India? Yes, please!!!

Location: Delhi, India
Date: February 11, 2010

My arrival in India was a crazy one. When I got into New Delhi airport, it was 5am…I had arranged an airport pickup with my hostel, and they had not come. I was in a new country with a new language, and I was sleepy. I decided to get a prepaid cab, and after dodging the scammers that wanted me to take their taxis, I crawled into the back of black and yellow cab, gave the driver the address, and sat back, exhausted. As soon as we pulled onto the road, I saw people walking in the dark on the side of ride, trucks full of chickens, and women in beautiful saris riding sidesaddle on the back of motorcycles. I saw cows just wandering down the middle of the road, and I heard music and honking. My driver looked at me and said, “You like Indian music,” and with my reply of “why not?” we had a soundtrack to our journey. The taxis swerved in between tiny spaces that the trucks left, and nearly wounded a cow. We found ourselves in the Neb Sarai area of Delhi, and although we had the address, we couldn’t locate my hostel. My driver asked the people we passed by and the men sitting in the streets around fires, and each person gave a different answer about where the hostel was. As the time passed and the sun came up, I gave up hope that I would get to go to sleep in my hostel soon, so I told the cabbie to take me anywhere he knew of that had a place to sleep. At this point it was 7:30 and we had spent 2 hours driving around! Finally, we made our way to Paharganj, a super busy street in Delhi full of shops, people, cows, rickshaws and colors. I stumbled out of the cab and fell asleep in the hotel to the sounds of horns, dogs barking and people yelling. I had officially arrived in India.

Although my travels have taken me to many different places across the globe, India felt like a world in itself. As I curled up in bed, I listened to the street noises and tried to remind myself that in a few days I would be ok. For the time being, I just felt alone and scared, and so I decided to sleep part of the day before facing the craziness of the streets.

When I finally did wake up, I felt ready to go exploring, and although the streets were so busy that you could barely cross the road, I made my way around the Main Bazaar of Paharganj, staring in awe at the street foods frying and the cows meandering. I found Delhi to be beautiful chaos.

The Lotus temple, a Bahai Place of Worship
In the next few days, I got to know the city a bit, which took a bit of time since there was so much going on all at once. I explored the Lotus temple, a Bahai place of worship, and spent hours in the many markets. I took swerving rickshaw rides that made you thankful for each moment you stayed alive…the traffic in Delhi is pure disorder. Cars drive alongside of cows and bicyclists and trucks and somehow the rickshaws are able to find little tiny spaces to squeeze their way through. I even had one rickshaw driver who liked to drive next to the trucks and scrawl something into the dirt on the side. Comforting….

Cows!

The business of the streets of Paharganj, Delhi

A man outside of the market, sitting on chicken cages

I spent some time strolling in the spice market, and it was on this day that I abandoned my fear of India which was replaced by an absolute fascination and adoration of this land. I had finally gotten the guts to take a rickshaw by myself- which in itself is a long process- seeking out drivers, bargaining for a fair price, and then making it to your destination alive- when I got to the market, I was surrounded by so many people and I was bit afraid I wouldn’t be able to find my own way. Yet, as soon as I started walking, I smiled at the people and they smiled back, and I spent hours just chatting and watching and laughing, and it was a lovely day. People would ask me to pose in pictures with them, and I in turn, would do the same. A man who drove a rickshaw walked me through the crowds (after I refused the rickshaw) to get to the Red Fort, helping me find my way, without asking for compensation or anything.

Busy busy busy!

The colors of the markets

Spices

Red fort

I ran into a school group at the Red Fort that I spent the following few hours with. I met them in line outside the fort and they practiced their English with me and we toured the site together. When I finally did have to go my own way, the entire group looked at me and waved, shouting goodbye. It was really a beautiful day.

People here are so kind and will go out of their way to help you with whatever it is you need. They are gentle and sweet and love to laugh. It is sometimes difficult to know when you are being swindled, but overall, I have found India to be protective of solo women travelers and the worst that is going to happen is that you pay an extra 20 cents or so

The school group

Some local kids at the Red Fort

Two teachers from the West and the East

Saying goodbye to the school girls was hard!

Heading out of Delhi to a place called Rishikesh on the sleeper train tomorrow. It is one of the yoga capitals of the world, so I should find some respite there after the craziness of Delhi. I am working my way up north to Dharmasala, and then on to West India (I think!). Stay tuned.

Namaste