India

Sri Lanka – From the sandy beach to the rainy mountains I feel a little guilty about this trip. When I booked my India ticket I chose a date that seemed convenient, without realising that I would be in India for 97 days. That’s an issue because my visa only allows me to stay in India…

Goodbye India – Reflections of cultural differences and how I fit in Well, here I am: my last day in India. Before coming to India, a lot of people told me I would either hate it or love it. I fall on the ‘love it’ side but I’m very ready to go home as well.…

The wild streets of India’s big 3 – Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata Mumbai – Roaming through the crazy streets of a megacity My alarm goes off at 2:30 am. Eating a huge dinner and going to sleep right away was not a wise decision. I haven’t had stomach issues in India until now, but the cramps have…

India’s people – Stop being so nice to me Disclaimer: This post does not attempt to give an exhaustive description of the Indian people, because obviously that’s impossible. In India, you can find billionaires and beggars, atheists and monks, brown and black people (some white, but not too many). The number one trait I will…

Jaipur – Exploring Aladdin’s city It’s a relief to be in a more modern and cleaner city again. After settling into my room with a nice, soft mattress it’s time to get lunch. There is a little girl assertively asking me for money to eat, but I ignore her and cross the street to enter…

Varanasi – Smells and sights in one of the world’s oldest cities The taxi driver brings me to the spot where the guesthouse was supposed to be. I enter the dirty alley and find out that I’m at the wrong Maruti guest house. So I walk to where Google Maps tells me to go. The…

      India’s food – How am I not sick of curry and naan? I came prepared, but it didn’t work. A few weeks before leaving to India I came across an article about breakfast. They showed the differences between countries, and noted how breakfast is the meal that people find most difficult to…

India’s traffic – How do you transport 1.300.000.000 people? I have waited hours in traffic jam, sat on motorbikes, driven a scooter, and bought a pollution mask. I have bargained for taxi rides and squeezed into Tuk-Tuks. I’ve slept in busses, eaten in trains, boarded airplanes, and I can cross any road without fear. I…

What I’ve learned in Asia’s biggest slum In an area half of central park, more than one million people survive in Asia’s biggest slum. I had seen a lot of poverty in India, and I tried to prepare for the worst. But the slum of Dharavi surprised me. 1) Dharavi in Mumbai (Image is from…

Perhaps I have some Indian in me? Today marks 5 weeks in India and it feels like I have adjusted well. I prefer the normal spice level over the blend version that foreigners get, I don’t hear the honking train anymore, and I can even quote some TV ads. I also don’t get a mini…