Incredible India
evawhite on April 19th, 2008
For persons of occidental extraction, the Orient retains a great deal of mystery and fascination. Counties such as India and China still evoke a sense of exoticism. Of all the places that I have travelled to, my travels within India caused in me the most extreme of reactions. For, in my opinion, India is the sort of place makes you react, either positively or negatively because of its amazing geographical, racial, economic, lingual, cultural, religious and culinary diversity. The color, the smells, the clamor, the chaos, the friendly, hospitable (and very curious) people tend to overwhelm the visitor. It is not a subtle country!
While this is perceived to be a predominantly Hindu nation, it is a very common sight to see a mosque share a common wall with a Hindu temple with perhaps a church or gurudrawa in the very next street! While Kashmir, the Northern most state of India is witness to snow with its landscape dominated by the mighty Himalayas, the southernmost state of Kerala seems to enjoy perpetual summer with its quaint backwaters and lush green landscape. The, Thar Desert in the North-western state of Rajasthan is one of the driest and Cherrapunji in the North east is one of the wettest places on earth!
While they say that viewing the Taj Mahal by moonlight is one of the must-dos in every persons’ life time, that is almost a cliché. Glorious though the Taj is, it is just one of a plethora of historical monuments that dot the entire country and bear mute testimony to its tumultuous past. Take a look, for instance at some of big cities like Mumbai or Kolkata and the residue of the British occupation is clear to see. Travelling around Delhi, you will see not only the symmetrical grandeur of Lutyen’s (the British architect who designed New Delhi) Delhi, you will see scattered everywhere ruins from the Mughal era or historical epochs even preceding that! The Incredible India website gives you an idea of just how amazing and varied this country is!
The caves of Ajanta Ellora near Aurangabad in Maharashtra are examples of truly ancient cave sculpture. You can see some of the most beautiful mosques and the most imposing stupas in India as well. Goa, the beach paradise is home to some of the most remarkable churches and cathedrals and the Bom Jesus Cathedral still has the mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier, the missionary largely responsible for the dissemination of Christianity and Jesuit schooling in India.
The Khajuraho temple is like an open air guide to the Kama Sutra. It seems the temple and its erotic sculpture was constructed by the then ruler in order to encourage the people to have more sex and produce more children. Evidently, there was an opposite crisis then from the one today, one of overpopulation.
Over population, grinding poverty and lack of education are perhaps the most pressing problems faced by India today. While you will see the most luxurious five star hotel, not far from it you will also see the people living on pavements and eking out a living by begging. While India exports the most highly educated and skilled professionals all over the world, a large proportion of the populace languishes in illiteracy. The maddening traffic and chaotic crowds you will see everywhere, are just some of the problems created by over population.
But experts have reason to be optimistic about India’s progress and development. Largely considered to be one of the fastest growing economies of the world, India is making great strides in industrial, economic and educational fields.
