alice's peephole

I’d heard the Bhutnese are very hospitable. It sure didn’t feel that way when I hit my head on the doorframe at the airport. It seemed to be specially designed to take out the invading giants in Lilliput-land. But any annimosity that was knocked into my head with that bump, was soon knocked right back out. Its hard to stay mad at these mild-mannered people, with their expressive hands and graceful attire. (Although I will shamefully admit that I was close to administering my revenge by stealing a couple of their adorable babies. Luckily for them, the prayer flags must have influenced me to ditch the evil plans.) Growing up in a confused, confusing and conflicted country like mine, being religious is often mixed up with being a fanatic. For the first time, I saw a very different picture up close. A country crowded with prayer wheels, every door adorned by luck symbols and monastries dotting the countryside…. And yet so modern in its outlook. A sense pride in their culture gives them the...

I wouldn’t have thought it possible to experience so many emotions at the same time.. I thought that happened only in romance novels, where the innocent teenage girl is confused and the boy doesn’t know how to get the attention of the bug-eyed tutor. But that was before this week. Before I took my very first flight alone, said goodbye to everything familiar and comfortable. Everything I’ve known since I was a little girl. It’s scary. It’s scary to see your parents not even attempt a watery smile when they see you off at the airport. Scary to watch watch your friends ride off, not knowing when you’ll see them again. Petrifying to get into a taxi in a new city, and hope you can find your new home. But there’s always solace in the grey. I found mine when I saw a hoarding right outside the airport. It said “Welcome to Delhi”, underneath was a little tiger, Shera, the mascot for the CWG 2010. This was the event I had been waiting for, for the last 2 years. This was the city of fast cars and...