19 May 2016

Why India? - A Guest Post by Angie

While I'm off soaking in thermal hot springs and figuring out how to take up permanent residence with the Icelandic Elves, I bring you a post from Angie who blogs about travel, veganism, yoga and much more. 

Hello Far From Kansas readers! I am Angie from Angie Eats Peace and am honored to guest post today about my own upcoming travels.

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My husband and I are fortunate enough to work for the public school system and have most of the summer off from work. We try to make the most of our time off and are generally hopping on a plane as soon as the last school bell for the year has rung. We have exploring some beautiful parts of Europe (Spain, Portugal, France and Italy) and last summer we visited China and Japan. This year we are headed to Northern India and Nepal.

Most of our family, friends and co-workers know that we travel every chance we get and have both been asked multiple times where we are going this summer. We have both been surprised to find we are getting similar responses when we share that we are going to India. We are getting confused looks and being asked, "Why India"? Usually followed by, "aren't you scared"?

My response has been, "Why Not India"? But, if someone is truly interested, I share the following with them:

I am truly looking forward to India. It's going to be life-changing. I just know it. I am going in with high expectations, but also the realization that I am incredibly ignorant about what I am about to experience. I open to what the many temples, holy sites, the Ganges river, the market place, the ashrams, the food and most of all, the people, have to teach me.

I travel to learn, to connect, to experience and to EAT. I do not travel to relax, to be comfortable or to have an experience that I could easily have in my own country. Most of my trips are spent walking, exploring, searching, talking and connecting. I rarely lay on a beach and relax. This extremely flattering photo below was taken by my wonderful husband in a park in Paris. I completely crashed after two weeks of travel and endless walking. I needed a quick nap before going off again to explore the city.

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The one time I did NOT love a travel experience was when I stayed at a resort in Cancun. Although I loved some of the excursion activities, I did not care for the all-inclusive resort filled with other Americans and non-traditional food. I like to feel out of my comfort zone and be pushed to understand a different way of life. I love realizing that there is SO much more to the world than my own narrow viewpoint.

I know India will have so much to teach me about my own comfort zone and force me to confront parts of myself that I am currently unaware of. I look forward to what I will learn and what I can share when I return.

I will be posting some pictures here and there, so if you care to follow along, you can do so on Instagram or visit my blog around August, when I am back from my travels.


Thanks Angie!  I know I'm looking forward to hearing about this trip and I'm jealous that I'm not going!!

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