Wednesday, October 12, 2005

a fond farewell...













with a somewhat heavy heart i bid farewell to india...while i'm very much looking forward to the conveniences of home (FRESH fruits and vegetables by the ton...clean/safe running water...a HOT shower for the first time in 3 weeks...no raw sewage running along the roadside...not feeling like a total alien with three heads, etc.) i'm also a bit reluctant to leave.

everyday has been different...some trying and difficult at best. some frustrating and downright miserable for various reasons (mostly physical discomfort). but others have been absolutely amazing and beautiful, rich and magical...full of color and detail that will stay with me for a long, long time.

i'll miss the cacophony of traffic, the green parakeets flying wildly through the neighborhood, chai 4 times a day, the great food, terrific shopping, the vibrant colors everywhere, neemrana's fort palace, the children, music, and cows wandering lazily through intersections and marketplace. in short...just about everything. even the things that drive me crazy one day seem endearing the next.

we spent the day yesterday at a photoshoot for cigarettes in a posh club here in new delhi. the ads were running in africa where actual cigarettes are not allowed to be shown in the advertisement. we holed up in the club all day. and the models smoked. all day. and danced somewhat reluctantly as will smith's 'gettin jiggy with it' played on repeat for 6 hours. but it reminded me of what jake really came here to do...work. it was an interesting experience, especially to watch tarun. he is so full of energy and passion. it illustrated what an amazing time this has been...our experiences have been so diverse and at times complicated.













afterwards we set out to get some last minute shopping taken care of, and stopped by india gate...we were beseiged by monkey handlers, children trying to sell us all manner of things, and curious delhiites. two of the particularly rambunctious boys hijacked one of the paddle boats and much to the dismay of the protesting onlookers, sailed off laughing hysterically.





as jake put it last night..."i kinda looked at this in the beginning like, 'great...after this, india will be taken care of...i can cross that off my list of places in the world to go'...but now i know that i want to come back again and again". we saw and experienced a great deal, but there is still so much to be explored. i'm looking forward to the next time.

(but i'm also looking forward to sleeping in my own bed in about 48 hours and giving my dog a big fat kiss!)

namaste.

No comments: