My first trip abroad -Five countries in five weeks

It was in early 1976 when I was 34, that Round Table India chose me as a candidate for the Travel Grant of WoCo (World Council of Young Men’s Service — the parent body to which Round Table India was affiliated) to attend the AGM of Apex Australia (another youth organization affiliated to WoCo) in Mount Gambia, Southern Australia. It was a five week trip that covered 5 countries — Sri Lanka (Colombo), Singapore, KL in Malaysia, Melbourne, Sydney and Perth in Australia, Christchurch & Auckland in NewZealand.

The Association paid for the air fare and I was by members of the association in each country. Staying with families in every country was a memorable experience.

 I would like to share three  interesting experiences I had during this trip Melbourne was my first halt in Australia. I was hosted by Alan Harvey, President of the Mt. Eliza club near Melboune He had mentioned to his 6-year-old son that an Indian was coming home to stay with them. When I arrived at his home and was introduced to the family, his son appeared disappointed to find me suited and booted. He innocently asked, “Daddy, you told me he is an Indian, but he is not wearing any feathers”. Thanks to the Idiot Box those days which used to portray Indians as ‘Red Indians’ .

 Another memorable moment was the visit to the famous Melbourne Cricket  Club  . It was a dream come true for me since I was a keen cricket enthusiast as a student, for whom names like Melbourne or Sydney sounded mystic. I had never imagined  that one day I would be standing on the stands of the Melbourne cricket grounds, clicking away in the huge stadium (capacity — 1,20,000) with my instamatic. The cricket club also boasts of the best cricket museum in the world. The curator of the museum, an old man in his 70’s, was all enthusiasm . He presented me two mementos- a  c hipped dinner plate used by the Indian Team and a MCG tie. I was delighted beyond words.

 In Christchurch, I stayed with Alistair, a bachelor! My hope of painting the town red with a bachelor was deflated when I found that  Alistair was very busy courting his charming fiancée Pauline. They had the misfortune of tasting an Indian meal that I prepared. What else but plain rice, yoghurt, pickles (donated by my host in Colombo) and a special rasam, made with Madras curry powder (without tamarind or lime). The rasam was the limit as both felt that I could not be a human being to swallow such a pungent concoction. But even that concoction tasted like nectar to me after being on a diet of boiled vegetables & leafy sandwiches.

 In the next post I will share with you my unforgettable experiences during my first trip to Europe.