India Blog #3

India blog #3

I am sitting on the train on my way from New York to Rochester as I attempt to reflect on this amazing 11-day tour of Northern India. It’s hard for me to believe that we were only there for 11 days…it felt like at least three weeks. I guess we just did so much and visited so many places that I lost track of the days. It will be difficult for me to sum up the trip in a blog post – which might be one reason why I took over 2,000 pictures during that 11-day span – but I will do my best. Before I attempt to reflect on the trip as a whole I would like to cover some of the things our group did in the days following my second blog post.

Some of the most fun activities were packed into the last few days: visiting the amazing Taj Mahal, riding on a run-away elephant, eating peppers so hot that it made me cry, and enjoying true Indian hospitality. I have seen few things in my life more incredible than the Taj Mahal: it’s size, carefully planned architecture, it’s beauty, and its awesomeness are hard to match. As we approached the massive structure it seemed surreal – we were at one of the most famous sites in the world, one which most people only see in pictures or movies – and we took our time carefully exploring everything that was presented in front of us. I took over 300 pictures at this place; I guess I figure that I can always delete pictures, but I can’t take any more once I’m gone, and at a place so incredible as the Taj Mahal, I wasn’t going to miss out on any photo opportunities. Actually, because of knack for picture taking, and because of the camera equipment I was carrying Professor Gupta (our guide) dubbed me the official photographer of the trip ( I tried to get a discount on the trip but I guess that’s not going to happen, haha). If you have never been to the Taj Mahal then I highly suggest making the trip, if not then just take a look at my pictures!

The Indian food didn’t prove troublesome for my stomach (unfortunately that was not the case for many people on the trip), and I got very used to the spice – especially after a lunching incident while visiting PriceWaterhouse Coopers (PWC). As usual during our business visits we were given a buffet style lunch and we had to pretty much guess about what to get, and that day one of the things I chose was a potato salad looking dish with green beans mixed in (or so I thought). After trying some of the other dishes that proved to be quite spicy I opted to have some of the potato salad dish to cool things off – as you may have guessed, something very different happened. I took a spoonful of this dish which included two full green bean, and after swallowing I soon felt a tingle of spice on my tongue. This ‘tingle’ soon turned into a full-fledged bon-fire inside my mouth; I started sweating almost immediately, my skin turned bright red, my lips and mouth were on fire, and my eyes started watering uncontrollably. I can easily say that what turned out to be these extremely spicy Indian peppers are by far the spiciest thing I have ever eaten. To explain the discomfort and pure pain that I was actually in I give you this:

Dave: Would you eat that again for $50?

Me: Not a chance

Dave: $100?

Me: No way

Dave: $300?

Me: You must not know how bad it really was

Dave: $500?

Me: Maybe

Needless to say, I will not be eating those peppers again…ever! The only really positive things that came out of this situation was that it amused my friends to no end, and every “spicy” dish for the rest of the trip didn’t taste spicy at all. In the end, it was a very interesting experience; I would never do it again, but looking back, I’m not terribly upset that it happened…a good experience I guess.

A few days ago our group went to a park to take camel and elephant rides, which proved to be very interesting, but I’m not sure that any elephant ride I could take in the future will be able to top the one that I took. Climbing up on top of the elephant into a basket and then helping my companion Brittney in all went smoothly, and as we went along the ride went smoothly…until a group of angry men came into the park and started yelling at our group. Brittney and I had no clue what was going on, partly because there was just so much yelling (all in Hindi), and the elephant driver also didn’t speak English either, so as we are being pointed at and yelled at by these Indian men our Elephant decides to leave the park and cut into traffic. Our professor was somewhere in the mob of yelling Indian men, Brittney and I were riding on an elephant that wanted out, and the electrical wires in the middle of the street threatened to take off our heads. Brittney wanted down, which she tried to tell the driver several times, but it was quite obvious that this wasn’t about to happen, so I just tried to reassure her that everything was going to be fine and that she could hold onto me if it made her feel better (I think I have bruises). I’m not going to say that I felt 100% secure with the situation, but I thought it was pretty fun. As we made way for the other side of the street traffic halted for us (not so willingly) and the angry mob of yelling men was still on the other side of the street, so we were on our own – much to Brittney’s dismay. As the elephant reached a tree on the side of the road it tore down enough branches to block off half of that side of the street and the people on the street were obviously unhappy – as their horns and yelling showed. After everything calmed down a bit (except Brittney) we finally stopped and got off the elephant – which I honestly can’t remember how we did. The whole situation is not totally clear to me still, but at least everyone in our group got plenty of pictures, and Brittney and I, we got a good story.

Attempting to reflect on the trip, India, and our adventures I provide the following: it was the trip of a lifetime that formed strong bonds, promoted high levels of learning, allowed us to experience a completely different way of life, learn about ourselves while learning about others, and helped us to appreciate how fortunate we truly are. The Indian people are a warm, passionate, friendly, hospitable, and intriguing group who has much to offer the world. India is still learning, and as they continue to fix the problems in their country they will become world leaders and global competitors on an even higher scale than they are now. Our course is called Emerging Markets: India, and the growth and the potential for growth that we witnessed on this tour have proven to me even further why this country has great promise and why it can be one of the world powers – it might just take a little time.

Indian life is so different from the lives most of us are used to living every day, so it is hard to compare to life in the US, so all I can really say is that it is very different, and that one must experience it to understand how different. I am very glad that I went on this tour; I learned a lot about India, it’s people and culture, as well as myself, my values and what is most important to me. Traveling has always proven to provide valuable experience for me, and I will continue to travel the world while learning and shaping my personal character.

India blog #2

India blog #2

Since my last blog post not much has changed in terms of the pace of the trip: we are all getting maybe 5 hours of sleep a night (if that), but believe me – it’s worth it. The last few days we have been at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Punjab, which is about 4 hours south of Delhi. Before our trip to India started we were all assigned e-buddies from LPU so we could ask any questions we had and also so we would have a buddy to show us around while in Punjab. My e-buddy was Prahbat, a 22-year old MBA student who is very friendly and generous. While visiting Punjab our group visited a Hindu temple as well as Lovely Motors and Lovely Sweets (both companies within the Lovely group). The temple was beautiful, and much of the building and statues were made of pure gold. Having Prahbat by my side proved very useful as he was able to explain the meanings of the different Gods, buildings, and traditions. At night we danced around giant bonfires and shared our cultures. We all became good friends with our Indian friends, and we have the pictures to prove it.

Our trip to the Lovely Motor group was interesting, educational, and made me want a motorcycle. We were given VIP treatment and we got to talk with the head of the company and talk about the Indian automobile industry as well as the company, their vision, and their business strategies. The trip to Lovely Sweets was stomach-ache inducing, as we were fed sweets in copious amounts. This store was the largest, most crowded sweet shop I’ve ever seen. Also at the sweet shop we were given special treatment and were allowed to try anything we wanted  in the store…much to our stomachs dismay. We also talked business strategies with the head of the company and provided business suggestions for ways to grow the business. This trip has proven to be both educational and eye-opening; it is truly amazing how people living in the same world can live such different lives. One of my favorite parts about traveling is experiencing a new way of life, which is why I take every opportunity I can to live like they do here (minus a few exceptions) . I think it is important to experience different ways of life because then it allows peoplpe to better understand the world, themselves, how everything fits together, and how they want to live their life. Our trip is just about half way over and I have already learned so much, not only about India, but about myself – which I think is a very valuable part of travel. Coming to India and experiencing everything that it has to offer only makes me wasn’t to travel more, but until I do, I will take in all that my country of stay has to offer, and continue to learn, grow, and prosper.

India blog #1

India blog #1.

So I’m here in New Delhi, India and this is my first blog entry of the trip. There is so much going on in this country that I hardly know where to star, so I will  remember what I can of all the events and sights that I have seen.

As soon as I stepped off the plane and took my first steps in India I knew that I was in a whole new world: new smells, new colors, new customs, new people, new everything. Learning and exploring new things is exciting to me and in the few days that I have been here I have already been exposed to so much: I have tried goat, I rode through puddles of blood on a bike, I warmed m hands by a fire with the locals, I ate more spicy food in a day than I have in my entire life, and I walked through a sacred temple as people of all faiths prayed in silence.

The people are a proud, friendly group – no matter their situation. The wealth gap is quite significant, and I have never seen people so poor. Not only is the amount of poverty surprising, but also the degree of poverty; most people in the United States have a very distorted concept of poor, and I think that one day here would open their eyes to a whole new world. Despite their hardships, the Indian people are a friendly group, and even though many do not speak English they still wave and smile as we walk or drive by. There are children in the streets who are filthy, starving, have no parents, and who’s only source of income is begging on the streets. To see such small children, so young, already struggling more than most people do in their entire lifetime is eye opening, and shocking to say the least. These children go through such struggle every day, yet they still are able to crack a smile at the American tourists. The older generations show their age on their faces, and an equal amount of them deal with poverty and hunger. As I walk by these people and see their faces I can almost see how hard their lives have been just by the look in their eyes; it’s a sad sight, but something that must be dealt with by the Indian people, and as they learn and grow they will break through these berreirs they face and one day prosper.

Life in Delhi is fast paced, and the traffic is even worse; there have been several occasions where I was within inches of being struck by an oncoming vehicle. There appears to be no traffic lanes, and nobody uses their directional when changing lanes. The noise is enough to cause a severe migraine as everyone uses their horn like it’s the thing to do. And not only does everybody honk, but it seems as though everyone put in extra loud horns just to make sure they are heard. Traffic isn’t the only thing that is everywhere; trade is on every street, corner, and alley. For most people, selling items or food on the street is their only source of income, and since there is over one billion people in India, these little stands/retailers are everywhere. Another thing that can be found without even turning your head is construction – or destruction for that matter: it appears that the Indian construction workers are very good at breaking things down and digging holes, but I have seen very few of them actually constructing anything at all. Due to all of the construction, there is dirt and dust everywhere: the plants, the cars, the buildings, the plants, the people. Every time I blow my nose I see black in the tissue, and I can only imagine how my lungs are taking it. It’s no wonder why the average life expectancy is so much lower than the US; their concept of clean here is the polar opposite of that which I and most Americans know. I saw a man on the street cleaning cups with nothing but his hands and a bucket of dirty water. I must sanitize my hands at least nine times a day…just to be safe.

Despite the garbage and dirt, the buildings can be beautiful, and the architecture can be quite impressive. Of course the temples and the famous buildings are impressive, but even the housing buildings and old, run down shops can have an impressive design. This country has a lot of potential…I can’t wait to see where it is in another 50 years. For this post, this will be all I will cover, but I’m sure that over the next few days I will experience all new things and I will have even more to reflect upon.