19/02/2010 Arriving in Warsaw

5:00 in the morning, and I get a call from Dave. Is this a nightmare? No. It is real. He asks me if I am at the airport... Nunja, not now... but I should be there very soon, the boarding already started. After some problems with my overweight-luggage, the boarding pass and the security control (yup.. if there is something wrong, there is all wrong) finally I reached the plane to Warsaw. And what a surprise: I was not the last one, after me, there was Zifan comming! So, 10% of the globals together in a plane facing our new home.

Warsaw was as excpected: coooooooooooold! With a lot of snow and a very friendly face Martyna, who helped me the whole day with all mayor and minor issues we can have. She negotiated with the people from the dorm, with my polish organizor, with the landlords of the flat and brought me just in time to my first global-event in Warsaw University.

So, for the next weeks, my new home is a small room, which I share with 2 lovely polish girls. The room is tiny, without any private space and the furniture reminds me to the dorm, where I was living in romania... somewhen long time ago. I could have had a much better room or flat, but: I am happy if it is basic. Thus, I am completely satisfied. In addition, I discover every day something new: our dorm has a own Sklep (shop), which provides really everything I need. Starting from the vegetables, the instant coffees (jaja, live is hard), the salten pickles, over toilet paper, Kinderriegel, until Prepaid cards for my simcard.

17/02/2010 Arabien Nights in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia

3 exiting weeks in India are over and I fligh back to good old Germany. On the way back, I have the pleasure to have a 9h stop in Bahrain. Of course I take a Visa and try to explore this new country. But, to be honest, there is not that much to see. So, I joined some people I get connected with during my flight from Mumbai. We went to Shisha smoking and dinner. After that we made a trip to Saudi Arabia, which is just 25km away. To be honest, I was really scared, because, I have no Visa, but they arranged it somehow, that I could pass the border.
As a result, I can just say: I love the arabian countries!

Ahhhh... The very interesting an courious thing: On the last day in Goa, a lovely friend put the whole time the AC on, so that I get sick. Back in Bombay, I could not speak any word for almost 3 days. The most people thought I am mute since birth and very absolut friendly to me. They asked me question and were very confortable interested, but they keep a respectful distance, which is not always normal for indian people.
The Saudis were funny: As soon as they recognized, that I cannot speak, they also stopped speaking and wrote everything on a small paper.... When I wrote back that I cannot speak, but hear them, there were very suprised, but still kept on silence writing on he paper :)

14/02/2010 Valentinesday with JCI Goa

Valentinesday is a very big thing in India. Thus, all people want to spent this special day at a special place and fly to Goa, a tropic paradise.
I done the same, but I was not meeting a secial one, but 100 very special Jaycees! Arriving at the airport, there was my driver bringing me in the back of goa to the Sports Mela of the different Chambers of JCI-Zone XI. It was a very special moment for me. Faraway from the "normal" Goa beach and Party tourism, next to the montains, with so many positive persons, doing sports in the spirit of our network.

For them, who do not know: JCI... means Junior Chapter International. It is a association of young entrepreneurs and active citiziens. JCI is a membership-based nonprofit organization of 200,000 young people ages 18 to 40 in 5,000 communities and more than 100 countries around the world. Each JCI Member shares the belief that in order to create lasting positive change, we must improve ourselves and the world around us. We seek targeted solutions to the unique problems in our communities to build a better world, creating global impact.

I am very active in this network and very grateful to have with it qualitative friends over all of the world.

13/02/2010 In the Slums of Bombay

Varanasi is raining and dirty when I leave to the airport. All the hard rain swemmed the shit from the streets and changed them to a big dirty brown lake.
Arriving in Bombay (Mumbai) I am very suprised. This city seems not to belong to India:
It is clean, sunny, cars stauy in theie lane and (almost) no horning. Impressive! I feel more like being in Buenos Aires or Barcelona. Now, I just want to jump in the shower and explore the bomb-nightlife!
Unfortunatly, my hotel is a nightmare. After the electricy cable was fallen in my shower while I was showering (it was just a lucky accident that I went for my shampoo) and the bathroom burned, I escaped from that place. What made me very angry, was, that the Hotel manager did not care at all. It was Manama Hotel, a budget business hotel, near CST. NOT RECOMMENDED!

My friends in Bombay were so smart, they organized me asap a new room, next to the india gate with a amazing vieuw on sunset over the yacht port.
Next day, I met my lovely new friend for a breakfast. We met in Delhi on one of the weddings and he was a perfect breakfast date. I enjoyed the hour and joined than a tourist tour.
The people from my Hotel seems to have a strange sense of humour: The toiur they booked was a Hindi-Tour for indian tourists. In addittion, thast I did not understand a word, the "Sightseeing" did not contained interesting buuildings and places, but an aquarium, a 4D-Movi, Computergames and houses of Bollywood celebraties. Ahhhhhha. After the 3rd stop, I recognized, this would be a waste of time for me. Thus, I took one of the guides as my personal guide. ordered a taxi and enjoyed the rest of the day by seeing "foreigners-sightseein".
Near to one of the places, my guide asked me, if I would be interested in meeting his family. He lives nearby. Always having all my Delhi-rules in mind, I was not sure, if I should follow a strange person in the slums... But as usual, my childry innosence and my blind trust made the decistion. And it was good so.
This nice guy took me deep in the slums, showed me his "house": a 8sqm room, without any furniture, where 5 people are sleeping. He introduced me to his mother in law, to his sister, to his wife, to the neigbours, to almost everyone we met in the small streets. (It was very impressing, maybe i will write more about this later)
Those peole have nearly nothing, but they offert me a coffee and sent the cildren with the small money to buy suger for me (a strange person, they never met before). I felt very welcomed and wanted to arrange myself by giving my guide a royal tip in the evening. But he refused. Not only the tip, also his salary. He meant, we got friends during the day, and now, he will not take any money from me. I was very impressed, as well as ashamed about my daily correctness in money things.

12/02/2010 Varanasi - Mystic and burning bodies

My train ride to Varanasi was long. Very long. 14h plus 5h delay. And with some hysteric Swiss people. So far, I always thjought all people from swizerland are diplomatic, polite and nice. But thios night, I learned, steriotypes does not fit for everyone. In mz waggon, there were a family from Swizerland. Father, mother and a 20 year old girl. They mother was hyusterical yelling and complaining about the quality of the train. As I mentioned before, I assessed the indian trains as very comfortable. Not so this lady. she made a huge theater, she needs air, she is sick, she cannot stay with other people in a partel, where is the roomservice and so on.firsat, it was entertaining, than only ennoying :) I mean, you get what you book. That is life.

Here my silent pray: Lord, give me the condition to change the things I can change. And give me the power to accept what I cannot change.

So, now more to Varanasi. Noone of my friends wanted me to go there. They tried a lot to keep me away from that place. Why? I do not know. Varanasi was the city where I saw the most tourists. It is a very old (5000 years) and holy city, with more than 10 mio temples. People, who die there went directly to Nirvana. A good thing in Hinduism. In the city is the Ganges river. At the bank of Ganges, the dead people are getting burned by their families, before they sent their rests to the river. Sounds a bit wierd, or shocking. But it is not. In the evening I rent a boat and drove on the river, to watch the spectactle and the ceremonies. I really felt the mysthic and the peace of this procession. No smell, no dead blowed up babybodies in the river, or anything I heard before. Just peace and meditative prays.
I let 2 flower candles to the water, for my family and the people I love. And was covered by a warm freedom and happyness.

The next day I stand up at 5:00 to go back to the Ganges, take the boat again and see the people washing theirselfes in the river, by sunrise. They do this to get the sins away and clean their soules. They were happy and joking with me, how cold the water is.
After that, I went with Christopher to the main temples. Christopher is the owner of my loooooooooow budget hostel (single room for 1.69EUR) and the only christian indian I met so far. Even being indian, he knows a lot about Hindusim, the temple and all the stories. I was really impressed and enjoyed the tour. Most suprising was, that if the people give milk to the god Shiva, they do not give the milk on a statur of him. No, they put the milk on a big black obelisk, which is sourrounded by a white non regular thing. The black stone is Shivas penis, who is sticking in a white vagina. Ahaaa. I am wondering how they explain this to their kids.

For all my doubting friends: the 1 EUR something room was small and simple furnitured by a lamp, bed and a chair. But it was clean and the people so helpful! they arranged all my other trips and welcomed me as a family member.

The city itself is very very poor. The streets are crowed and covered by shit from the animals. A good experience after all the nice live in Delhi.

11/02/2010 Taj Mahal

Very early (5:00) I stand up to go by bus to Agra. I am very glad that this experinece took only 6 hours (5 were planned). The "very nice and confortable" bus was everything else but nice or confortable. It was old, the windows did not closed and it was soooo cold, but noone conserns. After 3 long freezing hours they allowed me to get to the luggage to take my wintercoat out.
Than, the busdriver caused in the first 10 minutes of the drive an accident and escaped from the city.
At 12:00 I arrived Agra, searched a ritchadriver, stored my luggage and went to Taj Mahal. In front of the Taj Mahal was a sooo long queue! I was "active waiting" and it took me still almost 2 hours!. Inside, I took a nice guide, who made tons of pictures from me.

This day there was something speacial. A lot of people come to me, for picturing me, gave me their babies and smal children, asked me for a group picture and so on. It was really hard for me, to get my on tour and pictures done, there was always someone there demanding a bit of my person.
After Taj Mahal I visited the Agra Fort. I highly recomment to visit it! I liked it more than the taj. It was a wounderful place, full of freedom. I enjoyed it very much. Sitting there, watching the monkeys and pirots, enjoying the architecture and the smell of fresh gras.
Because the bus ride was really demanding, I took a wounderful oily massage in the eving. Beeing happy and smelling like old oil smells, I saw next door a pizza hut... This was my sign, to have today 1 day break of indian food :D

09/02/2010 Jaipur the pink city

OMG... I was so nervous when I arrived Jaipur. My friends were (very very very negative) exhousted, that I travel there alone. I got a book of rules: do not speak with anyone, always stay with other family travelers, do not go to crowded places, do not go to empty places, do not get any food or drinks... And so on. It was already at a point, whre my friend told me, he will call my mom, telling her, what stupid ideas I have and that he do not take any responsibility for me any longer. I was so feary than. I traveled so many places in my life, most times without any problems. But there I was really nervous, even Jaipur is a normal tourist city.

Fortunatly, I meet in the first 10 minutes 2 nice men (... do not speak with men) from theran. There also were just arrived and we booked 2 tours together (do not go with foreigners), which included a dinner and lunch (do not take any food outside). As usual I done the absolute opposite from that I was told to do, and I have had a great time! (I did not break the rules to blame someone, I just did what I felt... and this cannot be sooo wrong*)
So, we fantastic 3 visit Jaipur 1 night and 1 day. We have had a lot of fun, taking tons of pictures, speaking about Iran and its future and how Jaipur looks NOT like India.

*To be fair, I have to say, as soon as I left Delhi, I got some problems with my stomage.

08/02/2010 1st Indian Railway experience

Luckely, I catch my 9:20 train from Delhi to Jaipur today. Even if 9:20 seems to be a human time, it was soooo hard for me to get up, after all my diary was changed the last week... (Sleeping untill 11:00, than some easygoing sightseeing, shopping or function, than party until 4:00). The train was better than expected. I have had class 3A: An confortable sleeping wagon, always 6 people get an open department together. Better as the russian trains, because it was new and there was no wind freezing you.

Already when the train left the railway station, I got the other India presented. People living next to the railway, some in tents, some just on the ground. Everything is absolut dirty, animals next to babies, dogs eating other dead dogs next to your fireplace.
Of course I saw some bargaining children and skinny women on the street. And everytime, this was a big challange for me, not to donate, not to pay attention. But there, there were so many together, and I could really see their poor "homes". A huge difference to all the luxure I enjoyed the last days. India is crucial digital. 1 or 0. On or off.

07/02/2010 Weddings are over

Uff. All 2x5 Wedding functions are over now. I do not want to say, I am happy about that. It is a wounderful life, every day again dressing up and going to an breathtaking, unforgettable party. Meeting people, chatting and adoring the bride. But I can also understand, that some people are a bit tired, if every day of your life is like that.

The last week was really crazy. After I explored Delhi the first days, my friend was finally arriving. We spent wounderfull evening together, by dining or visiting the different functions: Coctail of the bride, Coctail of the grom, Coctail of the other couple (yes... 1 big wedding is not enopugh, I visit 2 in the same time :) ), the Ladies Lunch, the Mandi-Treatment, where the hands and feet are painted with henna, the Family Dinner and so on. Unfortunatly, he left yesterday... But we spent a wounderful evening together. I was getting his 4th proposal, which I confirmed... Rest stays private. ;)

Today, I was in the morning on an amazing sinth ceremony, from sinemen and her husband. To be honest, from all parties and functions, I loved theirs the most. I always feelt so welcome and integrated. I hope I can give all this warm feelings some day back to them.

In the eveing, there was than an other wedding (from the 2nd couple)... AWESOME. I guess I have never seen something comparable in my life. All the functions were so bride, I could not have imagine something like this before. And this last wedding ceremony was the cream. Round about 2000 people, all very elegant in indian dresses were together to overhand the bride to the grom. The bride was traditional crying a lot (what i could not underwstand... of course) hugs all her 300 best female friends, Dad and Mum and left with firework and vientage car to her new home.

Amazing. Absolut Amazing.

03/02/2010 Gluing my own money & having the first hot shower in India

Hei, not that you get it wrong: I showered every day.... But today, it was the first really hot shower.... soooooooooo good! I found the waterheater 2 days ago, but I did not suggest, it take soooo much time until the water gets hot. So, yesterday evening, I switch it on, for the whole night and finaly enjoyed my "summerrain" this morning. Than a big coffee latte and toast and eggs as breakfast. Is there anything better? ... Of course, there is ;-)
Just remembering the nice evening. But lets start from the beginning: Yesterdays day was a very hard day: all my things broke: my new sandals (which are crutial for the dress I am supposed to wear for todays function), my jeans (the onlyone I have with me), my new dress, (which was my plan B for todays evening) and also my money... A really big note, and no ones wanted to change or have it... even not the bank.. So, I took some scotchtape and fixed it... we will see if this works :D
Than, I get also a bad experience with a "guide" who was not one, and a very long and expansive ride throught half delhi for getting my swahl diet, but they put it in the wrong color, and made spoiled my new evening dress with permanent color dotts. In the evening I have had a dinner appointment and the guy let me wait for 95(!!!!!) minuts. (For them,, who forgot: I am German! Always 5 minutes before time and crutial in time). So you can imagine, my mood was really down.... But than... This nice guy took me out to a nice restaurant, where we met some friends and after that to a very very nice place... So, after all, the day ended very nice, and this is the important thing... a happy ending. :-)

02/02/2010 Being in Delhi

I arrived!
After a very long but very comfortable flight (1st class gulf air... I got upgraded on both flights! WOW... and big thanks to the lovely crew) I arrived in India! (this was already some days ago, but I guess everyone understands, that I am sooooo busy, that I was not able to go online earlier).

India is fantastic, very different but still similar. I have very nice hosts, which are so welcomming me. On the first day I bought my indian suit for the wedding... It looks amazing, and I am very unpatiened to wear it. Every day I make a try in front of the mirrow, waiting for sunday, the final wedding party to wear it outside.
During the morning, i always do my admistrative things like shopping, tailor, beautysaloon or internet, later in the afternoon, I do some sightseeing and in the evening, there are the wounderful treatments for the wedding.

Yesterday, there was a small informal dinner for the close family.... I have never seen a close family of 100 people before. It took place in the house of the bridges aunt. The house was very shining decorated, there were lights and lampions in the trees , and a big indian buffet in the garden. People were dancing, singing and chatting and all the girls worn very shining and colorfull sarees or suits with heavy jewels. Faszinating... like a far away fairytale. I love it!

The days before, I collected so many impressions, I cannot tell... It would be to much: I was going with a ritcha to the saree market, silver market, meat market, spice market, fruitmarket, flowermarket, sandalsmarket... and so on.

I saw how the people colored my scarf in exactly the same color as my dress, how there was the bargaining and the fitting, was in very smal and hot shops...everything so amazing... I swear, I will deliver the pictures... later :D