India
From the Album India
Long ago, I saw you in a dream
Not knowing what I’d seen, so unreal
It felt like, I was being shown the way
To where I couldn’t say, only feel
India from generations past
The die was long since cast
I was being called to make my way home
India how was I to know
Where it was I had to go
When so little did I know about
India
Time soon passed and fate was kind to me
Allowing me to see so many places
I travelled far, so many things I saw
The world an open door, so many faces
India, you showed me I was blind
To a world that lay behind
What there is, and what we see
India, your heart is open wide
You welcomed me inside
Forever I am yours
India
India you are suffering once again
With a world that shares your pain
When it will end?
India when will we meet again
But for now I can only send
My love
India
THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG
Federika and I have in the last few years been very lucky in being able to travel wherever we wanted and avoid the worst of the winter. Years ago we considered India, but as neither of us is keen on noise, crowds or dirt, we kept putting it off. Then someone suggested a practice run to Sri Lanka, which is described by some as being India for beginners. It was 2 am when our taxi dropped us off at the Grand Oriental Hotel in Colombo, and the first thing we saw was two rats walking casually across the entrance to the hotel.
Despite the welcoming committee, we had a great holiday in Sri Lanka, and the following year we went to India, starting in New Delhi. It was noisy, filthy, chaotic and surprisingly cold, but it was also magical. Once we accepted India for what it was, we loved it and went been back three years running. We felt totally safe at all times, and neither of us had any problems with upset tummies despite being adventurous in our choice of food. The people are wonderful, and I have never felt so welcomed in my fifty years of extensive travel.
