8 Things India Taught Me About Life
I recently returned from a 4-month sabbatical in India. Let's be clear about one thing - it was not a holiday. I most certainly cannot afford an occasional trip to India and stay there for the following 4 months just for the sake of it. However, I found a way to do it nonetheless. I applied for an internship abroad, I got the job, and I got paid to stay there and explore everything my little heart ever wished to explore. Now that I'm back home, everyone is asking me how was it? How did I like it? How do I find this experience? Long story short, I always tend to say it was a unique experience and that it was worth my time. Because it was, along with ups and downs, with good moments and bad moments... All in all, it was the most wonderful experience I've ever had in my entire life. But above all, it was the biggest lesson I have ever received. Are you curious enough to find about this experience that has changed my life in just 4 months? Then keep on reading....
Because there can be 10 things, but also 100000 that contributed to my experience, I chose to mention only the few that were crucial factors in changing my way of thinking. Here are the 8 things that India taught me about life and about myself:
1. Be true to yourself. There is one particular thing that Indians tend to do, TO STARE. They are overwhelmed by the fact that you are a foreigner, an alien, a new person among them. So they stare at you, they call you names, they offer you things, they call you, text you, talk about you etc. Some of them will even ask you out. It can be both a result of their politeness or it may be that they are just uneducated and don't know any better. Take it as you wish, and move along. Yes, people stare at you and that's completely fine. Let them be. No, there's nothing wrong about you. It's just the way it is.
On the other hand, there will be people that won't like you at all - precisely because you're a foreigner. And that's also fine. Not everyone is made to click with everybody.
2. Less is more. India revived that feeling that I once had - the respect for the things I own. When you find yourself far from home with only a few basic things to manage through life, you realize it is high time you appreciate that damn thing you own back home. By the time I had to return to my country, I became aware of the fact that I don't need half of the things I brought with me. After a while you get used to minimal conditions, minimal clothes, minimal facilities. You learn how to appreciate things, and thus life become simpler. This explains why I almost hugged the washing machine right after I returned home.
3. Sometimes being smart is to keep silence. Each one of us enjoys a dose of sarcasm once in a while. Now, I know you enjoy your sarcasm very much and you don't want to put it to a waste after such a long time of practice. But due to cultural differences and circumstances that you are in when abroad, not everyone will get your jokes, remarks, or even words. Some of them might be offensive to others, some will just not make any sense at all. And that's alright. Keep it simple if you want no headaches.
4. Bargaining saves the day. In India you simply must bargain every single thing you buy, that is if you don't want to become broke within one week. Street vendors and rickshaw drivers tend to charge twice or even three times more (or as Indians say, "thrice") if you are a foreigner. Even the entrances at Taj Mahal or other touristic objectives are far more expensive for a foreigner than for a local. Sad, but true. Therefore, try to bargain if you find yourself in any of these coutries. If you're an European or an American, do not try this at home! It won't work.
5. Appearances don't always matter, but when the case - DO look impeccable! People in India don't really stress out that much about what shoes to put on or the amount of makeup to bathe in before they get out of the house. Various strange combinations of colors as orange-pink-red, or yellow-green-purple are the main factors that contribute in making this population so colorful. Let's be honest, we would never wear those kind of colors, would we? Exactly. Pay India a visit and you will see how wonderful that actually looks.
However, when they have a wedding to attend, Indian women are scoring at their elegance and appearance. Their choice of jewerly is a little bit too much for my taste, but I do admire their gorgeous outfits and overall looks. At the end of the day, it's all about the attitude, not about the clothes at all.
6. Life is tough, but you are tougher. Whatever trouble you find youself in, whatever happens and no matter how bad it is -- it is not the end of the world yet! I found myself having a hard time in my first week in India. There have been some misunderstandings, plus the cultural shock that everyone goes through at the beginning of a new adventure abroad... However, I told myself I can fight with that. Especially when I began to travel and visit other places, I realized there are real problems people all over the world face with, and I decided to get myself together and move on. Keep that in mind - no matter what, you can still do it. Nothing can stop you!
7. Saying goodbye IT IS painful - but you still have to do it. Once you travel abroad, especially on an exchange program, you meet a looot of new people. Some that you will like, some that you will not, and then there are those that you make them your lifelong friends. Those are the hardest to say goodbye to. But time will come when the fairytale ends and you will have to leave. Try to always keep a positive mind and hope that one day you will see them again. Also, do your best to make that happen.
8. Home is where your heart is is true. No matter how much you wished to leave home and go away for a while, there's always a tinny little space in the back of your mind where that feeling of going back home has its nest. When you are far away from your loved ones, you get nostalgic and pretty homesick no matter what. You start thinking about all those days in which you've been a little too harsh to your parents, friends, siblings, and you deeply regret it (but that can also be just me). By that moment you wish to just go home and see them again. But then again, going back to the same routine and to the same people makes you feel sad about leaving your new friends and your exciting life. However, don't panic. That's also normal. Take it easy and do what you have to do. You left once, it will not be hard to leave again and visit your friends.
Along with these top 8 things, India has also taught me many other life lessons. I've learnt how to deal with all sort of people, with various cultures and different ways of thinking, and most importantly -- I now know how to deal with myself. I can actually control my actions and organize my thoughts in an efficient way so that I could keep everyone happy. I've also learnt who my real friends are and how to keep them.
I completely encourage everyone who has the courage and an open mind to go to India and see it for himself/herself. Because that's all you need. You must also have the hunger for knowledge, interest in languages, and love to experiment with new cultures. But even if you don't have these assets, worry not, because your experience abroad will force you to gain them.
Be a sponge. Be THE sponge!
Because there can be 10 things, but also 100000 that contributed to my experience, I chose to mention only the few that were crucial factors in changing my way of thinking. Here are the 8 things that India taught me about life and about myself:
1. Be true to yourself. There is one particular thing that Indians tend to do, TO STARE. They are overwhelmed by the fact that you are a foreigner, an alien, a new person among them. So they stare at you, they call you names, they offer you things, they call you, text you, talk about you etc. Some of them will even ask you out. It can be both a result of their politeness or it may be that they are just uneducated and don't know any better. Take it as you wish, and move along. Yes, people stare at you and that's completely fine. Let them be. No, there's nothing wrong about you. It's just the way it is.
On the other hand, there will be people that won't like you at all - precisely because you're a foreigner. And that's also fine. Not everyone is made to click with everybody.
2. Less is more. India revived that feeling that I once had - the respect for the things I own. When you find yourself far from home with only a few basic things to manage through life, you realize it is high time you appreciate that damn thing you own back home. By the time I had to return to my country, I became aware of the fact that I don't need half of the things I brought with me. After a while you get used to minimal conditions, minimal clothes, minimal facilities. You learn how to appreciate things, and thus life become simpler. This explains why I almost hugged the washing machine right after I returned home.
3. Sometimes being smart is to keep silence. Each one of us enjoys a dose of sarcasm once in a while. Now, I know you enjoy your sarcasm very much and you don't want to put it to a waste after such a long time of practice. But due to cultural differences and circumstances that you are in when abroad, not everyone will get your jokes, remarks, or even words. Some of them might be offensive to others, some will just not make any sense at all. And that's alright. Keep it simple if you want no headaches.
4. Bargaining saves the day. In India you simply must bargain every single thing you buy, that is if you don't want to become broke within one week. Street vendors and rickshaw drivers tend to charge twice or even three times more (or as Indians say, "thrice") if you are a foreigner. Even the entrances at Taj Mahal or other touristic objectives are far more expensive for a foreigner than for a local. Sad, but true. Therefore, try to bargain if you find yourself in any of these coutries. If you're an European or an American, do not try this at home! It won't work.
5. Appearances don't always matter, but when the case - DO look impeccable! People in India don't really stress out that much about what shoes to put on or the amount of makeup to bathe in before they get out of the house. Various strange combinations of colors as orange-pink-red, or yellow-green-purple are the main factors that contribute in making this population so colorful. Let's be honest, we would never wear those kind of colors, would we? Exactly. Pay India a visit and you will see how wonderful that actually looks.
However, when they have a wedding to attend, Indian women are scoring at their elegance and appearance. Their choice of jewerly is a little bit too much for my taste, but I do admire their gorgeous outfits and overall looks. At the end of the day, it's all about the attitude, not about the clothes at all.
6. Life is tough, but you are tougher. Whatever trouble you find youself in, whatever happens and no matter how bad it is -- it is not the end of the world yet! I found myself having a hard time in my first week in India. There have been some misunderstandings, plus the cultural shock that everyone goes through at the beginning of a new adventure abroad... However, I told myself I can fight with that. Especially when I began to travel and visit other places, I realized there are real problems people all over the world face with, and I decided to get myself together and move on. Keep that in mind - no matter what, you can still do it. Nothing can stop you!
7. Saying goodbye IT IS painful - but you still have to do it. Once you travel abroad, especially on an exchange program, you meet a looot of new people. Some that you will like, some that you will not, and then there are those that you make them your lifelong friends. Those are the hardest to say goodbye to. But time will come when the fairytale ends and you will have to leave. Try to always keep a positive mind and hope that one day you will see them again. Also, do your best to make that happen.
8. Home is where your heart is is true. No matter how much you wished to leave home and go away for a while, there's always a tinny little space in the back of your mind where that feeling of going back home has its nest. When you are far away from your loved ones, you get nostalgic and pretty homesick no matter what. You start thinking about all those days in which you've been a little too harsh to your parents, friends, siblings, and you deeply regret it (but that can also be just me). By that moment you wish to just go home and see them again. But then again, going back to the same routine and to the same people makes you feel sad about leaving your new friends and your exciting life. However, don't panic. That's also normal. Take it easy and do what you have to do. You left once, it will not be hard to leave again and visit your friends.
Along with these top 8 things, India has also taught me many other life lessons. I've learnt how to deal with all sort of people, with various cultures and different ways of thinking, and most importantly -- I now know how to deal with myself. I can actually control my actions and organize my thoughts in an efficient way so that I could keep everyone happy. I've also learnt who my real friends are and how to keep them.
I completely encourage everyone who has the courage and an open mind to go to India and see it for himself/herself. Because that's all you need. You must also have the hunger for knowledge, interest in languages, and love to experiment with new cultures. But even if you don't have these assets, worry not, because your experience abroad will force you to gain them.
Be a sponge. Be THE sponge!
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