good things come to those who wait
vancouver--> kolkata (via shanghai and bangkok)
i possibly need to stop buying the cheapest air tickets possible. for some reason, they wouldn't check my baggage through all my flights and i had to go through customs in china and thailand. this was quite sketchy in china as i clearly did not have a chinese visa and they were just a tad hesitant to let me into the country without one. quite a delay, which made me somewhat nervous about making my connection especially because i got lost in the airport about 3 times as well and had to take a bus to another terminal. oy. then i had a 15 hour stopover in bangkok, which was less stressful but well, just LONG because i wasn't allowed to check in for my flight until 3 hours prior and had to cart all my earthly possessions around with me. although i did experience a special joy when using the travelators (moving walkway ramps) countless times. some things just don't get old.
calcutta. joy. monsoon is NOT over. i seem to remember some vague thoughts about buying a poncho before i left... whatever happened to those thoughts? hmmm.... but i've managed to get everything set for onward travel, despite getting soaked and stuck under tarps and awnings quite a few times. very nice experience waiting under some tarps when a dood wallah (milk seller) noticed me and found me a seat on some crates. while sitting there, a volunteer police man (?) decided to bring me some chai in a little tiny clay cup. i suppose i looked a bit bedraggled. i also discovered that you can take the TROLLY CAR to near where the railway ticketing place is. so slow and rusty and clanky but exciting nonetheless.
i realised on my way over here that this is my 6th trip to india. i almost can't believe it. i calculated that in total i have spent about 27 months here. that's more than 2 years! makes me embarrassed for how poor my hindi is. really, ACTUALLY need to work on that (how many times have i said that?). of course whenever i learn something new here it also reveals so many more layers beyond where i am. sort of works in an exponential way- with every bit of knowledge exposing that much more ignorance. luckily, for the most part, the lessons i've been given are kind ones.
i possibly need to stop buying the cheapest air tickets possible. for some reason, they wouldn't check my baggage through all my flights and i had to go through customs in china and thailand. this was quite sketchy in china as i clearly did not have a chinese visa and they were just a tad hesitant to let me into the country without one. quite a delay, which made me somewhat nervous about making my connection especially because i got lost in the airport about 3 times as well and had to take a bus to another terminal. oy. then i had a 15 hour stopover in bangkok, which was less stressful but well, just LONG because i wasn't allowed to check in for my flight until 3 hours prior and had to cart all my earthly possessions around with me. although i did experience a special joy when using the travelators (moving walkway ramps) countless times. some things just don't get old.
calcutta. joy. monsoon is NOT over. i seem to remember some vague thoughts about buying a poncho before i left... whatever happened to those thoughts? hmmm.... but i've managed to get everything set for onward travel, despite getting soaked and stuck under tarps and awnings quite a few times. very nice experience waiting under some tarps when a dood wallah (milk seller) noticed me and found me a seat on some crates. while sitting there, a volunteer police man (?) decided to bring me some chai in a little tiny clay cup. i suppose i looked a bit bedraggled. i also discovered that you can take the TROLLY CAR to near where the railway ticketing place is. so slow and rusty and clanky but exciting nonetheless.
i realised on my way over here that this is my 6th trip to india. i almost can't believe it. i calculated that in total i have spent about 27 months here. that's more than 2 years! makes me embarrassed for how poor my hindi is. really, ACTUALLY need to work on that (how many times have i said that?). of course whenever i learn something new here it also reveals so many more layers beyond where i am. sort of works in an exponential way- with every bit of knowledge exposing that much more ignorance. luckily, for the most part, the lessons i've been given are kind ones.
posted by natalie at 3:43 AM
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