*** these first few stories were all written as they were happening, but not posted til now! enjoy!
Day 1:
Soooo I made it to India! From Tokyo, to Bangkok where I got 3 hours of sleep (I was so nervous that the front desk would forget my wake up call that I woke up turned on my comp and phone and the TV and used times in other countries to figure out what time it was in Bangkok. it was 4am and I couldn't go back to sleep til they called at 6am... perfectly on time, how ironic!). Then went to Delhi where I had to go thru customs, get my bag and recheck it. It was 1245 at this time and the flight left at 1255 so I just dropped my bag at the guys desk and ran (again ironic since the flight was delayed!), thinking it was all taken care of since it already had Hyderabad stickers on it, but I guess this was a wrong move since it was a no show when I got to Hyderabad. I must admit I cried in the airport when I couldn’t find my bag and it was totally my fault, the airport guy said I didn’t do something in customs correctly, I couldn’t find a working telephone, and when a guy let me borrow his, the number I had didn’t work! Finally I got in touch with a guy from AIESEC headquarters, I took a 45-minute bus to the hotel where I was supposed to meet him. I was expecting a grand hotel with a bathroom that I could finally relieve myself in, but nope - the hotel was shut down, obviously. I borrowed another phone and called back and within 15 minutes there were 4 twenty year old AIESEC Hyderabad guys there to pick me up! I'm staying at Rohit's house (he is the guy I have been in contact with this whole time and the one who laughed hysterically when I asked what clothes I should bring). His parents are super nice, made me tea upon arriving, then the boys and I went out on the town for a little bit. Its super crazy here, reminds me a lot of cityish parts of Thailand, there are so many people and cars and motorbikes. But everyone is really nice. I've gotten a lot a lot a lot of stares so far - I was the only non-Indian on both of my India flights and I haven’t seen another white person yet. I especially get eyes pointed my way when we ride by others on Rohit's motorbike with my dreads waving in the air. Anyway, I just took a shower and put my dirty clothes back on and no toothbrush, but I hope to get my bag in the morning. Tomorrow ill go to the NGO apartment where I will be living with other interns. So excited! I was super overwhelmed and nervous and scared and tired and frustrated when I got here, but since the airport craziness, my mood has drastically improved and I’m so excited. I've already seen a bunch of little children with no shoes and ripped clothes begging for food and money, so I hope I can get working right away and help these kids learn something!
peace, love, & orphanages.
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