THE WALKING BEGINS

I knew that I still wasn't feeling well.
I knew that I was feeling confused.
And I realized that I wasn't my "normal" self.
I started walking and looking.
Movement of people and vehicles!
Sounds of bells and machines!
Colors everywhere!
This was India.
I continuted walking and looking.
My aimless journey would continue for two weeks.
But before it continued, I still had in my mind the idea of getting to Sri Lanka.
I had not given up on that goal.
This first day in India was coming to an end.
I just kept walking. Walking. Walking.
The noisy day was now becoming a creepy silence.
Right after I checked out of my hotel, I tried to eat some food. I think I ordered some curried chicken and rice.
I couldn't eat much.
This was the last solid meal I would eat for nearly two weeks.
My body and mind would be greatly affected by my loss of appetite.
Anyway, I just kept walking.
I remember the days less than I do the nights. In fact, it seems as if there were only nights the whole time that I was in India.

SLEEPLESS IN NEW DELHI

Here I was in New Delhi, India.
The rush of traffic was amazing.
Cars, buses and motorcycles were everywhere.
Crossing the streets was dangerous.
I just kept walking and looking.
New Delhi during the day looked and felt like a big carnival.
I bought some paperbacks and then checked into a hotel.
I tried to sleep but couldn't.
For some strange reason I kept hearing the word "Shah, shah, shah".
It was like a mantra.
Years later I came up with an explanation (which I shall write about later).
I left the hotel the next morning and continued walking.
I would not sleep for the next two weeks.

ARRIVAL IN NEW DELHI

I was miserable on the train to India.
I had a fever and was shivering.
Next to me was a soldier.
He offered me his blanket. I gladly accepted it and it helped.
I could have gone to Nepal with a few other volunteers, but I said, "No thanks. I want to go where it's warm and swim in the ocean."
Now I was totally alone.
I didn't know the languages of either Pakistan or India.
Yes, English was understood and spoken in both countries, but it didn't alter the fact that I was a new stranger in strange lands.
When I arrived in New Delhi I was greeted by a glorious patchwork of motions, sounds and colors all at once.
The novelty of such a rich and new environment took my mind off of my ills and chills.
I didn't want to admit how bad I was really feeling.
I was confused and weak.
It was difficult for me to clearly focus.
At one point I got into a motorcycle taxi with no destination. During this ride I screamed at the top of my lungs some words from Shakespeare's The Tempest for no reason at all.
"Boatswain! Boatswain!", I yelled.
My driver nearly jumped out of his seat, turned around with a crazed look on his face, and wondered who his passenger was, and what was going to occur next.
Just moments before my screaming he had been asking to buy my watch. Now he just wanted me to get out of his taxi.
I did.
In front of some hotel.
I went in, looked around, and then left.
My days of wandering in India had begun.
I have no clear memory of the sequence of events and things that I experienced, but I do remember the experiences, and I shall describe them in future posts.