Well, after six long months, this trip has finally drawn to a close.  There are things we’ll miss terribly, and others that we will gladly cast away until the traveling bug bites again.  To distinguish the two, we decided to compile a list of both:

To view our favorite pictures from Punjab, click here.

One of the most intimidating aspects of India for foreigners is the staggering amount of cultural, ethnic, and ideological diversity that exists here. But, once you have the opportunity to observe these myriad distinctions in practice, you discover that all of these categorizations operate like Venn diagrams, rather than wholly separate spheres. There are a lot of people here who occupy a relatively small space (sometimes, this is a lesson we learn the hard way!) and as a result, they can’t help but influence one another.

The Sikhs are a great example of this. Their belief system is monotheistic and they pray by kneeling before a holy object and pressing their foreheads to the earth–practices they surely picked up from their Muslim neighbors–but they also believe in the Hindu-Buddhist principles of karma and reincarnation. Sikhism is the brainchild of a guru named Nanak Dev, who lived in what is now the state of Punjab during the sixteenth century. Unsurprisingly, Punjab is home to the highest concentration of Sikhs in the country. It’s also one of the more developed and affluent states in India, owing its prosperity to a relatively low population density and some of the most arable land in the nation. Punjabi cuisine is wildly popular in other parts of the north, though unfortunately it is by far the richest and oiliest of Indian foods (and as you can imagine, there is some pretty stiff competition in those categories!)

Chandigarh's famous "hand" sculpture.

There are two main tourist destinations in Punjab. The first, its capital city of Chandigarh, was designed shortly after Indian independence by the French modernist architect Le Corbusier. Chandigarh is divided into sectors (distinguished by numbers), which are each one kilometer in length, and contain Soviet-style grey concrete buildings that all look the same. This fastidious planning allows the streets to be relatively traffic free, and vehicles follow an orderliness that is lacking elsewhere in Indian causeways. There are also “westernized” eateries and an abundance of parks, but of course this is still an Indian city: the parks are filled with horrific smells, and the restaurants only westernize their decor, not their menus. What you get, as a result, is the outward exterior of “modernity” that is utterly devoid of the charm you’d find in Delhi’s old city, or a place like Pushkar, but on closer inspection the core of that modernity is completely putrified.

Luckily, Punjab’s second tourist center has enough character to cover for the deficiencies of its capital. Amritsar serves as Sikhism’s Mecca, due to the presence of the Golden Temple (which is actually more of a complex). It’s a pretty impressive venture: the administrators offer to house and feed anyone who walks through the gates for free, regardless of whether or not you’re a believer. The grounds are ripe for people watching, and the buildings are exceptionally beautiful. This might be the only occasion in my life where I see an example of traditionalism and religious ideology outperforming modernism and progressive ideology!  So this is what people mean when they say that anything is possible in India…

As an added bonus, I picked up this awesome piece of (Sikh) religious iconography for my future bedside! These guys really know how to pluck at my heartstrings. Who knows, maybe I’ll dump skepticism one of these days and start wrapping my head in a turban. Anyone have Dr. Lonnie Smith’s contact info?

After circumnavigating the subcontinent in a little over four months, we accomplished the same feet again in just two weeks! It wasn’t smart, or pretty, but there were a few things that we missed on our first go-round that we wanted to be sure to catch before our departure–an event which, sadly, is rapidly approaching!

Darjeeling: After enduring the scorching heat of Bodh Gaya, we fled to the cool climes of Darjeeling in West Bengal (or, just a little bit north of where we began our Indian odyssey). When the sky is clear in Darjeeling, you can apparently get a great view of Kangchenjunga (the third largest mountain in the world!), but our timing was poor and we didn’t see much of anything beyond a thick wall of fog.

We did, however, spend our time visiting a Tibetan refugee camp, an amazing zoo with a whole gaggle of Red Pandas, and a plantation that grows the world famous eponymous tea leaves. Since–in a classic case of Indian absurdity–it was not possible to actually drink tea at the plantation, we decided to spoil ourselves and order high tea at the formerly British-run Elgin hotel. With Shania Twain blasting at full volume from the hotel sound system, and fried pakoras (which were juicy with oil) served in lieu of traditional teatime food, it was almost like going back in history to the bygone colonial days. No, it wasn’t like that at all.

People from Darjeeling tend to look much more like their Bhutanese and Burmese neighbors, rather than their darker complexioned countrymen. It was also interesting to note that almost none of them seem to consider themselves Bengali–there is a near unanimous campaign for separate statehood, under the proposed name of Gorkhaland. Perhaps as a way to get their foot in the door (or keep their foot from being pushed out the door), the West Bengal government was going hog wild with public works projects to improve the mountain passes.

Hyderabad: Hyderabad is one of India’s most fascinating and perplexing cities. It is simultaneously steeped in traditionalism and vigorously refashioning itself as a center of cutting-edge modernity. Though its inhabitants are almost entirely Muslim, the state for which it serves as a capital (Andhra Pradesh) is 90% Hindu.

When we stepped off the train, though, we were greeted with some inauspicious news. Apparently, Hindu nationalists had incited a riot in the “Old City”, which contains most of Hyderabad’s character and tourist attractions. Consequently, we didn’t get to see the city’s best offerings, but we did have a chance to recharge our batteries in a fancy hotel for a day and spent the rest of our time in the rambling ruins of Golconda Fort, and its surrounding Shahi Tombs.

Ellora: Our next stop was Aurangabad, which is the closest metropolitan area to the Ellora Caves. These thirty-odd cliff dwellings were formerly places of worship for (at different times, and on different sites at the caves) Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains.

Next up is the land of the Sikhs, and then the western edge of the Himalayas!

To view our favorite pictures from Bodh Gaya, click here.

Siddhartha Gautama–known to his followers as the Lord Buddha–was born in a small village named Lumbini that lies upon the Nepalese side of the modern Nepali-Indian border. Of the four main pilgrimage sites for Buddhists, this is the only one that isn’t in India–somewhat strange, considering that Buddhists are rarer than hamburgers in this country. Even so, the Buddha spent much of his life in India, so we decided it was important to visit Bodh Gaya, the religion’s most holy site.

During the seventh century BC, Siddhartha meditated beneath the shade of a bodhi tree and attained enlightenment, and in doing so he freed himself from the cycle of suffering and pain that characterizes existence for Buddhists. The original bodhi tree has long since perished, but a descendent now stands in its place at the base of an enormous temple in Bodh Gaya. Because it is such an important location, many nations with sizable Buddhist populations have established monasteries here. Thus, it’s the only place in the world where you can witness Bhutanese, Japanese, Thai, Tibetan, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Myanmar architecture all in the same place. For some unexplained reason, though, not everyone is in attendance. There are no Cambodian or Laotian temples to be found here, sadly.

When we hit the streets in Bodh Gaya, it quickly became apparent why Buddhism lost favor in India. Listen, this is not the first time we’ve seen burning piles of refuse and barking stray dogs and frenetic horn-honking and screaming children and Hindi film music blaring from shop windows all converging in the same very cramped and narrow avenues–in fact, this is something we see every day. It’s just that when you witness these things in the context of a religion that emphasizes quiet introspection and peace of mind, it’s not hard to come to the swift conclusion that its belief system is completely incompatible with this culture.

Look no further for proof of the statement above (yes, this is the bodhi tree).

Even when we stepped into the tranquil confines of the temples, and had a moment to bask in the glory of true and utter silence (quite literally the first time this has happened since we got here), that opportunity was repeatedly shattered by someone’s cell phone ring or loud conversation–and of course, the perpetrator was never one of the saffron-clad monks. India, this is not a slight on your national character! Your inability to remain sober for even a second is an often endearing trait, and we love you for it, but you get a big, huge F in Buddhist studies. Sorry!

Even if they aren’t cut out to be Buddhists, Hindus have incorporated Buddha into their pantheon of deities as the eighth, and most recent, avatar of Vishnu.  We noticed that most of the Indians visiting these temples were not coming as tourists, but as pilgrims.  While the East Asian monks circled silently around the bodhi tree, many South Asians (those not talking on their cell phones) were also praying and reciting Vedic hymns.

India is a land of contradictions, so it may have been somewhat disappointing if we had shown up to the Buddhist mecca and discovered a sleepy little town populated with quiet deferential monks.  It bears repeating that we generally find the gregarious spirit of this country incredibly endearing–although that attitude is really put to the test sometimes.  But hey, who said leaving Samara behind would be easy?

India is a resource-constrained environment–that much we knew before touching down upon the subcontinent. However, we never would have guessed that exact change would be one of the elements in short supply before we got here. But lo and behold, exchanging large bills for smaller ones can be an extremely difficult transaction to complete sometimes, and maintaining an adequate cache of cash is a task that requires constant diligence and forethought.

There are two major challenges to the change game. The first–gathering and constantly replenishing a steady supply of multiple denominations–is accomplished most successfully by never tendering exact change yourself. This bunch of bananas costs ten rupees? Pay for it with a fifty. If breakfast costs 120 rupees, you *must* pay for it with a 500 rupee note (500 rupees is worth $11, which makes it incredibly burdensome because nothing costs that much. Unfortunately, since they’re the only thing you can get from an ATM, getting rid of them is a perpetual struggle).

Why is this so important? Well, to begin with, the person with whom you are exchanging goods or services won’t always have change. They will almost always contest the failure to tender an exact amount, but there is a marked difference between “No change?” and “No change!” If the person is asking, it means that they either have it or can scrounge some up from their friends and neighbors–they just don’t want to cough anything up because it’s not easy to get. In those instances, you must lie your face off and shake your head, saying, “No, sorry!” They will grumble about it, but this is India: only the fittest survive.

However, you will frequently encounter situations where someone really doesn’t have change. Rickshaw drivers, for example, never under any circumstances have anything beyond a ten rupee note, which is why it’s so important to have a robust reserve of small bills to compensate them for their time. Since it is impossible to get around India without riding autorickshaws, they are in many ways the central catalyst for this entire strategy of change conservation.

A second and lesser component of the way you should conduct your finances involves the physical condition of the bills themselves. Some folks will arbitrarily deny acceptance of certain notes, based on their degradation or character. You may receive looks of disdain if you try to pass off anything with fringed edges or pieces of tape holding two ends together. This is another situation where it is very important to be a good liar, because trying to monitor the quality of your money is an impossible venture. This is India, after all, and it would be quixotic (to say the least) if we only accepted objects in pristine condition (money or otherwise). So if you encounter someone being unreasonable in this way, you can either deny the possession of any alternative bills, or say slyly, “I can give you this 500 rupee note instead. Do you have change?”