Taj in all its Glory

A couple friends and I headed off to Agra on Saturday to cross the Taj Mahal off our India bucket lists! It's an incredibly beautiful masterpiece, but the overall experience was overwhelming and chaotic. I tend to gravitate towards hidden gems or natural beauty, and so viewing the Taj along with thousands of other people diluted the experience a little. Either way, I'm glad I've seen one of the world wonders (or as many tourist shirts like to claim - man's greatest erection for a woman). The architecture is phenomenally symmetrical, but it's the detail in the marble that really stands out. These pictures are mostly for you Mom!

                                       

Namaste Nepal!

I ventured out to Nepal last week to reunite with an old friend. This was a welcome change from the near hell I had endured the previous couple weeks! Nepal is one of the most unbelievable countries I've ever visited - it is breathtaking, adventurous, laid back, relaxed and genuine. I hadn't realized how exhausting daily life in Delhi was till I left!

Ty and I and the Annapurna mountain range behind us.

Ty and I spent a night in Kathmandu relaxing and catching up, and then caught a flight over the Himalayan mountains to Pokhara the next morning. Pokhara is a tourist hotspot in Nepal since its situated closest to the Annapurna mountain range. We spent our days hiking, boating, checking out the World Peace Pagoda, exploring caves and waterfalls, biking around the town, browsing bookstores, and eating really well! The highlight of the trip was watching the sun hit the peaks of the Annapurna mountains - well worth waking up at 4 AM for.

A buddhist temple adorned by prayer flags.

We bussed back to Kathmandu, and I gotta say it was one of the smoothest and easiest bus rides I've been on in Asia so far! We spent our last couple days exploring the temples and stupas in the capital, and then unfortunately returned back to Delhi, chaos and reality.

A monkey at the monkey temple! 

This trip has made me realize how eager I am to travel and immerse myself in other parts of the world. I'm loving exploring India, but I'm keen on a change, and I'd love the opportunity to see what else is out there.

Life is great otherwise - keeping busy with work projects, Hindi classes, travel plans and dreaded grad school applications. I'm in the final 2 months of my internship, and am realizing just how little time I have left here! I'll be seeing all of you in person so soon!

Defeating Dengue

the girls in dharamsala!

I ushered in my 22nd birthday in the mountains of Dharamsala, surrounded by good weather, great food, and even better friends. We spent the weekend in Macleod Ganj, which is a small and friendly community, home to the Dalai Lama, serene monks, and tons of Tibetan refugees. I spent my birthday enjoying a "Canadian" breakfast on a terrace cafe, trekking up to a local waterfall, taking in the mountain views, treating myself to a Tibetan massage, and of course the general debaucheries that typically accompany young expats and birthdays.





I arrived back in Delhi refreshed and inspired to return to work - only India had other plans for me. I was struck with an intense fever the day after my trip, which a blood test confirmed was dengue. After seeing my roomate and a few friends suffer through it, I thought I had been so careful applying bug repellant, fully clothing myself, and avoiding going out at dusk!

prayer flags strung across the mountains in dharamsala

Dengue was a thousand times worse than I ever expected. My fever was running at 104, my bones felt like they were breaking, my eyes were in excruciating pain, and I was constantly light headed and dizzy. The time I didn't spend sleeping my anguish away was spent forcing myself to drink 6L of fluids daily. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy!

On top of my misery, I had the great misfortune of suffering through dengue during Diwali. Diwali is a WARZONE in this country - it goes on for at least a week, and celebrations entail the loudest fireworks you have ever heard in your entire life.

Anyway, I'm on the mend now. A day in the hospital connected to the IV, and old Indian medical traditions (goats milk and papaya leaf juice - can't knock those old school methods) helped boost my platelet count, and dragged me out of the misery that is dengue. If anything, dengue & 2 weeks of bed rest have restored my urgency and passion to see more and immerse myself in more of India. I'm looking forward to reuniting with an old friend in Nepal tomorrow, so I'll hit you all up with another post soon!