felt some cold liquid on our backs. Apparently he spilled it over us (I might hope it was his drink and nothing worse). We felt really bad / unsafe. We quickly decided to go to some street store and just get some food (as in: chippies, VERY healthy!) so we could take our malaria pills and just go to a waiting room of first class at the station. We went to a store. The weird guy was still following. And he didn’t understand English - when we were telling him to leave us alone. We asked a guy at the store to tell him in Hindi to go away. That didn’t help either. Luckily, he was not allowed to enter the waiting room, so that's where we spent the rest of the time we had in Bihar… :-S

Oh yes, I also went to call Hursh, as we had agreed upon, so they would pick us up at the station in Calcutta. I went to the phone booth. On the floor there were like 5 rats :-S. NIIICE. Luckily they got equally scared of me as I did of them and they ran away.

Finally we could board our night train on the way to Calcutta

- Bodh Gaya

Scheduled train arrival time in Varanasi: 8.20am
Actual arrival time: 12:20...

That would b 4h delay... and 15h on that train altogether... [Which was btw way better than I expected it 2 b]. I actually slept pretty well on the train (with my earplugs and airplane sleeping-goggles on and wrapped in my sheet form home )

by the time we actually got 2 the hotel it was 2:30pm (that was after a loooong auto rickshaw ride with the 3 of us - Drotka, Ricardo - an American we met up on the train who was supposed 2 stay @ the same place, me + our 3 huge backpacks... all that in that small thing... and we actually bumped into like 3 things on the way (bikes, other rickshaw) & also pushed some other rickshaw forward [when the driver considered it moving 2 slow...]

We were only dreaming of shower after that [last one we had was in Delhi the previous day in the morning...] - and its 37 degrees in the shade all the time...

THE HOTEL IS GREAT 4 a change. The view is amazing - on the Ganges and the ghats [stairs ending in the river] - where they perform all the rituals of cleansing in the holy water. We live on the top floor in a room with balcony. They warned us not 2 leave any stuff on the balcony, or the balcony door open when we leave, as crazy monkeys would take our stuff and play with them. How cool is that

After a long shower/laundry session we went up 2 the town with Ricardo

haha, and that was an experience again. U wouldn’t believe how much cow-pies r lying around EVERYWHERE. The streets in they r really NARROW (1-1.5m so). It’s a real LABIRYNTH (I’m not kidding its really hard 2 find the way anywhere, u r lost after 5 min) [Babisku: its like where we went on holiday, just make the town x 10 the size in terms of space it takes on the ground and 5 times higher - the buildings r 5 storey high!]

And there’s cows everywhere walking around. And motorbikes moving around beeping. No rickshaws r allowed by the ghats (they wouldn’t fit in anyway)

We live quite close to the burning ghat - where they actually burn dead bodies. Apparently all Hindus want 2 die in Varanasi as then their souls will go 2 heaven. Or at least: get burned there after death. Not all bodies may b burned though - some (of e.g. holy men, pregnant women) r thrown in the water just like that

also: a couple of huge sewers end up here... people swim, bathe, wash, and their ashes r thrown in there 2...

BY THE WAY: our lonely planet says the Ganges water in Varanasi contains 1.5mln faecal bacteria coli per 100ml of water (while safe for bathing figure would b less than 500!!!!)... niceee... nevertheless: the Hindu's want 2 bathe in it - in order 2 wash away all their sins..

I guess I will keep my sins for a later occasion and NOT bathe there this time...

Anyway: we had a nice dinner on a rooftop restaurant (on the 5th floor, over the whole city) with Ricardo [the food was, of course, very yummy!]

I COULD upload the pickies, but my hard drive just died. And i couldn’t charge it (only1 socket in the wall in the room and the power cuts last 1/2 a day anyway...]

I’ll try later 2day anyway!

DAY 2:

We took an early morning boat trip (4am up an running in the boat) together with Ricardo. It was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING to see the city waking up and all the rituals in the Ganges. This is THE most important thing to see in Varanasi - the way the Hindus cleanse themselves in the morning in the river. They were also washing the clothes (read: beating the crap out of them on the rocks - I still don’t get it HOW on Earth they can have these beautiful colourful clothes after having beaten them to death like that)… SOme other peoplw would just was themselves (and yes, brish their teeth using their fingers) - all in the above-described ''cleansing'' Ganges water…
It was an amazing view

haha. actually. Today the first Delhi-belly incident took place. I was feeling kind-of weird since morning. But when we were actually in the middle of the river, I felt worse. I must have looked green on my face, since even the boat-man noticed. He couldn’t speak much English (although he really tried - and attempted all the time to explain some rituals / give info about buildings we passed). Anyway. He noticed I wasn't feeling fine. And he only said "Ganga, Ganga good!"- and pointed at the water. I immediately realized he's right about what it would be best to do. And didn’t wait with that too long - YES, I THREW UP INTO THE HOLY GANGES. haha, needless to say, 1 minute later I was feeling WAAAY better! Ganga good!

- Varanasi

So....train 2 Agra at 7.15am. Quite ok. AC worked. Was clean enough.

Got off in Agra: went straight 2 a prepaid taxi stand. Got a 1/2 day ride 2 Fathepur Skiri (abandoned city, 55km away) & back in an AC car. 900rs for 2 (15eur)

A really nice guy Rashid was 2 go with us next 2 the driver. He could actually speak Eng. We set off. ALREADY at the parking lot: the car wouldn’t start. So the friends of Rashid had 2 push it. No biggy...

Until we got to an intersection 5 min further. A REALLY busy one. Engine died. Wouldn’t start. Police guys came, told the guys to pull of. HOW DO YOU PULL OFF a car which isn’t working - and that: from the middle of an INDIAN intersection (NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH A NORMAL INTERSECTION!) - this one was absolutely FULL of vehicles of all kinds and sorts... but they managed. Police guy was arguing with them... but the car started and we went 2 nearby gas station (20m away we’re talking). They tanked it. And it was SUPPOSED 2 start. By then we already got annoyed (we only had 7h in Agra and had to catch another train in the afternoon, time was ticking and we were by no means getting close to the destination, on top of that, the airco wasn’t working – of course, the engine was dead and nothing worked). So i asked if we can go back and get another car. But no, IT’S A GOOD CAR MADAM (riiight... other than it not-starting…)... They anaged to start it. But then it died again... So they agreed to go back and get another car. We got another one. Small one. My backpack wouldn’t fit in. So they wanted 2 put it on the ROOF (HELL NO!). When all was finally in the car: it went easier. Got to Fathepur Sikri (I’m not describing the way our lives have been risked 55 times during that ride - how i pictured myself under these huge busses, beeping at us and trying to push through - as bigger users of the road)

Fathepur Sikri was magnificent. with stone carvings - big see-through screens which looked like lace (very thinly made, i have no idea how - u will c when i uplod the pics – it’s silly 2 write about this, u need 2 c it!)

Now 2 make long story short: on the way back our 2nd GOOD CAR broke down as well... AGAIN at the biggest intersection in a village... felt like in an ants house.. Again, friendly ppl pushed the car off and it started... got to Agra on time…

Left our luggage, went to dinner at Shanti lodge where we were supposed 2 stay in a few days (2 check it out, after our experience with Namaskar). Roof terrace VIEW: MAGNIFICENT – straight in the Taj, wont even try 2 describe –will put here pics 2morrow! SO CLOSE. AMAZING! Food: good, could have been served in cleaner bowls… but oh well (STILL NO DELHI-BELLY- knock on wood!)

but the hotel was crappy – the bathroom: DISGUSTING and DIRTY – if possible, worse than namaskar… I don’t even want 2 think about it… boys and girls who will join us in Kolkata: WE SHOULD look 4 a different one! (Dorotka will write u email about that!)

now will spend the night on a train 2 Varanasi! :-S leaving at 21.00

- Fathepur Sikri

So... that was a funny day... nothing will surprise us here anymore...

After breakfast we set off 4 Delhi-sights. After discarding like 8 rickshaw wallahs - who wanted 2 charge us (=stupid tourists) 2 much, or bring on the way 2 a store of a friend/brother/father /cousin/etc, we finally gave in and took a rickshaw for 20rs (=0,34 EUR) AND visited the luxurious store we were taken 2 (no obligation 2 buy). It was, again, FUNNY - and the adrenaline level went up after seeing the driving 'skills' – as we were taking over other rickshaws/busses/cars /carts/bikes/people/cows /dogs

We got to the old part of Delhi - to the Red Fort. niiicce! a really nice place 2 c. a whole complex of palace buildings. all with very delicate carvings in stone etc. After that we went across a very busy street (AGAIN, risking our life, and that all not an hour after breakfast yet!). We had 2 go through a very CROWDED (and that: even for Delhi standards crowded!) street to get to the biggest mosque in India = Jami Masjid. THAT WAS NOT PLEASANT! i put my scarf on in a second after i noticed what’s going on. People EVERYWHERE. All bumping into u, touching, trying 2 sell u crap :-S

Had 2 take the shoes off at the mosque - and got this funny looking cloth 2 put over my skirt (as apparently below-the-knie length isn’t decent), had 2 pay 2 take my camera in as well. it wasn’t THAT stunning (the mosque). It WAS big. And fill of ppl. And it was 40 degrees C...

After seeing that we decided 2 go 4 a bite - to the famous KARIM's restaurant (yes Menno, one from the FEAST INDIA). we got 2 dishes (Dorotka a mixed veggie-thing and me: Karim specialty - some green curry-like dish with their funny white cheese (YES, INDIANS ALSO HAVE WHITE CHEESE - not only us Polish ) and different seeds etc. And naan. We r trying 2 stay away form meat for now (we have seen some meat in the market - lying around in the 40C sun, covered with CROWDS of flies - YUK!). It was all great food at KARIM’s. Although the guy didn’t seem 2 understand why we insist on unopened Coke bottles :-S

And THEN! We thought we were smart (!) and found that major-looking street to get to the Delhi Gate...

LESSON LEARNED:
major-looking streets (on the map) are NOT always major

We soon found ourselves on this 3m narrow street. With TONS of ppl. Electrical cables (TONS OF THEM) hanging 4m above the street. EVERYWHERE. And bike-rickshaws and motorbikes beeping all the time, trying 2 get through the crowd. Also very soon we noticed we were the only tourists (or white people for that matter) in that whole street. And it was NOT nice to walk there... Especially that it seemed 2 b a more Muslim street - with lots of women being totally covered from head 2 toe - and we were clearly sticking out. And the street seemed 2 have no end... we were walking and walking, and the street was getting more and more narrow. It’s not that anything HAPPENED to us... but I’m pretty sure I wanna stay out of markets 4 some time!!! My personal space barrier was beyond crossed.

And then we decided 2 walk and c the tomb of Mahatma Gandhi. It was SUCH a contrast... Quiet surroundings, situated in a park. British influences very visible. People with whole families sitting on the grass. PERFECT. Peaceful (WHAT A DIFFERENCE). Again, shoes off by the Gandhi grave.

And then the sun set... in a matter of MINUTES. we were observing the sun going down. and then it got DARK... and we were in the middle of nowhere & had 2 call Abhi 2 make appointment 4 later.. And NO public phone there of course! After haggling (unsuccessfully) with a (motor) rickshaw-wallah we took a bicycle one... that was SLOOOOW!

And again: scary moment when we stopped on the lights: this beggar guy (disabled/? leper, moving across a VERY BUSY intersection on (what was left of) his knies. We were talking, watching the scenery and didn’t notice him come closer to the rickshaw from the back. And all of a sudden. I felt someone touch my knee-pit unexpectedly. He scared me so much!!!

But anyway... finally we got to the Delhi gate.. And there we were. Again the only two a) girls b) white people c) tourist (ALL APPLY), after dark. Looking 4 a phone booth that was SUPPOSED 2 b there... NOT NICE!!!! We found the phone, called Abhi – and made appointment in 40min at the INA market – Delhi Haat. And here comes a flash: NOBODY wanted 2 take us that far by rickshaw... and there were no cabs... we started asking the rickshaw guys 2 take us there – but they were all saying they wont go there (2 FAR!)

niiiiceee.. Dark. Scary. :-S YUK. Just before I lost my hope: there’s this guy who came to help us – he was JUST nice (didn’t want anything), he stopped a rickshaw for us and negotiated the price. They driver agreed to 110rs (2eur). HAPPY us. Happy, until he was trying to cheat us. We got 2 the destination and the guy demanded 220rs (supposedly: 110 x 2 ppl) – which WAS NOT the agreement. But I have 2 say I got pretty scared again… I gave him a 150rs. He kept saying he wants a 220…. So I gave him another 10 and said we leave the rickshaw. Luckily we were in a NICE part of South Delhi. We quickly found the Delhi Haat and Abhi came. YAY! I was SO happy 2 c him after 4yrs! (he had studied at my uni in Warsaw).

The Haat was a sort of government-subsidized market – with craftsmen form all over India selling their goods (at more less fixed prices – NICE change after having 2 haggle all day). It was REALLY nice… and Abhi was helping. He showed us around and explained a lot of things – where certain things came from, how they made them etc. Dorotka and me got ourselves a pair of shoes each (D: nice slip-in shoes for 200rs, and me: VERY nice camel-leather-pink flip flops for 180 = not even 3eur)!

It was SO different form what we have seen all day till then. Visibly middle-class families with children. Peaceful. Not crowded. Comforting

And then we went 4 dinner. To a fancy restaurant/bar in New Delhi. Could go for a fancy bar ANYWHERE in Europe! Seriously. SUCH a contrast again... we got nice cocktails, some Indian cheese tikka with spices and sauce. Then some veggies with sauce. And the funny different sorts of bread (paratha? I think its spelled) was the best. IT WAS SO NICE of Abhi 2 take us there (by car, again, what a change – a first NOT-ABSOLUTEL-INSANE driver we have seen there so far – peaceful, driving slowly, actually OBEYING the traffic rules (!) etc). it was so nice 2 catch up with Abhi. He told us many things about India, explained a lot etc

And Abhi was SO nice, after hearing our roach-stories, and after being worried we ended up in Paharganj area: he actually offered 2 take us out of there, so we could stay @ his place. AND NO, WE DID NOT OPPOSE! What a relief was THAT. That we didn’t have 2 sleep @ that horrible place there (Namaskar hotel!) after dinner Abhi drove us there (Namaskar) where we packed our bags in like 20 seconds and were ready to GO!

ABHI WE ARE YOUR FANS! We are SO grateful you took such great care of us, you are the best!

So we spent the night at Abhi’s nice apartment. WHAT A DIFFERENCE WAS THAT!- we only got there at like 1am though – and had 2 get up at 5.45 2 catch our Agra train...

- Delhi

so... arrived last night.. 22:50 local time. Doroka picked me up

haha, but then the hotel-pickup guy, who dropped her off at the airport and was supposed 2 wait wasn't there anymore... riiighht... called the hotel... twice... he was supposedly on his way... riiiiiggghttt. 1h later we find him (with the help of another hotel taxi guy). he was just sleeping in his van all that time... was even difficult to wake him up... and that was all while he was ''on his way''...

Lesson of the day:
HURRY MAKES YOU WORRY!

WELCOME 2 India

hotel... well... that is nowhere CLOSE 2 my standards of the cleanliness of the hotel... started off with a big roach (4cm long., one of these far ones ) welcomed us in the bathroom :-S. hmhmhm... i made a lot of noise, and we had 2 call support from the hotel staff to deal with the PROBLEM

oh yes, Carmen, Menno & Chrissie: TAKE SHEETS FROM HOME. AND PILLOW CASES!!!!! and EARPLUGS!!! i basically slept 1h last night - the ''airco'' (NOTHING close 2 what WE call AC) was making noise like a tractor, and then it was hot when we turned it off : :-S UGH. haha, toilet paper comes in handy TOO!

we just had breakfast. after having survived a 200m walk along the market where everybody apparently wanted to kill us with their rickshaws/bikes /motorbikes/etc = they even POINT at stupid tourists with their vehicles and r clearly pleased when we jump away 2 seconds before they hit . I guess they r collecting points for that or so

breakfast: toasts with cheese and tomato - nothing fancy, not 2 get delhi-belly 2 early . btw: breaktest cost: 2eur for TWO (with drinks )

we r meeting Abhi 2night and going 4 dinner with him

For the ones whom I didn't have a chance 2 tell: in 4 days i'm off 2 India . Main purpose of the trip: 2 attend the wedding of my Indian friend Apoorv who studied at my university in Warsaw. He is getting married to Anamika (whom we do not know yet).

Also joining: 2 other exchange students (2 Germans - Carmen from Germany and Chris from the UK) + my Polish friend Dorotka. All the above-mentioned know the groom. Also joining my Dutch friend Menno (who does not know the groom, but even more so wants to meet everybody there). I'm going for 3 weeks, all the others for 1-2 weeks

Apart form the wedding which will take 3 days (!) - and we will all be dressed up in traditional Indian outfits, we will travel around for the rest of the time. You may find the planned schedule under my ''trip journal'' overview.