Monday, May 31, 2010

The Fascinating India


India is one of the countries that I really like. I have to admit that before I went to India, I knew almost nothing. I grew up knowing about Latin America, North America, Europe, and at the most about the Pyramids in Egypt. Nevertheless, India was not part of the textbooks.

Our trip to India last about five weeks, and it was fantastic. Every time when somebody ask me what impressed me the most, I said that beside its fantastic cuisine, culture, history and heritage, the HAPPINESS that I saw in its people is what amazed me the most. Friends usually ask me about poverty, or problems  that I saw in India. I always respond that I only saw HAPPINESS. We walked through small villages, stayed in very remote areas, indeed, we did not go to the typical tourist places, and I still can affirm that what I saw touched my soul.

I still remember that we stop by a small village near Bodhgaya. The village had no more than 20 houses. The driver that was with us got lost in the area, and we needed to ask for directions. We took the opportunity to step out of the car and stretch our legs, when suddenly we were surrounded by kids that were playing and singing around us.....besides their poor living conditions (from a Western point of view).....they were HAPPY. It was a surreal and magic moment. I can't explain with words what happened in that moment, but certainly, what I experienced in that moment, it will be with me forever.

It is difficult to explain that HAPPINESS sensation when everybody knows the difficult situations that a developing country like India faces everyday. I ask my Indian friends whether they have a rationale or solid explanation for what I think about India. They always tell me that they grew up learning that they MUST be happy with what they have, and not be unhappy for what they don't have. Probably, that is one of the lessons that we should learn......

India opened my mind and my heart to appreciate and love a culture, tradition and legacy that is so different than mine. Also, in India I had some of my most spiritual moments that I ever experienced. I do not have words to describe them, and I don't think you want to know about it. Nevertheless, after I visited the places where Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was cremated (Raj Ghat, New Delhi), and the Mother Teresa's tomb (Missionaries of Charity, Kolkata) I felt blessed.......


Thanks to my Indian friends that have guided me in better understanding that beautiful culture, and have taught me to cook. But, foremost, I must thanks my husband that introduced me to India and brought me in one of the most beautiful trips of all my life.....

2 comments:

  1. Ellos siempre me dicen que creció con el aprendizaje que deben ser felices con lo que tienen, y no ser infeliz por lo que no tienen. Probablemente, es una de las lecciones que debemos aprender...

    Totalmente de acuerdo, no sabemos lo afortunados que somos, por ser quiénes somos y tener a la gente que tenemos al lado, muchas veces se nos olvida, vamos corre, corre e intentando tener mas y mas... y así se nos pasan los días, los meses y tristemente los años... hasta que un día en lo mejor de los casos se enciende una bombilla y te das cuenta que todo lo que tienes para ser feliz YA LO TIENES!, estas sano, vivo, con familia que te quiere, amigos, un lugar bonito en donde vivir... y es ahí cuando sonríes y dices SOY AFORTUNADO!

    Ser feliz, es lo realmente importante en esta vida!

    Nunca he estado en la India, ni creo que lo este, pero leyendo tus palabras me doy cuenta que tiene que ser un país muy bonito y con muchas cosas por descubrir, cosas que llenan el corazón!

    Un beso

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  2. Cuinera...tu bien lo dices....Ser feliz, es lo realmente importante en esta vida.....el resto es solo adorno....
    Una de las vivencias (para mi)de las cuales estoy muy agradecida, ha sido viajar y conocer culturas tan diferentes a la mia....no solo he degustado nuevos platos (mmmm), sino me he dado cuenta que a pesar de nuestras aparentes diferencias....somos todos seres humanos en busca de felicidad....abrazos, Marcela

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