India

I thought I was prepared for the dirt, the crowds, and the poverty I would see in India, especially having already been to China and Vietnam.  However, India is on an entirely different level.  During our pre-port meeting, we were told by the dean to “look beyond the surface” and that was certainly good advice.  On the surface India is dirty and disgusting.  Men pee on the side of the road.   Women burp out loud.  People eat with their hands.  Rickshaw and taxi drivers swarm and harass you until you take their service. Children follow you down the street and beg you to buy their things to the point that you can’t even walk straight.  The smells are unbearable.  The air is polluted.  You can’t drink the water.  Most food isn’t sanitary.  You have to cover your shoulders and knees, even though its 90 degrees and humid.  You take a shower and you are sweating again.  At first impression, India makes you want to run away from the crowds, go back to your air conditioned home, take a million showers, and try to find that clean and comfortable feeling again.  But despite the less than desirable conditions that exist on the surface, if you look a little closer, you will see that India is filled with beauty, happiness, and truth that go much deeper than the surface.