that's my most recent news. it started with a cold a few days ago, and has moved to my lungs and turned into a full-blown flu. i just feel terrible. that's especially disappointing given the cool things we've been doing. today i had a miserable time at the taj mahal. it was beautiful, don't get me wrong, but twice we had to rest so that i could take short naps. (but how cool is it that i napped at the taj mahal?!)
our time in dharamsala was great, but also intense. we got to volunteer for a short time with some ex-political prisoners from tibet for a conversation class. i guess i never really recognized how bad the situation there is. the free tibet stickers/shirts/flags make sense to me now. but i'm a little demoralized because i don't see what can be done. everyone we asked there, including a great speaker who recently escaped to india, said that the best thing to do is to raise awareness of the plight of tibetans. but to what end? even if everyone i know had an understanding of the human rights violations taking place there, what can possibly be done to remove china's completely unethical rule? if the olympics didn't do it, what can?
that leads me to the rest of my blog... i've started to try to process some of the questions that travel has raised for me. i'm not sure that i'm comfortable sharing all of them here, but i'd love thoughts/feedback on some of them. i've got my own ideas started, but here is a list of just some of the questions i've been asking myself:
-what issues do i identify closely/personally enough to take on as a cause?
-which of these can i immerse myself in and still stay mentally/emotionally healthy?
-does travel offer me insight into this, or is it more selfish?
-what are the factors that hold me back from becoming more invested in a specific area?
-am i putting energy towards something i feel good about?
-how can i see so many people suffering and not feel guilty?
-is it possible to process things at the same time as living in the moment?
so that's where i am right now, mentally. the other thing that's really been affecting me is people's attitudes in india. especially relative to the other countries i've been in, i've been really disappointed with my inability to make connections with the people here. there are a couple of notable exceptions to this, but i've found that for the most part everyone wants something from me. usually monetary compensation for what i think is just an interesting cross-cultural conversation. it's been a sad thing for me to realize. i guess that a large part of that is the poverty that exists here, but even so it's been difficult. india is definitely not my favorite country. (i've got to go with nepal still.) on the other hand, i just met some amazing people in a place called kajuraho (where there are some temples complete with kama sutra carvings on them). that was a welcome respite.
now we're in agra, and saw the taj mahal today, as i mentioned. tonight we'll take an overnight bus to pushkar, where many people start camel treks through the desert. we've decided not to go on one, based on the expenses and mixed reviews we've heard from people, but i'm hoping it will be an interesting city nonetheless. after that we'll head to jodhpur, where we might be doing some volunteering. we'll see if that works out.
now it's time for me to get some rest. love to all.
1 comment:
I found Agra to be the hardest place to be in India. Everyone was after something. I talked to a guy whose mother was Nepalese and father Indian. It was such an interesting conversation, but I kept wondering - what was he after. We talked about the differences in culture and racism in India for a half hour then he told me - he had a friend with a rickshaw. I needed one to go to the Agra fort, so while I was sad that he was selling, I took it. then there was the detour to see the friend who exports marble inlay tiles, I extricated myself from that and then it was a jewelry store. I got out of that. then the fort. and they insisted they would meet me back in an hour. I walked in (past the guntlet of hawkers - lady you look, lady, lady, look) waited 2 minutes and walked back out and took a rickshaw somewhere else.
The Taj Mahal was amazing and I loved meeting Indian tourists and families traveling on trains - they were lovely and generous. And I stayed with my Auntie Shikha in Calcutta and she introduced me to wonderful people -- there are just so many Indians who make money on the "rich" tourists who don't care how much they harass.
don't get me started on wandering hands of the men.
many great questions in this blog. I used to be passionately involved in developing country and human rights issues and burned out. But I know there should be a more sustainable way back in.
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