I’m currently in Mumbai, on the third and final leg of my tour of India.
The reason I came to India is to take part in The Ultimate Experience, India tomorrow. The event will be extremely impactful and I don’t doubt I’ll talk far more about it next week. However, I also wanted to experience different parts of India since I was coming all this way.
My choice of places to visit was quite haphazard in some senses. Delhi is not a place people tend to recommend visiting especially. Mumbai is an economic centre (and a beautiful one at that). Whilst Jaipur is a beautiful city to visit, I did not really venture out of the cities. I also chose not to see key sites like the Taj Mahal, for want of not cramming too much in.
Yet these three cities actually have given a really vivid and different set of experiences. In Delhi, I saw the political capital. Sprawling cities with urban disarray. The streets were crammed, and once you get out of the embassy quarters, there is a crazed sprawl of cars and junctions. On my tight budget, I stayed out more towards the messier areas. It allowed me to have the experience of walking through crammed but humble neighbourhood shops in my search of a padlock, a sim-card top up and a phone charger.
I had an incredible Tuesday which started with me heading to the Lotus Temple – a beautiful structure with a piercing quietness within. It gave me space to reflect on a number of things happening within my life. I then headed to a stakeholder workshop as part of my job which happened to be taking place in Delhi, and I learnt about the different climate actors in India.
It’s impressive to see the amount of work taking place in India and the growing conscientiousness towards climate issues. Here you can see the issues of population growth, urban sprawl and pollution right up in front of you. Yet there is also an evident need for greater development and increasing people’s economic welfare, which brings its own tensions.
In Jaipur, I visited the Amer Fort and City Palace. I did not know that Jaipur actually had its own royal family. The city is known as the Pink City for its vivid colours around the town, and there are beautiful historic structures to be found around the town.
My most poignant moment was going into the slums. Through a chance interaction I spoke to a tuk-tuk driver who ended up taking me into his home. He was a music teacher, and so spent his time teaching kids how to play music. He did this along with his father. I posted on my social media feeds a video of them playing ‘Just the Way You Are’ by Bruno Mars.
Jaipur was also notable in the intensity of its people. The Indian people are masters at the art of selling, and nowhere did I see this more than in Jaipur – perhaps due to it being less in the economic spotlight compared to Delhi or Mumbai. I got caught up accidentally suggesting I wanted to purchase a 500 euro rug, which I had to escape out of!
I also had my palm read by a gold-medalist astrologer. In the past I would have scoffed at such things but I found them genuinely insightful and a lot lined up with what has come up in my coaching. If you’re interested to know what he said, drop me a message.
Mumbai was notable in how much stronger urban planning existed. The streets were cleaner, and the roads made far more sense. The difference in economic strength was also really evident. Going to the nicer part of town had beautiful monuments along the sea. It’s no wonder that a lot of the Bollywood stars live out here.
From a personal perspective, this trip to India has shown how apparently fearless I am. Although I’ve been grappling with this idea of ‘lacking courage’, this is certainly more internal than external. Travelling alone is no mean feat, even if it hasn’t felt like the biggest deal for me. On my way from Jaipur airport to my hostel, I ended up hitching a ride on a motorbike.
The complication being that I had a big suitcase and a backpack. So if you can picture the scene – a guy sitting at the front, a big suitcase between us (that I was holding) and driving down the winding freeways. At one point he wasn’t sure where to go, so I ended up pulling out my phone and navigating. It’s good I didn’t get injured, as I’m not sure my travel insurance would have been too impressed!
Yet there is something coming out consistently throughout this trip. I would benefit with getting clearer with myself and sharing my gifts more explicitly. Although I’ve achieved a lot in my life, I’ve heard this sort of message repeatedly from the coaches I’ve met along the way going to the same event, my own coach and even the astrologer. My ill ease even came up during my quiet contemplation at the Lotus Temple.
I’ll no doubt have bolder commitments after the event tomorrow, so I will hold off for now. This event, The Ultimate Experience, took place last year in London. There I committed to finishing my book by November, which is something I actually achieved. So it will be fun to see what I commit to this time.