When I was younger, my family always just made summer vacations to the beach or the lake, but never left the country. As in most families, international travel with young children can be unrealistic for many reasons. The hassle of lugging through the airport with little humans, the lack of patience and appreciation children have for touristy attractions, and the constant watch that parents must keep on their children. On top of this, I grew up with four siblings. So these difficulties were multiplied by five for my parents.

Thus, my first time leaving the country was when I was fourteen years old, when me and my siblings were at an old enough age to really appreciate extravagant vacations. My family is also half Indian, as my father was born in India and grew up there until he moved to the United States at the age of nine. So naturally, our first big international trip was back to his homeland. Not only is India an amazing country to see in itself, but this vacation also took us to see our Indian roots for the very first time.

India is a place of highly contrasting areas of living. While we were there, we got to see some of the cities that were prosperous, alongside with the slums that exist in other areas with many homeless living camped out on the side of the streets.

One of the highlights of the trip was of course visiting the Taj Mahal in Agra. The breathtaking view of this beautiful white marble building and the intriguing story behind its construction both added to the aura of sophistication and sacredness that seemed to surround the temple. I remember that we were even required to wear plastic shoe covers while walking around to keep the area pristine and leave no dirty footprints or marks to soil the white grounds.

One of the biggest standouts of India that I noticed almost anywhere we went were the crowded, busy streets. We took a rented van around to some of our destinations and there was always constant blaring horns, motorcylces weaving through five lanes of cars, and people walking through the traffic ridden streets to sell you their products, especially cups of masala tea. One memorable experience on the road is when my family split up into groups of two and I rode on a rikshaw with one of my great aunts, which is like a mini carriage pulled by a bicycle.

We also visited several other landmark attractions and places throughout our travel through the four cities we visited. These cities were New Delhi, Kolkata, Ranchi, and Agra. One place we visited was the Red Fort in New Delhi. This was definitely a sight to see. It was built as a palace fort for the past emperors of India and marked India’s independence from British rule. Thus, every year on their Independence Day, the prime minister raises the Indian flag and gives a speech at the main gate.


Another highlight of my trip was getting to meet extended family members on my dads side that I never even knew I had. We traveled to the cities of Kolkata and Ranchi, where he grew up, and I saw his childhood home and the low colorful buildings that made up the neighborhood. We visited the school he went to as a child as well and had a meal in his old kitchen where some of his aunts and uncles still live today.

The whole experience was extremely humbling and gave me a newfound respect for the country and all of their traditions and lifestyles. As my great aunts and uncles that still live there get older, I know that my dad hopes to travel back to India at least once more in the near future to see them again, as it may be the last time. I agree with this hope to find the time