In the beginning of
this year an organization called Street School offered a trip for young adults
to go to India. At first I was a bit unsure, but slowly the idea grew on me (with
a little persuasion from my friend) and I decided to go. We set-off to India
from O.R. Tambo International Airport on what felt like a pretty normal day (it
still hadn’t hit me that I would be traveling without my mom for the first time
and would go to a completely new and very different country). We would be
traveling with a group of people who we would experience all the exciting new
things with and share how we were feeling about some of the things we would
experience. The aim of the trip was to teach Tibetan monks English and learn
about Tibetan culture and history, but we also did quiet a bit of sightseeing.
The first twenty-four
hours was filled with the majority of our sightseeing, we saw the golden temple,
we went on a few tours, and then the next morning we went on our way to
Dharamsala, which is where we would spend most of our time. Dharamsala (situated
on the foothills of the Himalayas) is a city in India where the Dalai Lama
lives and where the Tibetan people now live, as they no longer have their own land
because it is now ruled by the Chinese government. What I found so amazing
about this community of people is, despite all the hardships these people have
faced or are still facing; they still manage to be so positive. It is also so
incredible how a culture and religion can be so strong that it continues to
thrive even without the land it originated from.
When we arrived in
Dharamsala we did the lingor meditation walk along a path that was scattered
with colorful Tibetan prayer flags. We did a few of these types walks and other
types of meditation. I have tried to continue these meditations at home as they
really do help me when I am feeling down, over emotional or when I just want to
clear my head.
On the rest of the
days we would go to museums, learn about Tibetan culture or listen to people’s
stories about what they have gone through. I learnt many new things, but
something that surprised me the most, is that many of the people who were
living in Dharamsala had walked for months from Tibet to get there. We even met
the Karmapa (who is almost as important as the Dalai Lama) and he answered our simple
but very broad questions on life. He answered all of our questions with such
humility, which just made the whole experience even more incredible. We had our
conversation classes in the afternoons for an hour, where we would have
conversations with the students about anything, as long as it was in English.
This was my favorite part of the journey as the people were just so lovely and
so involved with the conversations. I felt I had built friendships with many of
the students and I am so happy I could help make their learning more
interesting.
In the evenings we
were allowed to go wandering around the roadside stalls, which sold beautiful
jewelry and other unique trinkets. This was the part of the day I always looked
forward to, as this was when the sun began to set and a soft breeze blew
through the streets. The hustle and bustle became a bit less (not that much less
though, it is still India) and the air would be filled with spices, as families
begin to prepare their dinners. When my friends and I were finished our
shopping, we would go to the hotel’s restaurant and order a slice of cake (this
was particularly difficult as there was a huge selection). We would then play
some cards whilst looking at the most exquisite view.
To end off our trip
we visited the Taj Mahal, which in my opinion was the cherry on top of an
amazing adventure. There is a quote that I came across recently that went something along the lines of, “travel - the only thing that you buy that makes
you richer” and I couldn’t agree more. This trip has changed they why I look at
situations and opened my eyes to so many things. I am so glad that in the
beginning of this year I ended up deciding to go on this trip. I would like to
leave you with this piece of advice: Go on adventures. Do things that in the
beginning may frighten you, because in the end it is definitely worth it.
Victoria xo
