This is written like a journal entry, it is the only way I can think to come close to expressing my impressions of India.
I had often heard the expression “assault on your senses” I realize now that I had never really experienced anything close to what India is capable of doing to the senses of a first time North American visitor.
Landing in Delhi is probably a rough way to start but the group of twenty coming from all over the world assembled there just over a week ago. We are a rather strange and eclectic group and after sharing a week together in Delhi, Udaipur, Jaipur and now Agra it is starting to feel a bit like a travelling Agatha Christie novel as interesting a cast of characters one could dream up.
In some ways just allowing yourself to look and take in what is presented you by the mass of humanity that passes by each day is almost too much to comprehend. There is a post apocalyptic feel to what you are seeing and experiencing. The air is unbreathable, the water undrinkable but there is a fullness of life that is unmistakeable as cows, dogs and people coexist in ancient streets and deplorable conditions.
As we slowly make our way from airport to train station to luxury hotels i see and feel my white privilege and need to understand what that really means. I feel more gratitude for what I have and the people in my life than I ever have.
India is not just a place on the map, it feels like an entity that is ripping open my heart and allowing me to see things that would have been impossible to see any other way.
This morning as the sun was rising I stood in front of the Taj Mahal with tears streaming down my face. I have never been so moved by seeing a structure in my life.
……
Wildly and Dangerously Free 
“To other countries, I may go as
a tourist, but to India, I come as
a pilgrim.”– Martin Luther King, Jr.
LikeLike
David….a perfect quote that describes perfectly my experience
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hope to see and hear more.
LikeLike
Another week to go ending in Varanasi which is apparently one of the most holy cities of India….this journey is beyond anything I could have imagined
LikeLiked by 1 person
So they say.
LikeLike
Hello there. Did India take you much more by surprise than you had expected it would?
Neil Scheinin
LikeLike
the answer is an emphatic yes. I am fairly well travelled did a lot of research and studied the history and culture of India before leaving but the full on, in your face reality of the street life and rural life I have experienced so far is indescribable. perhaps I am overly empathic sometimes but I cannot imagine anyone coming to this country and experiencing just a day in a life and not being changed on some deep level. I was not prepared for the depth of the impact it is having on me and I am just processing it all day by day as it appears.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Excellent. Enjoy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sometimes we need that sideways approach to convey our feelings/impressions, especially in extraordinary circumstances. The “journal” approach is perfect. How else to write what the body feels/felt at a particular point in time but for which the brain has no apt descriptors? 🙂
What a phenomenal experience. And a life changing one at that. Thank you for sharing.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for reading and encouraging the approach……another mind blowing day today. I may have time to write tomorrow before landing in Varanasi…..from what people have described I better fasten my safety belt 🙂 sunrise boat ride on he Ganges, holiest city in India
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can’t even imagine that boat ride and at sunrise no less. No doubt we will be reading about it in the near future and hopefully so. Safe travels.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think I am just going to try to write a stream of consciousness piece about the last few days …….there is no way to describe this country
LikeLiked by 1 person