17/11/2011
The Taj Mahal. The most beautiful monument in the world. A building so exquisitely built, so symmetrical, that a 2-year old with a camera can take a photo with his toe and it will still come out looking like a picture postcard. There I was, looking at this most magnificent of buildings and the only thought in my mind was that now that I’ve seen it, I can get the hell out of this fucking country and never go back again in this lifetime or the next two. Even if I got reincarnated as a cow.
Yeah, I hated India.
Which kind of makes it special. Because I don’t think I’ve ever hated any place before. Sure, I’ve been to some places where I couldn’t wait to go home because it was so boring. India wasn’t boring. And to be fair, I did have some great experiences. Like sleeping in the desert under the stars on a camel safari in Jaisalmer. Or seeing even more camels at the Camel Fair in Pushkar. (You could say I have a soft spot for camels.)
Before my trip, one backpacker friend who went there recently said that he couldn’t stand the filth and wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. I remember smirking and thinking to myself that he was not a hardcore traveller like yours truly. Guess who’s smirking now. Actually, the filth I could stand. Even my diarrhea was manageable. And I could tolerate the incessant honking and the long, long bus rides. What I hated were the lying, scheming scammers at every single tourist spot that I went to. It got so bad that sometimes I rather stayed in my room rather than face the hassle of meeting another scam.
On the other hand, I did meet travellers who just lurrved India. And I have friends who have been there 10 years ago and still wants to go back. Even if one of them got admitted into hospital and had tubes stuck into her. Another bout of food poisoning will probably make her come to her senses.
My guidebook was right. You’ll either love it or loathe it. There are no so-so feelings when it comes to India. Maybe 10 years down the road, I’ll be the one saying that I want to go back.
Or maybe pigs will fly.
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