namaste

I'm writing from the airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, a very bright and sunny place. On the flight here from Delhi, I was upgraded to first class, after being incorrectly told by the airline representative that my reservation had been cancelled since I didn't re-confirm it. So I ended up having a great flight in the almost empty first-class section, complete with an omelette and champagne. The highlight of the flight was waking up to a beautiful sunrise in a perfectly clear sky. Below us were vast sand dunes and not a single sign of civilization. The stewardess told me we were flying over Oman.

After having an enjoyable three weeks in India, I'm left with that frustrating feeling that I only got a small sample of a truly vast and fascinating place. With such a small amount of time, I limited myself to the western region of Rajasthan, which also happens to be the most touristy region in India (40% of tourists who visit India head to Rajasthan). As a result, I was constantly on the beaten path, struggling to see "real" India and being haggled by people used to dealing with tourists. The sites I saw were beautiful, and quite a few of the locals I met were kind and colorful, but I know I left a world untouched. I keep telling myself it's a good thing that I left something for the next time I visit!

I haven't done a very good job of keeping you all updated while I visited the "Three J's" (Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Jaisalmer, the three main destinations in Rajasthan along with Udaipur, which I wasn't able to visit). I first visited Jaipur, a pretty large city a few hours from Delhi that is known for its pink Old City. The highlight of being in Jaipur was spending time with Aditya and Avani, who were doing work there. Together we had wonderful food, did a little bit of exploring the Old City, and went to an interesting carnival complete with local food, traditional dances, and even elephant rides (which I thought were surprisingly comfortable). While not with Adi and Avani, I spent most of my time wandering around the Old City's markets, seeing notable sites including the City Palace and Amber Fort (a huge fort just outside the city), and talking a bit with locals. It was while in Jaipur that people first greeted me ("Namaste!") without the intent of selling me something. This was refreshing. Coincidentally, I also met a French guy about my age who has been traveling in India for the last four months. Having volunteered in a hospital in Calcutta, he gave me some very valuable information on doing volunteer work. By inviting me for a cup of chai tea, he also helped to break in my fear of sampling India's street food.

After a couple days in Jaipur, I took a bus to the blue city, Jodhpur. The bus departed at midnight, and was scheduled to arrive in Jodhpur seven hours later. These turned out to be the worst seven hours of my trip, and some of the worst in all my travels. Prior to the trip, Avani and I decided to have a very large, tasty meal from a street cafe. One hour into my trip, on the dark bus where I was crammed in a small seat near the window, I got sick. Needless to say, the next six hours of the trip were far less than pleasant. I finally arrived in Jodhpur, and spent the first part of the day doing laundry and recovering from the trip. Then I determined to make the most of my one day in the blue city. I'm glad I did.

Jodhpur was a beautiful city--the blue was more of a deep indigo, and made the city glow in the sunlight. Straying from the busy markets I got lost among the tiny pathways lined by blue. Children ran up and greeted me, inviting me to throw a ball with them. A few adults smiled and asked where I was from. I finally found my way to Mehrangarh, an enormous, spectacular fort that overlooks the city. The fort, which looks more like an huge, intricately detailed palace, seems to have been carved directly into the mountainside on which it rests. I spent most of the day there, wandering around the fort's many rooms and balconies. I sat, wrote in my journal, and had a cup of soup (my first food--excluding a chocolate chip cookie Avani gave me before my departure--since I got sick).

While writing in my journal, people would stand next to me and watch me write. I asked them if they could read what I was writing, and they never could--they just wanted to see my handwriting. Once, a whole family--a father, mother, uncle, and three small children--stood over my shoulder watching me write. They asked a few questions about me, then they each thanked me and shook my hand. Meeting people helped to reinvigorate me after my bus trip ordeal. I was again excited about traveling, in spite of its inevitable risks and discomforts. I was also reminded of the element that is most important to me in my travels: the people I meet.

Interestingly, after this reminder new friends regularly started crossing paths with my own. On the seven-hour overnight train ride from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer, I sat with a couple older Australian women whose passion for India was contagious. They shared some traditional Indian sweets with me, told me about the latest in Bollywood gossip, and further convinced me how essential it is that I see more of India.

I slept very well and woke up in the desert city of Jaisalmer. Made of sandstone, this is known as the golden city. It is also much smaller than my previous destinations in India, having less than 100,000 inhabitants. The focus of the city is its fort, which is still inhabited and full of life, containing eclectic shops selling leather journals, books, colorful clothing, and spices.

I decided to spend my time in Jaisalmer escaping it all, so I hired a guide to take me into the nearby Thar Desert on a camel for three days and two nights. The Thar Desert, which borders Pakistan only 30km from where I was, is not the dune-filled desert you may imagine. It does, however, provide some beautiful sunrises and sunsets, and amazing views of the stars--views that vividly reminded me of Mongolia for maybe the first time since leaving there in 2004.

The highlight of the trip, though, was spending time with the other travelers who were also along for the ride--three adventurous 19 year-old Australian students. Spending time with these three was great. Their kindness, joy, and sense of adventure was contagious. Even though they were only 19, they gave me advice on traveling China, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, and they wanted my advice for a year-long trip they plan to spend in Latin America. Although I wish we could have traveled together longer, we had to part.

And so here I am in Ethiopia! Having only been in the airport, I can't say much other than that it is definitely a cool feeling to set foot in Africa for the first time!