India:
The locals told me that once I traveled here that India would captivate me, and make me a believer. Well I am here to tell everyone that is true, and that the vision that many of us have of India from “Indiana Jones Temple of Doom” is WAY wrong. If you ever have the chance to go, please do. You will come back with a warmer heart, and more love for your family and friends.
“India is truly a free country”. This is what was told to me by the father of my friend who so graciously showed us the entire country. These words sank in with deeper meaning as we turned every corner on our entire trip.
Particularly after we had:
Shared our driving space on the road with countless large animals,-- visited beach resorts,-- eaten with our hands everywhere,-- gone on two safari’s,-- “seen the wild Tiger” in Rajastan,-- ridden rickshaws,-- visited churches, temples, & mosques,-- rode camels & elephants,-- walked through sheet metal factories,-- charmed snakes,-- drank with the locals in the boonies,-- stench-i-fied countless bathrooms,-- swam with snakes,-- grew a mustache,-- bathed in waterfalls,-- got in an auto accident,-- received endless gifts from our host’s-- skyped with our families from “ahmedabad” India,-- desperately found an Indian attorney who notarized a traffic ticket for me from the U.S.,-- saw the Taj Mahal--… did I mention that we grew a mustache?
People have rights, respect, and honor in India. After all, India is a place where your family name means EVERYTHING! The honor of each of their individual families is on the line every day with every decision that they make.
In the three main cities of India alone (Mumbai, Delhi, and Calcutta), the population totals 70 MILLION people…. Think about that… that’s 20+ million people in a city the size of New York, Los Angeles, or Houston. Most people in the United States “cringe” at what the dirty sight of that must look like…. Here is what I can tell you about that. When I came back from my trip, the only words that I could use to describe India and Her culture were:
Family
Loyalty
Dedication
Persistence
Efficiency
Community
Simplicity
Resilience
Pride
Honor
Beauty
Honor
Beauty
I hope that some of you someday will have a chance to experience the same.
FF-
Below, I have chosen my favorite 25 shots of my three weeks.
My next post will be a chronological photo tour of my three weeks & 1300 miles. (much more funny stuff and weird happenings)Please stay tuned for that!!
Towns we toured & stayed in.
>Delhi
>Agra (Taj Mahal)
>Jaipur
>Ranthambore / Rajasthan
>Udaipur
>Ahemdabad
>Aurangabad
>Mumbai
>Goa (beach town)
>Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary
>Mysore
>Bangalore
-Frank Frappier Top 25 India Photo's-
The Taj Lake Palace hotel in Udaipur. An old King's palace from the 1700's, now a beautiful hotel. (check out the other "lookout" fort on the top of the hill in the distance)
Sabarmati Ashram is the headquarters/ home of Mahatma Gandhi from 1917 to 1930. Some children playing in the corridor where he used to live. This scene is what Gandhi stood for...
"A FREE AND STONG INDIA".
I like the culture displayed in this photo. A typical day in the life at the train station. The Indian rail system is crucial to the travel of 30 million passengers DAILY throughout the country.
Have you ever played the game "what is wrong with this picture"?
-lets play-
#1- Doug is on camel in Rajasthan India
#2- The camel guides are both under 9 years of age
#3- Those cars are heading FOR the camel at about a 50 mph clip.
#4- Notice the elephants on the opposite side of the road.
India- you gotta love it!!
One of India's Crown Jewels. The famous Taj Mahal. This masterpiece was built by a King from the 17th century. He built it as a symbol of love for his wife who died tragically giving birth to their 14th child. This MASSIVE tomb would take 20 years and 20 thousand volunteers to construct. ALL for the purpose of housing one casket, and to show the king's love for his wife.
fun fact- the structure changes color in front of your eyes throughout the day because of the precious Indian marble that it is built with. When the sun hits it, it can change from pink, to white, to tan etc...
Ok... Now although this is not the best photographic display, this moment captured in a frame was one of the most exciting parts of our trip. On a safari, we (with our guide) spotted the famous "TIGER" from a distance. We were abel to stalk him and see him make an attempt at hunting a deer.
Come to find out, only one other symbol rivals the Taj Mahal, in India.
The coveted "Tiger"!
One of the safari camps that we stayed in. This was a bridge connecting the small island that our bungalow was situated on.
The sunset over the reservoir was amazing.
Certainly not what I expected when I left Los Angeles to come to India.
Taxi driver in Mumbai. Taking a break. These tiny little cars are like "micro machines" (for those of us who remember those toys)
Get your Vegies HERE!
Street vendor with a nice spread in the city. Typical to see in medium sized cities in the middle of India.
Manual School bus anyone?
The six uniformed kids in this indian version of a city school bus are very happy to be pushed to school. This is in Delhi. 22 million+ live in this city.
-FOR THE LADIES-Who needs Nordstroms?
My friend bought my wife a pair of red shoes at this shoe store in Jaipur...
A- she loved them, B- she wore them for 2 years and said that they were awesome!
2 dollars= 2 red shoes & happy wife!
"Hey Doug, whatchu up to today?"..... "Not much, just hanging out in Agra, holding up the Taj Mahal for a bit"...
Goa is a very tropical city in India. It is a "beach resort" town. Most similar to....the Florida Keys, or the Bahamas' atmosphere (you can see the humidity in the picture). I was surprised that there were a lot of "Russians" vacationing in Goa.
This street vendor is bringing his inventory for the day to his shop in town.
Okay, you got me.... Those three are not part of my top 25! =) Just checking to make sure you're there!!
Street vendor, selling me fruits on the side of the road.
Hidden culture tip-
Most middle- upper class families have a buffalo at their family house where they harvest their own milk. They do not have to buy it at the store each week. (look in the back of the pic)
Hidden culture tip-
Most middle- upper class families have a buffalo at their family house where they harvest their own milk. They do not have to buy it at the store each week. (look in the back of the pic)
Construction worker with his tools. Making it happen!
He probably started 5 years ago carrying bricks by hand, now he has a donkey, in 2 more years he will have an Oxen & trailer, then 5 years from now he will buy a truck.
The Indian way- It's not easy, but they get it done with what they have.
Hey ladies... I've got an empty leg on a ride back to Aurangabad, ETA- 2 hours... You in?
Deep in the jungle-
Deeper in the jungle-
Bam! The Tiger is massive!
Heard of spotted deer, grazing at sunset
Spotted Deer
In Delhi, two handicapped gentleman wait at a stoplight, chatting it up. Their wheelchairs are designed so that they can pedal themselves around with their arms.
These two were on their way to work at a farmers market.
"Not so hidden" culture fact-
If you scroll back through the photo's, and you are somewhat perceptive, you might notice one of the things that, personally, I could not ignore through-ought my entire 3 weeks in India. Almost every single sole in every picture is WORKING. Even down to the 9 year old kids who are guiding Doug's camel. It is just amazing to see the work ethic and dedication that this culture has toward providing for their families. You can just see the drive in their eyes. They are typically born in to a certain "cast" and they march on, doing what they were born to do, because that is the "Indian way".
A muslim woman visits a mosque in Delhi India
India has three predominant religions:
Hinduism 75%
Islam 15%
Christianity 8%
Rural farm lands near Mysore. The hard day's work is almost done.
Thanks everyone!!
I hope that you Enjoyed my top 25 pics from India. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for a fun batch of weird, quirky, dangerous, and awesome things that we encountered on our trip.
Please post a comment below telling me your favorite pic of the 25. I would like to enter some of them in to some contests one day...
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-Till next time-
~Namaste~
