Safe and sound in the DaeHan

Hi everyone.

Thanks for all of your kinds emails and posts during my trip. As I've already said, India was incredible. I hope to go back and see more of the country in the future.

Thailand was good, as always. It was nice to see freindly faces and enjoy the sand. I had a few small run-ins with sunburn and spider bites, but I'm safe and sound now.

Also, as always, coming back to Korea is a little tough, but it's good to be in familiar surroundings and my own bed once again. It's cold here! Blech. I want the beach.

Here are a few pics to enjoy. The first summarizes my current countries visited list (23 counting Hong Kong and Taiwan). The second is the beach in Koh Phi Phi and the third is me in front of the Taj Mahal.

Love,
jc

Perspective

You decide. Varanasi is one of the holiest Indian cities. Pilgrims come to die here, bathe in the mysterious waters of the Ganges and do the laundry. To many, it's an important rite and the mighty Ganga is a force to be reckoned with.

For others, the Ganges represents all that is unholy about India. 100mL of the river hold 150 million fecal chloriform bacteria. Safe water is regarded as 500 or less in the same amount.

For me, I saw both aspects. India has been an incredible experience. The dedication to Hinduism is astounding and the people have been incredible. The temples, palaces and forts were equally awe-inspiring. The poverty and filth, however, are undeniable. At every turn, we were confronted head-on with India. Which, I suppose, is what turns people on to it as well as off from it.

As I mentioned earlier, India is an assault on the senses. The sights, sounds, smells and ideas behind all of those do nothing short of amaze every day. My time in India was short, but the memories of the trip will take lifetimes to fade away.

Which, as I've learned here, I may have! :)

Much love to all,
jc

ps. Now it's off to Koh Phi Phi in Thailand for a short week of deprogramming.

Big Update!

Sorry I haven't updated lately, but illness, lack of computer and a long entry that didn't work last night have kept me away.

Long story long. The day I returned back to Delhi, I became very sick with "Delhi Belly." I reckon it was food poisioning from a restaurant on the road on the way back from Pushkar. Anyway, I spent the day waiting for Matt and Tracy to meet me so we could start our trip east. A good five or six hours were spent in my gnarly little backpacker's cell in the Main Bazaar, vomiting and feeling miserable. M and T were coming in very late, and when Matt finally called, I could only talk to him for 2 minutes before having to hang up and run away.

I met them the next morning feeling better and we sussed out the plans for the eastern leg of the trip. We left around noon, headed for Agra and the majestic monument to love, the Taj Mahal.

Because we left late, we arrived late-ish, but there were still a few hours left before the Taj closed. We bought tickets and stood in line, watching the sun disappear. By the time we got in the perfectly symmetrical monument to one man's love was perfectly shrouded in darkness. None of the shots came out. $25 entry fee down the tubes. We discussed going back the next morning and spending $25 bucks again, but to our surprise, found out that admission was free in the morning due to a Muslim holy day. We had a fine New Year's dinner at the Sheraton (fancy, fancy) and headed back to the Taj to find it perfectly symmetrical and shrouded this time in fog. Again, no good shots. (just google it, and you'll see better shots than will appear here)

The next day we were off to Orchha, a litte touristy town with a cool market, cool temples and an interesting fort. Orchha is a little of the normal path, so the hawkers are more laid back and the whole place had a pretty chill vibe.

Tuesday took us to Kajuraho, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and its excellent temples. These Hindu and Jain temples are over 1000 years old, but beautifully intact and restored. They reminded me a lot of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.

Today we are in Varanasi, the holy city on the Ganges. We arrived here after a 9 hour car ride cross-country in a hatchback. It was a long bumpy ride punctuated with a traffic jam outside of Varanasi that had been there for about 4 hours. We somehow managed to get behind another hatchback that had a man with an automatic machine gun that he used to re-direct the cars and boom - open road! Pretty sweet.

More soon!

Love,
jc