I arrived at 9am or so at Indira Gandhi International Airport, got my luggage and sleepily made my way to my hotel, the White Klove. This involved taking my carry on and two suitcases via the metro with a friend who met me at the airport then stuffing us and all my things into an autorickshaw ( small yellow and green cabs that are essentially a scooter driven by a driver with a backseat that comfortably sits 2 but often whole families will pile in) when we found a driver who seemed to know where the hotel was. I can't imagine doing this alone or without speaking Hindi.
Upon arriving I was greeted with a few issues. The hotel supposedly had wifi but the entire time I stayed there I was unable to login. I also learned my ATM card was frozen from some transactions in Dubai so I wasn't able to easily get money. I also didn't use my US phone. If I wasn't planning to be reliant on my friends I would have been up the creek without a paddle.
Despite these challenges I was to overcome the next few days I thought I would relax as I met with an old friend and was in good hands. I cannot recommend enough that if you ever visit India you need a good local guide, preferably a personal friend who knows the prices and value of goods and services and is willing to stand up for you in the cases where locals will charge the "gora tax" to foreigners. In some cases my friend was being overcharged because people thought we both were foriegners.
I asked my friend to take me to see New Delhi from his perspective, not so touristy. We made our way via auto.
The air is filled with a dusty haze and there are wild street dogs laying willy nilly waiting for a scrap or for the humans to look away so they can rifle in the nearby bucket of trash. The road is littered with scraps from snacks and small packets of chewing tobacco in paan masala flavor or more nasty mix of stuff called gutkha.
The streets are lined with shops but nothing like someone raised in America can understand. There might be a building with several holes in it that might be 5 or 10 feet square. Dust covers everything and many Indians spend time sitting around or loitering by some of these places. You might see some fruit stands or drink vendors scattered about.
We went to this outside shopping district that was in a large arc that had more "proper" shops and restaurants but also a lot of street vendors. We went to a popular little eatery to get some rolls. Imagine delicious spicy tandoori chicken wrapped in a roti. It tasted somehow better than anything I had tried in the us. I'm also pretty sure it wasn't just because I was hungry. I was excited to get a 20oz bottle of Thums Up which is like coke but so much better.
After eating at the cafe we took another auto to the capitol building in Delhi where the parliament sits and where the prime minister would be. Across the way from there we saw India Gate where the names of all of the martyrs are inscribed from the country's history and a never ending flame burns in their honor.
These buildings are massive enough that you can visit one and see the others from a distance. Throughout the walk around India Gate families are scattered on the lawn, more street hawkers selling balloons and other trinkets as well as fruit and roasted corn. The desis see me in this area and stare and sometimes children or beggars approach looking at me as a walking meal ticket. I have no reassurance if I give money to one of these people if they will ever keep it or if there is a boss literally forcing them to beg. Its a very difficult social situation.
The sun was setting and we had more to see before it got too dark so I was taken to a kind of local marketplace. Incidentally "ComicCon India" was happening in the same place. Here and in the metro stations security was beefed up. I lost track of how often my bags were scanned and when there is a security check, ladies walk through a separate metal detector. I found the curteosy an inequality but from an eastern point of view this is actually necessary. Once I had stayed longer in India I came to appreciate it.
So there was a never ending throng of people (not just in the marketplace, this pretty much describes all of Delhi at any hour) and occasionally a young Indian dressed as a comic book or anime character. Wolverine was probably the best character I saw. In the back of the market there were some comics for sale, many I didn't recognize, there were some X-men and some Asterix and Obelix. I was tired and overwhelmed from my trip so I passed up the chance to buy any as I didn't have a sense of what might be good. I'll look for more in the other cities ill be visiting.
I did end up buying two purses and two nice scarves. Scarves are handy to have to cover your head in any holy place or keep the dust out of your face if going by autorickshaw.
We finally returned to the area near the hotel at night. It's the same as in the daytime with a massive amount of people traveling. Everyone driving in the street honks to let you know they are there. This is like "hey, I'm coming up behind you, or in front of you, or darting out into traffic without looking so don't hit me!" Traffic is very chaotic everywhere. There's no discernable rules of the road. The shops along the road are open till 9 or 10 at night. Without wifi I knew I needed a working phone for some viable means of communication. I had maybe 5000rs to start thanks to a generous friend helping me out and I spent about 3000 on it to get a phone with Indian number. That's about $60 usd. I feel this is still too expensive but I would have to go kind of far at night to find a better deal. I was tired jet lagged and overwhelmed and felt like "screw it I'll need a phone." It should activate on Monday when someone is in the office to process my paperwork. My address is the hotel I stay at :) hopefully I can sell the phone to someone here or back home.
I was so exhausted I returned to the hotel for room service for dinner. Some chicken lollipop kind of appetizer chicken biryani and butter chicken. I wanted to try my favorite dishes here. The butter chicken is delicious and somehow different than in the US. Wish I could figure out why and cook it myself !
I ate a lot and catnapped for a while. Adjusting to the time difference wasn't so hard. I later got up in the night to use the toilet (here, toilet means the entire bathroom) there's a small water heater on the wall that might give like 5 minutes of hot water. I broke up my showering ritual into two parts. That night I took a shower without washing my hair. Next day washed hair. Not sure what to expect in Lucknow and elsewhere in my friends homes!
I was becoming sleepy and missing Seattle but excited as to what else I'll see in Delhi. I think I fell asleep around 8pm.
The butter chicken is different because they use unrefined safflower oil. In some cases they'll use refined but not always as it's more expensive. The taste and smell is very different. Also, you have to contend with the difference in soil tastes between the two countries.
ReplyDeleteI hope your friend took you to some of the lesser known places in Delhi. I know it's low class of me to say it but I love Paharganj for shopping. It's cheap, has way too many tourist doing drugs, etc. but the deals and goods you find there are quite spectacular. You can find restaurants from every state in India.
I also like the government emporiums on the backside of Cannaught Place. They're a little pricy but I love the handicrafts they sell. I don't buy much but it's always fun to go look at them.