Last night ended up being nice. I'm already becoming more comfortable and confident in my surroundings. I think maybe the beer I had with dinner helped to loosen me up a little, though not so much as to drop my guard. I came to terms with the fact that I'll be seen as a source of income by most Indians. I realized, though, that that doesn't necessarily cheapen my interactions with the people I meet. I can still be friendly and create meaningful connections.
After only one day, I'm starting to
recognize people and they me. I say hi to the man who sold me my
phone every time I pass by, as well as to the man who sells me my
water. Last night, I was sitting on the balcony of the hotel when one
of the staff members I'd previously interacted with asked if I'd like to have a beer. Of course! He put
the bottles on ice for a bit while I wrote and gathered my clothing
for the dhobi wallah. I then sat on the patio for an hour and a half
with an Indian lager, watching and listening to the street life below
me. There was a Hindu puja happening to my left and a Muslim salah to
my right. I saw my first holy cow. It was magical!
This morning, I woke up with a resolve
to see more of the city. I decided to ditch the internet and the
Lonely Planet and find breakfast on my own. Soon after I left my
hotel, I was approached by a young man who started asking me
questions. Instead of ignoring him, I told him where I was from and
that I was looking for breakfast. Tangentially, Indians always ask if I'm either English or Australias. When I tell them I'm from the U.S., they say I don't look American. I'm not sure what to make of this? Anyhow, he led me to a tiny South Indian
restaurant that provided the very environment I was lamenting last
night: a ground level shop with an open view of the street where I could sit and watch and eat and drink. Plus! I finally found
some heat in my food. I had a masala omelet which was perfect. I then
drank both a tea and a coffee while I watched the city wake up (most shops don't open until 11). I
probably sat for an hour. The proprietor was careful to seat new
customers in booths that didn't obscure my view of the street. People
have been so kind!
After that, I started wandering in
search of a similarly appointed street view. On the way there,
another young man, ostensibly a tout like the first, approached me
and started asking the same questions. Where are you from? You like
India? Where are you going? I played along and answered his
questions. In addition to lying about the length of time I've been in
India, by the way, I've also invented a fictitious boyfriend who's always taking
a nap at the hotel. He took me to a tiny stall along a back alley and
bought me a chai. He then offered to be my guide and take me to the
Hanuman temple in Connaught Place, the so-called heart of Delhi. I
agreed.
I took my first rickshaw ride ever to
get to the temple. It was a hairy drive, as were all of the proceeding
trips. But for about $0.50, I was able to travel a couple of miles in a novel form of transportation.
The temple itself is awesome. For one,
it's built beneath this huge, as in multiple story,
statue of Hanuman.
You take off your shoes outside
the temple and pay a little boy to watch them. You enter the temple through
Hanuman's mouth and walk down a staircase.
Once inside, you
essentially walk up to statues of various gods, touch their feet and
then bow to them. A priest pours a teaspoon of water into your
hand which you sprinkle on your head. You also receive a lucky orange
tilaka (you can kind of see mine in the top image). I hope my temple worship today counters the Kali curse I
received yesterday. See, I'm already thinking like a Hindu. Inside
the temple was a low cave that took you to a basement full
of yet more gods and goddesses. The ground was flooded above my
ankles. Finally, you exit through the mouth of a lion. I enjoyed it
more than I expected to and look forward to visiting other temples.
 |
| Sunil, my guide, exiting the Hanuman temple. |
After this, my guide/tout, Sunil and I
took the Delhi Metro into a different part of Connaught Place. It's
such an efficient form of transportation. It's a raised light rail.
Why is Arizona's light rail at street level? This is so much faster.
Delhi does public transportation remarkably well. For about $0.10, I
traveled a couple of miles in 3 minutes. Incredible.
I bought a salwar kameez in hopes of
minimizing some of the attention I've been getting. We'll see if it
works. I kind of think I went to a place where Sunil gets a
commission, because the prices, even after my haggling, seemed a bit
high. I spent about $12 for 3 scarves and the salwar kameez. Later
on, I bought a pair of pants I like better for only $2. I don't know.
Even if I was ripped off, I don't mind because my day was so rich and
varied thanks to Sunil's guidance.
After that, we went to a South Indian
restaurant for lunch and I ordered a thali meal. So much food!
Then I lifted up the puri—the puffed
up bread—only to discover more food!
It was delicious. I was maybe able to
put a third of it away. The total? About $2.25.
At this point, I was getting hot and
exhausted and needed to get back to my room and my glorious, powerful
ceiling fan. So I told Sunil that my “boyfriend” was worried and
that our day together was coming to a close. We took a rickshaw back
to Paharganj and that's when the accident occurred. I'm not quite
sure what happened, but it involved our bumping into a cab. The fender
bender was followed by 15 minutes of heated argument between the drivers and a cop. My driver ended up being fined 100
INR, a miniscule fee. The driver was very good natured about it.
Back in Paharganj, I bid Sunil adieu
and here I am, in my blessedly cool room at Rak International. I'll
probably go pig out some more in a couple of hours and have a final
beer before I begin my six and a half weeks of abstinence.
 |
| Reckless rickshaw driver |
Oh yeah! The best news of all! Vadim bought his tickets and got his visa. He's coming for real and I couldn't be more thrilled! Hooraaaaay!
