{"id":755,"date":"2018-07-10T16:36:06","date_gmt":"2018-07-10T16:36:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sisa.ii.lsa.umich.edu\/?p=362"},"modified":"2018-07-10T16:36:06","modified_gmt":"2018-07-10T16:36:06","slug":"rainbows-and-sunshine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/2018\/07\/10\/rainbows-and-sunshine\/","title":{"rendered":"Rainbows and Sunshine"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0As soon as I stepped off the plane into Delhi, beads of perspiration formed on my forehead and my skin was covered in a film of heat and dust. I\u2019d been warned about the huge crowds of people I\u2019d get lost in, the poverty I would encounter, the adventures I would embark on, but nothing could have prepared me for the 115 degree heat. I was so grateful to see my Mom\u2019s cousin – my Masi – in the sea of drivers waiting for passengers. I\u2019m really here, I thought. This is really happening right now. Ready or not.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0The first week or so in India flew by. I am so fortunate to have family spread out all over India, so I was able to travel from Delhi to Chandigarh to Mumbai before even starting my internship in Bangalore. I only have my nuclear family in the US, so it was amazing to see so many relatives greeting me with open arms and way too much food, even relatives that I didn\u2019t even know I had. I was constantly being taken to places and people I just <\/span>had<\/span><\/i> to see. I maneuvered through Lajpat Nagar, a vibrant, crowded market in Delhi, visited the famous Rock Gardens in Chandigarh, and ate delicious Indo-Chinese seafood in Mumbai. So far, all rainbows and sunshine. I felt energized and eager to tackle my internship with CRY (Child Rights and You) in Bangalore.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Once arriving in Bangalore, I was greeted so warmly by the director of my hostel-style accommodation. I was given chai and cookies before I could even set my luggage down. I met the cleaning lady, the cooks, and security guards, and all their smiles projected such sincere kindness and hospitality. I was assured I could come to them, no matter what time, with anything I needed. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Despite such gracious hospitality, once I settled into my room for the night, I couldn\u2019t help but cry. Loneliness, homesickness, and more loneliness suddenly washed over me, just as I saw the monsoon clouds abruptly appear and release their ferocious rains onto all the beauty beneath them earlier that day. Everything that seemed so beautiful and inviting suddenly seemed so immense, unconquerable, vulnerable. I couldn\u2019t believe that I had chosen to be on the other side of the world for the next two months all by myself. It all felt scary, crazy, impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0It was illogical to think that this whole trip would be magical and fun as my young, inexperienced mind did. People rarely reveal the struggles that come with traveling abroad, and I\u2019m learning that traveling abroad <\/span>alone<\/span><\/i> is its own special type of challenge. We are used to seeing the breathtaking landscapes captured on social media, hearing countless stories of adventures and friendships once travelers return home. I know I will see those landscapes, form those friendships, and tell those stories, but for now I am learning my first lesson: it\u2019s not all rainbows and sunshine. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0As soon as I stepped off the plane into Delhi, beads of perspiration formed on my forehead and my skin was covered in a film of heat and dust. I\u2019d been warned about the huge crowds of people I\u2019d get lost in, the poverty I would encounter, the adventures I would embark on, but nothing could have prepared me for the 115 degree heat. I was so grateful to see my Mom\u2019s cousin – my Masi – in…<\/p>\n

Read More Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4738,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-755","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-34"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/755","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4738"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=755"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/755\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=755"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=755"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/sisablogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=755"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}