India… I am a late comer, my first trip to India and it’s 2007… behind the curve… my impressions are likely to duplicate those of others. Indeed, I can add little to what has already said… but I will never-the-less say a few things. Personal memories are important.
First, I’m struck by the courtesy of the people… even before arriving, behavior on the plane seemed different from the US, Europe or China… maybe I'm just looking for something... less of the pushing you often see, courtesy for the most part was the rule… there were exceptions however… there always are…
The Delhi airport reception area was less crowded than I expected… still you find those who approach you like at every airport, “taxi” “you want a taxi”… they are not aggressive, no one tries to grab your bag as they do some other places… and there are not many of them compared to elsewhere… the airport is what I expected… it could be many places, still it’s “laid back” in comparison to most… but like every port of entry, family members and friends greet each other warmly, smiles, hugs, flowers are the order of the day. I get a coffee, call my friends from an Airtel booth… my cell phone, the cheap one I bought to replace the one my daughter “borrowed” doesn’t work here… I’m not surprised. A vendor at the airport makes me a cappuccino from a machine… he doesn’t have small change and gives me a candy bar at half price… I’m not going to argue.
Then you go outside and the sounds and people greet you... the reception area was "controlled", access limited... now I'm clearly in India.
Remember, this is where you are most vulnerable and they know it… you are jet lagged, you have new currency and it’s still a mystery about the common things… tipping, the cost of things and often you are still mystified by the exchange rate… have friend pick you up or have the hotel send someone or else you will find yourself paying far more than you should… welcome to India (or many other countries… it’s the same in the US)… I once had a woman in Paris (before the Euro) lecture me about learning about the local currency… I had offered her too much for a magazine… I’ve learned more, but when you are jet lagged, and confused by a new environment you pay a price…
By the way… make sure you “prepay” for your taxi at the airport, save the receipt and if a kid helps you with your bags (even for 10 seconds) he will pester you all the way out of the parking lot for a tip… not too too pushy… but very assertive… he’s hungry… and disappointed, after all he’s made an investment in you.
As I walk around in the morning I share the street with some vegetable vendors, bored security guards outside businesses, the occasional local getting his hair cut or a shave, outside in a chair near the park… street sweepers using the big broad brooms and the dogs and cattle the stand in what otherwise might be a parking place (and you know you are in India) on the side of the street. All the while Airbus and Boeing planes fly over… the airport in Delhi is near.
The dogs run in small packs of 3-8… they are active in the morning and at night (you will hear them!)… sometimes running from an angry shop owner where they have scavenged something… they all have torn ears or scars from fights and life on the streets… in the morning you might see a local resident walking his dog, wooden club in hand to fend of any of the dog pack seeking to worry his pet… if they get near, he shouts and wields his club threateningly. They back off… later in the day… indeed, most of the day… they sleep in the shade… saving energy for evening activities.
The traffic, many “auto rick shaws”… “motos” we would have called them in Iquitos Peru… little three wheelers powered by a small motorcycle or lawnmower engine with room for you and another (or a small bit of luggage) in the back… I think they must be a staple of the developing world… now you only see the human power rick shaws or pedicabs in the tourist areas…
My friend apologized for the persistence of the hungry shoeshine kid outside a local temple… it happens… they see the India I see, the disparity the haves and have nots and she believes in social justice but not hand outs… I would have given him something… but she is tough and it would only attract hordes of others.
I’m in a “guest house” in a good part of town… but it’s pretty basic, the owners work the place, they and their relatives sleep on the floor in the day and at night near where you check in… we are right above a Dominos Pizza shop and down the street “Ruby Tuesdays”, mixed in with the local places... including "Chinese"... Indian Chinese of course… in the morning, I walk down to a small "24 hour" store and buy Tropicana orange juice in a pouch… and a can of cold coffee… I can get bottled Starbucks Frapachino and yogurt. I walk back to my accommodations stealing glances at the migrant workers who live under blue tarps in the shade of trees “in the nice area” near my lodging… in the morning they are pouring large buckets of water over themselves, washing before they go to work on a nearby project. I get cable TV but no internet access in the room… the cable has many channels… channel 710 in Delhi is “God TV” (seriously)… it’s the Christian evangelical channel… I feel right at home… maybe I’m still in Indiana?
No Starbucks… it’s still a few months away from opening the first Indian outlet… how could I have beat Starbucks here?… it’s a bit of a revelation… however, the coffee at the local places is very good… only the coffee shops don’t open until 11am… I can’t wait that long… and getting a “to go” cup is still somewhat novel… one of my friends, seemed surprised when I suggested it… and the tops just don’t fit right… despite the Domino’s below my room it’s still not much of “to go” society…
People still stare at me… and talk about me… the good news… I’m still a novelty… I'd hate to be just part of the landscape.
We grab a cab to go do our presentations at a nearby university… road construction everywhere… much of it done by humans with few large machines in evidence and more migrants living near these road projects, small trash dumps along the way, some naked children with their mothers and then next to these what is probably a small internet café with a laptop or two on a small table near the road… poverty and dispair in abundance but when you look at the faces of the children, they smile, and their mothers... beauty and dignity amidst incredible poverty... you can't help but reflect on your life and upon their courage... and the smells, just like South America… wood burning and the smell of people in close proximity in hot weather… some bikes, but not as many as I expected.
The traffic is crazy in Delhi, not as many cars as in Beijing and about as crazy as Naples, the drivers skim very close to each other and lanes seem to be little more than suggested paths… didn't see a single traffic cop, you are encouraged to blow your horns to warn others (especially buses) that you are near… unlike some other cities where the use of your horn is discouraged… the cars all have scrapes and dents… badges of courage from city traffic… my friends claim no one gets their car fixed… it’s a losing proposition… you drive it until it stops and then you get another. Don’t know if it’s true or not… good story though. I couldn't drive here.
Went to dinner at a private club for Indian bureaucrats last night as guest of my friends' relatives … the club, white washed with lanes lined with Royal Palms is surrounded by high walls and is in the Embassy district… it’s about 150 years old… formerly a domain of the British bureaucrats (their pictures line the walls) and now, with it’s formal ballroom, billiards room, swimming pool and lounges… a place for retired and current Indian bureaucrats and their families… it’s still the same place and atmosphere… only the faces have changed… an oasis of privilege in the middle of Delhi. It’s across the street from where Mrs. Gandhi was martyred… a somber thought in this place and I’m the only person of obvious European decent there tonight… things change and stay the same…
Well, that’s my first two days… it’s been nonstop movement… now we get busier… it’s about 5:45am… my internal time clock is still not localized… about 8am… I’ll take a walk, search for a snack… then at 9:30am we talk to journalism and marketing students about Purdue… seems a bit surreal…
....Just got back from Amenbad last night… it was a great trip, the place is so different than Delhi… once outside the Amenbad city center you can see fields, water buffalos and camels pulling carts… the desert is nearby and the women here dress differently than Delhi, more Arabic influence and at the same time more women out at night… night in Delhi has become less safe for women… there are reports of harassment on the buses and trains… the newspapers are always reporting incidents and I know some of the young women feel a bit like prisoners… either they go out with their men or stay at home… in Amenbad it seems a bit more open, girls on motorcycles smiling… singles and in twos… you don’t see this much in Delhi…
for a few more pictures click here.
It's a bit trite... "Life's a Beach" the slogan is all around, on t-shirts, signs, but there is something to it... it's sticky. Many of us hear the call and the statistics bear it out. Despite hurricanes and global warming we appear to be still moving like lemmings, closer to the beach. Sometimes we move back but more move with the tide than against it. At what point in a life do you decide that a beach is where you need to be? Growing up in Ft. Lauderdale was quite a trip… but after 20 years it was time to move and I’ve not regretted a minute of my life in the Midwest. I like the change in seasons, the mild summers, the trees, small town midwest values, Big Ten football and I don’t really miss the flat terrain and the midday heat (except in the dead of winter). Never-the-less the Florida coast is still a draw… it pulls me… the white sand, the stucco houses, the palms, the live oaks, Spanish moss, walks in the early evening and even the fire ants. It’s still a place that feels like home… and with wireless and high speed internet access… well, it seems better than ever. This post, well, it’s just for fun. Winter is on it's way.
