HOHO Delhi Part I

Sunday April 27, 2014
So, a day of pure tourism and heat!
We decided it was finally time to explore Delhi a bit more, at least get a look at some of all the fabulous sights in Delhi.

As always, the way there was at least as exciting to us as the actual goal of our excursion! (Pictures taken from the car ...)

 

A lazy Sunday playing cards maybe

 

 

Your local stop for a snack and a soft drink

A fully loaded bicycle!

Do you see the lady in the back cooking on her little stove? Ian and I just saw a programm from BBC (Horizon) about these little stoves - they make people ill because of all the smoke they produce, and they are not very fuel efficient, which of course is a disadvantage where resources are scarce or too expensive. Over 2 million people die every year because of this, mostly women and small children who stay close to their cooking mothers. I found this site - and Ian had the idea that we could buy a load of these and simply distribute them in the villages in the area. It sounds too simple somehow, but why does it have to be complicated and expensive to help? What do you think? Would anyone else like to help? I will certainly look into this more.

 We see people, sometimes families with small children, who live under fly-overs or under a tree on the strip of dirt in the middle of roads.

It makes me think hard about the 40' container jam packed with our stuff making its way here as we speak. How much does a person really need?!

By 10.45 we were on a HOHO (hop on hop off) bus armed with a ticket for the Red Line that would take us past some of the museums and monuments. They advertise "air-conditioned environment friendly luxury buses" ... well, the airconditionning consisted of the same kind of ventilation you would find in an airplane, only VERY noisy, backed up with VERY noisy fans. The intercom system did not work, so the poor guide was shouting at the top of her voice. She did the very best she could, and was probably very knowledgeable, but, frankly, we did not really know when she was speaking in English and when she was speaking in Hindi! That is, when we could hear her at all over all the noise in the bus and all the honking outside. The luxury bit ... we might have to go back and look harder ...

Wise as she is, Maia had brought a doughnut from the breakfast buffet (!) to up the blood sugar when needed :-)


In any case, the bus took us around to the Red Fort, Raj Ghat - Mahatma Gandhi's grave, the National Museum, Nehru Museum and a few more places. We hopped off at India Gate, a monument commemorating the Indian soldiers who lost their lives fighting as British allies in the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War.

 We had to cross two streets - yes, we are still alive ...! - and saw these guys doing the same.

On the way we also came across a hospital with this fantastic creation outside of it - I think it is buckets hanging in a tree.

Somebody could not be bothered with HOHO, they had brought their own car and their own driver ... who passes his time on the phone in a very relaxed position ...

This family had just been for a visit, and were leaving as we arrived. They smiled and the little boy waved to us.

The local MC gang?

Almost there!

The arc is surrounded by a rather large park and there were people having a lazy Sunday or even a pick-nick in the grass.
 Others were hard a work in the 38 degree heat. The woman in the back is holding the "dust pan" in her hand. She pushed the dirt collected by the woman with the broom with one piece of cardboard onto the other piece of cardboard and carried it to the nearest dustbin.

These men were cleaning up a pool around a fountain with the help of shoves and brooms made of sticks tied together at one end.

Inside the arc is an eternal flame marking the tomb of the unknown soldier - very much like the Arc de Triomph in another capital.

On the other side of the arc is a boulevard leading to the presidential palace - very much like in Paris.

 

We saw and we conquered ... and got really hot and bothered ... so we started heading back to the HOHO bus stop.

"Keep India clean" ...?

 Waiting for the bus would have been a very entertaining 20 minutes ... had it not been for the heat!

We thought that this tuk-tuk was broken - the man was pushing it backward into the space where we were standing.

 Check out the very last word on this sign! :-) Don't know about you, but I can't help but having my doubts ...

However, after a few minutes he started it and drove away. Later we saw more tuk-tuk drivers do the same - tuk-tuks probably do not reverse.

Unfortunatelly I was not quick enough with my camera, and this bicycle turned before I could get a good picture. It looked like he had a whole circus packed on that thing.

Later, the ice cream van drove by

Finally, our luxury bus arrived and we got on. This time, another bus, another guide AND a working intercom! Now, we could hear that she was talking ... but still not quite discerne when she was speaking what language ...

Next HO for us - Indira Gandhi Museum.

... to be continued ...

Barefoot on hot slabs in Delhi

So, I have been to Dehli - felt very surreal! It is on the other side of the planet ... how did petite moi end up here??!
The simple answer is ... the driver took me ... which is surreal in itself. Sitting alone in the back of a seven-seater, wearing sunglasses being driven to ... where ever. I think that I have not yet really landed in India, there is just soooo much to take in. The other day I met someone who said something really obvious, I just had not though of it that way. "In India all your senses are constantly being assaulted." A logical explanation to why I am here only in theory still, sort of watching a movie of life in India.

The cucumber sandwiches, you know, the ones posh people eat in English TV series (do they??), were, however, very real at the Eros Hotel, the five star hotel near Nehru Place in New Delhi where the Delhi Network meets every Tuesday. It was a happy group of people from all over the world that I met for the first time today. Delhi Network is a place for expats to connect, make friends, find inspiration, join different groups, do business, or just ... have a laugh every now and then. I found out about the book club, golfing (finally!!), events, different charities that the group supports where there is a possibility to work as a volunteer, and lots more.

The driver for the day, Samsher from Rajastan, but has been a taxi driver in Delhi NCR (National Capital Region) for 15 years, asked me if I wanted to explore some more while I was there anyway. I still had 2,5 hours before I had to be back at the hotel to receive Maia from the school bus. Well, sure! What do you suggest?

Right around the corner was a temple, the Baha'i House of Worship. With more than 70 million visitors since it opened in 1986 it is one of the most visited edifices in the world. Samsher drops me off and I get out without being at all prepared.

The architecture is indeed spectacular - in the form of a Lotus flower surrounded by 9 pools of water to reflect different shapes, and also help cool the building down, it is a very impressive sight.

If you want to know more about this place, go to this page. It is worth it!

Half way through the surrounding park I have to leave my shoes together with all the other probably 1000 people who were there at the same time as I. We walk down a few steps to the side of the path and there, sort of in the underground with only a narrow oblong opening in the wall - I have to crouch down to reach in there - some people are working in a sort of wardrobe for shoes. I reluctantly hand in my sandals and get only a worn, wooden token with a number on it in return. As I see him walk away with my shoes, but without labelling them with the same number, I have a creepy feeling that I would never walk in those shoes again ... Well, they do this for a living, right? And should, after having practiced over 140 million times, be pretty good at it, so why worry.

The walk back up the steps and to the path is very quick indeed - the paving is so hot, it burns my feet! From here on all the way to the entrance to the temple they had put down a sort of matt to cover the hot slabs. So, here I am in a long line of barefoot people waiting in the hot sun to go in to an almost empty place of worship. Surreality strikes again! The young woman right in front of me keeps turning her head and looks shyly at me. Suddenly she tells me that she is looking because I am so beautiful. Ahhh, ok, thanks! Even more surreal now. I am walking next to myself, seeing me being pushed and shoved, in a friendly Indian sort of way mind, with the crowd.

We all come to a halt in front of one of the two entrances and are divided up in three queues per entrance, each in opposite directions. I have no idea why, because when they open the door, we all just walk in in a very disorderly manner. Inside it is completely silent. I see some put their hands together in front of them with eyes closed, some are standing while others sit down on the ... marble benches!! They do feel rather nice and cool and not at all as hard as one might imagine. I am still not there ... although I try to concentrate on the feel of the place, the "vibrations". To no avail, and with a feeling of being pressed for time I leave fairly quickly. Unfortuntelly, the matt layers have missed to cover the bit from the exit doors back to the path, a distance of a good 20 metres I would guess, and my feet are burning again. I take short, quick steps trying to look like I am walking, but am in fact almost jogging in an attempt to avoid touching the ground but without people noticing (must have looked really silly!). I MISS MY SHOES!

I reach the underground wardrobe for foot wear and get in line with my token clutched in my hand. There is a little strip of shade right by the wall where the slabs are not so hot, but to stay on that strip I have to press up against the wall ... in my white leggings. Finally, it is my turn to give the little man in the hole my chip. He grabs it and hands me a pair of shoes. NOT MINE. The look he gives me seems to say "please, Ma'am, take them and don't fuss. I have a million more to hand out today." I stand my ground and shake my head. He resigns pretty quickly and goes on a hunt. During the next few minutes he shows me 5 or 6 different pairs of shoes, some of them don't even match, and none of them are mine. In my head Freddy Mercury is singing "I'm going slightly mad ..." and I start to smile and will soon start laughing out aloud (seem to remember from uni that that is not necessarily a good sign). Then he suddenly stumbles on something on the floor, bends down to pick it up - it is indeed my sandals! Hurrah! Well done.

Suddenly I am back in reality - well, as much as possible for the moment - and glide down the path leading to the exit and I notice how beautiful the trees and bushes are around me.

I think I will have to come back here one day and bring all of me.

Bus #5

is Maia's school bus. From this morning it stops at 7.30 right outside the door of our hotel! Since it was the first time today, I rode with her to practice so she gets a chance to get to know the procedure. 2 of the doormen/guards and the duty manager, Sarita, were there to wave goodbye on this special day. Head chef said he wished he had known, he would have packed a snack for Maia to bring. From tomorrow he will, Maia put her order in - white toast with butter, a banana, carrot sticks and some cereal. (We are getting VERY spoilt!)

 There is a driver, a guard and a nanny on board at all times. The buses are all brand new, very nice, clean and comfortable. The children all have an identity card and whoever picks them up in the afternoon has to show an identical identity card, otherwise the child will be taken back to the school. Security measures, which are new to us, but needed here.

 20 minutes later we arrive at Kunskapsskolan ready for fun an learning.

The lovely, beautiful, always helpful and forever smiling Shubhi in the reception. This woman has an endless supply of patience!

The canteen, where the children and staff can purchase cooked lunch with dessert for INR 100 (about SEK 11 and EUR 1,20). They also have a very BIG and ELABORATE coffee machine - that thing has been my saviour the past weeks ... and actually the best coffee I have had since arriving in India.

Maia told me, that in PE (physical education) today they played rugby and apparently the teacher was very impressed with Maia's performance - hidden talents? How about cricket? Who knows. This country is TOTALLY CRAZY about cricket!

Tomorrow she will have her first French lesson AND her first Hindi lesson - the latter at the hotel together with me and a private Hindi teacher. Can't wait :-)

Ian came back from work shortly before 6 tonight, and we went straight to Cross Point Mall where Ian and I had booked hair cut appointments at Toni & Guy.

I did not see a single female hairdresser - maybe a predominantly male occupation in India. The guy who cut me told me he had been to Mumbai to get certified.

Patiently waiting - this was the longest haircut I have ever had ... took an hour ... to cut MY hair?!
Finally, he was done. Looks a bit funny in this picture, but I am happy!

I have found that, funnily enough, a good hairdresser is one of the most difficult things to find in a new place/country.
Back at the hotel Maia and I had lasagne tonight. Head chef asked us already this afternoon if we wanted lasagne tonight - Maia had mentioned it the other night, but it would have taken too long = she would have gone to bed too late. He remembered (!) and had it ready for us when we came back. So, for the first time we had lasagne with goat meat - really good! They call it mutton here, and he said they prefer goat meat to sheep - ok, whatever works :-) Do try this at home, folks.

We did not expect ...

... this day to turn out the way it did!



Saturday April 19, 2014
Our original plan was to go to the zoo in Dehli. Driver ordered and we went to bed at a decent hour. Saturday morning the phone rings, and we are suddenly invited to lunch at Di Ghent Café, a Belgian restaurant at the Cross Point Mall here in Gurgaon by a colleague of Ian's and his wife. OK, Dehli and the zoo will still be there next weekend ...
A really nice place, and they told us it is pretty much the only place where they trust the cleanliness enough to actually order a sallad. I have been yearning for a good, crisp sallad for 3 weeks now, and of course ordered one. So did Ian. One with Rocket, goat's cheese and pomegranate seeds. Yummy!

A few hours later, after a lovely lunch with interesting discussion, we head across the road to the Galleria Market. Ian needed new glasses and we had been recommenced someone there. Ian had to wait 5 minutes to get in, examination took about 20 minutes, choosing frames another 10 - done! And the glasses ready to pick up the following day. Brilliant.

Park Plaza again ...

Back at the hotel we were again very happy to have more than one bathroom ... Sallad? Water? Something else? Who knows ...

In any case, we had no inclination to have any more food ... so we just stayed in the room.
Towards 9 pm Maia suddenly says that there is a procession in the street below. We had heard a lot of noise for a while, but we seem to have gotten used to it already. Weddings in India can be very noise!

We look out and see ... a LOT of bright lights and a float moving up the street.

I grab my camera and in a minute we are on the street ... with a lot of other people including tourists.

 The "driver" is a very beautiful man in a fantastic costume The whole carriage is decorated with flowers.

The carriage was pulled by this impressive pair:

The carriage and the wedding guests were flanked on both sides by guys who carry either parasols or lamps powered - by electricity!

Can you see, that there are cables going to and from this lamp? All of them are interconnected! They had to stay at the right distance from each other at all times. Careful not to trip!

... powered from this very noisy trailing ... vehicule. (If you would need such services, the phone number is right at the top there.)

Some more pictures of on-lookers, some probably wedding guests?

Beautiful and colourful clothes

This guy very proudly posed for the camera with his girls

India is full of surprises :-)