India

Here in Goa I've faced many emotional challenges. Loneliness is a strange creature. It kind of attacks your sanity, so it is a constant battle to relax and enjoy yourself...just by yourself. My hotel is fine. Its called "Delux"...not so delux, but whatever. I've got a room, with A/C (Halleluia!), a TV, and umm well thats about it. There is a cool market bazaar place that I discovered by accident right across form my hotel. I'm staying on the 6th floor and even from there you cant see the market because it is under another building, but it is really big. I went there and got fresh fruit and bread and some roses. Going there makes me happy. Last night was interesting. I went on this Goa by night tour. First there was a one hour cruise with Goan dancing. What Simones family failed to mention about this tour was that there are no non-Indians...accept for me. I was once again out of place. It was ok, though kind of aimed at families (and people who speak Hindi!). I danced during the last song, the Santa Monica dance they called it. And of course became an instant celebrity because I danced Hindi style and I'm white! Haha, I am such a dork. Then they drove us to some restaurant and to some other look out points, none of which were too cool at night. I also learned the hard way that it is best not to be friendly with everyone who is friendly with you even when lonesome. I got out of a situation with a person who thought friends meant something a whole lot different than what I think it means, very quickly. It freaked me out, which is a good thing, and I am wiser for it now. So today I went on another tour with the same company, again the only 'whitie" in the group. This time, thank God, I sat next to a nice girl who was with her family and I spent parts of the day with them (sort of with alterior motives - I needed protection from all the locals, and they dont bother you as much when you are iwth Indians!) I of course came dressed ready to jump in at all the beaches we were to visit. When we got to the first one I saw that I had been mistaken! Again, I was one of the very few with western style swimwear, the rest went in fully clothed, if at all! The last beach we went to, Calangud was pretty nice. There were a lot of people there and also a lot of tourists so I wasnt the only one hoping to catch some rays. I ditched the family and went to one of the more out of the way sun bathing chairs. (All the restaurants and bars that line the beaches have sun beds laying out to attract customers.) So I got a bit of sun and also jumped in the Arabian sea for a bit. It was really nice, though terribly salty. I have yet to shower and my skin is getting pretty tight and dry, ugg! So tonight I went to the market again and got some dinner and stuff. I'll go back to my room after this and enjoy my bottle of Goan Port (I know someone who's jealous!) and my Chicken Maharajah and naan bread and my Cadbury dairy milk bar. It sounds lovely. Tomorrow I'm booked for yet another awkward tour, this time to south Goa. I dont think we are stopping at any beaches though. I may switch to a hotel near the beach I liked after tomorrow. But who knows, I'll have to wait and see. In spite of the loneliness I think this must be building character somehow...right? As stupid as it sounds, it is stressful to have no one to worry about but yourself. It is also stressful to be on permenant vacation. I want to be doing something useful and have a place in the world where I make a difference. Umm, anyway, enough rambling...my dinner awaits Love you and miss you guys...and if any of you want to meet me somewhere for a vacation, it would be a welcome change!
PS Did I mention that God is so good? He has been so faithful in taking care of me I'd be a jerk not to say so.

Its not all bad. But also not all good. I made it safely to Goa. The hotel that I booked at (as recommended by Simones family) is alright. However, its not in the most tourisy area so I'm still feeling my whiteness. Hopefully I'll see a beach I like tomorrow in a tourist area on the bus tour I'm taking. Goa is actually a state not a city, there are several cities and several beaches. I am staying in the capital, Panjim. It is alright, the water is pretty but there is not a beach directly near here. I'm not feeling the greatest as the heat s much mroe than I'm used to. I'm sure glad I opted to pay 100 rupees (~$2.25) more per night for A/C!!! Oh my goodness. Ok, I think I'll go take a nap or rest. I'm feeling a bit dizzy, maybe from the train ride. Oh yeah! The train ride was fine. It was about 10hours. I guess the ride back is longer (12 hrs). I went on the overnight train so I didnt see much scenery. I was the only white girl in my car, but I ran into some of Simones friends so they kind of looked out for me. I slept a little bit. The ride was a bit smelly (my seat located relatively near the toilets...which by the way are a hole that dumps, literally, directly onto the tracks below and you can see the earth flying by under your feet...watch your step!) I had the lowest bunk of three levels so I didnt have to climb up or anything. Then when I reached the station there were like a million auto-rickshaw drivers approaching me wanting to drive me wherever I was going. I went the cheap way and rode on the back of a motorbike-rick (like a scooter) for 80 rupees (about 2 bucks) for the 20 min ride to my hotel. It was pretty fun and since I had the wind blowing through my hair, I didnt feel the horrible heat until we stopped. Anyway, I best be going. The internet connection is realllly slow at this cyber so I probably wont be responding much to individual emails this next week. But thanks for sending them! Love ya'lls, bye

As Simone put it, "living in India really gets you back to the basics of life." Its true. You see what you can do without and what is truly important to you. Anyway, tonight my sleeper train leaves for Goa. It is a 12 hr journey from here. I'm not sure what to expect. I've ridden on one of these trains before, but not on my own, so it could be interesting. I plan on being there for a week and chillin on the beaches. Hope its not too hot cause my chalk colored skin will be in for a shock! It is quite hot here too but I've been inside mostly so my skin is still stark white..and of course all broken out from all the lovely dust I guess I'm not in much of a writing mood today, hopefully my next post will be from a cyber in Goa. TTFN

Hi Everybody Thanks to those who've been writing comments and e-mails, its great getting them. Lets see, since last entry (its kind of hard keeping track of time/date etc when you have no schedule)... I believe I left off with having nothing to do for the rest of the day. That day I ended up going out window shopping with Simones brothers. We, or I should say they, drove into an area know as "New Bombay" and we went to a mall there. It was quite crowded and they had parking lot attendents directing the traffic in and out. Which is funny because the parking lot is just a huge field of rocks. I didnt get much, just a few pieces of jewelry and some ice cream. Mmmmmm Baskin Robbins. I am so glad they have ice cream in India, I'm so addicted! That took pretty much the entire evening because it was an hour drive each way. Ambarnath is farther from the city than I had remembered. Then yesterday Simone, her mom, Lynn, and I went into Mumbai by the train to do some shopping. I would never advise anyone to go into that city alone if you dont know the language. You will never, I mean never figure out the train system on your own! It is insane! And the trains are just like in the documentaries with people hanging out the sides and mobbing onto and off of them.It is a massive stampeed. And it doesnt really change any time of day, is is a city that never sleeps. There are also beggars on the trains and also people selling trinkets of all sorts. I bought some earrings for really cheap. My gosh, I can't do justice in my description, you just have to experience it! In the city, it is also chaotic. That city is Gungula! There are several markets, of which we only made it to like 3. The markets are also something else. Extremely crowded with people, little stalls lining the streets, people harrassing you to buy this that and the other little trinkets. Not once in a while, but constantly the whole time you are there. And if you are white then they really want to talk to you because they think you have lots of money to spend. The prices are dirt cheep and if you bargain they are even cheaper. I was dizzying with all the colors and people trying to get my to buy stuff and noise and dust. I wish all my girlfriends could come shopping with me there, its really crazy, but a lot of fun. Anyone want to come with me next time?? I bought some stuff, but not too much since I have to carry it with me. We went out to lunch at a nice place. The service at restaurants in India is very nice and very formal. And you pay about the same as going to Mickey D's in the US! Much of the culture in India comes from the British because of the British presence in India (I cant remember exactly how long it was governed by them but it was up until like 1947...I think.) So they have tea time in the morning and afternoon. Indians are crazy about their tea. I like it ok but my gosh I'm getting fed up of it. Anyway, so after a lot of market shopping and some eating, lots of walking, several taxi rides (oh did I mention that one hit me! Yeah! Not hard, it was going like 1 mile an hour pushing its way through a market!) and we went to Gateway to India, which is on the Arabain sea. It is a big monument built by the British. We got there when it was dark and then took a boat ride around the bay area there. It was nice to be out on the water and feel the breeze after a day of sweating my tail off in the city! I could litterally rub the grime off of my skin. The combination of the heat and the dust make for a sticky combo. Today I guess we are going to Simones aunts house for lunch and some of her friends are coming over. I am supposed to be leaving for Goa as soon as they get me either a bus or train ticket - I'll let you know when I know! Oh! Another bit of Indian culture: Everybody older than you is referred to as your relative in some way or another. For example, to Simones nephews, I was Auntie Kait. To me, Simones mom is my "Auntie". An older man clerk at a store, I refer to as "Uncle". Its kind of funny and weird until you get used to it. They use the terms out of respect. Well, thats all for now. The fan at the cyber cafe is drying my contacts out so I better go! Take care all , thanks for the emails and prayers

hello all, I am again back in India, staying with my friend Simones family in a city called Ambarnath, north of Mumbai. Again, I repeat: never fly Air India! Our flight was delayed and late by 2 hours! It is like someone bottled Mumbai and put its chaos in the plane! Even though I kind of knew what to expect I'm still experienceing some culture shock. I mean, if you think you feel pasty white living in Minnesota in the winter, gosh you'll really feel your whiteness here because of all the stares you get and locals pointing saying "faringa!" or "ameriiican!". But I am slowly adjusting. I havent dont much of anything since I got back 2 days ago, just eating and trying to sleep. Simones sister, Sharron, brother-in-law, Illia and their 2 little boys, Rickma and Noah were all here from Belgium for the past month and the left yesterday, so most of the day was spent getting them packed and seeing them off. Those kids are pretty remarkable, they speak fluent Flemmish and in the time they were here in India they picked up a ton of English and Hindi. I am still struggling to learn a few basic words in Hindi! I guess that shows how adaptable and amazing the human mind can be, it just gets more rigid as we grow older and we have to work harder to learn and be open minded. Bombay area is much dirtier than when I was here almost 5 years back. It is more congested too. They have a power shortage so they shut off the power for 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the evening everyday throughout the entire Bombay area. It is very inconvienient and the dont expect to have the problem fixed even by 2010! Which is ridiculous since there would be money for power if it was allocated differently. I have had a chance to read the newspaper quite a bit lately, both here and in Dubai (which is something that I dont normally do) and man, there is a lot to learn. I guess I should have been trying harder all along to be a bit more informed about things going on outside of the US. It seems that people outside the US in general are much more knowledgeable and concerned about international affairs. They are informed about us and the rest of the world but in the US we tend to only look inward. Anyway back to a lighter topic. I am planning a short trip to Goa in India. This is to be my first solo destination. (Dont worry too much mom - it is a very touristy area, with many wersterners there and it is tourist centered.) I believe it used to be a French port city so it's culture is supposedly quite different from the rest of India. It should be interesting. It is kind of different staying with Simones family. Simone is a bit more introverted than me, kind of requiring a lot of her own time and space. Which is ok, but it makes for more alone time for me (and I'm a bit more social) Luckily her brothers are still here and I can hang out with them. I think it is kind of funny because it seems that wherever I go I end up being in the midst of a bunch of guys (like growing up with all my boy cousins, at my job where I was the only female working there for quite a while) and now here. They have been teasing me like I am part of the family since I arrived so that is a touch of home. Little by little I am adjusting. It is wierd not to be around my family and friends - when you are away you kind of realize how nice it would be to see a familiar face or hear a familiar voice if only for a second when everything else around you is unfamiliar. Oh yeah! Another cultural thing - the baths and toilets. You would think that with the other things that are becoming modern the toilet system would also change..but no. There is hardly a bathroom with TP anywhere to be found, even in peoples houses. I guess they prefer the drip dry method (they do rinse with water though) Most paces also use squat toilets too (a hole with a spot for your feet at either side. And if you are a guy, it seems no one has any qualms with you just whipping it out and pissing wherever you please. Hand soap. Also, something of a foriegn concept here. Nobody has it is their houses. Also, the water is only on for a few hours in the morning, so you take your bucket back then, and fill a bunch of buckets for use the rest of the day. Bucket back works like this: bathrooms are tile floors with drains, you have a large bucket filled with water and a small scooping bucket for dipping in the large bucket and then pouring the water over yourself. This was the same as last time I was here so it didnt seem as wierd to me. Driving: opposite side of the road (sometimes) and drivers seat is at the opposte side. The driving here is absolutely crazy. There is no such thing as a lane and here might equals right. Larger vehicles just plow through smaller ones weave in and out like mad. Seat belts? What are those? Turn signal what? Yield to pedestrian? Crazy. Warren, Simones younger brother, tried convincing me to drive home from the airport last night! Ha! Luckily it was a manual which I dont know how to drive so I got out of that one! Ok, I suppose this has gotten quite long enough so I guess I should get out of here for now. Not that I really have anything to do today:P
Oh well, take care and peace out all

OH! In addition to my last entry about Dubai:
The only thing that I found not so modern in Dubai was Carrefours. It was like Walmart all cracked out and organized or should I saw as non organized as a Pennys! Oh my gosh, there were a million people in there any time of day, we are talking shoulder to shoulder. Any why? I dont know, the stuff they sell is certainly nothing worth the crowd and is lower quality that Pamida! Wow, ok dude, I'm really done for now!