Made it!
Despite minor delays, I made it! Met up with Neema in the Boston airport, and she had made lodging arrangements. In fact, she asked her uncle - who lives in Delhi and is apparently well-connected as the owner of the first medical facility in India with an MRI machine, or something like that - to make the arrangements for us, which I guess meant he had to call in some favors.
Thus, the arrangement: we spent last night at a hotel in Mumbai called Orchid Hotel, the only certified EcoHotel in the country. The place was ridiculously decadent and decorated for an over-the-top Christmas, but plastic Santas were a small price to pay for a FREE hotel room at a place listed in my guide as "Deluxe," the best Lonely Planet rating out there.
Of course, this being India, there was a HUGE wealth disparity issue - looking out the window the next morning (we'd arrived around 3:00 AM), I was presented with my first real Indian slum (actually, Neema assured me that it wasn't even a slum, just a poor neighborhood, but I'm not sure I believe her). Made me feel less great about the fancy hotel, but I reasoned with myself that since I wasn't actually paying anything for it, it wasn't - for ME - an exercise in excess.
This afternoon, we hopped on a plane to Goa, the hippie Mecca of India. Goa's actually an entire state, and we hadn't told Neema's uncle where specifically we wanted to stay, but she did tell him that we needed to be very close to beaches and tourists - we're here for a vacation, not a cultural experience! He assured her that we were about a mile from where we needed to be - not as close as we'd like, but good enough, because 1) it's high season, and 2) this place was also free. (The first hotel is owned by a friend of his, and this place is government lodging, so he called in a favor from the Minister of Commerce or something.) Besides, we also have a driver, so a mile is nothing (Neema's uncle also knows a guy who owns a driver/tour guide company).
Except the drive from the airport to this place took about 40 minutes, even though the airport is kind of in the middle of things. And when we placed ourselves on the map, we found that we were a good hour or so from the "tourist" area we'd been hoping for. Fortunately(?), the boarding house couldn't find our booking, so we asked the driver to take us to an area of Goa called Calangute, where the tourists tend to congregate.
The only real problem was Neema's uncle. He didn't seem to understand our desire to leave, called the driver like 10 times before we checked in to our current hotel, and scared the poor man so much that he was afraid to leave until we need to get back to the airport. We tried to tell him that we just want to stay on the beach, which is now a 2 minute walk away, and wouldn't need a car to get anywhere, but the driver was terrified that Neema's uncle wouldn't find this satisfactory. In fact, he didn't leave until Neema's father (who also kept calling) apologized for both himself and his brother-in-law and verified that our plan was legitimate.
Apparently, it was a combination of inter-caste relations, protectiveness towards girls travelling alone, and a good work ethic, but for me it was just annoying (every time Neema's uncle called while we were on our way from the guest house to Calangute, the driver pulled over for the duration of the conversation, in case he was told to turn around). Indian culture is weird.
Anyhow, tonight was spent finding a new swim suit and eating a slow, leisurely dinner. Tomorrow will be spent sleeping and sunbathing, as will the following day or so. I love vacations!
And yes, Mom, I have sunscreen. :)
Thus, the arrangement: we spent last night at a hotel in Mumbai called Orchid Hotel, the only certified EcoHotel in the country. The place was ridiculously decadent and decorated for an over-the-top Christmas, but plastic Santas were a small price to pay for a FREE hotel room at a place listed in my guide as "Deluxe," the best Lonely Planet rating out there.
Of course, this being India, there was a HUGE wealth disparity issue - looking out the window the next morning (we'd arrived around 3:00 AM), I was presented with my first real Indian slum (actually, Neema assured me that it wasn't even a slum, just a poor neighborhood, but I'm not sure I believe her). Made me feel less great about the fancy hotel, but I reasoned with myself that since I wasn't actually paying anything for it, it wasn't - for ME - an exercise in excess.
This afternoon, we hopped on a plane to Goa, the hippie Mecca of India. Goa's actually an entire state, and we hadn't told Neema's uncle where specifically we wanted to stay, but she did tell him that we needed to be very close to beaches and tourists - we're here for a vacation, not a cultural experience! He assured her that we were about a mile from where we needed to be - not as close as we'd like, but good enough, because 1) it's high season, and 2) this place was also free. (The first hotel is owned by a friend of his, and this place is government lodging, so he called in a favor from the Minister of Commerce or something.) Besides, we also have a driver, so a mile is nothing (Neema's uncle also knows a guy who owns a driver/tour guide company).
Except the drive from the airport to this place took about 40 minutes, even though the airport is kind of in the middle of things. And when we placed ourselves on the map, we found that we were a good hour or so from the "tourist" area we'd been hoping for. Fortunately(?), the boarding house couldn't find our booking, so we asked the driver to take us to an area of Goa called Calangute, where the tourists tend to congregate.
The only real problem was Neema's uncle. He didn't seem to understand our desire to leave, called the driver like 10 times before we checked in to our current hotel, and scared the poor man so much that he was afraid to leave until we need to get back to the airport. We tried to tell him that we just want to stay on the beach, which is now a 2 minute walk away, and wouldn't need a car to get anywhere, but the driver was terrified that Neema's uncle wouldn't find this satisfactory. In fact, he didn't leave until Neema's father (who also kept calling) apologized for both himself and his brother-in-law and verified that our plan was legitimate.
Apparently, it was a combination of inter-caste relations, protectiveness towards girls travelling alone, and a good work ethic, but for me it was just annoying (every time Neema's uncle called while we were on our way from the guest house to Calangute, the driver pulled over for the duration of the conversation, in case he was told to turn around). Indian culture is weird.
Anyhow, tonight was spent finding a new swim suit and eating a slow, leisurely dinner. Tomorrow will be spent sleeping and sunbathing, as will the following day or so. I love vacations!
And yes, Mom, I have sunscreen. :)
posted by Teale at 9:10 AM
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