Here I Am, in India!

HELLO EVERYONE!!!

I can’t even tell you how much I appreciate all the love and support that I’ve gotten the last month before all of this happened and especially the last week as I was getting ready to go. It has already been a world wind of an adventure but I am soaking up every minute and can’t wait for what is to come the next 7 weeks. 

My flight here was as good as possible. I went almost 24 hours without sleeping which wasn’t great but all my connections went great, you all witnessed my total lack of sleep from the Finland post and I finally slept the entire 7 hour flight to Delhi. I met a very nice middle aged Indian man on the flight who I thought was just great. Then he gave me his number and asked me dinner. I think I’ll pass on that offer. 

The first week I am here I am doing a culture & language immersion week so I am spending some days basically getting lessons on customs, traditions and Indian history (obviously I am a total loser and absolutely love it and ask a million questions) along with Hinid lessons (I am HORRIBLE at it. The guy seriously laughs every time I try to speak!). Other days we are getting to go out and see some of the major sights in Delhi. Some other girls and I have also done some sightseeing on our own during the little free time we have had this week. I wish I could show you all my pictures but of course iPhoto hates me right now and won’t let me. So all pictures below are from my bff google. 

Akshardham Temple: absolutely breath taking. It wasn’t completed until 2005 and is now the biggest Hindu temple in the world. It is dedicated to the Hindu God Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS for short). It was amazing to see people praying with such intensity. There weren’t any cameras allowed inside to reserve the sacredness, wish they would do this inside St. Patrick’s Cathedral in NYC!!  

India Gate: right in the heart of New Delhi it is inspired by the famous arch in Paris and is a memorial to all the Indian soldiers who died in WII fighting for Britain 

Dilli Haat: a really cool open air market, I bought a lot of really awesome things here. One of the major benefits of being here is how cheap everything is. At the market I bought a cool purse, a pair of leather sandals and a pair of pants (imagine aladdin’s, but mine are purple) all for 800 rupees aka $14. Yeah, pretty sweet deal. 

Jama Masjid: the main mosque in the city where thousands of Muslims can be found every Friday to worship. Just like Akshardham it was amazing to see such a beautiful place of worship. It was built in the 1600s and has such a rich history. We went to one of the towers and saw some of the most amazing views of the city (my own pictures to come soon hopefully!!) 

I wasn’t such the great city girl that Kelsey and I were in NYC, Delhi streets are literally nuts. The rules: there aren’t any. Literally people swerving in and out of each other all the time cutting everyone off, horns going constantly, lanes seem to be just a suggestion and there are literally no street signs anywhere. It is a nightmare. And crossing the streets makes looking like crossing High Street a walk through a meadow. People also don’t really care about stoplights all the time so its like a game of frogger across ten lanes of total craziness. Needless to say, we’ve been lost a few times but have managed to get home safe after every adventure!! 

The place I am staying is so great. The host family is wonderful and hospitable. The food so far has been good (I think I sweat curry out during the day). Our rooms are nice, we get precious air conditioning from 10 at night until 6 in the morning. We all cheer every night when it comes on!! Oh and all the other volunteers? Amazing. These people are seriously the coolest and all have such awesome stories. Out of the seven others here I have met two other Americans (Virginia from New Orleans and Max, our only boy, from California), Francesca from England (who has been traveling around the South Pacific for four months making my trip look pathetic), Christina from Alberta, Canada (yes she says Aye all the time and I love it), Tessa from Sweden (as nice as all Swiss people are suppose to be and Phoebe from Belgium (whose impression of Americans had me on the floor laughing). Getting to know so many cultures has been just an amazing part of the trip so far. 

Sorry for the boring, pictureless post. Hope everyone back home is doing amazing and having great summers! Miss you and sending you lots of Indian lovin’ :)