Saturday, December 16, 2006
India who?
One new airport, a coup d'etat and 3 new street Pad Thai vendors on Khao San - and I'm back in Bangkok.
Bangkok is like seeing that ex-boyfriend again after a while, and forgetting why you broke up with them. I'm in love. This place is so clean. I'd eat off the streets if they'd let me. It's amazing what India does to a girl. The new airport is soooo nice. Just like VIA, but less Haida more Thai. The Pad Thai vendors came in handy when my flight arrived at 5am, but my hotel rezzo wasn't until 10am, so I had to wander the streets for a few hours, and indulge. I've only got 3 days here, so i'm cramming in all the street food I can get.
Yesterday I met up with a friend from exchange in South Africa, Asya, who is teaching just outside Bangkok now. We reminisced about the good ol' UCT days while drinking real coffe. Yes real dark, bitter coffee. I love life! Today I did So. Much. Shopping. I'm rationalizing it by thinking about the 8 months I bought nothing, and the fact I'm purchasing in Baht, not dollars - but holy cow. The only thing that made me stop and leave MBK and Siam Paragon is that I physically couldn't hold any more bags. A couple designer handbags, three pairs of jeans, countless cheap Asian shirts, shoes, underwear, knockoff perfume, skully shirts and DVDs...its all to much! (probably all too much to fit in my bags too) I also spent the afternoon taking advantage of cheap beauty treatments. A massage, pedicure, manicure and facial (my new favourite) were on my menu all for under $25. I'm pretty sure they scraped off every last bit of Indian dirt on me.
Now, some final thoughts on India.
I may be here in Thailand now, but I honestly can't stop thinking about that country. It's really weird because my travel experiences in India seem more real now that I've left....Hard to explain but while I was there I think it was just go-go-go all the time that you really didn't have much time to sit and reflect.
First, I left India with that typical Love/Hate feeling that everyone has. I loved hating it, and I hated loving it. India ripped my heart out, stomped on it, and then put it back better than before.
Second, I realized I'm not Indian. I know that sounds weird, but too many people come here expecting to get into the local culture and see the "real" India. UGH! Nothing could bother me more. I had an amazing three months observing the weird and wonderful ways of India, but it was little more than an introduction. I saw things I wont be able to ever comprehend with my Westernized upbringing. Its a country that is just too deep for any travelers to fully engage. Travelers are tourists for a reason, and when they go to a country to travel it, they aren't going to be treated as a local. Yes, some places people are nicer than others, but you're still not a local. This is especially true in India where their culture is just so fundamentally different from ours that you can't expect to understand it and become it in one day/three months/one year.... (If you want a great book to read, and an excellent example of this read Shantram its sooooooo good) It's not my country, it's not my culture.
Third, I want to go back, but I need a long break.
Bangkok is like seeing that ex-boyfriend again after a while, and forgetting why you broke up with them. I'm in love. This place is so clean. I'd eat off the streets if they'd let me. It's amazing what India does to a girl. The new airport is soooo nice. Just like VIA, but less Haida more Thai. The Pad Thai vendors came in handy when my flight arrived at 5am, but my hotel rezzo wasn't until 10am, so I had to wander the streets for a few hours, and indulge. I've only got 3 days here, so i'm cramming in all the street food I can get.
Yesterday I met up with a friend from exchange in South Africa, Asya, who is teaching just outside Bangkok now. We reminisced about the good ol' UCT days while drinking real coffe. Yes real dark, bitter coffee. I love life! Today I did So. Much. Shopping. I'm rationalizing it by thinking about the 8 months I bought nothing, and the fact I'm purchasing in Baht, not dollars - but holy cow. The only thing that made me stop and leave MBK and Siam Paragon is that I physically couldn't hold any more bags. A couple designer handbags, three pairs of jeans, countless cheap Asian shirts, shoes, underwear, knockoff perfume, skully shirts and DVDs...its all to much! (probably all too much to fit in my bags too) I also spent the afternoon taking advantage of cheap beauty treatments. A massage, pedicure, manicure and facial (my new favourite) were on my menu all for under $25. I'm pretty sure they scraped off every last bit of Indian dirt on me.
Now, some final thoughts on India.
I may be here in Thailand now, but I honestly can't stop thinking about that country. It's really weird because my travel experiences in India seem more real now that I've left....Hard to explain but while I was there I think it was just go-go-go all the time that you really didn't have much time to sit and reflect.
First, I left India with that typical Love/Hate feeling that everyone has. I loved hating it, and I hated loving it. India ripped my heart out, stomped on it, and then put it back better than before.
Second, I realized I'm not Indian. I know that sounds weird, but too many people come here expecting to get into the local culture and see the "real" India. UGH! Nothing could bother me more. I had an amazing three months observing the weird and wonderful ways of India, but it was little more than an introduction. I saw things I wont be able to ever comprehend with my Westernized upbringing. Its a country that is just too deep for any travelers to fully engage. Travelers are tourists for a reason, and when they go to a country to travel it, they aren't going to be treated as a local. Yes, some places people are nicer than others, but you're still not a local. This is especially true in India where their culture is just so fundamentally different from ours that you can't expect to understand it and become it in one day/three months/one year.... (If you want a great book to read, and an excellent example of this read Shantram its sooooooo good) It's not my country, it's not my culture.
Third, I want to go back, but I need a long break.
# posted by Laura Davies : 3:44 PM
