I can’t believe this trip was over a year and a half ago! Last winter I had the opportunity to travel throughout India and take photos with Raja Kumari to document the up and coming hip hop scene. Our trip began on Thanksgiving with over 30 hours of travel before reaching our destination. Fortunately for us it was the same day Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life was released. We made an effort to watch the entire season during our very long layover in Dubai, but in our stars hollow daze we almost missed our connecting flight. Somehow we caught the flight and made it to Hyderabad.

The streets were busy, the smells were new, and a place I only dreamed of came to life before my eyes. During that first week, we went to the markets, bartered for bangles, visited the Vegnessa Foundation, climbed Charminar, and looked out over this city. There were people on motorcycles zooming everywhere, cows walking through the streets, meat hanging in doorways. We learned to eat with our hands — some did better than others — meaning I was not great. And the food — my mouth waters now just at the thought of panipuri, curries, and fresh aloo paratha. We discovered our new favorite soda Thumbs Up all while trying to outrun our ill-fated jet lag. This collection of photos is from our first week of travel in Hyderabad, India.