The one image that strikes me as I begin writing about this incredible country is (you probably guessed) "There are So Many PEOPLE!!!!". In a close second is the observation that India is a paradox of opposites: temples from the ancient past are everywhere, while the pace of development has the future rushing in at lightspeed. The people have the kindest spirits, yet many of them live in dirt-poor conditions, often on the streets. Technology is among the most highly developed of any country we've seen, yet the streets and air are filthy, and sanitation is abysmal (raw sewage, a common assault on ones senses). We added India to our itinerary because 1) Lisa thought Calcutta would be a great last place to do some volunteer work, and 2) We were in the neighborhood, so why not stop there for a few weeks? We arrived late at night and caught a cab to downtown Delhi. The driver never managed to find the hotel we were looking for, so instead he dropped us off at a travel agency that was still open, even though it was nearing midnight. They were very helpful, finding us a room and even dropping us at the hotel. Next day, we slept in rather late, so didn't really see much of Delhi. Instead, we spent one day deciding to go on a retreat, showing up at the wrong place at the right time, then reversing our decision due to the short timetable we gave ourselves. So instead we returned to the travel agency to plan a rough itinerary. After lengthy discussion, we opted for the most basic tour: Delhi, Jaipur, Agra, then back to Delhi for our flight to Calcutta. I am writing this from the airport in Delhi while we await our flight. We would have taken a train there, which would have been cheaper and possibly some fun, but this is a Very Long Trainride: over 32 hours! Yes, India is a BIG country. We set off on our mini-tour with our trusty driver/tourguide "Babloo", whose command of the English Language was on a par with Chloe. Actually, Chloe has a slightly better vocabulary, and at least understands us sometimes. In short, every conversation took place in the following syntax: Us: Hey Babloo, What is 'A'? Babloo: 'B'? Us: No, 'A'. Babloo: Ahh, 'C'. This is because 'D, E, F'. Us: No, 'AAAAAAA'! Babloo: Yes, yes, that's right. Us: ARRRRGH! Never mind! Needless to say, we weren't given a deep immersion in India's culture during our trip. But in actuality, Lisa and I realized we were both getting pretty tired of sightseeing anyway, so we just sat back and watched the scenery roll by out the car window. There were many monuments and palaces for just 4 days, including the Taj Mahal of course. But the most memorable aspect was the chaos that seemed constant in the villages, towns, and cities. That and the noxious fumes from the cars, scooters, and tuk-tuks. I think during our entire tour we counted maybe two traffic lights. The rest of traffic control is done by a combination of trusting one's fellow man and judicious, make that constant, use of one's horn. The roads are shared, at all times, by cars, trucks (some homemade, with no license), wagons with grain and/or passengers stacked sky-high, motorbikes, bicycles, cows, goats, camels, elephants, monkeys, and chickens.Did I mention: there are SO Many People!!! Whenever the traffic was thick (which was the rule, not the exception), we had to cross our fingers and hope that we didn't run over a bicyclist or get flattened by a tractor. Still, these good people somehow manage to keep their cool and keep things moving despite the density and chaos. I have come up with a theory: where there are no rules, the need for trust and courtesy is multiplied. These people would be dying like flies with all this density and chaos if it weren't for the fact that they always seem willing to defer to the other guy, slowing down, or stopping, if a car is coming toward you in your lane as they are passing a slow-moving object (the word vehicle does not always apply). That these maneuvers are usually illegal has no relevance here whatsoever. This is just the way things are on the road. As a foreigner, the best way to deal with it is to grit your teeth, plug your nose, and wait till Babloo says "We eat now". We were excited to go to Jaipur because it is the heart of Rajasthan, and we had hopes of hearing some good Rajasthani music. At night we were brought to a 'special' experience that blended local cuisine with local dance and music. We got there at around 5 PM, which was a bad idea in retrospect. In the daylight, we could quickly see this was just one of those poorly rendered "India-land" experiences (you know, like Epcot Center meets Wendys?), where they give you a shabby simulation of what life on the farm, complete with plastic livestock, is like. Lisa and I were aghast. We hung around long enough to get the food, which was really good, as usual, and took off. The musical offering was just not what we'd hoped for. I would love to write a few-page parody of this, but I think it'd just make me too sad. The Taj Mahal, on our last day, was really magnificent. It's one thing to see pictures of it, but another to actually be there. The odd thing was, inside this palace, there was absolutly no lighting. And evidently, there never is. It's just pitch dark. Unless your guide has a little penlight, which ours did. He used it to show the carved white marble inlaid with intricate flowers and vines of jade, coral, mother of pearl, lapis, and jasper. The whole thing was built in 22 years, using something like 30,000 laborers. Having seen it, it's amazing it went so quickly. The term re-bar madness is just a reflection of the massive development going on here. It seems that everywhere you look, there are thickets of rebar pointing skyward from some pile of cinderblock, waiting for some concrete to show up and allow the building to be completed. Concrete is at an all-time short supply here, and it would be a very good time to be in that business indeed.
Right now, we are in Calcutta (now spelled Kolkata), volunteering for Mother Theresa's organization... |
