Arriving in India

Before I left for India, someone told me that it would take three weeks to get acclimated. Somehow I take to heart what others say too much. I should have learned by now in my life to take everyone else’s advice with a grain of salt be it about a climb, a hike, a trip, or a boyfriend. Why don’t I trust myself? That guy had just met me. He had no idea where I had traveled to before or my past experiences. 

It turns out that India does not feel so different from other countries I’ve traveled in. Sometimes it reminds of parts of China, Myanmar, Vietnam, Ethiopia, and Egypt— the pollution, the honking and noise, the street food, the pungent smell of rotting waste, the persistent touts and drivers, the squat toilets. But it feels familiar.

People have been friendly and generally interested in caring for me as a foreigner. After an initial grumpiness or rebuffed offer to sell me something, the person will tell me they booked me the window seat or point me in the right direction. So far, I haven’t had someone say that something I was looking for was closed in an effort to direct me elsewhere, as in Egypt.

So far Kolkata has been my favorite stop so far, a place where a foreigner can get lost in the bustle of the city and feel like a normal person.