Incredible !ndia (part 4): Grass and Sand

Another early morning for my trip called “Rural India and Heritage Village.”

Our program for the “rural India” portion of the trip was twofold. The first village we stopped in was a little more urban than a completely rural village, with some business and small buildings. We were there during a festival, and people were shaving their heads and painting them in celebration. Everyone was happy to see us, introducing themselves and saying hello. We saw some abandoned houses that were built in 1931 and other long-ago dates. Our guide told us that those houses will most likely be knocked down in favor of business, as the economy grows.

The next part of the rural India trip was a village. This village was a great experience, meeting men and women of all ages living there. We saw where they get their water, where they worship, and someone even let us all into his house so we could see bedrooms, the kitchen, and the worship room. Letting us into the worship room was unheard of. After the tour, he gave us tea.

Then they put us on cow-drawn carts and drove us around the village, children coming out of orange and lime-green houses and straw huts to see us. They smiled, laughed, ran with the cows and asked for our names in the very little English that they knew. They were in awe at us, maybe because of our skin and maybe because of our very presence. An old man just sat and stared at us.

They took us to where the coconut trees are, and there were droves of them, all lined up perfectly. They demonstrated how they climb with and without ropes, and I tried it. I didn't get very far, and they spotted me, but it was a lot of fun. They also cracked open some and let us drink out of them.

The sheer happiness of these people to see us was one of the greatest things so far on this trip. I feel like I have a better understanding of rural life in India.

Following this was the Heritage Village, which is more like a museum, showing off different types of houses from all over south India. The entire day was exhausting, but there's more.

Remember the Indian guys we met the night before? And how we scheduled to see a movie? Well, we decided not to see a movie but just to go out and get some food. So all 7 of us from the night before took a taxi ride out to Elliot's Beach (yeah, Dad, I got a picture) to a place called Planet Yumm, which was a food court and arcade. As silly as it sounds, it's a really popular place. Shiva wasn't there because his mom wanted him home to do homework (some things are the same no matter where you are in the world. But in his defense- college students in India are not as independent as US college students), and another friend named Mahon came too.

Tejas said not to feel bad if I don't eat Indian food because I must have had enough by now. I ate a chicken burger and smiley french fries. We got ice cream and hung out on the beach, sharing stories and laughs, then they called us a taxi. Upon leaving, they gave us little gifts: each person got a scarf and a little card! It was an unbelievable treat that made me really appreciate the power of welcoming people. We had an emotional goodbye as we got in the cab and went back to the ship the long way because the cab driver made a mistake.

I have decided that in each port, when I can, I need to find the University and walk around the campus and meet students. The best part of this trip was meeting people our age and having them take us around and show us what India is for them. I have friends in India now, and they have friends in the US. If I continue this, I will have friends all over the world. These guys made our trip infinitely, so thank you Tejas, Tarun, Shiva, and Mahon. Thank you for your generosity, hospitality, and friendship. Thank you.