A Day in Delhi and Schools of Fish…

Surreal. It’s hard to know where to begin in describing our first 24 hours in India. Even when things turn out to be exactly like you imagine they will there’s still plenty of room to be blown away by reality. I’m pretty sure that’s what the guide book refers to as “culture shock.”

Take driving in Delhi for instance. As we packed into the back of a taxi smaller than a Geo Metro, it felt like we had just gotten in one of those underwater exploration vessels rather than a cab. We were quickly submerged into a sea of foreign sights and sounds for which no travel book could prepare us. Holy cows roaming freely in the streets. Traffic moving like speeding schools of fish, flowing seamlessly only inches apart. Horns beeping incessantly like a spastic morse code. Men sleeping on mats right next to the busy street as rickshaws wove in between overcrowded buses. Sheet metal shacks in the shadow of cellphone billboards. Monkeys walking along fence tops, oxen pulling carriages, beggars waiting at red lights, families of five all packed on a zooming scooter…

Every time we stepped out of our little bubble, we were enclosed by the thick Indian heat and swarms of faces waiting to “help” us wide-eyed foreigners. From carrying (grabbing rather) our luggage or offering a rickshaw ride to acting as a tour guide or scheming for donations, those faces caused an uncanny mixture of suspicion and compassion in me.

More later when we've got a faster connection and more time. We miss all of you very much! Lots of pictures to follow!