Working and Traveling

One of the very few things I admire about western way of life is the way they bring up their children to be independent and responsible. They are forced to make choices from a very young age, be it for what they want to wear to what they'd like to eat. As Indian kids we are too used to being spoon fed from our classrooms to every other aspect of our life; maybe that's why we stare at the menu for a little too long, to make the decision as to what we want to order, even as grown ups.

Having part time jobs as kids or growing up is one such western concept that I like. Out of all my Indian friends I have only ever known two friends who ever did that during college. Where as out of all my non-Indian-expat friends, almost all of them always have had super interesting stories to tell that started with, "This one summer when I was working as a lumber jack... " or "This one time I was waiting at a coffee shop, when.." Being a camp consular, painting houses, cutting grass for the neighbor, being a life guard at the pool one summer, being the basketball coach assistant or just a guest blog journalist. It doesn't matter if you are from a well off family an even if your parents can afford to buy you a car for your sweet 16, part time jobs are a norm. In India if you are working as a child it is probably out of compulsion or poverty. You see kids working at a Chai shop or cleaning boots on street side to add to their family's income. Child labor is punishable by law because it leads to exploitation children for cheap manual labor. In India its rare to see kids coming from the middle or upper class families doing jobs that have monetary out comes.

Why didn't I work at a Mc'donalds growing up and did unpaid volunteer work instead? As much as I wanted to, working as a teenager or in college is a rather new concept in India and as a society we do not encourage our children to work. Upper and middle class children are only encouraged to study hard and get a cushy job instead of doing trivial work which is considered demeaning. And if you are not able to get a job or pass out of college, you still have the option of living off your parents till you "grow up". Indian kids are just used to having their parents pay for their education and more often than not, even after bagging a job post education; be it for the apartment rent deposit or a few extra bucks for a foreign vacation. 

Part of the reason we underestimate our self worth is all the jobs we did as kids were unpaid and we did it as favors to the society, friends, family or a relative. Maybe that's why our system works on favors.The work will be done faster when you know someone who know's someone, and they'll do it for you as "a favor".

Part time jobs as kids teaches one a lot, such as the value of hard earned money, self reliance, gives them a sense of Independence and most of all teaches them dignity of labor. With Dignity of labor one learns that no work is big or small and that work itself is dignity. India does not understand much of this concept. This is seen by the way people doing menial jobs are treated at restaurants, public service laborers or even the way people treat their own maids.

  

One of the best parts about travel is the amazing people you meet who are doing really cool things in life. This was also my first introduction to the hippie way of working and travelling. I met tons of talented people earning bucks in innovative ways while travelling and practically eating their meals for free.

Cristi: She is just an amazing singer and her golden voice clubbed with her peppy guitar numbers make her a big hit! This one time I saw her make 40$ in an hour of singing, restaurant hopping.

Like Christi there are so many others! Almost everyone travels with an instrument. I'm doing my Euro trip with my Guitar for sure!

Ben: This French man not only has an entrepreneurial streak but is also an excellent teacher. He is an amazing metal smiths who initiated me into buying my own player and wire and I did not quite bad for my first time. The best part was to hear a french man and an Indian girl communicate in their newly learnt Spanish. 

My first earring :) 

This cute couple sold trinkets they made outta metal and thread and did a pretty neat job of it too! They were like the power couple of the hippie world!

The treasure chest:

A little something I learnt how to make:

Las Malabaristas(The Jugglers): If I had a penny for every juggler I met I'd have been the one eating my meals for free. For these guys their day starts at the semaphores and on a good day they can earn about 30$ in a 4 hour work period.

The little Bakers: Seriously? An 86% profit margin with the initial investment of  4$ for the raw material to make 30$ in one afternoon's work. The have some amazing marketing and aesthetic sense and always make their products look good. 

If money is the biggest criteria keeping you from travelling, here is the quick fix solution. So, go ahead and head out with your backpack and your guitar! 

Spell bound

If you can't decide between the beautiful blue water costs and trekking high mountains, Qilotova, Ecuador is the place for you. A giant blue-green water filled volcanic Crater 4500 masl, it has a 3 km wide caldera you can hike down to.

Once you are down there you can kayak, camp and even take a dip in the mineral rich freezing cold lake. Don't forget to take your bathing suit in case you want to do the craziest thing of your life!

It takes about 25 mins to hike down and about an hour exhausting hike up. There is an option of hiking back up on a mule back for 8$. But if you are an animal lover like me, then take it as a personal challenge and hike up. Trust me the feeling of achievement hiking back on foot is worth it! There are breathtaking views every step to keep you motivated to continue.

There are also a lot of hostels in the vicinity you can stay the night in case you want to wake up to a spectacular view every morning.      

You can't help but feel over powered by nature's beauty, at peace with yourself and humbled by everything around.

The fruit of a cactus.Tasted kind of sweet and mushy. If I had to compare it with another known fruit it would be combination of a passion fruit and custard apple as it has edible seeds like a passion fruit and the consistency of a custard apple

A traditional  Quechua mountain house, And the flag which resembles a gay pride flag is the state flag of the region and can be seen on almost all houses.

We were invited inside and it was really interesting to see how architecturally sound to fight the cold. There is a mud bundh all around made with a mixture of a lot of things including urine as an adhesive. The thatched roof  is water proof and the floor has hay all around with Guinea pigs every where. The whole family sleeps together in a row thus exchanging body heat to keep warm, along with the guinea pigs . The guinea pigs serve two purposes, help keep the house warmer and when the family is hungry they just take one, roast it and eat it. 

The kid trying his hand at photography and doing a good job of it too. :) Notice how pink the cheeks are. its the same for all mountain kids due to the cold and excessive sun burn.

The gang! :) A diverse mix thus making interestingly intense conversations about existence, religion, world politics, Life! 

The mini Andean Grand Canon. 

Can't really go wrong with any of these pictures with such a perfect background. 

You don't need a reason to post cute things. :) 

You meet the strangest people on your journeys. My favorite American, Ecuadorian Sai Baba Devotee whom I met on the other side of the world, with immense knowledge about the Indian culture made me want to re read through Indian mythology. 

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship

Top #1 thing to do when you are in Ecuador is to climb the 2nd highest active volcano in the the Andes called Cotopaxi. You can climb up to 15.935 feet (at which point you can touch snow) as an inexperienced climber, with little to no acclimatization although it is much recommended to climb Quilotova(a breathtaking volcanic crater filled with blue-green mineral water) before climbing Cotopaxi to get a little acclimatized to altitude. Keep yourself hydrated, drink a lot of water and eat high calorie sweet things like chocolates or nuts before and while climbing. Cocoa(the special medicinal local tea) helps too. The altitude can really get to you so if you feel any sort of head aches or fatigue, do not push yourself. Its best to return.

We started in our tour bus from Quito which had a diverse group which had  a couple from Venezuela, two one from Spain, two boys from France, a retired traveler from USA, mother and daughter from Argentina, my friend from Colombia, a couple from Uruguay and I from India, of course. We crossed through the Avenida de los Volcans, the Lane of Volcanoes which had old volcanoes on either side of the road and we were being told the history, age, dates of last eruption of these volcanoes, as and when we were passing them. I couldn't help but think that this would make the best Geography lesson field trip for kids. 

You say volcanoes and my head imagines red hot magma oozing out of craters and the best way to find motivation to keep climbing is imagining yourself to be on a mission to destroy a ring to save mankind. 

The view of Quito, Just a tiny part of it. Because Quito is HUGE!

Our fun travel group from 7 different countries, thus making very interesting conversions, in Espanol. :)  

The Bici's were travelling with us:

Best part about Living in high altitudes, you have an excuse to eat high calorie food! 

When Elmo meets Monster's inc! 

The sudden contrast in flora and fauna with the difference in altitude. 

First Glimpse of Cotopaxi.

Yes we are there! 

The obligatory tall object picture

Barba de Viejo: Old man's beard

Here, maybe this'll add more perspective :D

And the climb begins!

Quick fix for a leaking nose! My mom hates me doing this.

Finally: Base Camp! 

The view! 

The best part is Biking down the hill. Trust me when I say, it will be the best bike ride of your life! 

The feeling of BMXing down! 

Apart for the accomplishment of climbing the one of the highest active volcanoes in the world you will be humbled by the view and the whole experience. A must do at least once in a life time!