We are leaving the Himalayas today and today is mainly a travel day. I really enjoyed our stay here. I appreciate that we stay away from the tourist area of the Himalayas and that we got to live amongst the locals. It was really great to see how they lived and to get the opportunity to go on the orchard trail and eat some of the fresh natural fruits and berries that people grow.
As we were driving down the mountain, it was interesting to see so many young girls in school uniforms heading to school. I know that in some cultures and villages in India, girls are not encouraged to go to school and an emphasis is placed on housework and other tasks such as childcare and cooking. I was pleasantly surprised to see that education seemed to be important to this particular tribe of people living in the Himalayas.
I’ve begun to notice some similarities between the United States and India in terms of driving. I noticed this on the way to the airport. In both countries, here is a reluctance if let other cars switch lanes in front of you or to let people into your lane. It was neat to see that no matter how different traffic seems and how different it is, there are still some similarities between the two.
The security at the airports is unsurprisingly different than that of the United States. There are separate lines for men and women for almost every component of security checks. When we arrive in Varanasi, we are staying at the Radisson hotel. So far, at every hotel that we’ve been to, we’ve been greeted with extreme hospitality and flavored fruit drinks. This is because in India, a guest is viewed as God so guests are treated with the upmost respect. I really appreciate this part of Indian culture because customer service in the United States, especially depending on the hotel, is not that great. It’s been very unique to experience such treatment that we learned about in class firsthand.
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