Day 14: Leaving India :(

Sadly, today was the day we left to go home. We started our morning with one last breakfast on the rooftop of our hotel together (the banana bread and orange juice was so good we kept getting refills!).

After that, we met up with Ali (our guide) for one last activity in Delhi. He took us to the Sarojini Market, which was a huge outdoor market with tons of vendors and small shops. We all had such a great time shopping and spent a while walking around picking out last minute souvenirs for ourselves or loved ones.

Next, we headed over to a restaurant for one last lunch together. This was one of our favorite meals- everything was so delicious! We had to stay at the restaurant for a couple hours to wait until it was time to go to the airport. We said goodbye to two of our SWIndia friends that left to go see their family in other parts of India. Then, the rest of us headed over to the airport to fly back to Chicago. We were so sad saying goodbye to Ali, because he was almost like a father to us this trip and took such good care of us! He was so kind, we always felt so safe with him, and he took us to so many sights/activities/restaurants that we loved!!

He was the best guide ever, and we all hope to see him again someday in India. 

Our first flight was from Delhi to Abu Dhabi, and it was very cool to see the Abu Dhabi airport. It was so beautiful and none of us had been there before! Now, we’re on the plane from Abu Dhabi to Chicago and almost home. 

This has been the most amazing two weeks, and I think we could all agree that it was a life-changing experience. We are all so grateful for SWIndia for introducing us to new people that quickly became our best friends, and we plan on keeping in contact with each other at Michigan. Every part of this trip was incredible and we couldn’t have asked for a better itinerary- the first week at BCA was so inspiring and the second week touring around India was very fun! We saw so many cities and immersed ourselves in the culture here, which was so special. We will never forget our time in Walchandnagar and BCA, and the students, teachers, and staff that made our experience so wonderful. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we are so sad that it is over. Thank you for staying tuned with our travels the past two weeks, we hope you enjoyed!!