The wierd thing about having expectations in India is that no matter what you expect, the reality of the situation is almost always, unexpected. We left Bodhgaya a few days ago feeling worn out and highly dissapointed. Our expectations for Calcutta were pretty low, we were dreading it actually. But, we needed our Visas and Calcutta was the most suitable place to get them done. Having no idea how long it would take, or in other words, if this would be the time for all the good luck and karma we have had over the last while to come to a crashing halt, we wanted to make sure we gave ourselves lots of cushion time for the process. So 8 days in Calcutta it was.
By the time the train finally docked at the station, it was dark outside and we were exhausted. Booking a pre-paid taxi was our favourite option. Luckily we had a room already booked for the evening, and after an hour of crawling through traffic, we made it. The hotel we booked slapped us in the face right away with it's cleanliness and charm, and the room we were givin was like a palace to us. It came with all the trimmings, Television with THREE english channels, a mini fridge, and hot water. Did we ever revel in it! The next morning we got up and at'em nice and early, found a great cafe that serves hot beans on toast, grabbed a taxi and we were off to the Thai consulate. Now as I said, we didn't know what to expect when we got there, so we did our best to have all our paper work and everything else we needed in order. Our only concern was the passport photos we had done in Bodhgaya where the guy litterally cut and pasted our faces on to a white background. We didn't think this was a good idea. When we arrived at the consulate the cab driver asked us if we needed a return fare. We told him that we didn't know how long we would be here, possibly two or three hours we thought. "Oh no, 15 mins" he laughed at us. So I said "Sure if you don't mind waiting". Fifteen minutes later we were back in the cab on our way home. The next morning, just as easily, we picked up our passports with the newly added Visas and we were now the ones laughing. If this is a sign of things to come...
Since then, we have been spending our days walking around the streets soaking in as much as this big metropolis has for us. Eating great food and drinking great coffee. There is a music store close by so I replenished my stock on a years supply of guitar picks and strings. The people of Calcutta are impressively friendly and helpful. The traffic has some sense of organisation, even though we still jeopordize our lives everytime we simply cross the street, but we are used to this by now.
As we have said many times, India is a land of extreme. Some of the most amazing and beautiful, and some of the most unimaginable experiences and sights to have touched our lives have been in the last three months. The other night we witnessed one of the most amazingly heart warming things you could imagine. I don't want to tarnesh the moment by putting unjust words to it. But it was something that put tears on our cheeks and some of lifes greatest lessons in our hearts. After being stipped down to the bone and having our egos beat bloody and torn, it was great to be givin the gift of feeling human again.
And this my beautiful friends and family, is India.
By the time the train finally docked at the station, it was dark outside and we were exhausted. Booking a pre-paid taxi was our favourite option. Luckily we had a room already booked for the evening, and after an hour of crawling through traffic, we made it. The hotel we booked slapped us in the face right away with it's cleanliness and charm, and the room we were givin was like a palace to us. It came with all the trimmings, Television with THREE english channels, a mini fridge, and hot water. Did we ever revel in it! The next morning we got up and at'em nice and early, found a great cafe that serves hot beans on toast, grabbed a taxi and we were off to the Thai consulate. Now as I said, we didn't know what to expect when we got there, so we did our best to have all our paper work and everything else we needed in order. Our only concern was the passport photos we had done in Bodhgaya where the guy litterally cut and pasted our faces on to a white background. We didn't think this was a good idea. When we arrived at the consulate the cab driver asked us if we needed a return fare. We told him that we didn't know how long we would be here, possibly two or three hours we thought. "Oh no, 15 mins" he laughed at us. So I said "Sure if you don't mind waiting". Fifteen minutes later we were back in the cab on our way home. The next morning, just as easily, we picked up our passports with the newly added Visas and we were now the ones laughing. If this is a sign of things to come...
Since then, we have been spending our days walking around the streets soaking in as much as this big metropolis has for us. Eating great food and drinking great coffee. There is a music store close by so I replenished my stock on a years supply of guitar picks and strings. The people of Calcutta are impressively friendly and helpful. The traffic has some sense of organisation, even though we still jeopordize our lives everytime we simply cross the street, but we are used to this by now.
As we have said many times, India is a land of extreme. Some of the most amazing and beautiful, and some of the most unimaginable experiences and sights to have touched our lives have been in the last three months. The other night we witnessed one of the most amazingly heart warming things you could imagine. I don't want to tarnesh the moment by putting unjust words to it. But it was something that put tears on our cheeks and some of lifes greatest lessons in our hearts. After being stipped down to the bone and having our egos beat bloody and torn, it was great to be givin the gift of feeling human again.
And this my beautiful friends and family, is India.
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