I recently asked if anyone had any burning questions for me ... keep 'em coming!
Kirsten from The Norwindians asks :
What do YOU like best about living in India?
I first drafted this blog post right away ... sat down and started typing away. Then it came time to actually answer the question and I got stuck. I couldn't find the answer to relay to you. I was unable to narrow down my thoughts in a concise way, so as to smoothly explain what I like best about living in India.
First of all, I think that I need to do a better job of relegating my experiences to just Delhi. I have seen SO little of INDIA, that my answer can only be in answer to the question, what do I like best about Delhi.
Husb travels extensively all over the country. I admit that sometimes I slip and instead of referring to his trips as "business trips", I mess up and say "Daddy's on vacation." It's anything but a vacation and he only sees the inside of hotels, airports and hangars. He gets to see Bangalore, Chennai, Hosur, Mumbai and more ... but he doesn't get close to experiencing Incredible India.
The kids and I thoroughly enjoyed Kerala ...but our travels inside India stop there. There is SO much of India left to be explored and I wish we had more on our list of sightseeing to add under the heading of "what I like best."
Do you know how often times we forget to be tourists in our own home? We still joke about the fact that while living in Cleveland, we never once went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame!
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I digress. Sorry, Kirsten!
I like best the opportunity to have a houseful of staff so that I can DO things. I can participate in tour groups of the area, spend real quality time with friends, have weekly date nights with my Husb. Not have to worry about washing clothes, grocery shopping or mopping floors.
I have the huge opportunity to REALLY get to know myself better, get to know my Husb better, spend more time with the kids, etc.
Have I fully utilized that opportunity? I'm ashamed to say that I haven't. I've been sloughing away too many of these days and can only hope to get better at taking full advantage in the coming weeks.
I also like best the ability to see some superbly amazing sites ... just minutes from our doorstep. Alot of people say that once you've seen a tomb, you've seen them all ... but I think they are all beautiful. Even if I can only soak up 5 minutes worth of history, I feel it's important to keep seeing the sights. What's really the coolest about it all is that even during your daily drives, you pass by some amazing things - just on your way to a market, for instance.
I happen to also REALLY like best some of the ways that Delhi can change me. I'm not a patient person by nature, and I don't happen to play well with others (read : control freak, hot tempered and quick to speak). If I can marinate a bit longer in this environment, I could quite possibly come out of this a better person.
Maybe the BEST is the new friendships. Becoming an expat doesn't simply mean you relocate to a new address, live in funky places or accumulate alot of frequent flier miles. It also means you have the opportunity to make some amazing friends.
You have the ability to meet people from all over the world, who have been to zillions of places and seen miraculous things. You can learn so much just by asking your new friends "What did you do yesterday?" and could write a book with the answers you get from asking "What is the coolest thing you've seen?"
I'm adding another zip code (here it's called a pin code) to add to my previous TEN on the "where I've lived" list ... and adding so ... so, much more.