Train to Rishikesh- September 10

I took a train ride from Jaipur to New Delhi, which took 5 1/2 hours. From there, I needed to buy a ticket to Haridwar. I was so lost in the train station, because there were no signs pointing to the direction of the ticket booth! I was searching all over, when I saw this guy with a really kind face and he looked like a student. Perfect! So, I approached him and asked him where the ticket booth was. He had no idea, but he helped me find it. Then, graciously, he helped me buy the ticket (which was an incredibly stressful thing, since everyone said the train was full. Nobody spoke English, so I had to rely on the guy I was with to help me)! Finally, after getting the ticket, he helped me get to my platform and waited with me until my train arrived! He told me about his wife and his little baby and had me talk to his wife on the phone. He kept saying, "I am so lucky to be helping you. An American." Wow, what a crazy thought... Lucky to help an American? I said, "I am lucky you are helping me!!!" ha ha ha.

So, I said good bye and off I went for a 6 1/2 hour train ride to Haridwar... The train ride was long, but I slept the whole way. Some of the Indians on the train woke me up when we arrived at the correct train station, and I was so thankful! Otherwise, I would have slept through it!

Trip to Jaipur- September 8th-10th

Today was filled with all sorts of weird things. The first part of the day was nice, because I simply rested. I went to the internet shop (they are all over the place), where I met a great little family that owned the shop. Connected to the shop, behind it, is their home! Which is quite common. The shop is like a little hole in a wall, and there is a door in the back that leads to their house. It's very cute, and the family was very welcoming. I sat with them for hours, as they assisted me in buying my train tickets online. We had ice cream, which is sold at every corner for less than $1 each. It's great. 

At 6pm, I took a train from Agra to Jaipur, which is in Rajasthan. It was about a 5 hour train ride, and I met some great people on the train that helped me practice my Hindi. Upon arriving in Jaipur, I was mobbed by taxi drivers. "Hello ma'am, yes here I am. You take rickshaw? I will take u where u need to go!" I chose the first one that approached me, which I will not do again. He led me to his younger brother who ended up being my taxi driver. He's 24, and a typical guy. Except, my experience is that the Indian men are much more forward. In southern India, the feel is much more different- it is very traditional there, the men are respectful and rarely look women in the eye (same with women to men). However, in Jaipur (north), it is a city full of tourists! There is a huge scam all throughout India, but especially in Jaipur, called the Gem Scam, which you can read about at the website. The taxi driver brought me to my hotel and insisted that I try the hotel next door to mine. I compared the two, and his did seem better. But, when I met the owner and his employees, I knew they were all slime balls. I negotiated a fairly good price, though, and all I wanted to do was sleep. The taxi driver convinced me to hire him the following day for an all day trip around Jaipur, where he would show me everything. For the lost cost of Rs. 300 (about $6 for the whole day), I accepted. He picked me up at 10am the next day, and brought me to many wonderful places. I saw the monkey temple, which is surrounded by monkeys, the King's graveyard, the observatory, and the water palace. That night, we attended a fair that they nightly only half and hour away from Jaipur. The fair/festival is called Chokhi Dhani, which is famous and written about in all India guide books! For only $6, we entered a new world. There are traditional Indian dancers all around that I watched, singing, Indian folk dance, magicians, puppet plays, camel rides, elephant rides (which was closed the night i went), and a large dinner provided!! The dinner was served in a large restaurant, where we sat at these long tables on cushions on the floor. We were served several portions of every kind of Indian curry dish. It was so yummy! 

Now to the scary stuff: Throughout the day, this taxi driver was trying to convince me that having a boyfriend in the U.S. doesn't mean anything in India. He told me how many girls come to Jaipur and have boyfriends, but they spend the night with Indian men, because "their boyfriends will never know". I insisted that despite what others may do, I am 100% faithful to Shane and only Shane. Hoping he would let it go, I tried to enjoy the sights. However, after Chokhi Dhani, when he was bringing me home, he asked if i wanted to "get a room with him". I refused him more times that I've ever had to say no before. Finally, he said: "Where did you learn this word, NO? It's very bad- you should say YES to everything." I was disgusted. Thank God he brought me safely to my hotel! I am so glad I was strong enough to say no, otherwise it could have been a complete disaster. Apparently, many women go to Jaipur just to have sex with the men there. It's absolutely despicable. I paid him when he left, and he apologized. Throughout his apology, however, he kept saying: "nobody ever forgets the sex they have with me". I wanted to scream at him. We had plans to meet one of his friends whose wife was German the next day, and I really wanted to still because I wanted to see their baby. We planned on him picking me up at 11am, but I had to go to the train station to confirm my ticket. So, I asked one of the guys outside my hotel to tell him I was going to be late. Right before I went to the train station, I stopped at an internet station. The men that worked there knew where I was staying, and this is how I learned about the "playboys" and the "gem scam" in Jaipur. They told me not to trust them, because they will tell me that they have a friend who has a German wife, and gain my trust this way! I couldn't believe it, because they explained everything I had experienced. Then, after bringing me to the German couple that own a jewelry store, they would somehow try and convince me to bring many precious gems to America to sell for lots of money. Of course, a down payment is required, and then the person gets in trouble at the border and often arrested. After learning these things, I decided not to speak to the taxi man any more. MUCH TO MY SURPRISE, he followed me to the train station and tapped on my shoulder while I was in line. "Kelly, why were you not at your hotel?" I explained to him that I was going to be late, but that I decided I didn't want to go afterall. He asked me why and insisted that I go with him. I made quite a few loud responses in the train station and outside to embarrass him and make him leave me alone. He continued to follow me for a couple hours. I went to a police stand and asked them to tell him to leave me alone. However, as soon as I left, there he was again. After awhile, he left me alone. I needed a taxi to bring me back to my hotel, and someone approached me telling me we could walk. I didn't know who he was, but he started telling me about his friend that has a German wife! Immediately, I knew he was part of the scam too! As soon as I got to my hotel, I gathered my things, hired a trustworthy taxi driver, and before leaving I was bombarded by my old taxi driver and his friends insisting that I tell them I am ignoring them. I told them I was finished with them, and that I no longer wanted to talk to them. I asked them to leave me alone, and then my taxi man drove me away. The entire day, I was scared that he would find me. After eating, I went to the train station and boarded my train hoping to God that he wasn't following me. I was able to calm down after an hour on the train, and I was so glad I was out of there! But, all I wanted to do was go home. I felt violated, disrespected, and there was nowhere I could go. I felt like every man that I talk thinks dirty thoughts about me, and I was disgusted. 

Taj Mahal, Sept. 7

First pic: a man hand-carving a marble table, 2nd: weaving a wool rug!, 3rd pic: me in front of Agra Fort, 4th: feeding a cow that wandered into the hotel restaurant (a regular occurrence), 5th: mama monkey and baby walking across rail of my hotel, 6th: Taj Mahal, 7th: I am holding the Taj!!, 8th: posing in front of Taj, 9th: AMAZING VIEW of Taj. Wow, was the Taj Mahal absolutely 

magnificent. I mean, it's more magnificent than one can imagine! I had only seen pictures before, and they definitely didn't do justice. As I entered the pearly gates of the Taj with a ticket purchased at the mere price of Rs. 750 (about $15), I was approached by a tour guide. Since this was such a big adventure, I hired him (Ali), and he took photos of me as well as explained the history of the Taj. I spent about an hour and 1/2 there simply in awe of the beauty. The Taj Mahal is made entirely of marble and semi-precious stones. Built by about 22,000 workers, every part of the Taj is symmetrical. It is amazing. Here are some photos of the Taj Mahal, and I hope you all can experience it with your own eyes some day! 

After this experience, I headed back to my hotel, which is a 1 minute walk from the western gate of the Taj. Truly unbelievable! There was a great view of the Taj on the rooftop of my hotel, which I enjoyed very much. When I walked up to the rooftop, I was carrying 2 bananas in a bag. Apparently, the monkeys can smell the bananas because one came up to me! He walked directly towards me and pawed my leg for a banana. Pretty scared, as I am told monkeys often carry diseases and often bite people, I gave him one banana. After this, I was so excited to watch him eat it right in front of me! Literally, a foot away from me. Naturally, he walked up to me again for my other banana. Good thing bananas cost nearly nothing here! This was an experience in itself, and I am proud to say I have survived my monkey encounter with some great pictures and a video of the monkey eating the banana. Today was a good day. 

First 3 days in India...

 

1st photo: Mosque in New Delhi, 2nd: people living under tent, 3rd: holy cow in India, 4th: Red Fort in Old Delhi,5th: Beautiful tree in Red Fort, 6th: outside of Red Fort, 7th: me in a "tuk tuk", 7th: child begging for money as we are stopped in traffic, 8th: sunset from airplane to Delhi, 9th: this is the only bag I brought! I'm pretty sure it weighs 100 lbs. though! 

Ah, the joys of traveling... half sarcastic. The flight, including layover times, was about 22 hours. Upon arriving in New Delhi at 9pm, I bought a pre-paid taxi trip to my hostel. The driver did not know where my hostel was, nor did he speak English. So, that was an adventure that seemed to take over an hour (a trip that could have taken 10-15 minutes). Laughing it off, I arrived to my room where there were 2 other women staying. Sakura from Japan and Julie from New Zealand were very kind and helped me feel a little more comfortable being a single woman traveling India alone. The "international youth hostel" required a Rs. (rupees)  230  (about $4.50) annual membership fee, and the stay was only $6/night. Great! 

The following day I met a very nice man while eating breakfast, named Kunal. Indian himself, he offered to show me around New Delhi. I thought nothing of it, but I soon found out it was a mistake. Apparently, I learned nothing from my internship orientation in Corvallis about giving men the wrong impression! Well, I think I have to relearn that all the time in America too! Even though I told Kunal about my boyfriend and showed him a picture, that didn't seem to phase him. However, he was very helpful. He took me to see the Red Fort in Old Delhi where we had tea and took many great photographs. We took a "tuk tuk" or a "rickshaw" as our taxi the whole day, and that was very fun! These small automobiles are very quick and very small! The one very sad and sometimes frustrating thing about being stuck in traffic in India is that there are millions of impoverished children that come to your window and ask for money. Similar to America, it is hard to know if they are giving the money to their parents who make a living off of the people that give them money, or if they are using it for themselves. Unfortunately, every one of them are without a doubt very poor and very hungry. There comes a point, which I learned the first time in India, where you cannot give to every child or every mother with her baby begging for money for food. I give when I feel right about it in my heart. 

After the Red Fort, Kunal had to attend to some business and asked if I would be ok alone just walking around the shops for awhile. Being the strong independent woman I am, I said "Yes" quite confidently. BUT, once he left I was very scared! I mean, Indian market places are nothing like the U.S. Everyone invites you into their shops and will follow you around for many blocks asking you to come into their store. Once you go in, you are stuck for a long time. The clothing and jewelry stores especially are very pushy! They will show me every piece of clothing they have, ask me to try them on, ask me what color I like, etc... until I buy something. The conversation will go like this: "You like this? Okay, I give you for Rs. 1,000"... "No."... "Okay, I give you for Rs. 800"... "No, I am not looking to buy."... "Okay okay, Rs. 600 final price. You are my first customer this day." HAHAHA, I can laugh about it now. But, during it is very frustrating. They are very good at what they do, so I have to stay strong-willed if I want to save a little bit of money! 

   Anyway, I was also able to see the famous Jama Masjid Mosque in New Delhi while Kunal was doing his business. Afterwards, Kunal came to meet me 15 minutes late which I now remember from previous times in India is "on time". They say 6pm, they really mean 6:15-6:30. We enjoyed lunch after this, and I bought a couple "salwaar kameez" (of which I left at the train station by accident the next day). I then had the unfortunate experience of having to refuse to spend any more time with Kunal, because it was making me very uncomfortable. What did I expect? 

Let's move on to today! This morning, I woke up @ 4:30 and took a cab to the train station at 5:00. Upon arriving at the train station, I was overwhelmed by the concentrated amount of people! I was able to find someone who told me where my platform was for the train to Agra, . Then, because I had been waitlisted, I was reseated 4 times before I was able to settle in one spot. To my pleasant, most people in the city know a moderate or good amount of English! So, they were very helpful in the train! The travel time took about 2 1/2 hours to get to Agra, and we were served breakfast (tea, bread, chapati, spicy pickled jam, and strawberry jam). When it comes to food here, the portions are quite generous and very very cheap. Of course, this meal came with the price of the ticket, but in general I can eat for less than $1 or $1.50 per meal. I met a wonderful Indian man on the train who offered to have his personal driver bring me to my hotel (Hotel Sidhartha) and help me get settled. This saved me some money and stress! This room is considerably more expensive compared to the hostel. In India, rooms do not necessarily come with A/C. Therefore, the A/C room I am paying for is Rs. 700 per night, which is about $14. It is very nice too! Being a hotel instead of a hostel, I have my own room, which is great. Also, there is a great outdoor restaurant right outside of my room that is open all day and closes at 10pm. The menu has a variety of food, so I haven't had to have any rice or curry yet! I love both of these things, but they do terrible things to my stomach. So, I am waiting until I am ready to eat it. While eating at the restaurant outside my room, I saw many monkeys!! They were walking around on the railing of the 2nd flood of the hotel. And, I got some great pictures.

I hired a taxi to drive me around today for Rs. 550 ($11), which turned out to be quite a rip-off! But, he did take me to many nice places including the Agra Fort, which is the most important fort in India. As well, he showed me one of the places where they hand carve marble, a place where they hand make wool rugs, and a place with semi-precious and precious stones! As one of the things I wanted to buy in India on this trip was pearls, I bought some pearl earrings with emeralds. VERY BEAUTIFUL! And, they were $60. I told one my friend I met on the train how much I paid, and he said I paid too much. But, I thought it was pretty cheap. That'll teach me to buy expensive things without the help of a local! I am happy about my purchase, though. Afterwards, I rested in my room, ate dinner and came to the internet station next to my hotel to update my blog! Tomorrow morning I will visit the Taj Mahal, which is only a block away. I was able to take pictures of it from the top view of the hotel! I will post more very soon!

WOO! Flying to Chicago from PDX in 7 1/2 hours, from Chicago to Frankfurt, and Frankfurt to New Delhi. I'm hyped on caffeine right now, due to the immense amount of stuff I have left to do. I'll have plenty of time to spend sleeping on the plane, though. Enjoying my time with Shane and trying to feel ready. By the way, my phone turns off on September 4th.  So, if anyone desperately needs to get ahold of me, tomorrow is the last day to call. India here I come!

10pm 2 days before my trip...

Everything is sprawled on the floor ready to get packed, and I am in panic mode! Not only am I exhausted from running around for 7 hours today frantically preparing for this trip, but I am so sure I will forget something! I suppose that's inevitable, especially since I'm only bringing a backpack... I am very excited, though. But, it feels more like stress right now. Tomorrow evening, I think I'll be ready. Wish me luck!