India. If you haven't read part one about our trip to the other side of the globe, I suggest you start there. :)  

The second week of our India trip, we flew to Chennai and stayed with family.

It was SO wonderful getting to meet all of these cousins and aunts that I'd never met before. :)

Chennai was full of amazing sights to see...

And - of course - crazy English signs here and there.

We found Santa in the basement of St. Thomas's burial place. It made for a good chuckle. :)

People in the vehicle next to yours are only too willing to wave at the massive camera pointed their way. It was delightful. :)

These two are brothers. We called them Peter Pan and Chancho... just for fun. :)

While we were at someone's house...

We had the AMAZING opportunity to go swimming in the Bay of Bengal!

It was FANTASTIC!

This is One Meter Coffee. You mix your coffee by pouring it back and forth into your two cups/bowls. Apparently, it mixes better if you can pour it a whole meter long without spilling. And also... it tastes better at 1:30 in the morning. :)

The shopping malls in India were a small taste of home - with some of the sames stores!

Here's the ONE thing you need to know about Indians. They feed you. Constantly. And if you don't eat - they're insulted. ;)

Speaking of eating... we went with our cousin one morning to see where they get their food - the market.

Fresh chicken... (it was gross and I almost threw up)... Mmmm.....

Tasting FRESH coconut is SUCH a unique experience!

Especially when the man wearing the skirt (it's a lungi... but it looks like a skirt) hacks it open with a machete. DAY. MADE.

On to the meat market!

Goat stomach, anyone?

Believe it or not, the smell of fish was a welcome, familiar smell (after the goat stomach, that is).

After staying in Chennai for a week, we went to Jaipur.

The hotel we stayed in was right on a fairly busy street that we had to cross quite frequently. Believe me, you've never REALLY feared for your life until you've crossed an Indian street.

Maybe it's cause I was white. Maybe it's cause I was white AND I wore Indian clothes. Maybe it's because I had a big 'ol camera. Maybe it's all of the above...

Regardless of the reason, wherever I went, people stared. And stared. And stared some more. (Did I mentioned I'm SUPER thankful I have a husband?)

The palaces, forts and buildings that we visited in the various cities were SO stunning.

This is the BEAUTIFUL City Palace. You can read more about it here. :)

When you walk the streets, there are people EVERYWHERE. Also, there is no such thing as personal space. One man's sidewalk is another man's bed.

In India, elephants in the street is a common occurrence. Unfortunately, we found that out after we told the whole neighborhood that THERE WERE ELEPHANTS IN THE STREET! Those foolish Americans. :)

Never mind chairs! These people were more than willing to sit on the floor in a tiny little space just to praise Jesus together.

One hundred and twenty people fit in this house. You should see the pile of shoes outside. :)

This is the part where Sunil's dad is explaining to them that I really look nothing like Justin Bieber. (Ok, so I don't remember what he's saying here... but they really thought I looked like Justin Bieber!)

If I fit anymore pictures into this post, I do believe it will explode! I'll save the last week of our trip for my next post. And my favorite photos of... the TAJ MAHAL! WOOT! :)

Have a wonderful week! :)

India. A place that was once so small on the map to me is now connected with places, people and experiences. Sunil and I got back from our epic trip to India last week - just in time for Black Friday(not)! :) To explain a whole country in one blog post would be outrageous... So I'll do 3 posts - one for each week we were there. :) First things first: The trip there. Since we would be traveling for over 24 hours just to reach the country of India, I made sure to wear pajamas. It may not look stylish, but it is SO comfy! :)

These are the happy traveling photos. Laughing, smiling and skyping friends and family.

I won't show you the ugly traveling photos, because I wasn't really awake for those. A 13 hour plane ride is enough to make you feel like you're 87 years old, and I was too exhausted by the end of it to even think about turning on my camera.

Please note: When traveling with family for a very long time, bring card games. They make my husband giggle. And when my husband giggles... all is right in the world.

BOOM. India. Most of my first experiences with the country were from within the car, so please forgive the wonderful black borders around each photo.

We arrived in the early morning - just at sunrise.

And were promptly fed and sent to bed by the wonderful people that live here: Uncle Sam and Auntie Molly. (They aren't really uncle and auntie... in India you just call everyone uncle and auntie that you really really like!)

Since there are SO many more people in India (and therefore SO many more little businesses), the amount of signage was pretty unbelievable!

Our first week was spent in Kochi, in the state of Kerala....

Hence the palm trees! :)

Mmmm... Palm trees!

Check out those rubber trees!

Sometimes we visited structures and buildings that were SO much older than I could fathom. The very thought of something being built over 1000 years ago is mind-blowing!

Our wonderful guide - Uncle Sam. :)

In India (and I'm sure in other places as well!) people travel as families on scooters. The parents... the kids... and all of their possessions! 

English signs were common... but often hilarious. :)

Coconut trees! :)

Best thing about breakfast? Picking your own bananas. :)

I won't go into detail about the plumbing... but let's just say that sometimes.... it's like the whole world is an outhouse.

Don't be alarmed: People take off their shoes before they enter buildings because they're cool like that. (Actually it's because it keeps things cleaner and you stay much cooler that way!)

And since you share water bottles with everyone... you get really good at drinking like a football player.

Side note on PDA in India: There is none (very little!). This is how Sunil and I snuggled.

Praising Jesus in a different language was quite the amazing experience...

Especially when you get to do it with LOTS of other people!

Kind of like how I imagine heaven will be someday. :)

Somehow I had imagined rice fields to be white. Like rice. Silly homeschooled me. :)

That's not a man wearing a skirt - that's a lungi. I know. It takes some getting used to, doesn't it?

This man probably like newspapers a lot.

This is how they cook curry for over a hundred people.

ELEPHANTS! Yes, we went to an elephant sanctuary in the rain! It was a delightful experience - minus the rain and mud part. :)

This is the Arabian Sea! Unfortunately, it was far too dirty to swim in.

Shopping in India is just as fun, and FAR more colorful than any American store ever will be. :)

There we go snuggling again... ;)

I'm not sure what Mirinda is, but it tasted an awful lot like Fanta. :)

Indian people are diligent. They will follow you for miles if they think you're interested in their little drums.

Scaffolding in India is a lot more like a dare. As in, "I dare you not fall!"

Navigating salesmen is SO much easier when you have a father-in-law that speaks the language.

And thus our first week ended. Can't wait to share more next week!! :)