Homeward Bound

Someone taking a pic of me taking a pic of Alex

It has now been two and a half weeks since I came back from India and I figured one last post was needed to wrap everything up. I can't believe how quickly the time is passing and small things keep triggering memories of my time.

Dhanyawaad Delhi 

As soon as we walked in the door, Alex and I crashed. After a week of traveling, more hours in the back seat of a hot car than I care to count and meals from place that I would have thought twice about in my first few weeks--we were ready to turn on the air conditioning, drop our bags and get some rest.

Saturday morning we asked Suresh to take us for one last spin around Delhi. Though Gurgaon was so close, Alex had hardly spent time in the capital city and there were still some sights that I hadn't seen either! First we went to the Red Fort, a huge sandstone palace in Old Delhi. It was a huge comples with some really innovative architecture--but we were so hot that we dragged ourselves from shady pot to shady spot and drank as much water as we could. We briefly crossed the street via the subway pass and walked through the Chandi Chowk--Delhi's most crowded market.

Sweet ride at the Craft Museum.

After a quick stop at the India Gate for a hot photo op, we went to the Craft Museum to look at some ancient art and buy a few pieced directly from the artisans. We asked Suresh to swing us by the president's house but didnt realize the trouble we were about to cause. Alex was leaning out the window for a good photo and a police man flagged the car, signaling us to move over. Suresh got out and started bantering with the officer, he leaned in the car and asked us for ID...neither of us had our passports and I didnt even bring my driver's licsence. After clarification, he was asking for my Cvent ID--the best I could do was find him a business card. Alex and I were confused and worried--we were flying out in 8 hours! Finally, Suresh asked for 100, paid the man and we went on our way.

The pic that got us pulled over.

He later explained that tourists are supposed to take government approved taxis on their travels. Since Suresh is a private driver and the car is owned by the company, the officer thought he was breaking the law (which he wasn't) We were just shocked that all we needed to give was 100 (Ruppes that is! ~$2) and a smile.After checking "Bribing a Delhi Cop" off the list, we decided to make our way home where a firedly lizard greeted us in the much anticipated shower--it never ends!

We repacked our suitcases and ate our final Puni dinner before saying goodbye and making our way to the airport. Customs was a slow process, our last dose of India time. The customs officer thought Alex looked like a local--and with his suntan and scruffy beard--I agreed! We grabbed some coffee and lunged in the airport and then took our seats on the plane for a 14 hour ride. After another quick ride, we touched down in D.C. and, even at 7:30 AM, the smell of five guys wafted to the Tarmac. Alex had to redirect my attention and focus on getting our "forbidden" snacks through customs.


It was Father's day, and the family celebrated my coming home in conjunction with Dad's day with a big steak dinner. Yum! We exchanged presents and settled in a bit before absolutely crashing.


Hectic Home


It was the little things that started reminding about India, and reminded me of all the differneces and similarities:

• The sunlight through the office windows
• My extremely comfortable bed-- nevr appreciated it before!
• Driving Rudy with my music pumping!
• Being stuck in traffic, with no honking and people actually staying in their lanes
• Drinking a glass of water straight from the tap

I have been having so much fun sharing my stories with my friends and family--and jumping back to where things left off. I love getting updates through Spark, email and Facebook from everyone and am happy to be closer friends and better co-workers.

For now, looking for the next adventure--any ideas? Thanks for reading!

More pics found here!