Content in the Subcontinent

　　A Chinese backpacker and her American husband document real India in a recently released travelogue

　　Despite the fact that many in India are materially poor and impoverished， they are satisfied and happy with life thanks to their inner spirituality.

　　This is how Hong Mei， a Chinese writer who backpacked across India for a year with her American husband Tom Carter， describes India in her newly published travelogue The Farther I Walk， the Closer I Get to Me.

　　The book， published by Beijing’s New Star Press in May， is considered one of the most comprehensive travelogues of India ever written by a Chinese person. Hong recounted in detail her experiences traveling in India， including descriptions of local religious ceremonies， festival celebrations， indigenous tribes， food， accommodation and transportation. She also expressed her feelings about India and its people， while providing a useful guide for those who plan to travel there in the future.

　　The road less traveled

　　In the beginning， Hong had no plans to venture across India. Rather， it was her husband， at that time her boyfriend， who persuaded her to quit her job in a film company and to travel to the South Asian nation with him in March 2009.

　　Before her India trip， Hong， born in 1981 in Wuxi， east China’s Jiangsu Province， had never traveled outside of the country. Her backpacking experience comprised only one year spent traveling around China with Carter from 2007 to 2008， during which she said she really saw her own country for the first time. “I traveled to India entirely because of Tom. The concept of backpacking also came from him，” said Hong.

　　So did the money， as Hong had to leave her lucrative job. During their travels， the couple relied on Carter’s savings from teaching English in Japan during the year prior， about $7，000 in total. This allowed them each a budget of $10 a day during their time in India， a very tight budget even in a developing country. In order to save money， they relied on low-end hotels and traditional modes of transportation including trains， buses， auto-rickshaws， and hitch-hiking. This resulted in some interesting and even hair-raising experiences， like the time when a rat fell from the ceiling onto their hotel bed.

　　Backpacking for one year was no easy task for the couple， as they tried to visit as many places as possible with as little money as possible. In addition， Carter often got sick during their time there.

　　“This was the great irony of the trip. I persuaded her to come to India with me， but during the trip， I was the one who couldn’t take it and wanted to go home，” said Carter.

　　In spite of all the difficulties， Hong and Carter managed to complete their circuit and experience the “real India.” They were deeply impressed with the cultural diversity of the country.

　　“Traveling in a place like India really enriches your life and provides you with a lot of experiences that you normally wouldn’t have： meeting so many different kinds of people， seeing so many different ways of living， experiencing the contrasting lifestyles and cultures，” Carter told Beijing Review.

　　In order to see India behind the scenes， the couple deliberately selected places to visit off the beaten path. For example， they visited many small villages in west India’s Gujarat in order to get a glimpse into the life of local tribes.

　　Different tribes hold different attitudes to tourists： some are cold， some friendly， and some overly welcoming. Some allow their photos to be taken while others explicitly do not. Children there generally liked to be photographed. However， they would often crowd around the couple， asking for prints of the photos. Hong wrote in her book that she and Carter would send them photos afterward through local tour guides. They knew that a small photo was a precious gift for many Indian children， and the best gift visitors could give them.

　　Unlike tourists who are fond of visiting famous tourist sites in India， Hong and Carter chose lesser-known places to see daily life there.

　　In order to experience Indian culture， the couple celebrated many traditional festivals with local people including the Kumbh Mela gathering of Hindu pilgrims， the Pushkar Camel Fair， and the Hindu festival Holi.

　　In Vrindavan， a town in north India’s Uttar Pradesh， the couple went for the most fervent celebration of Holi. They arrived there in early March in order to experience the fun of the carnival-like atmosphere. On the streets， Hong and Carter were playfully chased by local people who splashed bright-colored powder on the travelers， shouting “Happy Holi！” One even came directly at Hong and poured a whole bag of powder onto her， as she recounted in her book.

　　“Before I went to India， my impressions of the country came solely from the few Indian movies I watched as a kid. Beautiful leading actors and actresses， magnificent garments in vibrant colors， and beautiful songs and dances constituted my whole impression，” Hong said.

　　“However， after traveling in the country for a whole year， I have derived a much deeper understanding. I find that material wealth is not so important for one to attain happiness. What matters is not whether you are rich but whether you are happy，” Hong added.

　　Carter echoed her views by saying， “India is a spiritual society. You don’t see the level of happiness and contentment in America or other Western societies that you do in India.”

　　Adventuring abroad

　　In recent years， travelogues depicting overseas adventures have gained popularity in China， especially among young people.

　　“Such books enable youngsters to discover the places they want to visit， but have no time to do so on their own，” said Ge Jianting， an editor with Thinkingdom Media Group Ltd.， a co-publisher of Hong’s book.

　　As the country’s economy thrives， more and more Chinese are choosing to travel overseas. According to a report jointly released by Xinhua News Agency and Visa Inc. in September， Chinese travelers made 98 million outbound trips in 2013， an 18-percent increase year on year. The report also estimates that the number of such trips will total some 116 million this year.

　　However， compared with their parents’ generation， who often register with a tourist agency and travel in groups when going abroad， young Chinese travelers prefer to go independently. They want to have unique overseas experiences.

　　In the view of Zhang Mei， founder of the travel website Beshan.com， which provides personalized services for independent travelers， this reflects a cultural change. The younger generation wants to make their own decisions in every aspect of their lives， Zhang said.

　　Young Chinese travelers are generally better educated and more proficient at speaking foreign languages， especially English， which makes it easier for them to communicate with locals while abroad. Additionally， many have adopted the “gap year” system for traveling， as they don’t have an incentive to keep working for one company for a long period of time.

　　“There’s an appeal now to go traveling and get experience in the real world， which is more empowering and enriching than working in a job that doesn’t mean something to someone，” Carter said， commenting on the increasing number of solo “gap year” Chinese travelers.

　　Discussing their future plans， the couple said they would take their son， who was born in 2012 after their India trip， traveling around the world. “We want to raise him by traveling from country to country，” said Carter. Currently， the couple lives in Shanghai with Carter working as a freelancer photographer and Hong as a stay-at-home mother.

　　“As long as we are happy now， it’s OK. I don’t want to think too much about the future，” Hong said.

　　The two are considering translating Hong’s book into other languages， primarily English， in order to reach the Indian audience.

　　“I believe that travel and literature， rather than politics， are ideally the best way to foster understanding between the ordinary people of these two great cultures，” said Hong.

　　By Ji Jing