Well…. At last I decided to share my impressions about India, such a wonderful, mysterious and attractive country.
Though it happened to me 4 months ago I still wonder how it could happen so, that I –a simple and not rich girl from Russia, found myself thousands kms away from my native city called Ryazan , situated in the central part of Russia.
Ok, I ‘ll try to be consecutive in my narration.
I was invited to this beautiful country by my Indian friend whom I had come to know when he had his dentistry practice over here, in Russia. Frankly speaking I didn’t know what to do at that moment. On the one hand I wanted to go and so desperatelly, but on the other hand I ‘ve never been abroad, moreover have never traveled alone even within Russian borders. But still, my desire to go turned out to be much stronger than all my fears. Oh yes!!!! My fears…It’s a long story. Being over-anxious about my health by nature I was scared of everything …Hmm…, I am afraid you’ll be bored you if I start enumerating all my fears. I can mention only some of them, maybe the strongest ones J. First and for most- planes!!!!!! I was sure that MY plane is sure to crash, coz I am on the board. But to my great surprise…I found myself in India after 7 hours of the flight with all my legs and hands being still with me! J Then almost as all Russian tourists I was afraid of various diseases starting from malaria and ending with tuberculosis. But again to my deep surprise I saw not more than 2 mosquitoes there, it’s very strange, but I don’t know why. So I successfully escaped malaria! J Then water comes!!!! I was drinking only water in bottles bought in shops…. One more problem which I come across was that I was afraid of having Indian food in the streets (again thanks to all the stories about India I read on the netJ), but couldn’t refuse coz I spent all my time with Indians…And you know, I’ve got some idea of good manners.J But again, God protected me, don’t know whyJ. ….As always I got carried away from the narration itself!
So… I was met by my friend and his friend at the Airport of Mumbai. My feelings??? Well, here I should mention that my appearance is far from typical Russian appearance, at least from those stereotypes which foreigners have. I mean that I am not a blond with blue eyes.. Just have dark hair and brown eyes. But regardless of that I was looked at as if I were… hmm..don’t know who. People just kept staring at me all the time. Some of them were smiling others tried to hide their curiosity.
Well… unlike other tourists I had a chance to spend a lot of time not only at a hotel but also at an Indian family. And now I am ready to fight with anyone who states that Indians are second-rate people. All those people I met there treated me like a queen though their family was not very rich and they saw me for the first time in their life. What I am speaking about is their attitude, manners and desire to please me in everything, starting from making NOT spicy food for me& finishing with their friendly, I am absolutely sure, sincere smiles. As for Indian food, here I wont be original and wont dwell upon the topic, just will say that for a Russian person it’s reaaaally spicy. Have u ever had a fire in your mouth? If not, then try and you will understand what I mean.
Forgot to mention that I visited 2 cities – Mumbai, where I spent about 2 days, and Pune where I spent 7 days. Somebody could say :”Hey , u missed the most beautiful parts of India!” Well, maybe. But I can say I got acquainted with best Indians!!! And as far as places are concerned.… I am sure I ‘ll get one more chance to see them. In fact what I wanted to see is not all those famous monuments and big cities, but the life of usual people.
I visited the zoo, museums, many hill stations, markets and even a disco. Here I should mention that Pune is not the city of entertainment but a cultural city. So that disco was really funny. I went there with 4 indian friends and when we entered it……we found none except us there!!!! Then in a few minutes more people came in there, but still, in comparison with Russian discos, I can say that it was almost empty. And I don’t know why, but none danced. Indians!!!J
I have to agree with those who say that India is a country of contrasts where u can see a lot of beggars and a few meters ahead –splendid rich houses.
Frankly speaking, the purpose of that summary was sharing my feelings and some things that impressed me a lot, but not giving some practical pieces of advice.
Sure I felt more protected than others, since I was accompanied by my friend all the time.
Well…. There are a lot things in my head which I ‘d like to share though I spent there only 9 days. So it’s really hard to single out something.
I can just mention some things which I found funniest. First and for most, it’s peculiar head nodding, which I surely heard of…but didn’t think it’s so funnyJ. Second thing which is not so funny but maybe just strange, is the absence of any traffic rules and thousands of wheelers. And you know, Indian females were really amused when they heard than in Russia girls don’t have wheelers.
I learnt some hindi phrases, which are also funny. Now I have a chance to impress those Indians with whom I chat on the net ;).
Well I think I should finish up with my narration, coz I understood it’s impossible to express all my feelings on a simple sheet of paper.
The only thing I am sure about is that I don’t know when… but I will go to that captivating country at least once again in my life.