The Best Day of My Entire Life!

Journal #22 March 5, 2009

I am sitting here in my bed completely speechless. I have had to most amazing day!!! As I got off the ship I knew I would be a completely different person when I got back on the boat later that day. I have been hearing all week how India is going to change my life. But I never thought I was going to feel like this.

As I left the port I was a little overwhelmed by the ambush of taxi drivers. Even if you did not need a taxi they would still pull at your arms asking where we wanted him to take us. I was a little scared. When we finally found a taxi we headed towards Spence’s Palace, we were gonna do a little shopping first. I was scared for my life while the taxi driver was driving, hahahha. There are no lines on the road so anyone could drive where ever they wanted. Americans would not be able to function if this was our driving system. I give the people of India credit for being such good drivers.

When we got to the mall we went into a store called “Indian Cottage.”I have never met such nice people in my entire life. The owner was Mohd Sayed and he treated us so well, and we got some great things. For about 2 hours we just did some more shopping and ate some lunch, then as we were leaving we ran into a guy that worked at the same shop. He asked us where we were going and he said that he would take us there for free. So Mohd took us to a place where they sold silk fabric. Mohd told us about his life and many stories about India. He then proceeded to invite us to his house and have dinner with his wife and kids. His two children are in college studying engineering so he wanted to get us together and talk about our schooling. I thought to myself what would my parents do? I knew that they would be cautious about going to a strangers house but I felt really safe with Mohd, and plus there was three of us going. Mohd kind of also reminded me of my dad and so I knew he would be an amazing hostess and treat us well. Hence, we decided to go have dinner at his house.

So when we got to the silk shop it was a huge building just full of fabric. There was only men working. My friends got some fabric and we headed back to the ship to freshen up and get ready for the nights festivities. When we headed out to the shops to meet up with Mohd we had some complications. We had 10 min to get to the shops and none of the taxi drivers wanted to give us a deal. So we rode in two person bike carriages, we knew it would take us about 30 min to get to the mall.

When we reached the port exit he told us to get out and get in an auto rickshaw. This is a very small looking boxlike thing, i'll post some pics, that I guess is kind of like a car but with no doors. I was quite scared for my life again. Thank goodness we got there in one piece!!! So we were about 20 min late but Mohd did not care. He is such a care free guy who just wants to meet people and get to know them. So as we arrived we met his son Thouseef. He is 20 years old and is studying mechanical engn. He just like his dad and is very nice. We stayed in their shop for a little while and just talked about life. Me and Thouseef had a lot in common so it was fun to talk about classes and such. I told him he should come to the US for grad school :)

It was about a 5 min drive from the mall to their house. They live in an apartment building on the 3rd floor. Right as I walked through the door I knew I was in for a great night. Mohd’s wife welcomed us in with loving arms. We sat and watched TV and I was able to meet their daughter. Her name is Maseeha who is 21 years old and is studying electrical engn. I also was able to talk to her about classes. Their house had pretty decorations and looked out on a type of court yard.

When dinner was ready I startled when none of them sat down to eat with us. Mohd told us that it is apart of the Indian culture to serve the guests and let them eat and then eat after they are done, this way the guest can eat as much as they want.

However, let me tell you how good the food was!!!!!!!! There was chicken, fish, curry dip, sheep, cucumbers, bread, rice, and more rice, and soooo much more. The food was the best food I have tried in a really long time.

At the dinner table we were able to talk about several different things. We talked about the government in India, and Obama, and how the schooling systems differ from the US, and arranged marriages, and so much more. I learned that the Universities in India are very similar to the Universities in the States except for the fact that they do not have weekends and they go to class from 8-5 every single day. The only days they get off are 2 Sundays every 2 months. No wonder people from India are so smart.

So after everyone was done with dinner, Maseeha offered to give us hena tattoos. She is so talented. I can not even explain how cool the designs she did on my arm and hand. During this time Thouseef got us some ice cream which was so good. I can not even tell you how honored I felt to be at the Sayeed house spending time with them. We talked for about another 30 min and then decided to head home. Maseeha and Thouseef were going to drive 2 on their motorcycles and Mohd was going to drive two in his car. I was one of the lucky ones to ride the motorcycle. I knew it was going to be safer then during the day because it was 11:30 at night and traffic would not be bad.

So, im sorry mom and dad but I had to not let this chance pass by me, I hopped on the back of Maseeha’s bike, with no helmet, again im sorry mom and dad, and headed back to the ship. It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done!!!!!! The wind blowing my hair and me not thinking about a single thing. As we got back to our ship we said our sad goodbyes and parted ways.

I am truly thankful for my time that I have spent with the Sayeed family. It is because of them that I have had the best day of my entire life. I know that whenever I think of India I will think of my Indian family and how much fun we had together.

I still am in a little shock not realizing what really happened to me today. It only seems yesterday I was in Norfolk either going to work, spending time with friends and family, or going to school. And today I met the most amazing family in INDIA!! I hope to keep in touch with my “family ”and maybe we will soon see each other one day and I hope that who ever is reading this will one day find a family like I have found today and cherish them forever.

“I have found my seavus”– Les McCabe

Love
Michelle