Jarred Sneed takes in the Taj Mahal.

Hi Everyone,

The past two weeks in India have been absolutely AMAZING. Everything so far has exceeded my expectations.  Unfortunately, I have been without internet access and I have not been able to update. Not having access to the Internet or my cell phone was a painful process at first, but I have actually found it to be relaxing and it has allowed me to enjoy this trip without worrying about the latest emails, facebook posts, or unimportant tweets from friends. I finally have access to the Internet and I feel like I am connected to the rest of the world again. There is entirely too much to share what has been going on in a single blog post, but I will try to hit the highlights of the trip thus far.

1) First, I almost didn’t make into India because of a massive snow storm that struck the northeast and caused several flight delays. Just before takeoff, the pilot announced that the flight was delayed again and this caused the plane to be forced to sit on the runway for nearly an hour….without AIR CONDITIONING!! Once I finally arrived in New Delhi India, I immediately knew that I was in an entirely different country. The sights, sounds, and smells all hit you at once and this can be very intimidating. Traffic is like I have never seen it before. I don’t even know why the country bothers to have stop signs, street lights, or lines on the road because no one, and I mean NO ONE observes them.

2) As soon as we got to India, we hit the ground running to see all of the best attractions of the country. It is impossible to think of India without thinking about the Taj Mahal, one of the eight wonders of the world. I have always seen pictures of the Taj Mahal, but pictures do not give this architecture justice. I was blown away by the size, beauty, and the level of detail of the Taj Mahal.  I have seen the Pyramids in Egypt and the Acropolis in Greece, and I must say that the Taj Mahal is every bit as impressive and “jaw dropping” as the other two.

Here is a link to some photos from my Flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/56110277@N04/

3) After visiting the Taj Mahal, my study abroad group flew from Jaipur to Bangalore and celeberated the New Years weekend in a very nice resort located in Kabini. This was excellent because we got a chance to get away from being surrounded by millions of people and have a quiet weekend to ourselves. The lodge was perfect and very interesting. There were all kinds of wildlife that I have never seen before. There would be times that I would wake up and there would be monkeys outside my door. Many of us went on a safari and we were able to spot all kinds of exotic birds, monkeys, and even elephants.

4) Probably the most rewarding experience of the trip so far has been able to interact with the local community in Bangalore. For the past two days, we have visited local schools and orphanages to bring them much needed supplies and gifts. I was not prepared for the welcome we received. We were treated like celebrities. The first school put on songs and dances in our honor and the orphanage made us a very good lunch. We got several hours to play with the children and you could immediately tell the impact it had on them. Many of these children were abandoned and do not have the resources to live a comfortable life. I found it remarkable that the children were always smiling and positive. Of course we ended the evening by teaching the Hog Call to the orphans, which they thoroughly enjoyed. I have also added a video of this to the Flickr link as well.

There have been other great experiences such as visiting some of the top companies in the world, riding elephants, and trying to learn how to negotiate prices when shopping. So far I have had an amazing time and I cannot wait to see what’s next.