Chapter Five: Delhi

Delhi in a nutshell was like entering a loud, crowded, colorful sauna where we were instantly celebrities and everywhere we went people wanted to have their photo taken with us and simultaneously charge us way too much for every service imaginable.  We met up with our old friend Justin (He and Daniel grew up in Iowa together) in Delhi and the adventure began.  Our 'hotel' was located in the Bhargag district, which was miles from any other tourists and gave us a very quick and intense introduction to real big city Indian culture.  Thousands of narrow streets lined with clothes lines, fruit stands, cows, and hundreds of little shops all as large as an American's walk-in closet (Indians have an amazing ability of utilizing very little space).  We hired a wonderful driver, "Sam", to take us around Delhi and show us some of the famous sights as well as the hidden markets and restaurants unknown to foreigners.  We spent three days exploring hot, crowded, exciting Delhi and then made our way down to Agra......

Delhi at sunrise

People slept on their roof in the Bhargag district

Our first Indian bed

Met up with our old friend Justin from Iowa

The Red Fort

The Red Fort

Old friends

Museum of war

Two artists restoring an old temple at the Red Fort.

I was hesitant to ask people if I could take their picture, but so many people asked to have a picture taken with me, so I would turn around and ask them if I could photograph them in return.  I quickly learned that Indians do not smile in their photographs.

Largest Mosque in India

Our first Indian meal: Yellow Dahl, butter naan and a chili pepper

Indian Sun rising

Hanging out on the roof.

Our first hotel

The amazing Lotus temple.  This is a Bahai temple where all religions can come and worship in silence in this grant building.

The India gate.

Ha!

Delhi streets at dusk

Chapter Four: Earning our wings

Portland to Minneapolis - 3 hours
Minneapolis to London - 8 hours
London to Dubai - 7 hours
Dubai to Delhi - 3 hour
Not including layovers, 21 hours in the air!
We left our dear Portland on May 1st and finally made it to Delhi (with a little pit stop in London) on May 4th.

Glaciers

European Countryside

Trying to adjust to the constantly changing time zones

Dubai

New Delhi Airport

We stayed the night in London in between flights.  I watched the sun rise over London and understood the TRUE meaning of English Breakfast tea.

flying over Greenland

Miles above everything

Emerites Air was an enchanting airline.It had stars on the ceiling to make us all feel like we were sleeping under the stars.

Chapter Three (Part two): Last days in the USA

Our last few weeks here in the states have been full of, packing, traveling around to different shows that Daniel has had with a few of his bands, and spending some great time with friends and family.

For my birthday present Ben threw me an Indian dinner party

Classic Skip-Bo tournament with Gma!

Spending quality time with my very favorite Alex

Daniel has been pretty much living with his guitar in his hands for the past few weeks.

RRI friends saying their last goodbyes.

Hanging out with one of our favorite Portlanders

Saying goodbyes to the family

Celebrating 2 years old with the darling Dylan James Harris

The Merrell Brother Duo had several gigs over the past few weeks, keeping them busy and keeping us all entertained.

Chapter Three (part one): Packing for an Adventure

Ten things you do not want to leave for India without!

1) Really comfortable backpacks:  Since we will be pretty much living with these bags on our backs for a few months, it was important to find comfortable backpacks. 

2) Passports and visas: One of my biggest worries whenever I travel is loosing my passport.  It can be a whole lot of hassel if you cannot prove where you come from or who you are in a foreign country!

3) Water:  In India our bodies cannot handle the water, and yet much of our trip will be in 100 degree weather, so we will need a lot of it.  We have a water purification system, iodine tablets, electrolytes, and several water bottles.

4) Toilet Paper: India does not really use toilet paper in most of their public restrooms and therefore bringing your own TP is vital.

5) Hand Sanitizer: Because our weak American bodies cannot handle many of the bacterias and germs in India, and washing your hands with their water does not help, Hand Sanitizer is a literally a life saver.

6) Luggage Locks:  There are many wandering hands on the busy streets and busy trains of India and it is pretty much a guarantee that you will find something missing unless you lock up your bags as you travel.

7) Probiotics: The biggest issue people usually have when traveling to India is getting sick.  This is why many of the things on this list have to do with avoiding that.  One important thing to do to get our weak American bodies ready for India has been taking probiotics and continue taking them while we are there, to help our digestive systems to be resilient and strong.

8) Head coverings:  We will be in many Sikh temples that require our heads to be covered.  It is also a good idea to be modest, respectful and to stand out as little as you can (Especially in the North) to avoid attention and trouble.  We therefore have a good collection of hats and scarves to do the trick!

9) All in one soap:  We found some awesome soap at REI that can be used to wash bodies, hair, dishes AND clothes.  This is a nice way to consolidate and avoid tons of tubes of soaps and cleaners.

10) Last but NOT least....Chocolate:  It can be very stressful to be traveling and be in so many different environments.  Chocolate always calms me down and makes me feel in love with wherever I am.

Chapter Two: Ashland

We made our way down to Dear Sweet Ashland shorty after our move from Portland.  Here we spend a few weeks relaxing in the Southern Oregon sun and spending some much needed bonding time with family and friends.  While there, My bosom friend Shira threw me a wonderful birthday party to celebrate my 27 years of life.  After 27 years of having an April Fool's birthday, you would think I would be expecting to be fooled every year, but alas I am surprised every time.  This year my dear friend Dana from Eugene told me she was not able to make it to my party due to family responsibilities at home.  I was sad not to have her there, but I understood.  AND THEN, right before we cut the cake, there walks in Dana all decked out in Alice and Wonderland party clothes (mistakenly thinking it was a costume party).  It was quite a surprise and quite a site to see.  A perfect April Fool's Birthday.

One of the big parts of this adventure we are on is to deepen and nurture relationships with dear friends and family that have gotten a bit neglected over the years.  This Trip to Ashland was just that.  It was wonderful have a two solid weeks to spend good quality time with my parents and my darling brother Josh, Shira and her darling little family, and revisit the haunts of my old hometown.

Birthday event of the year!

It's not every day a girl turns 27...

My two Besties

                                                                 

Easter Eggs before and after

                                                                   

Noemi

bosom friends

Josh

                                                                            Sophia