In less than 72 hours, I should be on a plane on the first leg of a journey to India where I plan to travel throughout February.
I have been to India twice before, but it’s been many, many years. My first trip was overland from Europe in 1973 when I was just 18. It was a shock to see the extreme poverty and to be in a country with so many people living in such close quarters, without the North American sense of privacy.
Once I got over the initial shock though, I fell in love with India and its rich and colourful culture. The experience transformed me and profoundly affected my values.
The biggest shock, however, was returning to Canada and perceiving my own country as something of an outsider. The rampant consumerism and constant bombardment of advertising that we take for granted suddenly looked different to me and was very uncomfortable.
I returned to India in 1977, once again travelling overland from Europe. This time I had a real 35mm single-lens reflex film camera and it was here that my love of photography developed. Between the two trips, I covered much of India from Ladakh in the north, close to Tibet, down to the southern tip of India at Kanya Kumari. I also visited the neighbouring countries of Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
This time, with only a month, I will focus on the northern states of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, crossing briefly into the states of Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh.
In a few days, I will fly from Vancouver to Tokyo, where I will spend a day before flying on Delhi.
I plan to travel mostly by railway. In the 1970s, I planned nothing ahead and often couldn’t get a reserved seat. This meant riding in jam-packed railway cars packed into the aisles and onto the luggage racks with hundreds of people sweating in the heat. Sometimes, the heat inside became unbearable and I joined others in climbing up to ride on the roof.
This time, thanks to computer technology, I’ve been able to book my hotels and most of my train trips in advance, probably reducing my ability to be spontaneous, but hopefully increasing my comfort level.
Many things have changed in India in the past 38 years, but I’m sure a lot has not. One thing I can probably count on is to expect the unexpected.
