Noisy, busy, smelly, colorful, intense.. There is no hiding from India once you arrive. Here, anything goes. And everything is done out in the open. EVERYTHING. Culturally, India is so different than everything Ive ever known. Everything tis done in public. Bathing, using the bathroom, worship, dining, and sleeping. The street is used for all of the above. Simply walking down any given street is intense and was a bit overwhelming at first. The overpowering smells of deisel fumes, garbage, urine and excriment, all disquise the pleasant aromas of grease fried breads, chai, curry, and insence. The gutters of all teh streets are the town garbage and toilet. I feel bad contributing to the filth, but its hard to find an actual trash can at times. Everywhere you look you see hundreds upon thousands of men. Just men are roaming the streets, working, eating, and socializing. Religion is expressed in so many ways. Mostly hindus, some Muslims, everyone displays their beliefs through the garments they wear. There are statues of dieties on many streets. People frequently stop and pay respects when passing these Gods. The concept of these colorful, somewhat cartoon like figures with multiple arms arms and eyes being Gods is difficult to grasp. But the more I learn, the more I understand and respect their views and way of life. By no means are they wrong for believing what they do. Its simply different.
Another foreign concept to me is how many men, grown and young, hold hand while walking or talking.
Kolkata is a large city with more than 16 million people. The honking of horns never stops and viscious dogs fight and growl throughout the night. Tourists get hasseled at all times by taxi drivers, rickshaw pullers, homeless, and everyone else selling things or providing services on the streets. Dirty children wearing filthy rags and dirt on their face, holding a newborn child, are relentless with foreigners. They will follow you for blocks, calling for you, "Uncle, auntie.." many of the beggers are simply exploiting tourists. Some of them are genuine. However, some have homes and rent spaces on popular Sutter Street to get the most action. Begging has become a business.
Volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity, Mother Teresa's foundatrion was an amazing and unforgettable experience. Daya Dan is an orphanage for mentally challenged boys. Teaching, spending time with, and getting to know these incredible children was amazing. Kalighat is the home for the destitute and the dying. Just like the orphanage, we were there to give them the love they lack , and help them feel a little more comfortable. Both places are filled with amazing people that have had a great effect on me.
16 hours later by slow train, we arrived in Bodghaya on Thanksgiving. It was 13 km from the trainstation to the guest houses where we were staying. Auto rickshaw drivers almost broke out into a brawl for who was going to give us a ride. I had to physically remove their pryed hands off my arms and tell them to kick rocks. The 3 wheeled open air taxi was built for 4 maybe 5 people. After we bobbed and weaved through dusty streets filled with traffic of motos, bikes, small cars, and big cows. The air was so thick with dust abd deisel fumes, you could practically chew it. As I was laughing about the 9 people that were squeezed in this rediculous rickshaw, we swerve, slam on the breaks, I feel a jolt, and hear the yelp of a dog. Yes, we blasted a stray dog. No big deal. He got up and limped off, and no one turned their head or even thought of stopping. Ha. We later squeezed a few more on to make a total of 12. 2 of which were hanging off teh back bumper.
Bodghaya is a tiny town filled with monistaries and guesthouses. It has a world heritage site of the exact spot of where the Buddha reached enlightenment. It was a very holy place and well worth the visit. The street children here were much more haggard and dirty here than in Kolkata. Just as relentless, ifnot more.
4 hours by train to Varanasi. The holiest city for all Hindus. There are no street lights and everything is covered in dust. The whole city revolves around the ghats along the Ganges river. This is a holy river in which all Hindus bathe, drink, and worship in. The water is beyond filthy. There are several sewers that empty into it. Bodies are burned and the ashes are put in the river. On one of our boat rides, we saw a body floating no more than 10 meters from where people were bathing. A very colorful city, and quite peacefull when on the boat, away from the tourists hagglers. Very beautiful. It was amazing to see Indians on their pilgramage from all over. It is very apparent how holy this river really is.
