Delhi

As I was traveling around India I kept on meeting many people who didn’t enjoy their stay in Delhi. Most hated the city and wanted to leave as fast as they could. The strong reaction to Delhi came from the immediate exposure to all the extremes of India all condensed into one area. The cultural clash is immense and it takes a while to learn the new rules of life. I heard stories of people not being taken to their Hotels or being grossly over charged for their taxi fair. The dirtiness and the decay, the extremes of poverty and wealth and the masses of people all trying to pry something out of you is quite overwhelming. Beggars at the traffic lights banging on the windows of Lamborghinis asking for alms, the previously mentioned traffic, and homeless sleeping on traffic isles is very challenging for those, like myself, who had come from lands of order where many of these extremes are not on display. Everywhere there is noise. There is a constant barrage of car horns and diesel engines, dogs barking and people arguing. If you are staying near a mosque or a Jain temple you will hear the call to devotion or songs of devotion that begin at five in the morning. In India it is only possible to find inner silence. Staying in or around Old Delhi sees all of these extremes even more compressed. Delhi is a quick awakening to India and can be a punch in the face.

My experience of Delhi differed to those of my fellow travellers. I was very fortunate to not be thrust straight into the unfamiliar. I too could see all the extremes, however it was kind of from a distance. It was not until I had arrived in Kolkata that I fully experienced what others did in Delhi.

My travel began with in a spare room of my cousin’s flat in a more affluent part of town. My cousin, Tim, works for the Australian High Commission in Delhi and as such had access to the trapping of being a diplomat abroad. To keep the household running smoothly a housekeeper/cook is needed. A personal driver is also very necessary.

While Tim was busy at work I would spend the day exploring the town. My first few days were taken up by discovering the many forts, mosques, temples, monuments and markets of the city. Leo, Tim’s driver, would take me from one destination to the next without the slightest complaint. Some of the monuments, forts and places of worship were very old and in various states of repair. Others were quite new, showcasing a modern India. Favourites were the Kutb Minar and Safdarjung’s Tomb both remnants of the once great Mughal Empire now only seen through monuments. Houz Khas Village (great restaurants and knick knack shops) and Old Delhi were also favourites however when I had experienced enough of the Indian craziness I could get back into the car and drive somewhere “quieter.”

I was able to ease into the untried and untested while still having all of the comforts of home. I was able to experience India from afar. I was in the ‘diplomatic bubble’ where I could eat familiar foods and live in a familiar environment and take daytrips into the unfamiliar. Being nervous about the culture shock, this was a luxury that was greatly appreciated. When I travelled out of Delhi I did get thrust into the middle of life in India however I felt that I was more prepared and could more easily land on my feet.

All this being said, the luxury I had saw someone who could show me around the city. There was a lot of solo discovering however I had the knowledge of a ‘local’ as a backup and was directed to the nicer restaurants and places to explore. Delhi gets stuck in your psyche and it is hard to leave.

More pictures of my time in Delhi:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=251627&id=696291670

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=251632&id=696291670

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=251253&id=696291670

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=251819&id=696291670

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=252010&id=696291670

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=255310&id=696291670

A great book on Delhi: City of Djinns: A year in Delhi. By William Dalrymple.