India

Quite to my surprise, I survived.

I haven't come back unscathed. I'm tired, jet-lagged, and angry about some of the sights I have seen. However, I am nothing like the rabid, malarial, thin, swine-fluey corpse that I expected I would be at this point. In fact, quite the contrary, as I'm generally healthy, happy, and very satisfied having returned from an incredible trip.

India is extremely different from England, and indeed Europe. As someone who has never got further than Switzerland, this trip was an eye-opener. Obviously, because last time I looked I wasn't quite as naive as I might come across, I knew that India was going to be different. Nothing prepared me for the reality. Even the smell, the air, is different to the UK; thicker, sweeter, dustier. The streets are literally covered in litter -- public bins are few and far between -- over which thousands of stray dogs and cows scramble aimlessly. There is no concept of Health and Safety in the way that British people understand it: if you thought construction work had dangers here, please do not go and be a builder in Delhi. I'm not convinced you'd last very long. Shops are generally not housed in tall glass-fronted buildings, as they are in Europe, but in low, wooden open-fronted shacks that line the streets. Explosions of colour and a bizarre mixture of Hindi and English hit you in the face with every turn. People certainly do not share our British worshipping of privacy; men quite happily go to the toilet by the busy roadside, and families' living spaces are open for passers-by to view. It's strange, this openess, given that it is contrasted with conventions of dress (Indian women of all faiths are very modest -- no bare female Indian legs in sight).

In general, England is a much more picturesque place. Our streets are clean and rather quaint, and even areas that cause us embarrassment or tower blocks that are up for hasty demolishment are still not as bad as some of the conditions in India. Our litter is, for the most part, in bins and landfill, and our cities are neat. However, India is a bustling and vibrant country and there are glimpses of stunning beauty. When you come away from the almost make-shift constructions of everyday life, the architecture of the country's landmarks is breathtaking. I refer not only to the Taj Mahal, which is stunningly beautiful, but to other sights such as Qutab Minar and Humayun's Tomb. I genuinely relished the opportunity to visit these places, and compare them with the British sites I take for granted such as Warwick Castle and St. Paul's Cathedral.

The second week of my visit was spent away from the cities of Delhi, Jaipur and Agra, in a little town called Dundlod. It's a pretty town (well, as far as Indian towns go!), with a friendly local population, and we stayed in a wonderfully informal guesthouse called Dundlod Fort. It used to really be a fort, and is complete with a now-dry moat, but it now takes visitors and makes them feel extremely welcome. It's basic accomodation (meaning we had to cope in high temperatures without air-conditioning, and rely on fans that would be off for long stretches of time due to fifteen-times-daily power-cuts), but I personally enjoyed staying there more than I enjoyed staying in the glamorous international hotels in the first week. The Fort is homely, and was free for us to explore. We could walk out onto the roof, hide in the nooks and crannies, stroll through the large gates into the town with friends. The Fort even has two resident labradors, Thunder and Lightning, who freely roam around the place, barking occasionally. We were well looked after, treated to several displays of Indian culture, and treated like long-lost relatives by the Fort's adorable owner. The Fort was really our own for the week, and we projected films onto the outside wall in the evening, and ate dinner on the darkening roof.

The purpose of the week in Dundlod was to teach the children of Indo International School. Sadly education in India is not free like it is here, but this school is funded by non-government bodies and individuals which means that the poorest kids in the town are able to get a free education there. It's a wonderful place with a wonderful headmaster, and the kids are for the most part bright, funny and warm. Teaching was a difficult experience, mainly because of the language barrier, but it was extremely rewarding. I will never forget it.

So, I think I'll stop blabbering on now!

xxxxx