The GSE team is Homeward Bound

We have been on this exchange during Rotary’s month of “World Understanding” and it could not have happened at a more appropriate time. We experienced first hand the truth that all people and countries are the same in many respects. We all love our families; we all want to share the best sights, sounds, smells, tastes, of our country with visitors. We have been at the receiving end of the outpouring of friendship and love. Everyone was generous with their heart and kind in word and deed.

It is hard to believe that five weeks are now over. We have met many wonderful people that we hope to keep in contact with and have an opportunity to reciprocate with kindness when they come and visit in the future.

Being a member of this GSE program has been an experience that no one could replicate when travelling alone. It was the opportunity to live with families and experience their way of life that truly allowed us all to experience India as no tourist would ever have been able. We learned about the family’s religion, work practices, rituals, marriage arrangements, favorite sports, and hopes and dreams for their children and grandchildren.

The trip is coming to an end and in a few hours we will be homeward bound on our flight back to home and family. While this will bring to a close an amazing trip our experiences and new friendships will be carried on with us indefinitely. A big thank you to the Rotary Foundation and local Rotary clubs for this incredible opportunity and to all our families, friends and employers for your support. Many thanks to all those in India that coordinated the daily and weekly activities and those that were our hosts during the home stays. Words can not express the gratitude that we feel. A world of thanks to everyone!

Saying Goodbye

How lucky we are to have something that makes saying good-bye so hard.

None of us could have ever imagined the extent to which India and its people would touch us. How can we possibly sum up an experience that has had such a profound effect on each one of our lives? And how can we even begin to thank all the people who have made these last 5 weeks one of the most enriching, unforgettable and unique travel experiences ever? The love we have been shown, the learning we have done, the people we have met, the things we have seen…how can we put all this into words?

As she was showing us around Mumbai the other day, one of our hosts said: “If everyone in the world had an opportunity to do a GSE exchange, then there would be no war.” We couldn’t agree more. What better way to reach deep understanding of culture, religions, and values than through the eyes and perspectives of the people of a country while living life alongside them, even if just for a brief period of time. The speed and depth of the connections that have developed during our time here is a beautiful reminder that at the very heart of it all, people are people no matter where you go. We may be leaving India but we are returning home carrying home in our hearts the kindness we have been shown as well as precious memories that will forever endure.

"I cannot say good-bye to those whom I have grown to love, for the memories we have made will last a lifetime and never know a good-bye." Anonymous

Taj Mahal

No matter how many times we have seen it in pictures, nothing compares to seeing the world’s ultimate tribute to love in person. Fifth in line at the gate at 6:30 a.m. yesterday, we entered a large courtyard with other “early birds” as the sun rose. Through the doorway of a red sandstone gateway we had our first glimpse of the Taj Mahal – initially a grey blue color in the early morning light, it was enough to give me goose bumps. Within minutes as we admired the incredible view, the sun rose higher and the Taj took on a warm glow as breathtaking shadows cast their way across the marble walkways, shining like ice. Although a few hundred others shared the moment with us, there was a serenity to the place that cannot be described…the Yamuna River on the North side was a mystical site with fog slowly lifting off its surface as a lone fisherman peacefully drifted by; even the birds who soared over the central dome in perfect patterns added to the poetry. By 9 a.m. we were leaving, marveling at the beauty we had just witnessed as thousands more tourists started appearing – as far as we were concerned though, we had caught the best part of the day!

Taj Mahal

A Saturday in Mumbai (Bombay)

O What a Party

Holi-Mania! The Festival of Colors

We’ve spent the last month in awe of the brilliant colors of India and as fate would have it, our departure date happens to fall on the occasion of one of the most vibrant Hindu festivals of the year – Holi. I can’t think of a more fitting celebration to mark the end of our GSE experience! Based on the Hindu calendar, this year Holi falls on March 1st and was originally an agricultural festival celebrating the arrival of spring and commemorating various events in Hindu mythology. Given that we will be en route to Delhi and Agra early tomorrow morning, our hosts arranged a special event for us today to ensure that we didn’t miss out. What a sight it was! Greeted with fistfuls of colored powder rubbed across our face and clothes, it wasn’t long before we were right in middle of all the crazy action, dumping bucketfuls of colored water over one another and shooting water guns under the cool spray of a huge fountain in the early morning sunlight. Our clothes drenched and our skin dyed various shades of pink, green, purple and yellow, there was nothing left for us to do but laugh uncontrollably and shout over blasting Hindi music: “Only in India!!!”.

Holi Colours

Small Town* India

As we near the end of our GSE journey, I find myself prematurely nostalgic for the little eccentricities that make India so endearing. It was in this spirit that I set off through the streets of Old Panvel with Lianne, determined to experience and capture life in small town* India.

Few tourists explore the streets of Old Panvel on their own, or so the perplexed gazes we received suggested; it's their loss.

Old Panvel

Cow crossing the street in Old Panvel

Trying on Kurtas in Old Panvel

*Small Town: In India, a small town like Panvel has about 400,000 people.

Elephanta Island

Today we had the opportunity to visit Elephanta Island which is located in the Mumbai harbour. The island is named in honour of carved stone elephants found inside its unique cave temple, which was excavated in the eighth century from solid rock. It was an amazing visit enjoyed by all the team where we were transported back in time through the stone temple complex. The architecture was beautiful and even though centuries old still retained much of its original details. There were massive columns and equally large stone carvings of Lord Shiva that even though they were partially obscured by the throngs of tourists it was still a pleasure to see.

To get to the island we took an old but seaworthy open-deck ferry from the port of Uran. The crossing was just over 30 minutes and provided our first glimpse of the Mumbai skyline in the distance. One of the highlights was travelling to the boat launch from the village as it was a feast of the senses with a host of colours and textures from the old and colourful boats and nets, to the smells of the daily catch and saltwater bay.

Magical Matheran

Surrounding the areas around Pune and on the way to Bombay are beautiful hills and mountain valleys that stretch as far as the eye can see. A dusty, steep and winding car ride took us high up into the mountains today to reach the base of a hill station where tourists from all over India come to escape the noise, traffic and crowds of the city. Matheran is a small village accessible only by foot, horse or if you’re there on time, a small “toy” train that slowly crawls up the mountain in a long and laborious journey to the heart of the village. A few of us chose to make the journey by foot while Tom and Jessica enjoyed the trip by horse. Dusty and rocky terrain led us through leafy forests and we had to hold our bags and cameras tight to avoid the mischievous grasps of wild monkeys who eyed us curiously as we passed. A few hundred people still make their home here and are referred to as tribal people. Many work in the modest hotels and guests houses in town, while others sit on the floors of small shops making leather sandals and shoes selling for the equivalent of 4 Canadian dollars. The peaceful crackling of fires outside homes and the clanging of pots as women prepare meals is interrupted only by the grunting unison of up to 6 or 7 men who heave huge wooden carts of food, drink and construction materials up into the village. As we walked, guests of the village accommodations whisked by, pulled along in handcarts by one or two men while we kept pace with those men who were left to carry their suitcases balanced squarely atop their heads – often 4 bags high!

Feasting our way through India

India is full of surprises - not the least of which is its seemingly endless array of cuisine and regional dishes. It didn’t take us long to learn that most of the Indian cuisine we are familiar with in Canada represents only a tiny fraction of the culinary delights available here and comes mainly from the Punjab region. The sheer variety of food and their difficult-to-pronounce (and even harder to spell) names makes them hard to do justice to in writing. Suffice to say that we are not going hungry – in fact, on the contrary, we are still trying to figure out how best to politely refuse 2nd, 3rd and 4th helpings of food at each meal. It is a great cause for concern if we are ever seen at any event or gathering without a plateful of food – unfortunately the explanations “I’m full” or “I just ate” don’t go over as excuses … the best we can do is to slooowwwly savor each bite of food in order to avoid attracting attention. As long as our plates are full, then everyone is happy. Our hosts make sure that we have sampled every dish available until buttons and belts need to be loosened for the rest of the evening. But you won’t hear any of us complaining as there are so many tastes to discover, each one more interesting than the last.
Given Maharashtra’s proximity to Gujarat and Pune’s location approximately midway from the North and South of the country, we are seeing a mix of dishes from the different regions (or as one host put it, “the best of India”). A typical Gujarati meal is “thali” (pictured below) with a huge metal plate and small bowls filled with savory dhals, sauces and stews for dipping chapattis and rotis, chutneys and pickled hot peppers – all refilled before you have time to finish the last bite of your first helping. And the best part of it all is that we get to eat everything with our hands!
Mixed in with all the spicy and savory dishes are the sweets served alongside. And somehow the word “sweet” does not adequately describe the taste. Noodles that melt in your mouth swimming in a liquid of sugar, milk and coconut, balls of fried dough dripping in sticky sauces …. let’s put it this way – I’ve gone from taking coffee with less than a teaspoon of sugar back home, to taste buds that now crave a minimum of three heaping tablespoons of sugar every morning. So if there is any truth to the saying “you are what you eat” then you won’t find 4 sweeter Canadians!

Yogourt made from buffalo milk in earthen pots

Gujarati ThaliA staple in every Indian kitchen - the essential spices

Go Team Canada!

Tom the Horse and Tom "Goodman"

Tom the Turkey