6-9-2011: The End...

I sat in the white room watching the once strong man lie sick in his bed as the cancer slowly ate away at his life. The beeping of the numerous machines with tubes connecting to his body assuring us he was alive. The clock struck midnight as the doctor took off his oxygen mask so we could talk to him. My cousins father-in-law lay sick in bed with cancer, no one knew if he would survive it, so on my last night in Dhaka we decided it would be fitting to visit him. As he held the hand of his daughter, talking to her undoubtedly about their deep love for one another, I couldn’t help but think of my dad. I looked into his eyes and tried to envision the Bangladesh he remembered, and through my experiences over the last month here, I was truly able to do so.

A hiking trail deep in the mountains of Bangladesh...

My last full day in Bangladesh consisted of running around visiting family, shopping for family and friends back home, and trying to fully take in what I was surely going to miss about this country. The days I would wake up with a servant cooking and cleaning for me, the days in which family would go out of there way to show me around the cities, and the days I would hang around with my dad without a care in the world…they would surely be missed.

A waterfall I came across while on a hike...

Cars rolled by as I looked out the window, waiting in the long Dhaka traffic to get to destination called, “New Market” to get my last bit of shopping done. The sun blazed down on the bright green trees as the thousands of people walked by going about their business. Billboards advertising the latest Honda motorcycle enticed passersby as I noticed a woman carrying large fruits over her head like you would see on National Geographic. As I sit in the car, I couldn’t help but wonder what my new perspectives I’ve gained from this trip would bring me as soon as I got home; surely, a new appreciation for everyone, everything, and anything.

"New Market"

The sky was bright blue when we finally got to new market. The humid day instantly brought sweat to my face as I noticed that this shopping experience would be more than your average trip to the mall. New Market was like a bazaar from Aladdin, only the stalls (outdoor shops) stretched from street to street, and block to block; endless. The amount of people was a sight to behold; shoulder to shoulder, like New York on steroids. Every step couldn’t be taken without bumping into someone. There were shops with men practically begging you to bring them your patronage, while women with children asking to spare them some money. As we nestled into our first stop, my cousin started bartering for gold bangles I promised my mom back home, I listened as their voices got louder which each price named. “30!” “40” “35!” Finally a deal was struck, my cousin seeming happy that her bargaining strategy worked.

The shops were endless at New Market...

The little details of these experiences are what you remember throughout your life, and this was surely one of them. We left after getting our shopping done not too long after, drenched in sweat and full of life from the interactions of the day.

Some specialty sweets being freshly made...

Later that evening dinner was accompanied by a reddish haze of a sunset along with tiny droplets of rain I barely noticed. My cousins and I got out of the air conditioned car and stepped foot inside a nice café reminiscent of Starbucks. We laughed, shared stories that we thought we’d never shared due to the vast distance between our places of residences, and we drank great coffee. Etched in my memories are the smiles we shared.

You see, travel brings a new perspective to everyday life. Little intricacies that we take for granted (like drinking water, or running electricity), are magnified when you travel; you learn to appreciate the little things. For me, traveling always brings me a new appreciate for life, for MY life, and for the situation I’ve been graced with. Not only this, but it also gives me an appreciation for the people I’ve been blessed to come across while on my travels; from the little farmers at the beginning of the trip, to my family, to the families begging for money. This is why I brought up the sick man, through his sickness and will to live brought me a better appreciation for what I have. It brought me a better appreciation for my family, for my friends, for everything. I’m leaving Bangladesh with all of this better understood, sure a new car is nice, but can one really put a price on sharing a good laugh over a beer with your dad? Life doesn’t have to be appreciated through traveling, but it helps. But it doesn’t take traveling to appreciate the intricacies you should enjoy everyday; laughter, family, friends. I will miss this country, but I will be sure to come back very soon.