On the eve of my trip...
The feeling has finally settled in. In 27 hours, I'll be leaving on a jet plane my way to India. I've prepared myself, mainly for the worst: the stomach aches I'll inevitably get, the discomfort of no central heating and sparse hot water, the lack of self space and a level of dirt and grime I have yet to encounter even in the dirtiest city in the world. Amongst all of the vaccinations, trips to Duane Reade, hours spent reading up on travel guides, I haven't taken much time to prepare myself for reality of the situation.This will be my first trip to India, the land of my ancestors and the birthplace of some of the ideas, philosophies and customs that have crept into my otherwise culturally Western upbringing.In some ways I consider myself lucky to be having this experience later rather than earlier in my life.You see I've always grown up with this idea of what it means to be Indian. It emerged out of the time spent with my grandparents, the cultural events I've participated in, and piggybacking off of the cultural upbringing of my Indian friends. I've been to Edison, danced on raas and bhangra teams, been to temples and celebrated Hindu holidays. But to me, it's all been rather strange. College was the prime example of this. I went from a school with very few Indians to one that was filled with them. After a couple weeks eating Kati rolls, twirling dhandia sticks and befriending a few Indians I thought, "yea, this feels more Indian."
But this trip will give me the opportunity to immerse myself in the part of my ethnic background that I've never fully understood. Of course, I don't expect to fully grasp everything I see, hear or consume but I do hope to come away from this trip with a better understanding of who I am, not culturally but as an individual. I think there's a lot I can learn from Indian culture and I'm going in, as several friends have recommended, with an open mind.
If you're interested in following me on my journey, feel free to keep reading. I will try to update this whenever I can.
Wish me luck,
Anil
