A Simpler Way of Life

On Saturday, June 20^th, my group got up very early and we traveled to Naini Tal to stay with families in the Himalayan Mountains.  The first day was difficult: five hour train ride and then another three hours of driving to our station. There was a lot of motion sickness, fatigue, and irritability. I know for me personally, all of these symptoms went away once I truly saw where I was. Pictures cannot do the view justice. Where I am staying I can overlook the mountains and watch the most gorgeous sunsets. My only complaint. . . I’m not so much a fan of the spiders the size of my hand waltzing into my bathroom like they own the place. I am embarrassed to admit, but the sight of one of those monsters gave me an instant anxiety attack. It’s all a part of the experience.

My homestay family is absolutely wonderful. They are so very patient and kind and helping me to practice my Hindi. The brother, Sanje, speaks English as well as Hindi and is very helpful in translating things I don’t quite understand. The food is amazing. It is all homemade from fresh ingredients often grown in the family’s garden. The mother hand mixes the flour and water together to make dough. This dough is then separated and rolled into small rottis (Indian flat breads). The rottis are then put on a pan over the fire and flipped once. Once they have gotten some brown spots they are thrown into the fire to get them to puff up and then put in a dish where they flatten out. These things have become my new favorite food.

The bedroom I am staying in is shared with two other girls from my group. We are in our own separate part of the house with three beds, our own patio and bathroom.  The beds are something that took a bit of adjusting to. They are very stiff cots with a simple pillow and blanket. While the first night of sleep was very difficult, I haven’t experienced the slightest bit of back pain since using this bed. Our bathroom is very interesting and took about a day to get used to. We have an Eastern toilet, if you don’t know what that means then look it up. I feel that going into too much detail can make people uncomfortable. There is a window that cannot be closed to ensure proper ventilation. That window happened to be the very culprit for letting gigantic spiders in. My roommates and I came together and decided that after the sun goes down, the window must be patched up.

Life is very simple here and I think that is why I find everything so beautiful and peaceful. I did laundry by hand and then hung everything over the railing of my patio. Internet and phone service barely even exists. It is so nice to be cut from the electronic tether. I’ve made a point to give myself some time each evening to sit on the patio and be mindful of my surroundings. I have seen several toads, butterflies, and very interesting beetles. There are monkeys and cows everywhere. The mountains are a myriad of different greens from the trees. The sky is of the most crystal blue with the purist white of clouds purposefully painted in certain areas. At night you can see tiny villages lit up in the mountains as the families cook and eat their dinners. If I could give anyone one thing, it would be to experience the peaceful beauty of living in Nainital.