In 1997, I travelled to India with our oldest daughter who was 14 at the time. This started our family tradition of one parent taking a child on a large trip in their grade 8 year. Andrea took our other daughter to Europe in 2000 and I took our son to Italy and Greece in 2002.
The main reason we picked India was that Mennonite World Conference was having their meetings there that year. They plan world events every seven years or so.
In combination with this conference there were many group trips planned, so we joined one of those. This meant the major planning was done for us and we could travel with others the whole way, which was great for us.
It was a long flight to New Delhi, India through Amsterdam. We were very tired for the first very long day which ended in a night visit to the Red Fort and its light show. We also saw a few “snake charmers” with King Cobras in a basket and since our daughter had a phobia about snakes that didn’t help. She was very tired and more than a little overwhelmed by supper that night, which was around 8 p.m. as traditional in India. She broke down during the meal so I took her back to our room, found some Oprah on television and wondered if I had made a mistake taking such a young girl to this country. The next day we started later in the day and had a much easier itinerary, including Indira Gandhi museum and some lovely outdoor sites. After buying a sari for her, our daughter was much happier and she did great the rest of the trip. She even decided to take a trip to China a few years later with her school, so I think India was a good trip for her after all.
I was nervous a few other times though. On the first flight, we both went to the washrooms on the plane. After she was done I told her to wait outside the washroom door until I came out. When I tried to open the door someone was blocking it. I pushed harder and got it open to find an intoxicated man harassing my daughter!! I was not impressed and this upset my daughter but was also a good reminder that I needed to be extra attentive at all times.
One time when I thought the site the group was going to visit might be too much for my daughter, we decided to go back to the conference ourselves. Our tour leader found us a good taxi and talked wit the drive to make sure he knew where to take us and also agree on a price. As soon as we drove away it was clear he didn’t know where we were going. I had the name of the school but that didn’t seem to help him. I didn’t have an actual address or map with me. Since this was daytime and we were in a busy area, I was about to ask him to drop us off to switch cabs when he pulled over by the side of the busy street. He stopped a well dressed man who was able to translate for us and we were on our way again! It was quite a long drive and the driver wasn’t happy with the agreed to fare at the other end but we worked it out quickly and easily.
Another time on a cab ride back to our hotel from the conference grounds, our driver pulled up beside another car at a light. The other car was filled with young men who seemed to be staring at my daughter and chatting a lot with our driver. As the light turned green the other car turned into an alley and our driver changed lanes quickly and followed them. With the prior conversation and this quick change of directions, I was not feeling very good! I imagined both cars stopping in a dark alley and was trying to figure out what I’d do. I kept watch to see how far we were into the alley so I’d know which way was quickest to run when all of a sudden the other car stopped but we kept going. Soon we popped out of the other end of the alley, turned a corner and arrived safely at our hotel. I breathed a sigh of relief and I don’t’ think my daughter thought anything of it.
The trip overall was great, despite these nervous times. We had six flights, bus rides and a train ride. We saw much of New Delhi, parts of Calcutta and took a train ride from Calcutta to a resort town called Puri on the Indian Ocean. We swam in that ocean and also saw the Taj Mahal on a day trip our of New Delhi. The conference of 5,000 Mennonites from around the world, including my brother’s family and others we knew was a welcome and interesting event. We took a walk one day with my brother’s family and we had to navigate a large protest in Calcutta streets. They were upset with Britain and its Prime Minister John Majors. He was coming for a visit and to prepare the Indian government moved out many small businesses along a few major streets. They were basically squatters and the government “cleaning up the streets” for Mr. Majors was not appreciated by many citizens.
We also had three nights in Amsterdam on the way home. We rented a car and drove around the inland lake, stopping at some Mennonite historical sites, a church where Mozart once played the organ and toured some amazing museums in Amsterdam, including the Anne Frank house. We also drove through the “red light district” but that was a mistake. Driving in Amsterdam was an adventure for sure!
After 17 days away we were glad to land back in Toronto to find our family waiting for us.