Reflections on India

This gentleman was very interested in my bike, so he sat with me while I ate lunch. This was just another experience I had where we didn't speak the same language but we communicated via the bike.  When you cycle through India you're not a tourist, you're a cyclist which is infinitely more rewarding.

I wanted to share some experiences that I had in India that stuck with me.  Even now the memories are still so fresh, I think India is fascinating on so many levels, so here are a few stories I wanted to share: 

1.

As soon as I landed in Chennai I was greeted by two awesome Couchsurfing hosts, Shabhaz and Deepti.  To my surprise, and delight, it is quite common for people to have an Amma that cooks traditional Indian food made from scratch.  Greatest News Ever.  Both of my hosts were generous enough to share these home cooked meals and I was introduced to South India cuisine right from the start!  Usually non-veg, a new term that I learned on my first day, lots of lentils, rice, steamed rice, chutneys, and a huge variety of curries.  Some of my favourites: sambhar, idlis, dosai, wada, the list goes on and on.  The best part about eating in India is you get to eat with your hands!!!  It's like being a kid again, except more fun because there is no macaroni and everyone else eats with their hands too ;)

2.

Next up on my list of things to do was to get a SIM card.  This is standard practice with every country I travel through.  This quick mission usually looks like this: I walk up to any random street vendor that sells cell phones, and I give them a few dollars and they give me a SIM card with pre-paid minutes and data.  End of story, usually takes all of 5 minutes, and I test the SIM card right there in the shop to ensure it’s working.

When I arrived in Chennai I went to the first cell shop I found.  They wanted me to fill out a two page application form, provide a photocopy of my passport, provide a photocopy of my driver’s licence, and finally provide a passport photo (similar to what you need for travel visa applications).  I laughed out loud, and said to myself, there is no way I would ever leave all my personal information with this guy.  I’m out.  So I go down the street to the next shop.  Ask for a SIM card, same answer!  I was stunned, how can getting a SIM card be so difficult?  Again, there is no way I’m leaving all my ID with a random shop owner, they would have everything they need to forge my documents and steal my identity.  As it turns out, it is that difficult, and every shop requests the same thing..  So now I have to find a shop that has a photocopier, this was also an adventure.  Then I have to get my photo taken somewhere.  After a good hour in the sweltering heat, I finally return to the shop with the most trustworthy looking employee and hand everything over.  Now he tells me that I have to wait 2 days for the SIM to be activated, and when I call a special number they will confirm who I am when I provide my permanent address.  Oh and by the way, you have to pay now and leave with a cell phone that still doesn’t work.  AMAZING! India is a land of contrasts, I can’t describe it any better then that.  

While I’m going through this lengthy process to get a SIM card the same shop owner is selling cigarettes to kids under 10 years old.  No joke, they walk up, throw him some money and he gives them cigarettes.   Then just to top it all off there is an electric element on the wall that the shop owner turns so he can light the cigarette for the CHILD!  No problem, giving cancer to kids is acceptable, no minimum age required, but if you want a SIM card you better be ready to hand over your life!  

I later learned that the Indian government was trying to fight crime with this method.  With this process anyone that wanted to have a cell phone would have to show proof of ID.  I guess they assumed most criminals wouldn't have any ID, so the law was put into practice.  I suppose they figured without a cell phone criminals wouldn't be able to sell drugs, illegal contraband etc.  I think the jury is still out on this one, nonetheless another great story!

3.

Along the same lines of contrasting experiences I have this little ditty. In South India they have a custom where they clean their front door steps every morning, I would see this as I left early on my bike.  They wash the front step and then they use rice powder to decorate the ground in front of their door.  They create these beautifully complicated designs, I would stop and watch because they were so skilled.  Traditionally it would be done by a Hindu woman that would draw the designs, they would do it so quickly and the symmetry would be flawless.  Really impressive and I consider these symbols as art, just a beautiful way to start the day.  Sweep your house, clean your front step,  and then create a kolam to bring prosperity to your house.  Here is a quick video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5q4WTMBW8g

This practice was done using rice flower so that birds and other small creatures could eat it, thus welcoming other being into one's home and everyday life, a tribute to harmonious co-existence.  Beautiful.

The opposite of that daily ritual of cleanliness and routine is an experience I had on the beach.  I was sitting with Mukesh who is the local surf instructor in Mahabs.  Amazing guy with a big heart, and he does a lot for the kids in the community.  He also organizes beach cleanups every week.  He gets a bunch of the local kids together and they hand out garbage bags and gloves and they pick up all the garbage they can find.  In exchange for their help he would offer out surfboards for them to use, what a guy.  It’s beautiful thing they’re doing, and it’s quite incredible to witness because there is a ton of garbage on the ground and on the beaches.  We were sitting at a beach side restaurant one day and the following happened.  An older women with a big garbage bag full of trash walks down the beach towards the water.  She gets to the edge of the ocean and proceeds to pull individual pieces of garbage out of her bag.  It was so methodical, one at a time she took garbage out and then threw it into the oncoming waves.  She finished by completely emptying the contents onto beach at the water’s edge.  Now comes the interesting part.  As she is littering in the ocean the waves start to rise and push all her trash up the beach behind her.  When she finishes tossing plastic, bottles, and food scraps into the water she turns around to leave.  Incredibly she has to step over all her garbage as she walks up the beach, because the water is depositing all the trash up on the sand.  Not only did she just put a week's worth of garbage into the water, she actually has to walk over her own trash to go back to her house.  I just shake my head, because I just can't understand how this happens so frequently.

Mukesh owner of Mumu's Surf School, check him out here:
 https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mumu-Mahabs-Surf-School-Shop/362896190456776

Mukesh looks over at me and says, “See what I’m dealing with here, how am I supposed keep this beach clean when everyone throws their garbage in the ocean?”.  He was right, he is fighting an uphill battle, and it just blew my mind that this woman didn’t connect the dots.  We talked further about his frustration and I was quick to applaud him because he was educating the next generation.  Those kids that he worked with were learning about how the garbage is eaten by fish and eventually they eat the fish.  The kids get it, it’s all connected, but unfortunately the rest of the village doesn’t seem to realize the implications of their actions.  He explained it to me like this.  There is no garbage collection in this small town. These people either burn their garbage in the street, or they throw it in the ocean.  When the woman returns with more garbage, she’ll go to the same spot and the garbage won’t be there because high tide will have either swept it away or deposited it up high on the sand.  To her, the garbage is gone, and that’s where the disconnect is.

To see them take care of their front door steps so diligently, washing them, sweeping them, and adding the wonderful designs was one thing.  To see the opposite end of the spectrum and watch them throw their trash in the ocean just goes to show the contrasting beliefs in India.  An eye opener to say the least.

4.

I had another hilarious experience at a very small beach cafe in India.  I ordered a meal with chicken and they responded by saying it might take a little while.  I said no problem, I’m on the beach with a cold one, take your time.  I watched the waiter go back to the kitchen and say something to one of the cooks.  He then promptly left and came back 5 minutes later.  He had a plastic bag with something moving in it.  I then heard the axe drop, literally, and watched him pluck the chicken.  Doesn’t get anymore local then that does it?  Fresh, delicious, and Indian style!

5.

In the smaller cities in India alcohol isn’t that popular.  I had one experience where we were having a few beers in a restaurant and at 11:30pm the waitresses came around and told us to be quiet.  Then they shut all the lights off.  We waited in silence, and in the dark, confused as to what was going on.  We then watched a policeman drive by on his bike checking all the restaurants.  Apparently you are not aloud to be open past 11:30pm.  The waitresses waited for him to pass by, then they turned the lights on and everyone was allowed to talk again.  Then 20 minutes later, it happened again.  This was a surprise introduction to small town life for me, but it happened everywhere I went.  Apparently they have to hide what they’re doing in case the cops catch them.  Every once in a while the cops will see the lights on before the “spotter” of the restaurant sees the cop.  From what I was told they would then approach the restaurant and demand a bribe.  The owner would have to pay the officer, and sometimes throw in a few bottles of beer, and then they would be on their way.  I couldn’t believe it when I heard it, the same cop that is trying to stop the sale of alcohol after 11:30pm will ask for beer as a bribe…go figure, only in India!

6.

While cycling in India you just become accustomed to the honking.  There are the scooter honks, I call them the small beeps.  Then the cars and trucks, which have a more forceful horn.  Finally you have the buses which basically are equipped with regular truck horns along with an air horn.  Yes an air horn, something you would see at a hockey game back in Canada.  Sometimes these air horns even have melodies, where they play a few notes at full blast leaving a ringing in your ears.  The auditory stimulus in India is an overload to the senses, and it is deafening and exhausting.  I actually had to upgrade my little bell on my bike to a full battery operated siren.  No one could hear my bell so when you can’t beat’em, join’em!

I heard a lot of foreigners complain about the honking on the roads.  They thought it was rude and over the top.  Personally I think the system works, because the honking replaces stop signs and intersection lights.  You pass someone, you honk, you drive in someone’s blind spot, you honk.  You need to do anything at all, you honk.  It’s simple gesture, it’s civil and it works. I’ve seen four way stop with no stop signs work.  Hundreds of scooters come barreling into a busy intersection and no one get hurt.  They all honk, they all swerve this way and that, but they all get on their way and no one has to stop!  You might call this a roundabout in Europe except no one is traveling in a circular motion!  They all come straight into the middle and then weave through traffic to get where they’re going. 

This well oiled machine does work, however I saw a downfall.  On a few occasions I did see some ambulances.  I never heard the ambulances, I only saw their lights.  You see the government issued sirens for ambulances are the quietest on the road.  With all the honking, air horns, and diesel dump trucks, you never hear the ambulance coming!  It was sad to watch really because they couldn’t get anywhere!  It wasn’t until they were directly behind someone with their lights going that traffic would “sometimes” pull over.  It was just so bizarre, especially coming from Canada where you would never dream of honking at someone.  When you see an ambulance in Canada the traffic pulls over immediately and the medics get to where they’re going fast.  In India the trucks and buses with the loudest air horns have the right of way!  Of course, I mean those buses have a schedule to keep!

In the end, India is a country of wonderful people, fascinating customs, and delicious food.  It can be an assault on the senses, and at times it is overwhelming.  The food is so spicy it makes you cry, they burn plastic and garbage and it burns your nose, the dust and pollution hurts your eyes, and the honking will make your head hurt.  However, the people will touch your soul and the kids will pull on your heartstrings.  Does it ruin the experience?  Of course not, it is the experience.  India is unlike any other country in the world and I loved it.  It was a trip I’ll never forget, cycling in India was life changing and I can’t wait to go back.  If you ever have the chance, please go, incredible India is waiting for you.