Sheckels, Pounds, Dinar, Rupees, Baht!
Two weeks in India… That is how long I lasted out of the 6 in which I was supposed to stay. So, my dear reader((s) in case Dad tuned in too), I covered 2900 kilometers, saw countless forts, palaces, monuments, and temples, sat in awe in front of the Taj Mahal for hours, escaped “Delhi Belly”, counted my blessings, and traded in my rupees for baht.
The past week I saw more of India, totalling my cities to some crazy number for 2 weeks.. Udaipur and Jaipur were probably my favorite, and Agra of course for the Taj Mahal. I did love the Indian food (and the prices), but now it’s time to dig into some noodles.
I am back in “The Land of Smiles” – Thailand. Josh and I went to the Jet Airways ticketing office in Delhi yesterday to check out flights to Thailand. As it turned out, we could fly out for relatively cheap right away (7 hours later). This also meant getting out of paying for a hotel for a night, and dinner as well, which is always a bonus when you’re counting every cent.
So, without much hesitation, we bought tickets, went to the Pahaganj market one last time, and bid adieu to Delhi for the time being. We arrived in Bangkok at 6 something in the morning, took a bus to the center, and happily trekked down Koh San Road to look for cheap accomodation. Koh San Road is like backpacker central on speed, and alcohol, and most likely heroin.
I have to be honest, that, as soon as we landed in Thailand, I have had a smile on my face that cannot be removed. I feel like this malaise has been lifted off of me. I was incredibly stressed the whole time I was in India. Although I saw a lot, I was extremely uncomfortable, and felt confined to the tourist areas (forts, palaces, and the like) and didn’t like walking around outside of them. The stares, the everything….. And, the weather sucked. We were planning on going up north to the Himalayas, but the weather was bad everywhere. I guess that’s what you get for going during monsoon season.
So here I am, smiling at a computer, with mayhem waiting steps away from me, and I can’t wait to go step into it and smile at the other travellers and walk around and get lost – but at least I’ll get smiles and not stares.
Tags: Travel
swarjam
Glad you’re more psyched about where you are now.
I didn’t think that the purpose of the trip was to test your ability to endure discomfort. You’re already plenty of a character…
So, were you assuming that I’m the only one who’s been reading these. I’d actually been compulsively checking for updates the last few days, and am grateful for the verification that you’re alive (and happier).
You have fun, be safe, and have fun, OK?
OK.
Well, I agree with David. You aren’t there to prove anything..just being over there for all these months is proof positive of your amazing character (ok, maybe I said it a little differently).
Your favorite parts of India were mine as well (Jaipur and the Taj). Never been to Thailand, but since you have and know where to go, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it ever so much more.
Be safe, enjoy, and we’ll see you in a month!!!
Aunt Ellen
I read and enjoyed every word of your blog about your travel experience. It certainly must be a labor of love or a s&m exercise to travel with Josh. Hopefully he left his Tel Aviv learned pubic square argumentative skilld back on the Eilat side of the border. It must be a wonderful experience to travel through so many cultures from Jordan to Quatar to India and now the funky fast talking skin world of Thailand. I love Thailand and the further you get out of Bangkok, the better the night markets and the foot massages are. The street food is the best, but watch the level of spice as their idea of mild is flaming hot to us gringos. Since you are on the same blog as mine, let me know if you want me to do a detailed e mail instruction on how to upload photos. Hint: You create a shortcut folder on your desktop and then you have to edit down in order to reduce the pixel size of the photos for ease in uploading to the specific date sites of your blog. You cannot direct upload a photo that is full megapixels size from your My Pictures folder on your computer. Let me know if you want me to fly to Thailand if you still have problems with with the photo upload or in managing Josh.
Best Regards,
Joe
PS. You should not run into people pushing and shoving in crowds again until you get to Tokyo or Tel Aviv. Enjoy and safe travels.