Australia, here I come

This trip has been my first solo travel experience, and taken me far out of my comfort zone many times. While mostly this has been really amazing, leading to me making new friends, learning to enjoy time by myself, and becoming more confident - in myself and my decisions. This leads me on to my recent decision to not continue my trip to Jaipur, as originally planned - I will now be spending a little while with family in Australia.

The 'not so good':

Since I have been in Mumbai, I have found it particularly challenging to travel here as a solo woman. Things that may not have bothered me if I were with other people, have taken their toll - everywhere I go, people shout out 'ma'am, buy this, it's so cheap, please'. I'm sorry but I am not interested in a peacock fan, no matter how many times you ask, or if you follow me all the way around the Hanging Gardens! I also realised at the beginning that if I gave money to everyone who I saw begging in the streets, I would have very little money left to actually complete my trip. I find the stares and the attention from men very intense, which is something I am not used to. In England, this kind of behaviour would not be tolerated, and is not something I have ever experienced. While I expected the big change in culture, I had not anticipated how it would make me feel

The thing that has concerned me the most, is something that at the beginning I thought was amusing, but now makes me feel like an animal in the zoo. Photographs. Today while in the Hanging Gardens and just walking down the street, four different groups of people asked me if they could take photos with me. This actually makes me feel really uncomfortable, because I know if I say yes to one person, everyone will want a photo of me. I understand that seeing foreign people is quite different in India, particularly for people who come from rural backgrounds, but I am not a celebrity and regardless - I do not want to be stopped on the streets for entertainment.

On top of these situations making me feel uncomfortable, there has also been violent riots in the North of India. The next planned stop of my trip was Jaipur, and although the conflict has not reached Jaipur, I felt extremely worried about heading to the North, towards the violence, as it is impossible to predict how it might change. I am always aware that the North is much more traditional, and I was worried that if I had struggled in Mumbai, Jaipur would be even harder.

The good:

Despite finding it difficult being here on my own, India is an incredible and beautiful country. I was fortunate enough to come during the festival of Ganesha. In order to understand the celebrations better, I went on a tour with Reality Tours, who took us through Dharavi to see the ways in which locals celebrate. We got to witness drumming, dancing, singing and praying in and around the homes of people who live in the slum. This festival is full of life and colour, and everyone seemed so happy to share their culture with us. Before I went on the tours with Reality, I had been worried that the people who we saw along the way would think negatively of us watching what they do, but the reality was much different. The tours help fund community projects and a school, and during the experience itself, everyone wants to see what we're up to, encourage us to dance with them.

The tour ended at Chowpatty beach, where we got to see people ending their celebrations and submerging their Ganesha idols in the sea. This is done by boat, further out to sea, so that it does not get in the way of people in the ocean. As someone who is very alert to environmental matters, and regularly scuba dives, this has really concerned me, but I try to see the positives. Although some of the idols are made of materials which could harm wildlife, eco friendly options are also available. On top of this, idols which do not dissolve in the water, like traditional stone, provide a kind of artificial reef, which could promote the marine life in these waters. While at the beach, we also tried some great street food, things I had never eaten before, but couldn't get enough of.

So overall, my Indian experience has been life changing. I have come away from this with a better understanding of the culture, religion, slum life, beautiful fashion, food, and everything else this country provides, as well as a clearer idea of my personal limitations and how I could improve a trip to India in the future! I fully intend to come back, with more people and an open mind.

This is written purely from my own experiences and observations, and I mean no offense to the Indian culture, which I think is fantastic, it is just something very different for me to experience, and has been difficult on this occassion.

#india #mumbai #bombay #australia #jaipur #dharavi #chowpatty #ganesha #culture