Namaskar India

Well, that's it. I'm now back in Delhi. The bike has been sold, and I've now become what I most despise- a backpacker. God damn it. It seems strange to be at the end of the road of the Indian leg of my journey, but after 13,000 odd km it had to end sometime! I'm slightly amazed that I got round with only one breakdown (knackered ignition coil) one crash (slipped on some train tracks in Darjeeling= grazed knee/bruised ego) and no punctures. Considering the state of Indian roads that must be some sort of record!
After 6 months in the country it's still pretty hard to put into words what I feel about India. I'll start with the obvious , India is a land of contrasts. There is no middle ground. Everything is black or white, you love it or you hate it. You can have the most beautiful building, be it Hindu, Mughal or British and next door there will be the most hideous slum or department store. You can have a vast modern metropolis, with international banks and shops, then 1 hour into the country you can see farmers ploughing the fields with bullocks and planting crops by hand. The contrast between the rich and the poor in this country is vast, and unfortunately like everywhere else in the world the gap is only going to get bigger. The new middle class are going to continue buying mobile phones and designer jeans, and the poor are going to continue to beg for a few rupees. Its horrible to say, but the sight of a kid covered in filth, picking through the rubbish becomes normal.
India undoubtedly has some major problems. A population of 1.2 billion and growing is always going to create problems. To its credit, unlike China, India has a vibrant and functioning democracy. The country is always colourful, load, brash, chaotic. Every day is an adventure, and never fails to produce something memorable. A mathematician or philosopher studying chaos theory need only get on a plane to India to see it in action. To the untrained eye, the country, the transport, the economy, the infrastructure- all seem to be governed by chaos. Underlying all this is a kind of equilibrium, if you wait long enough everything works out in the end. Water comes out the taps, the curry you ordered eventually arrives, the train gets to its destination. All you have to have in India is a few Rupees and lots of PATIENCE.
India is governed by religion and cricket. Although I can understand the latter, I still, happily remain a cynic on the former. After six months visiting churches, temples and mosques, I still remain convinced that religion is a pile of crap. This was confirmed to me a couple of days ago when a brahmin said a prayer for me. I then got on my bike and broke the kickstart. So much for good karma. The only place I felt a tinge of spirituality was at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. A complete oasis of calm and beauty in the heart of a busy Punjab city, where the Sikh pilgrims were incredibly open, friendly and welcoming. Different to alot of mosques and Hindu temples, where you can be made to feel like a bit of an outsider. Forget the Taj Mahal, anyone visiting India for the first time should head straight for the Golden Temple.
I've absolutely loved my time in India. Its an incredible country that never fails to amaze you with it's wonderful people, geography and history! Well that's it, I've run out of adjectives to describe India. All I can say is, if you've never been to India"GO". You won't be disappointed:)
Lastly, I've been carrying a sketch book round India, so here's a 'best of' selection.



Taj Mahal, Agra, November 2007.



Rickshaw driver waiting for a fare. Pondicherry. February 2008.


My bike. Varkala, Kerala. March 2008.


Inside the Basilica of Bom Jesus, Old Goa. March 2008.


Lake Pichola, Udaipur, Rajasthan. April 2008.