Friday 6 April 2012

Explore. Dream. Discover. -- Last Post

       Hello Everyone. Unfortunately while I have been here in Jaipur I have not been able to keep up with my posts like I would have liked. I can't believe I leave here in 3 days. Tomorrow I have my last exam, Indian Philosophy, and then I am done my third year of university! The time has just flown by and this trip will be one of a lifetime. I have met so many amazing people while I have been here and I appreciate everyone's kindness. I also wanted to thank everyone who has been following this blog and joining in on my journey. I hope that I have been able to reflect India properly. A concern of mine was that my posts were coming off to "nice". I have loved my trip to India and I would love to come and see more of this country at some point in my life. There were obviously some adjustments and some uncomfortable times. When I was leaving for this trip I had many different questions and opinions based on the question "why India?". At the time I was unsure of how to answer this question as I was not one hundred percent sure myself. I can now say in full confidence that I am one hundred percent sure as to why I chose to go to India. India is rich in history, religion and culture. This type of rich history and diversity is lacking in Canada. I can live my life in Canada with the same type of people who have the same beliefs, same desires, and same world outlooks. It would have been easy for me to go to Europe and stay inside my comfort zone. India was definetly a travel trip and not a vacation as there is a big difference. Sometimes people tend to equate the two but when you are travelling in countries that you are not comfortable with and where you are unable to communicate because of language barriers it is difficult. India has pushed me to question my beliefs, how I react in situations, pushed me to be open, and aided me in appreciating what I have.

       I am excited to get back to what I have. I am so lucky to have such a large and supportive family that at times I take for granted because they have always been there. I would not have experienced what I have without the help of my friends and family, especially my parents. I am excited to return home and share my experience with them.

Thanks again for reading and I hope to be writing another travel blog again soon,
Kellen


I had to add a few travel quotes I wanted to add:

"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page" - St.Augustine

 “Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things – air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky – all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” - Cesare Pavese


“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” - Mark Twain

Thursday 15 March 2012

New Update: Jaipur adventures, more school, and pictures!

So I thought I would do another update :)

     So after Jaisalmer we headed to Jodhpur where we saw an amazing fort that overlooks the entire city. It was a long bus ride to get there and we only had the day as we were leaving in the morning to go to Udaipur. We made the most of our time by getting up to see the fort which took a long time but was definetly worth it. We headed back around dinner time, ate, and really just headed to bed. Early in the morning we were on the road again. We didn't arrive in Udaipur until 5pm so we literally had a full day of driving. After spending so much time in the bus we headed straight out to see some of the city. We saw a major celebration that was at the centre of the city to celebrate the coming of Holi, a big event in India. We ate at a restaurant that overlooked the festival and headed back. The next day was Holi and Holi is a day where everyone celebrates and throws coloured powder at eachother. It is meant to be fun but unfotunately at times people can get overzealous and be aggressive with the event, especially when it comes to foreigners. Because of this our professors had us stay in the hotel until 3pm. It was really too bad as it is a large event that would have been amazing to see. Many people headed straight out at 3pm to see if they could catch the end of the celebration but unfortunately I was not feeling well and ended up having to stay in the hotel. The next day was our last day in Udaipur before we headed home. I was able to make up for the time lost the day before and saw a lot of the city. We took a gondala ride and boat ride to see more of the city. After we headed down to the major part of the city and ate at a bakery. We also were able to see the city palace where the royal family of Udaipur still live.

     All in all that weekend trip was awesome and it sucked having to take an overnight train ride back (our last) to the reality of classes. This week has been class all day leaving the house at 8ish and getting back around 6ish. It is like a full-time job or something and it sucks haha. Anyways we leave again this weekend to visit the city of Khajuraho. I also wanted to let you all know that I have posted the first portion of my pictures on my facebook account. Please feel free to look through them. So far all I have are my pictures from the start of my trip to the Rainforest retreat. More to come :)

Thanks for Reading

Monday 5 March 2012

Sitting In a Jaisalmer Internet Cafe

Hello Finally !

     So so much has happened I will get right in to it. Varanasi was amazing! Anything you have heard read or have seen can not compare to the utter awe the city of Varanasi gives you. If you have not heard of the city before please look it up and see some pictures as I am unable to post any at the moment. We left Hyderabad on a train headed to Varanasi and spent four days there. This was our first Northern Indian city that we had experienced at this point in the trip. The north is very different from the South as it holds all of the history and cultures that we are normally aware of in Canada. The south was an amazing experience but I am so excited to be in the history-filled North and to experience all the things that I had been reading about before the trip. Varanasi is known for the river Ganga. The river is a very holy river for Hindus and bathing in it is said to bring one much fortune. Unfortunately the river has become very polluted over time as it was the sole spot for all bathing and excrement for so many people over so many years. On a positive note, we were told that there is a lot of work going on now to clean the river by the local government. The river is also the hub for the dead of idea. The burning ghats (steps leading into the water) are located along the river where bodies are burned and placed in the river. As you can believe Varanasi is a very holy city for all Hindus. It was an amazing experience to be on the Ganges and see the sun-set and watch the many religious ceremonies happening, and that happen every night. I wish I could have been there longer or had more time to expand on my experience in Varanasi but unfortunately time is not on my side.

     After leaving Varanasi the group headed to Jaipur where we were to start the second portion of our schooling. It is here in Jaipur that we are all placed with local families and attend school. I was placed in an amazing home with two of my friends on the trip Paul and Lauren. We were placed at the home of Delilah and Yogesh who are the head of a large family home of one of the coordinators (her sister) of our time in Jaipur. I unfortunately got sick after arriving in Jaipur and was therefore unable to complete this post as I had hoped. Fortunately though my family has been very kind and did a great job of helping me get better. I was out of school for a few days but returned on Friday. I completed school on Friday and that night (at around midnight) or group was leaving the train station and headed for Jaisalmer.

     Jaisalmer is located on the North-western portion of the Indian subcontinent near the Pakistan border. The landscape again had changed and we had now been transported into an Arabian desert. It is like nothing I have ever seen. There is sand absolutely everywhere, it is like this town is out of a movie. It is centered around a very old fort. The fort is amazing and although it has many shops now catering toward all of the tourists, the architecture is like nothing I have ever seen. I spent the first day in Jaisalmer exploring the city and the fort. Our second day we had some free day in the morning and early afternoon before we headed out to the desert! We took a bus out into the absolute middle of nowhere and pulled up to a few dozen camels lying at the side of the road waiting for our arrival. I must note that although it was beautiful the sand was blowing hard and we all had to bundle up our faces to provide some protection for the harsh winds. Anyways e got out, hopped on our camels and headed for the desert. This experience, although not entirely comfortable, was amazing and something I had been looking forward to. We were able to see some sand dunes and other camels and took a short stop to race our camels before arriving at our tent city where we were to stay the night. Some of the girls and our professors stayed in plush rooms with outfitted bathrooms and TVs while another group of us faced the night out in tents. After brushing off the sand on our beds, our accommodations were quite comfortable. Our night consisted of a show with live music and dancing, a busy buffet-styled dinner, and a night of talking and more music. In the morning we had breakfast and promptly headed out back to our hotel in Jaisalmer to wash away the sand of the night before.

     Today is our last day in Jaisalmer and tomorrow we are headed for Jodhpur. I am not sure what to expect next but I am sure it will be amazing! Hope everyone is doing well at home and I will hopefully be making my next blog post sooner then the previous.

Talk Again Soon :)

Monday 27 February 2012

So Much to Say in So Little Time

     So Varanasi was amazing and will need a lot of time to describe and talk about. Unfortunately I did not find much internet in Varanasi to update the blog while I was there. I wanted to write a quick post saying I have now arrived safely in Jaipur, am placed with my host family, and just finished my first day of school! I am doing great and now that I know where an internet cafe is I will update the blog with my adventures in the next couple days. This weekend I am headed to Jaisalmer! So much to write in so little time. 

Friday 17 February 2012

Last day in Mysore! Off to Hyderabad

     So the terrible week of exams is over. It was a good wake up call to remind all of us that even though we are doing this amazing trip it is apart of school.I studied my butt off and we will see how it turns out :) I think in spite of this, most of us have the mindset that this isn't simply school it is an experince and all though doing well in our classes is important it is not the ost important thing. We all finished Friday afternoon and went out one last time in Mysore. A large group of us including the two professors went to a rooftop restaurant that overlooks the restaurant that we have frequented while we have been here. Today I plan on simply doing a few errands like geting to a bank and I wanted to get a blog post in because I knew that internet will be unreliable when we are on the road again. I promise I will try and get some Hampi pictures up, I just need to get to a computer that can read my memory stick. We leave today at 3pm to head to Bangalore, where we have a few hour layover inbetween trains, and then we will jump on n overnight train to Hyderabad. We are staying in Hyderabad for a couple days where we will be visiting a few NGOs inclusing ICRISAT. Other than that there is not much to report. I have told my parents that I may be travelling for a bit after this India semester. Past the initial shock they were supportive and I will start looking into that. I believe that if I do travel afterwards I will go to Nepal with a few people from the trip. It won't be for very long as I do miss home, but I am thinking that I should take advantage of being over here while I can because who knows when or if I will ever be back. I will try and kep in touch while we are on the road. Hope everyone is doing well and I will talk to you soon :)

Thursday 9 February 2012

Last Day of Classes!

     I had my last day of class today! Well my last day of class in the South. Tomorrow we are headed to Hampi, an ancient city that I am told is amazing. We head there on an overnight train, stay a night there, and then head back Sunday night on another overnighter. Once we are back in Mysore we have Monday to study and exams Tuesday through Friday. This semester abroad is split into two sections, the North and the South. Therefore we take courses in the South, write exams; and then take courses in the North and write exams. Two course marks are placed together to make a full course that the University of Guelph recognizes. We actually complete the same amount of class time that is necessary for Guelph courses, just in a shorter amount of time. I am a bit apprehensive about the exams so I will be studying on the overnight trains. I can't believe how quickly time has flown by. I have been in India for 5 weeks already!

      My time in Mysore has been great. I was ready to finally settle after travelling non-stop for two weeks. The longer I am on this trip, the more I appreciate how well it has been organized. We are able to travel and see many places, while at the same time, have the opportunity to stay and learn one location. The living arrangements in Mysore can be acquainted to that of residence in first year. It is great to be able to see everyone all the time but at the same time I see everyone all the time haha. When we are in the North we live with local families. I have billeted before when I was in Katimavik, so I am really excited to do it again. Although there is always some apprehension about entering someone else's place whom you do not know, it will be the best way to actually experience life in India.

      Mysore has brought many fun times! We have been able to explore some of Mysore in the minimal free time we get outside of classes. I have visited the local zoo and an "American" mall. I have also had many trips downtown to see the palace, the local market, and so much more. Many girls on the trips have had sari's tailored and one of the guys recently got a suit tailored.We have also had a few meals downtown at some local "touristy lonely planet" restaurants that have all been really good. I also should not forget to mention the monkeys. They have terrorized the group a few times by stealing bannanas from rooms or going through our garbage. They can actually be quite aggressive. A few days ago a few monkeys were going through garbage outside of our classroom. We tried to simply scare them off with no luck. A local worker actually had to grab a pellet gun to scare them off.

     I will try to post a few pictures in my next post. I am still having a great time and have been (knock on wood) quite healthy. Will update when I get back from Hampi :)

 Thanks for Listening

Saturday 4 February 2012

Chamundi Hill


     The Chamundi Hills are close to the palace city of Mysore where we are staying. The hills' average elevation is 1,000 meters. Yesterday we visited Chamuni Hill after seeing two amazing NGOs. One worked with children who are deaf and the other worked with people with mental disabilities. According to legend (Wikipedia), the demon Mahishasura, king of the area that is currently Mysore, was killed by the Goddess Chamundeswari (also Chamundi) after a fierce battle. The hills are named after the goddess, and a temple honors her in the hills. Chamundi's main hill features a long stone stairway, in which we climbed, that leads to the top of the hill. There are 1,180 steps in all, with the first 600 steps being steeper than those higher up. En route to the top, the steps pass the large statue of Nandi the bull. I am pictured with the bull above.The statue is about 16 feet high and 25 feet in length. Nandi is the vahana (vehicle) of Lord Shiva.