Namaste!

That means "Welcome!" in Hindi. I've been meaning to write about my experiences in India since the day I arrived (June 25th... a little over a week ago), but better late than never!

My plane ride to India was quite an adventure in itself. I was on a nonstop 14.5 hour flight from JFK to New Delhi with at least 7 of the 15 other ETAs. None of us were assigned seats together, which I had mixed feelings about. Of course I would have liked to share the experience with someone, but I didn't mind having the time to myself to sleep and catch up on some of the many Bollywood movies available on the plane (thanks, Air India!). Either way, none of that ended up happening because the guy next to me started to talk to me before we took off, and continued talking to me for virtually the entire flight. 

One of the most memorable parts of the flight was experiencing "family style" dining. For our first meal, we were able to choose between a vegetarian or non-vegetarian meal, but they were all accompanied by a salad topped with a chili pepper. I told my plane friend that I normally couldn't handle really spicy food (I hiccup), but I wanted to test it out since I would be in India for 9 months. He insisted that I have some of the rice and vegetables (okra/ladies finger(?)/bindi... take your pick) with it. It seemed kind of strange to eat someone else's food on the plane, but eventually I complied. He asked to have some of my food, which was fair. After that, he would help himself to some of my meal every time it came around. I couldn't help remembering something one of the former ETAs from Nepal told us at our orientation in D.C. In Nepal, for instance, when you eat an orange on a bus, you're only really eating one slice because you have to share with everyone around you. I like to think of this experience on the plane as a transition to that kind of lifestyle!

Another funny event was when he suggested a movie to me. I started watching, but I was exhausted from all the shopping and packing leading up to the trip and started to fall asleep. Right as I was dozing off, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I tried to ignore it, but it became more persistant. Finally, I turned to my plane friend and responded with an exasperated what, to which he responded, "you can't sleep during the movie! I wont let you." I couldn't fall asleep after that, but I did watch a short Charlie Chaplin film. I was a bit frustrated at first, but it's a really amusing story now.

There were so many great moments with my seat buddy, but for brevity's sake, I wont go too in depth. But, he did invite me to an Indian wedding in Mumbai! The invitation was contingent on whether or not he could actually go himself, but my fingers are crossed. Attending an Indian wedding is on my to-do list. We ended the trip by taking selfies and, of course, one with our aviators on. It was very hard for me to take that picture without laughing.