“Become a stranger in a strange land. Acquire humility. Learn the language. Listen to what the people are saying.” — Paul Theroux “Hello, my friend! Where from? Where going? You want to ask me a question? I can speak with you, I know English, you can ask me anything you want. You understand my English? … Read More
“Blow, blow, ye spicy breezes — O’er Ceylon blow your breath, Where every prospect pleases, Save only that of death.” — Ambrose Bierce It was the kind of place that has two names—Sonali, India, or Belahiya, Nepal—depending on which side of the border you happened to be standing. At the end of September, I found … Read More
“I am as curious about color as one would be visiting a new country, because I have never concentrated so closely on color expression. Up to now I have waited at the gates of the temple.” — Henri Matisse All I needed was a quote about color. Doesn’t sound too ambitious, does it? It’s a … Read More
“I am not an adventurer by choice but by fate.” — Vincent van Gogh It was the summer after graduation and I was two months into living at home and waitressing at a local restaurant. One night, a customer asked what I was doing now that I’d finished university. “I’m moving to London in August … Read More
“A kind of India happens everywhere, that’s the truth too; everywhere is terrible and wonder-filled and overwhelming if you open your sense to the actual pulsating beat.” — Salmon Rushdie “So what do you think of India so far?” It’s a question I’m starting to get a lot lately–from family, friends, even people I meet … Read More
Sonia isn’t impressed with my style. “You not having fun?” she asks. “Not comfortable in the water?” I look around me at the long sandy stretches of Orissa’s Puri beach and wonder what impression I’m giving. I assure both her and her cousin Pooja that I’m comfortable. More than comfortable. Having grown up near Virginia … Read More
Rickshaw Runners like to put on a hardened front. We’re adventurous, tough as nails, and capable of withstanding whatever the Indian roads throw our way…literally. But maybe, just occasionally, we slipped up. I can’t say for certain, but rumor has it… 1. There may have been air freshener… When we stumbled on this convenience store … Read More
“Blessed is he that expecteth nothing, for he shall not be disappointed.” — D.H. Lawrence Kathmandu was supposed to be good. Better than good: great, enlightening, or even–dare I say it–magical. Somewhere in the back of the worn-down local bus I’d sat in for the last eight hours, packed deep in my dusty backpack, were … Read More
“The language of friendship is not words but meanings.” — Henry David Thoreau Anu greets me at the door with a hug and a kiss on each cheek. Before I can even take my shoes off or set my bag down, there’s a cool glass of fresh lemon soda in my hand–and the sugar-to-soda ratio … Read More
“Many travelers find themselves saying of an experience in a new country that it wasn’t what they expected, meaning that it wasn’t what a book said it would be.” — Edward Said, ‘Crisis [in Orientalism]’ India, so it seems, is a popular place. Whether visiting the three points of the Golden Triangle [what the cities … Read More