It's ironic that the last post was a progress report when this post may actually be the last. I've enjoyed writing this blog and was happy to share some of my observations and experiences. This blog has been silent for the last month because at a certain point, my life in Bangalore became full and rich in a way that made it more difficult and/or less appealing to sit down for the three hours or so it takes to write a post. I think it's comparable to the way many people only keep a journal when traveling or experiencing novelty, while everyday life tends to go unrecorded. Bangalore became everyday life for me. For you or my future self, maybe a record of this everyday life would have been very interesting, but alas. It also didn't help my blogging when my laptop broke, but that's a weak excuse.
I'm currently sitting in an internet cafe in Jodhpur, a beautiful city in Rajasthan. The clock is ticking on my final 24 hours in India (for now). My friend, Joe, and I will be flying out to Kathmandu tomorrow where we will embark on a roughly month-long trip in the Nepal Himalaya. Our proposed itinerary takes us to Everest Base Camp (but not up the mountain - I don't fancy the odds of survival) and beyond. It should be a wonderful trek, but in a region with no roads, I'm afraid the lack of internet access will thwart any attempts to blog our progress. At last, after four months, I've succumbed to a form of Delhi belly called amoebic colitis (or that's what the doctor suspects), and both Joe and I have been making frequent, unsatisfying trips to the toilet. Hopefully, the magical orange tablets that we've been prescribed will do the trick before we hit the trail.
The past few weeks have been jam-packed with adventure and emotion. My departure from Bangalore was a draining experience. I had become attached to the city and the people. The most difficult moment was on my last day of work when my labmates said goodbye to me. Everyone gathered in the sitting room, and someone gave a brief, heartful speech about how people come and go and no one has really cared, but with me it was different. They presented me with a watch that the whole lab chipped in to purchase. I was incredibly moved and nearly broke down in front of them, but controlled myself long enough to make it to a bathroom. The realization that I'll never see most of these people again was well... suffice it to say that I had a series of difficult goodbyes before finally leaving the city by train.
Over forty hours and three nights on the rails later (including stops in Hampi, Hospet, and Guntakal Junction), I arrived in Delhi where I met up with a group of high school kids from my alma mater to chaperone a two-week trip in Himachel Pradesh. There was a homestay, some community service, and some trekking. On the 24th, their last day, we toured Delhi, and then parted ways. Joe arrived on the 25th for a brief jaunt in North India, unintentionally consisting of the Golden Triangle plus Jodhpur. And today is my penultimate day in India.
I'm homesick and travel worn and a little impatient with India. The trail calls, and I can't wait to fill my lungs with mountain air. Where my path leads once the trek is over, I don't know, but that is in itself very exciting.
If my moribund blog were to revive itself sometime in the future, I'll holler but this is Alex, signing out for maybe the last time. Thanks for reading.
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