coexistapart's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- thoughts on India So I've started thinking about this India trip I want to do in the spring, except it's kind of getting out of hand. The original premise was that Amy and I were waiting around for a suitable opportunity when we both had enough time to properly explore India---say for 6-8 weeks. Fast forward a year into the non-planning and Amy's now more uncommitted than ever (is it money? is it school? who knows) and Lonely Planet basically tells me that unless you have 3-6 months, going for 8 weeks is no better than just going for 10 days; you are NOT going to truly experience India, whatever on Earth THAT means. I got a book from the library. I'm not necessarily any closer to separating the cool-sounding places from what are food and/or photography must-sees. I mean I imagine I do feel that I must see the Taj, the slums of Kolkata (the weird spelling is starting to grow on me), the Ganges, and the religious basin that is Amritsar (pun intended). Originally I wanted to add in a week to Sri Lanka; I know it's not, but I kind of see Sri Lanka as a cultural extension of India. Like some weird half-brother that married into the family, badly, and hey—I'm already over there. Next, Travel Guy warned me that doing India is exhausting, and I would want a "break" before coming back from my "vacation" (in the classical sense of the word), though it's not as though I really needed any encouragement to go to the Maldives. And Kimberley's parents will be stationed in Bangladesh for a week; I really should stop by and pay them a visit. No better way to start off a trip than with a visit there. Those were my preliminary plans, made with just a nominal amount of actual research-based information. But then my book on India was talking all about Kashmir, and the region of Leh, the Himalayan Plateau. Call me stupid, but it had never occurred to me that you could see the great peaks without going into Tibet. As if they were 2D or something, the backside of a stage set that was blank. And now Bhutan sounds beautiful, and Eritrea an Art Deco haven that was mentioned in the NYT Sunday section last month. And if I'm going to do all this, my that sounds awfully expensive. Maybe a Star Alliance round-the-world ticket makes more sense? And if that does make more sense, do I cut back, stick to India, or do I expand and do another hopscotch of the region considering that I will have to fly back via Europe. (Only one Pacific and Atlantic, each, crossing are allowed.) I wasn't planning to spend $10,000 on this trip, which is what it very well may turn into if I don't keep things under control, and try to do too much. I mean $10,00 is only really unreasonable to spend if I'm NOT going to be in Israel next year, and I've hardly been out of the country in the last 18 months. However, if I am going to be in the Middle East, and Big and I are paying for my tuition with a mind to not spending market value of my stocks (tax credit, anyone?) then yes...I need to keep the trip tight. What's the rush? I'll be living in Europe for the next two years, and India is MUCH closer from there. That's all for now. I'm having a world-is-my-oyster kind of feeling rind now. Anything is possible, and that rocks. Bigtime. I am so blessed. 1:32 p.m. - 2008-10-13 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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