India is big time.  That’s when you know you’re a real traveler.  That’s where you earn your traveler’s badge of honour, right?

I never really saw it that way when I booked my ticket though.

I’d already traveled quite a bit, and having checked off Europe, parts of Asia and South America, I was looking for something different.

My friend and I decided on a whim to book a ticket for our next big trip.  A one month adventure that we were going to book that night.  We opened up a map of the world and started looking around.

We both decided we wanted to go somewhere exciting.  Somewhere that we probably wouldn’t go once we settled down, got married and had kids.  We wanted a true adventure; something off the beaten path.

Google earth was staring back at us as we huddled around the computer, and as if being pulled by a magnetic force, both of our eyes and pointer fingers seemed to land on India at the same time.  We looked at each other, “India???…….India!!!!”

India it was.  And the flights were booked there and then.

It wasn’t until after the travel plans were made that we both realised we were a bit naive about our upcoming Indian adventure.  As embarrassing as it is to admit, we actually googled, ‘What’s in India?’ AFTER the flights were booked.  Oh, the Taj Mahal, cool. 

We knew nothing of India.  That was obvious.

As ashamed of my ignorance as I now am; I’m telling you this to make the point that anyone can travel to any corner of the world.  You don’t need to be a travel expert.  What you do need is a passport, a credit card, and a sense of adventure.  That’s all.  India taught me this.

If two well manicured Canadian girls can go into India blindly and come out on the other side smiling; anyone can.

It wasn’t all roses in India.  There were nights spent being so sick we weren’t sure if we’d see the light of day.  Our clothes got baggy from losing so much weight.  We felt like we were fish out of water.  The culture shock was full-on and we were seriously out of our comfort zone a lot of the time.  We even made a short detour to Nepal, hoping for some relief on our gastric systems.  This was no girls weekend at the spa!  We wanted off the beaten path, and India delivered.

In one month we traveled across the entire country; from top to bottom.  During that time, every one of our 5 senses were shaken, stirred, put on a roller coaster and pushed to the limit.

Germaphobe?  Best be getting over that in a hurry.  Don’t like spicy food or curry?  You do now.  Like to feel safe while traveling in a car or bus?  Close your eyes.  Don’t like big crowds?  Learn to embrace it, because people are going to touch you and your blonde hair.  What’s that smell?  It could be anything really.  Saddened by the sight of poverty?  Have your kleenex ready.  Will the sound of honking horns ever end?  Yes, when you get out of Delhi.  Is that someone going to the bathroom?  Yup, that is definitely someone going to the bathroom!

The sights, smells, sounds and tastes of India are those I will never forget.  It was some of the highest, highs and lowest, lows I’ve ever experienced in my life.  India was like dating a bipolar boyfriend.

But if we hadn’t taken a chance on India we would have missed out.

We would have missed wearing saris and the lovely women who showed us how to put them on.  Missed the smiling faces of the kids in the school and orphanage where we volunteered.  Missed staying with the unbelievably kind family that taught us how to eat rice with our hands.  We would have missed the ashram and making a local friend in Delhi that showed us around the hectic city.  We would have missed being overwhelmed by the beauty of the Taj Mahal the instant we set eyes on it.  We would have missed a lot of unforgettable memories that we will now carry with us for a lifetime.

I guess I should say thank you to India; for teaching me that sometimes you need to leap into the unknown.  Go somewhere you’ve never been.  Try something you never thought you would, and take a step out of your comfort zone.  If you do, you just might find that looking back, even the most challenging times make for great stories.