OFF THE TRACK (Ramgahr, Ranchi)

Going off the tourist track was a very significant experience which we definitely recommend to all travelers.

We were invited to a Catholic Mission in Ramgahr near Ranchi by Sister Stefania, our Polish friend, who has been living there for 20 years and speaks Hindi fluently. Thanks to Sister we visited local villages, schools and colony of lepers. Without any doubt we were the only tourists and the only white people in the village, maybe even in the whole state (Jharkhand).

The pupils of a school run by the sisters (St. Francis' Missionaries) welcomed us with flowers and a song. The ceremony had an official character, including speeches and photos. Being on stage in front of children, who treated us like stars, was another extremely funny and unique experience that we faced in this country.

Sister Stefania’s everyday work revolves around taking care of people suffering from leprosy. We had a chance to walk through their slums and talk to them thanks to Sister’s translations. There was no better way to see what the Third World is about. This visit gave us a new insight into the problems of the country and somehow complemented our trip.

London and N.Y.C meet slums (Kolkata)

Kolkata. Here we are right now. After 56 hours of exhausting but interesting train journey (we left Hampi about which you can read down the site, then stopped for a few hours in Hyderabad) we finally reached the city, which we had associated mainly with Mother Teresa, poverty, dirt, smog and endless crowds. Nevertheless, what we saw differed from what we had imagined. Kolkata turned out to be very diverse. What you get on the one hand is a modern, colorful, London- like center with British style architecture, a huge park that is often referred to as Kolkatan Central Park and stylish stores, while on the other, with its ruined, devastated mansions, bushy gardens and poorer streets the city seems to be taken out from Dickens’ novels.
What builds up to the character of Kolkata are the streets simply flooded by yellow ambassador cabs (Indian version of N.Y.C?) that never stop that’s why crossing a street is a bit of a challenge. The light is always red for a pedestrian who has to look out for cabs, cars, trams, rickshaws and buses that sometimes go without respecting any rules (why bother with left-side driving when you can drive on the right or just in the middle between two lanes?)

We spent a lot of time walking through rather off-track streets in a merchant district, trying to observe the people at work, either selling their goods or washings pots, peeling vegetables, delivering chai, welding, cutting wood, doing some metal work etc. To chill out we went to the Maidan Park, we sat on the grass as we had done a few months ago in London while planning the trip, and watched ponies, horses, boys playing cricket and a lot of kites.

Moreover, we paid a visit to Mother Teresa’s house where we spent a while reading about her life and work with the poor.

SEARCHING FOR OURSELVES (Hampi)

After we reached the most southern point of our trip (Trivandrum), we took a return way through the middle of India to see places like Peryar National Park (see post below) and Hampi, a charming town in Karnataka state.

We spend two relaxing days wandering through fascinating ruins of the 15-century city where landscapes where similar to those from cartoon "The Flinstones":). Hampi is a holy Hindu place full of pilgrims and travelers seeking for spiritual experiences. But we have a different way to spiritualism. 50 hours of journey to Calcutta, our next destination, this is how we are searching for ourselves in India:) Couse life is a journey hahaha.

CHE GUEVARA & ELEPHANTS (Trivandrum, Periyar, Munar)

There is a tiny connection between pioneers of socialism and rare species of wild animals; all are alive in Indian state of Kerala.

In 1957 Kerala was first in the world to freely elect a communist government. Till now socialistic ideology has the main power here. For travelers from Eastern Europe it is shocking to see a fresh paint on the wall showing hammer and sickle, a symbol of Soviet Russia. Kerala in very “red” and leftist. Not only Che Guevara or Marx is here a hero but also leaders of Russian revolution. Kerala is ruled by a Maoist party CPI, which has posters on the streets of Trivandrum (capital of the state) showing its members next to Lenin, Stalin and Trotzky.

After spending a few days on the coast of Kerala we made a trip inland to visit Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary and never ending tee plantations around Munnar village. Landscapes in the National Park where like taken from “The Jungle Book”. We made a hike in the forest and a boat trip on a lake inside the park to search for animals. There we saw elephants, langurs, wild dogs, antelopes, etc., but all from far away. Still we wanted to get closer so we took an elephant ride. Close contact with this huge and smart animal was a really nice experience.