making this trip mine.

There is something special about this trip. I can’t help but think that it will be considerable time before I can spend a significant period in another foreign country. When I get home from this trip, I’ll start my new job in Salt Lake City (which I’m very enthusiastic about), start school shortly thereafter, and before I know it…I’ll be a graduate from law school- seeking a life that I don’t know if I’m cut out for. A life that involves things that are both scary and exciting for me: professionalism, responsibility, pressure….I suppose that, in and of itself will be like traveling in unfamiliar terrain. Although, I fear that the life that awaits me will lack the things that make me who I am: adventure, creativity, spending time with friends! (It’s interesting, I don’t think I truly understood myself until I was knee-deep in law school…)

Anyway, it is with these thoughts that I realized that I need to craft this trip into something that I actually want. I don’t know if that makes sense, but it’s something like this:

A guy goes to Australia for a job. All of his friends tell him that he has to go diving in the Great Barrier Reef. The dude is terrified of water and actually breaks out into hives when he imagines the ocean. He has no interest in seeing fish in their natural habitat-he’s happy visiting his local aquarium instead. Despite his phobia he dives in, just to say he did it. He knows he’ll hate it, and in fact, does. Not only does he get sea sick on the boat to the Great Barrier Reef, but his arm gets bitten off by a shark.

Why did he feel the obligation to go? He would have been perfectly content sitting on the beach, visiting the Sydney Opera House, and camping in the Outback. Not to mention, he would have gotten the most out of the trip, and made it his own.

I know some people will disagree with me, but that’s just my opinion. I don’t see why people feel the need to do things on trips “just to say they did it.” I understand checking things off of your bucket list-but make it YOUR bucket list.

Okay, that was a tangent…but, the point is: There is a magic about this city. For me, it is the perfect balance between chaotic India and the order that can only come from a business-savvy epicenter. You look around and see dilapidated buildings, eroding with time, and barefooted Indian boys (not more than 10 years old) selling food on the side of the road. It reminds you that you are in fact, in India. Then, you turn a corner and what you see could be mistaken for a neighborhood in the United States.

It is simultaneously filled to the brim with modernity and tradition. The senior partner in my firm confers with international corporations on a daily basis, and wears a bindi and has an alter to his Hindu gods on the wall. The restaurant/bar I went to last night, (Toit Brew Pub), was immaculate and trendy by American standards, yet they push you into rickshaws by 11:30 (it's too scandalous to be out later). It is the perfect city for a traveler (like me) who likes to experience a new culture...and even be challenged by it, and still have access to charms like proper toilets, air conditioning and running water.

(photos of Toit)


So, in this "perfect, magical city" I think I'd like to do things my way. I'm not sure what that means exactly, but I can be sure that it will involve relaxation, yoga, shopping, and good food. I don't want to get tied up in the throbbing nightlife and after-parties (which actually exist quite rampantly) because that's just not who I am. (Is it bad to say that I just feel too old for it??)I am much more content getting a drink with friends after work, eating a meal with my host family, practicing yoga or finding a quaint cafe to read.

Perhaps later I'll fill you in on this group of foreign travelers that I met last night, their enthusiasm for life, and the wild stories they told. But for now, let this suffice.

peace, love, magic.