Delhightful Part 1
So after the adventure with the train, I saddled up and rode out to the front of the Railway station and waited for Joshua to arrive. Joshua, is a friend of my parents, he is the Pastor of a church, along with his father, in a city near Delhi. My parents had given me his contact details in case I needed any help, he had before put me in touch with another guy in Kerala who had assisted us dealing with the police.
Now say what you like about Christians, but in my travels and especially here in India, its been a bit of a strange coincidence that a lot of the people who I have met and offered to help, have been Christians. If you can get past them trying to convert you, which is not so difficult, as long as your honest with them. You really encounter some really sincere and great people. I grew up with it, so maybe its easier for me to deal with it than other people.
So God’s soldier, Joshua, rocked up, jumped on the back of my bike and we proceeded to head out of Delhi. The time was about 7.30 at night and dark. Delhi is not a fun city to be riding through at anytime but when its dark its even worse. There was dust and people everywhere.
I don’t know if I have talked about riding in India in detail but the road is just a nice smooth (relatively) place for everyone to enjoy. Im not joking when I say that people are everywhere. And not just people, cows, trucks, bicycles etc. Whatever you can imagine is enjoying the wonder of tarmac. And its unpredictable, which means you have to be constantly aware of whats going on. A kid on a bike, will decide he wants to cross the road, go right then change his mind as you approach doing at least 4 times his current speed. Two way roads exist only in movies and possibly your driving exam ( If this rumored test actually occurs ) It can be anything from 4 way and up. Vehicles literally come at you head on. Oh, and anything behind you does not exist. Hearing the horn behind you, indicates something has possibly materialized and you might need to get out of the way. Lines on the road are just decoration.
We finally arrived safely, and I got to meet Joshua’s lovely family, including his beautiful daughter Hosanna. I was the first white person she had met. So instead of being happy to meet me, she would burst into tears on sight. This improved by the time I ended up leaving, she could bear to be in the same room as me. Joshua’s wife also made the best Chappatis I have had so far.
Doug arrived a few days later, fresh from Radjisthan. We were going to spend some time in Delhi proper that same evening with friends of Sara’s who had invited us to come and stay. Before we left for there, I headed out to get some stuff for my bike, only to return to find Doug reading the Bible out aloud with Joshua’s father. He looked a bit bewildered by the whole experience, he told me afterward that he hadn’t read the Bible in over ten years. It would have been a bit of fun to try and prolong the experience for him but that wouldn’t have been fair to him. I think he was pretty scared.
Sometimes love doesn’t feel like it should.
So after the recent events, Doug and I decided to part ways for a little while. He took off with his girlfriend Sarah for a while, dirty weekend on the canals. And I stayed in Varkala to help a Scotsman by the name of Mark buy a bike. Doug and I had organised to meet in Rajisthan, in the north, and Mark was going to join us for a week or two but in Varkala he fell for a German (girl) and set of to chase her in Chennai.
Leaving Varkala beach, was pretty difficult. I met some great people there, had some great conversations some even with beautiful girls. We left by the coast road which runs between a canal and the beach. Palm trees, waves crashing. Paradise.
I did a cruise on the canals with Mark, not quite as romantic but pretty damn good then headed to Fort Cochin for a couple of days before heading North. Fort Cochin just felt like a different India, everyone was relaxed and helpful really chilled. There are these amazing trees there, they are huge and just emanate peace. Across the road there was a large oval and everyday the young Indian guys would be out there playing cricket. I sat there drinking a beer, with the trees, watching cricket being played in India. Felt right.
By the way I had a go and hit a four for Australia.
Riding around Fort Cochin on my bike just felt great, you feel like a bit of king, you might look like a cock but too bad and all the Indians stare at you. If you stop, they touch everything. You, the bike, your bag, I dont know why but they seem to get something from the experience.
But anyway to get to the North I had to put a my bike on a train to Delhi, this was a harrowing ordeal. I am getting really attached to my bike, I miss it if I have to put it into the shop, I dont like other people touching it and leaving it with other people stresses me out. Ill be honest and say it, I’m falling in love with my bike.
So having to entrust my bike to the rail guys was not enjoyable, I had heard horror stories, Doug had even told me that when his bike had come off the train, they had broke a mirror and he was lucky, another guy had his whole front wheel smashed. So I payed the guys extra to be careful and then jumped on the train, praying to the God of motorcycles that travel on trains, I think he’s called Sanjeev.
The trip was pretty uneventful, I did get in an argument with the conductor because I had asked for a cabin and they gave me an open berth, It wasn’t his fault but his way of dealing with situation was just to repeat himself every time I began to speak, with the stress of the bike added to his behavior I was going to snap until another Indian helped calm things down, which was appreciated. Sometimes you just want someone to listen.
So after two exciting days on the train, Valium helps with this kind of ordeal by the way, I arrived in Delhi and get of the train. I ask the rail guy where my bike is and he points me to the other end. I lug all my gear down the other end. No bike.
I’m telling myself to remain calm but there is no sign of my bike. I walk back with my gear and the guy says it musnt be on the train. What do you say? This is just India. Finally I meet another guy and he tells the porter to help me and we get to the other end, where there is one locked carriage, they open it up and inside my bike with a couple of new scratches and littles bits of green paint on it.
I never want to do that again but at least I have my bike.
Ben.
Loading my bike.
I do.
Over the last few days I have tossed around ideas for possibly keeping the video aspect of the trip going. I really enjoy the interaction I get when asking people questions in front of the camera. It causes me to think about the things im asking just as much as the people im filming, unfortunately after doing a few interviews and little films recently, I think it is going to be just too hard, without a laptop to edit on it just becomes too cumbersome to try and upload off standard internet connections.
But that said the other day I interviewed a guy called Seva, he is one of a group of people involved in a community project called Soulmakers. Now I have really tried to upload the video because some of the things that came out of that conversation were just great.
Seva talked about just doing, not thinking about it any more but doing and the responsibility that comes from making that choice.
Most of you may not know that I did not really want to leave Australia to come on this trip. After returning home after 4 years, I realised how much I loved being home and that I had good friends there. I didnt get reverse culture shock, far from from it, I realised how lucky I am to have such place to return to. Im not trying to compare this against anyone but this is how it felt for me. So when I had to leave for India, it was not with as much excietemnt as I might have had at one time. I had these feelings when I left Moscow, and they were confirmed when I arrived here that I have travelled so much, I have seen amazing things, met wonderful people and lived a life that I should be and am so thankful for but I have also had so many of the same conversations, been in so many places and after a while it just becomes all the same. Sometimes I just dont have anything to say to people, but i know that I have genuine care for others and love of communicating. To tie it together, I had come to the conclusion that I have a head full of theory but now is the time to apply it, not for anyone else but for me. To finally do. And if what I am doing is right, it will come out, it will be seen. When I think about this I become more content which is a feeling that has been missing for some time in my life. So, when I hear Seva talk about this to say these exact words, it was just another confirmation, that there is direction in life and I can grasp it right now.
I could, if I chose, continue the life of the traveler indefinitely but what joy would it bring me, I will continue this journey in India and definitely make the most of it but i know, that I am ready to invest and to take on responsibility. Its the difference between reading a book on life and actually living.
Much love
-Ben
More than a feeling.
This is an older post from when we were in Kerala:
I realized the other day, when we had risen above the jungles of Kerala and were overlooking a spectacular view that I love riding my motorbike. This is something that is hard to understand unless you have experienced it. I said to Douglas at the time that this is how I want to travel from now on, already thinking of other countries and the possibility of traversing them on bike. It was not long after that, some days, that Douglas and I saw a family of wild elephants feeding in the jungle. The only reason we came across them was because we heard one calling and noticed a large pile of dung on the road. We pulled over and waited for them to reveal themselves, there was nervous tension while waiting as there was also an element of danger, being so close, and when we finally got to see them it was like a reward, that we were doing something really special. I cant help but feel that you are more removed from the environment around you if you are traveling by car or bus.
Previous life.
Maybe it was two years of living in Moscow or maybe in a past life I was a slab of granite or something that was just lying in the sun, whatever it is, I just love the heat and the sun. even when Im frying like a forgotten sausage on the barbie, Its not like I hate it it, I might not be enjoying it but there is no active dislike. I just love the feel of the sun on my face.
Racist Video Camera
When we did have a video camera, it was racist. It didn’t recognize really dark people on the viewfinder and wouldn’t focus on them. Someone should to talk to Sony about this.
Enjoy the Silence.
So….we are sure good at this, keeping you up to date, with daily digests about our times in India. Well unfortunately that has not been the case but with good reason. Its my sad task to inform you what has actually been occurring since I last posted. About two weeks ago , while staying in Varkala, Someone broke into our room and stole all our electronic equipment, video camera laptop everything. Its all gone. This was really a big blow, as it seemed like Douglas and I had sorted out our issues and were really on track to developing our focus, we had even been out recording that day. So not only did we lose the equipment but about two weeks worth of footage and photos. We unfortunately wont be able to show you our time at the southern point of India, that for me was the hardest part, just losing those memories. It also hit home that we were doing something special and now that opportunity has passed.
We then had to deal with the Varkala police, which if we had had the video camera would have been a great story to show you, if I was to say that they were unhelpful, it would be an understatement, i think anti-helpful says it better. Always the favorite words were ‘Come back tomorrow,’ It was all we could do to get a decent police certificate for the insurance claim. So we resigned ourselves to the reality that the equipment is not coming back.
But where do we go from here? Well I can only speak for myself when i say it definitely crossed my mind that it was time to pack it all in and go our separate ways but we have made the decision to keep going, Doug has taken a break with his girlfriend Sarah, lovely girl, and I will be meeting him shortly in the North, where we will continue our tour.
Really we could have let this ruin our trip, but lets be honest its just stuff and it hasn’t worked out this time but who to say it wont work in the future. We are in India, we live and we learn, you only get one chance in life and we are here doing it. So I guess I could say that im feeling pretty positive right now, even as im typing this and considering the possibilities Im in a good mood.
And what does this mean for the blog? Well im not sure, at this stage im going to my utmost best to keep posting on here but its going to be more personal, more like a travel blog. I have started interviewing people and I even borrowed a camera to film one of them. Illl post, hopefully soon, with some of my thoughts. I did consider the possibility of just getting a crappy handicam to keep making videos but its very hard to edit and upload without your own computer. So I guess I see this space becoming a repository of both mine and Douglas’ thoughts and experiences of the trip, trying to get on here and say something when we can.
So thats enough for me but seriously guys love to you all and hope your having a good one!
- Ben.
Where to begin?
So you may have noticed that there hasnt been so many posts so far. ( Or maybe you dont really care) But the truth is we have been putting off launching the site until things were perfect. Unfortunately if thats what you waiting for, its never going happen.
Its been an interesting and hard first month coming to grips with expectations, egos (both of us) and the subsequent realities of the situation. So due to a number of factors including the time it has taken to get the bikes and the time we actually have left in India we have had to reconsider what our approach will be for this trip. We in initially had high hopes of bringing you unique insights into Indian life and culture, we may still achieve this but due to our time constraints we have had to shift the focus from India, to us! With both of us being shy types this will be difficult but all these unique experiences are going to be seen through our eyes as we share a little bit about our journey through India.
Now this isn’t going to be the long way up Masala style, we just are going to try and have a bit a fun and share a bit of that with you. This could quite possibly be the most boring thing you ever have the pleasure of experiencing but we hope that wont be the case.
So our next goal is the Southern Coast!
P.S – We have already had some really great experiences and thoughts that didnt really fit into our original goal but now we can put whatever we want up here, so if it seems if the order of events is a bit jumbled up don’t worry we are just trying to catch up on whats already happened.
Ben-Shanti
Arrival
Just arrived in India (well not exactly true but for the sake of this post lets pretend I have just got here) and it hits you like a slap in the face. Not an original sentiment I’m sure but quite appropriate. The smells, the sounds, the people. Just on first observation there seems to be so much confusion. Like everything is happening at once but without any specific reason, or cause. This is not to say I’m not enjoying it because far from it. I’m having a great time!
On my first inspection of the traffic system here, I have to say that Doug and I couldnt have picked a better place to learn how to ride a motorbike. Everyone is very courteous and considerate on the roads. Its like the Germany of Asia.
My first lesson was only use the horn when necessary.
But the big thing here and I guess the attraction of many places is the people. The stare at you but its not with hostility but with a genuine curiosity, then as soon as you smile at them you are rewarded with a huge grin and head wobble that makes you feel so welcome. I have to say I’m loving the smile and head wobble, it seems like such an open innocent gesture. Its disarming.
So my first night was spent in Trichy after which I travelled by overnight train to Bangalore, which would have been fine except I’m already waging an internal war with my intestinal system, and when your only option is a train toilet you have only one choice but to fight the good fight and hope you win at 4am in the morning. That aside I arrived safely and have begun my mission in Bangalore to source the motorbikes for the trip.
More on that soon.
So its finally happening.
Well, I cant believe it, over a year of talking about it, thinking about planning, talking some more and then a week of getting stuff done at the last minute, its finally happening! I’m going to India. I couldn’t have picked a better guy to do it with, you have Doug to thank for the website and setting it all up.
Don’t forget to let us know your reasons for getting out of bed!
I will be heading to India first, its my job to get the bikes sorted for the trip. Due to Western Australia’s unusual licensing laws and the fact I want to be covered by insurance in case I come off, I will be riding a Honda Karizma and Doug will have the pleasure of riding an Enfield Bullet. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Enfield_Bullet
So its time to start saying goodbye to my friends and family in Perth and get ready for my next adventure.