An Indian Experience - By Howe Rokofsky (www.rokofsky.com)
In the name of brevity, I will simply relate to you
some of the impressions and how their effect has
enhanced my life. After the first few days in Delhi, I
was already thinking to myself „How I wish this
Indian experience was behind me! Let me go home
already!“ It was more about survival than
enjoyment. The poverty was all around me, the
innumerable touts trying to scam me out of some money,
the poor cows languishing all over the city, the stray
dogs looking weak and hungry, the stench of urine
pervasive. If it weren't for all the business meetings
I had there, I would have left Delhi immediately and
made my way for the villages, away from the touts, at
least.
Then I bought a 21-day train pass and began my
travelling in earnest. Every couple of days was a new
destination, a new place where I knew no one, where I
had to find accommodation, get familiar with the new
surroundings, and find someone to wash my clothes.
Travelling around Rajasthan, then to the Taj Mahal,
then slowly down south to sultry Kerala, I saw
everything from camels to elephants, birds of prey,
met countless people with countless agendas (most of
them just happy to talk to a white man, several
inviting me home to meet their families, many wanting
to take a photo with me, and, of course, others trying
to extract money from me). Although I got lonely at
times, travelling alone made it easier to meet people
and learn so much about this ancient and incredibly
diverse culture.
When the train pass ran out, I enjoyed a few days'
repose on the beaches of Varkala, not far from the
southernmost tip of the sub-continent. However, after
just three days of lying in the sun, I felt again the
urge to move and get back inland, to the „real
India.“ So I took a 26-hour train ride up to
Bombay, where I am now. I'm glad I came here a couple
of days early; Bombay is so much like New York, so
unlike Delhi! Thanks to the hospitality of a Jain
family I met on the internet, I am staying in their
home, eating home-made Gujarati food, and my new
friend Samir has been answering so many of the
questions in my mind about what I've seen around
India. Still, there are more questions I can not even
venture to formulate! It will take another visit to
India to get a better grip on the way things are done
here.
No, I did not do the „spiritual trip“ of
doing yoga or meditation here; many Westerners come to
India for that reason; as far as I'm concerned, those
things can be done at home. There is just too much to
do and see here!
As for the business end of things, I don't mind
mentioning that several „partners“ have
been wooing me to come and offer my services to their
clients. And, if some of the business meetings
materialize into business doings, I will be back very
soon.
As strange as it seems, I have not had even one case
of belly cramps or anything of the like. Not that I
was overly careful either: without actually drinking
any of the tap water, I did not avoid it when brushing
my teeth or drinking fresh juices out of
less-than-clean glasses on the street. And, as much as
I tried to live as an Indian wherever possible, I
managed to avoid stepping into cow dung on all but
three occasions. Not once did I step into one of the
innumerable (and deep!) potholes and twist my ankle, a
feat I consider extremely lucky. I came here insured
to the hilt against illness, injury and theft, but
have not had any such incident to speak of.
What have I gained from this unlikely experience over
the past 6 weeks? Survival is something no one should
take lightly: it benefits the soul more than most
people realize. One becomes even more adaptable;
everything is so different: my imagination did not
fathom such things as I've seen here. Surely my senses
have been heightened: in addition to avoiding traffic
(you take your life into your hands every time you
cross the street, even in small towns), it is noticing
the little things that make the Indian experience so
unique. And I can now appreciate so many things I've
taken for granted my whole life: 24-hour electricity,
traffic rules, sit-down toilets, paved roads, a roof
over my head, and so many other things that will enter
my mind once I am home and have had the chance to
reflect more deeply. Without hesitation I can say that
these 6 weeks have been some of the most educational
and enlightening of my entire life. If one can deal
with the strange and unusual things in India, one can
get through trials and tribulations anywhere, save for
war zones.
„India rewards those who go with the
flow“: these words are in the Forward of the
Lonely Planet guide book. When I originally read that,
it seemed trite. But now, I can say that truer words
were never spoken...
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