Ever been to your home country with total ignorance as to what you will see there? You know your people but have forgotten their ways, you grew up with their customs but still practice them the way as if you are following them for the first time. You are being led every step of the way. I did that and had so much fun. I let myself be guided every step of the way in India this time and enjoyed thoroughly. The people who have warmth but act guarded sometimes, their totally westernized ways but still retaining a lot of Indian-ness, the newly constructed highways and the small alleys with the open sewers, I loved them all. I  loved the mall- culture that has swept the nation and also visited the tiny dingy stores in lanes where you can only walk zig-zag to avoid open potholes or the stores that have expanded their thresholds without any disregard to the width of the roads. India, with all its platinum weddings and half-naked somersaulting kids at traffic lights to get money is still mine. India with Louis Vuitton  carrying  sophisticated females to the so-called ‘third gender’ garish eunuchs calling themselves Katrina and Aishwarya is an ocean of diversity. You look at it and your thirst increases with every look. You want to go deeper, find out more and more. I lived in India for 22 years of my life and still get so fascinated by its many facets.

As I sat on an elephant to go up to Amer Fort in Jaipur, I said to myself,”What a magical world! Wonder why I did not experience it like this before!”