Sunday,
October 3rd
My sweet Grandma,
As I promised before leaving Spain, I’m going to write a diary to share with you my experiences on this fascinating trip. Although you are now away from me, this will be a good way to feel you close and show you through words all the landscapes, cities, people, feelings and temples that I’ve decided to discover. You know I miss you so much, but I am sure that I’ll be thinking about you every day that I spend in this beautiful country.
As I promised before leaving Spain, I’m going to write a diary to share with you my experiences on this fascinating trip. Although you are now away from me, this will be a good way to feel you close and show you through words all the landscapes, cities, people, feelings and temples that I’ve decided to discover. You know I miss you so much, but I am sure that I’ll be thinking about you every day that I spend in this beautiful country.
I guess that you are worried about me but you don’t have to be concerned because I’m feeling relaxed and peaceful. I’d love for you to see me for a while, as you’d be proud of me. I have only spent three days in Delhi, the capital of the country, and I’m sure that this trip will change my point of view about life and religion. It’s incredible all the things that I’m learning here! People, architecture, food, scents, colours, faith, poverty and even hope are mixed in a culture that has impressed me from the first moment I arrived. I’ve visited mosques, Hindu and Sikh temples, traditional markets, beautiful shops selling handmade saris and pashmines. I’ve enjoyed the walks around Qutab Minar, the Red Fort and the alleys in Old Delhi, narrow passageways full of Indians selling their religious ornaments, traditional food, wedding dresses, tobacco, jewelry, saris, spices and all sort of things than you can’t imagine.
Delhi is a complete mess! It’s a sprawling, filthy, disorganized and chaotic city, with thousands of people walking everywhere and sharing its crowded streets with cows and pollution. You know that India is one of the most populated countries in the world and this city is a good example of that. It is so easy to have an uncontrollable feeling of being crushed and oppressed by it. On the other hand, its special features make it very interesting, lively and enigmatic, and even welcoming and friendly. It’s very different from our country and culture!
Nan, I know what you’re wondering. I eat enough healthy food to have energy to bear the intensity of this land. And of course, I am carrying a lot of medicines so you don’t have to be concerned about my health. I promise you.
Do you want to know something
curious? In reality there are few Western tourists in this country because most
of its tourism is by Indians. Notice that in Spain
in 2012 foreign tourism was totaled around 57,701,000
persons whereas in India only
6,578,000 tourists came from other countries. When I learned this, I understood
why I’ve only seen a few foreign tourists visiting the most important places in
the city. I’m learning a lot of cultural and demographic characteristics about
this interesting and colourful land!
I’m going to pack my bags because I have to leave Delhi in three hours and go by car to the historical region of Rajasthan. I’m eager to enjoy my journey on the road.
Tuesday, October 5th
Oh my beloved Nan,
I’ve been travelling more than eight hours to arrive in Jaipur. In this country, roads are older and more dangerous than ours. Driving along these peculiar roads is similar to playing a road rally videogame as there is an unceasing movement of old cars, broken trucks, motorbikes with four or five people riding on them, bicycles changing lines suddenly, lonely cows or herds of them looking for water and food, and people walking along these roads carrying grains and rice.
I arrived in Jaipur at dawn,
when hundreds of people were in the streets and the first rays of light were illuminating
the colour of the beautiful Hawa Mahal, the splendid facade of the Palace of Winds. You can’t imagine how beautiful
this city is! The City
Palace, the Jantar Mantar
(a collection of architectural astronomical instruments), the Amber Fort and
the Jal Mahal (a lovely palace located in the middle of a lake) are magnificent
buildings that show us the majesty and the power of the ancient Maharajas.
I don’t want to frighten you
but I’ve constantly felt a strange sensation. I guess it’s because of being a Western
female tourist. When I go for a walk to visit some places in the city,
especially traditional markets and some temples, Hindu men look at me with an
intimidating expression and try repeatedly to ask me questions about myself, my
country and my interest on India.
Although I don’t want to answer them, they persist in following me to make
contact in spite of my refusal. If this were an isolated behaviour, it wouldn’t
be a problem, but it happens daily and sometimes it’s so awkward and stressful
that it makes me feel uncomfortable. And on top of that, they are offended if I
ignore them! On the other hand, Hindu women are very kind and respectful and they
look at me while keeping their distance and smiling delicately. I have so many
questions and doubts about the difficulty of being a woman in India, which I’d
love to talk to them about! But they are shy and what is more restricting is
the fact of their subjugation to their husbands, which makes establishing conversation
with them very complicated. Extreme male chauvinism is a sad reality in India and women
suffer all kinds of discrimination. They are victims of sexual harassment
without the punishment of offenders because of the existence of impunity for
such crimes. Indian society is based on patriarchy, male power and domination, so
a large number of women have neither the opportunities to get a job nor access
to basic education. However, thanks to non-governmental organizations and
international pressure, women are increasing their participation in public
policy even as employees and entrepreneurs.
Nan,
you can see that it is a very complex country. I’m going to sleep right now
because tomorrow I have to head off early. One more day in this special
paradise, a place full of contrasts that evokes in me contradictory thoughts
and feelings.
Thursday,
October 7th
No words, Grandma.
Today I visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and it was one of the most incredible experiences that I’ve ever had! This spectacular white marble mausoleum is amazing and it doesn’t disappoint, as it is more beautiful that I could imagine! It was a dream come true! A clear blue sky was the perfect backdrop to immortalize a magic moment in front of its fountains and the whiteness of its dome and minarets. I wish you had been there!
Today I visited the Taj Mahal in Agra and it was one of the most incredible experiences that I’ve ever had! This spectacular white marble mausoleum is amazing and it doesn’t disappoint, as it is more beautiful that I could imagine! It was a dream come true! A clear blue sky was the perfect backdrop to immortalize a magic moment in front of its fountains and the whiteness of its dome and minarets. I wish you had been there!
However, I have contradictory feelings about the spectacular beauty and majesty of Indian monuments and the poverty and social inequalities of this country. Do you remember when I was a child and you told me that I had to help others? I’ve thought a lot about those words lately. Although the caste system was abolished more than 60 years ago, reality shows us that in practice it isn’t true. Differences among castes nowadays are a fact and their presence is deep-rooted in society. Indians belonging to a certain caste are forced to help people from the same caste but they don’t feel morally obliged to help people of other castes. And so, the untouchables are the lowest caste in India and barely helped at all. This is why they have so many problems in being included in day-to-day life; e.g., education, work opportunities, politics and more advanced society.
Besides caste segregation, another
half-tolerated but aberrant situation is violence against women, most of it
inflicted by relatives and neighbours. Grandma, it’s incredible that in a
country like India,
which is a world leader in technological innovation, women have to suffer such
high level of sexism and sexual assaults. During the last five years, there has
been an increase of gender violence, rapes, kidnappings, sexual harassment,
tortures and murders due to marital dowry disputes. These are alarming signs of
neglectful behaviour against women, especially in Northern
India. This situation has opened my eyes. It’s necessary to
promote deeper changes in society’s attitudes to help women to be safer. Even
so, I guess that Indian society will need decades to abolish the conservative
patriarchal system and achieve the same human rights that Western societies
have.
I don’t want to depress you with these thoughts but they are inevitable. India cannot fail to stir us. We must spread its reality and share it with global society. We need to help Indian women rise from the hell of indifference. Nan, we are lucky women to live in a developed country that safeguards our rights and where we can enjoy a life of freedom. Love you.
I don’t want to depress you with these thoughts but they are inevitable. India cannot fail to stir us. We must spread its reality and share it with global society. We need to help Indian women rise from the hell of indifference. Nan, we are lucky women to live in a developed country that safeguards our rights and where we can enjoy a life of freedom. Love you.
Sunday,
October 10th
Sweet Nan,
I’ve been relishing for some days the magic of Varanasi, one of the most religious and sacred cities in the whole world. It’s amazing how incredible the Ganges River is! I arrived very early, at sunrise, and the Ghats were full of life: hundreds of people making their offerings to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma or to one of the thousand deities that exist in Hinduism. Children were playing with flowers and fishing in the sacred water. Young men and women were washing clothes, sheets and towels while their elders were praying unceasingly next to them. To arrive at the hotel I had to board a boat and sail along the Ganges. You can’t imagine how humid, stifling, sticky and unbearable the weather is!
I’ve been relishing for some days the magic of Varanasi, one of the most religious and sacred cities in the whole world. It’s amazing how incredible the Ganges River is! I arrived very early, at sunrise, and the Ghats were full of life: hundreds of people making their offerings to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma or to one of the thousand deities that exist in Hinduism. Children were playing with flowers and fishing in the sacred water. Young men and women were washing clothes, sheets and towels while their elders were praying unceasingly next to them. To arrive at the hotel I had to board a boat and sail along the Ganges. You can’t imagine how humid, stifling, sticky and unbearable the weather is!
Varanasi is truly awesome. This city has stirred my spirituality and my mind since the first moment I entered its narrow streets. On each corner I can feel the faith in gods and the peace that Hindus transmit when they pray. The Ghats are swarming with men, women, children, cows, dogs, goats, buffalos, sadhus and pujaris giving their offerings to Mother Ganga, the mystic river of Hinduism. Nan, you know that I’m not a religious person but the purity of faith and sensitivity that I’ve felt in this city is incredible. From dawn to sunset, people share their offerings with sacred cows. However, cremations have been what have really shocked me. The confrontation of death is very different in India in relation to Christian countries. For Hindus, one human life is only one period of a full and complete existence.
There are thousands of pieces of wood stacked up in the passageways and on the funeral pyres of the Manikarnika Ghat, where corpses burn during the whole day. I wish you could have seen it! I think that Varanasi is one of the most impressive cities I’ve ever seen because of its intensity, spirituality and the pure faith of these people who don’t have anything to lose. Hope in reincarnation is their leitmotiv.
Grandma, my trip is ending. These days have been very intense and they have stirred my feelings and my thoughts about the differences among races and cultures and the truly human essence. Although at first sight India seems a chaotic, contradictory and disconcerting country, it is really a surprising land, a place full of shades and experiences that invite foreign people to live it in an especial way. I’m going to enjoy as much as I can my last hours in this particular paradise. This marvellous land is a delicious chaos of the senses. Thanks for teaching me another way to live.
Incredible
India.
Uinen
Love it! I hope to go to India soon... Spectacular photographs!
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