Getting There

India is a long way from Rhode Island!  Delhi, the capital city where I will fly into, is nine and a half hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time.  I will take a seven-hour flight from Boston to Amsterdam, leaving at about 7:30 p.m. on a Friday night.  After a five-hour layover, I will catch an eight-hour flight from Amsterdam to Delhi, arriving at 1:20 a.m. on Sunday morning.  There will be no Saturday for me, but I’ll make up for it on the trip back.  I’ll be flying over 7000 miles.  If I flew the same distance in the opposite direction, I could make it to Seoul, South Korea with a few miles to spare.

Upon arrival, I hope to stay with a local family in Delhi for the two or three nights before my tour with GEEO begins.  I am making arrangements through Couchsurfing, a website for travelers to find a free place to stay with locals.  I have just recently participated in Couchsurfing by offering space in my home to travelers.  So far, I have hosted people from Brazil, South Korea, Hungary, England, and the United States.  (You can read about my first experience on my teach.change blog.)  It’s great meeting people from around the world, sharing stories, learning about cultures and showing travelers the Westerly area.  I am looking forward to my first experience as a Couchsurfer rather than a host.
During the trip, our group will use a variety of ways to travel over land from Delhi to Kathmandu.  This includes sleeper trains, bus, tempo (three-wheeled auto rickshaw), boat, Jeep, and hiking.  I am sure there will be many adventures to share.