New (and Old) Delhi

From the moment we found out we were going to India, people in our lives (even strangers!) told us their experiences visiting the giant country. Almost every person’s conclusion was: “you’ll either love it or you’ll hate it!” I guess you should put me in the “love it” camp. Recounting our two months in New Delhi seems so hard, especially all these months later – but here goes nothing!

As you’ll recall both from when we left Atlanta and from our first weekend in India, I was very sick when we got to India. We had to take three flights to get from Atlanta to New Delhi, and I was completely miserable for the entire 24+ hour flight plan. While most people tried to get as far away from me as I hacked up a lung, a sweet stewardess continuously fed me hot tea and throat lozenges from her personal stash.

When we landed, I was not immediately impressed with India. As the airplane door opened, I shrieked to Meadows that the plane must be on fire. The smell of sulfur overwhelmed us! Thankfully, Meadows was prepared for the New Delhi pollution stench and calmed me.

FYI – stinky sulfur air does not help with a respiratory infection. I spent 90% of our first week in New Delhi sleeping, while a fabulous India-based television network called Romedy (nonstop romantic comedies!) occupied the other 10% of my time.

We stayed at the Westin Gurgaon, which was simply incredible; and Gurgaon was filled with multi-national corporations’ offices. During our stay, I had to call American Express after Meadows credit card was compromised; the woman I spoke with worked in Meadows’ office building – just a couple of miles from the hotel!

The staff at the Westin included some of the nicest people we’ve encountered. During our first week, the hotel fetched medicine from the pharmacy from me when I was too sick to go myself! Similarly, the lounge staff offered me new and innovative home remedies for my perpetual cough each day. Indians really do take hospitality to a whole new level.

Almost every week, we were upgraded to a suite. The rooms were always modern and stunning.

The 180° view in one particular suite highlighted the dichotomy between the Westin and its surroundings. When you looked to the right, you saw the beautiful pool, restaurant and bar area of our hotel. But when you looked to the left, you saw peddlers selling snacks and junk, children playing in the dirty and (of course) cars sitting in endless traffic.

Driving in India is truly terrifying. I know I mentioned that drivers are aggressive and creative back in Cairo, but I have to say it’s even worse in India. In addition to more cars packed into a small space than you can imagine (never organized into lanes, but facing every which way), you have livestock and pedestrians popping out left and right. It’s the real-life version of that video game, Frogger!

Though we had some incredible and unforgettable weekends in India, we encountered some surprises in the travel process. Now, I want to be clear: I mean no disrespect to India or their airport security; they just do things differently. First of all, men and women go through separate security lines. You can see from my photo the segregated metal detectors. Beyond that, men can be patted down (if required) in public. On the female side, all women must go into a small room where they are patted down (regardless of the metal detector results) before being cleared.

In addition to the typical items like liquids, laptops and shoes; you must remove all electronics before going through the metal detector. This even means charging cords, outlet converters, link cables, etc. Despite our best efforts, the security team almost always pulled aside Meadows’s and my bags. And each time your bag was flagged, they handwrote all of your information in the book. For a country so technologically advanced, it’s difficult to imagine that a book of handwritten names, passport numbers, ticket numbers, etc. is the most efficient way to document “offenders”. Is there ever an instance when they send someone to thumb through this book to search for a name? It’s not an easily searched database! After it had already happened a few times, I began documenting every time I made it in this infamous book.

On a totally different note, our one-day trip to Agra allowed us a day back in New Delhi to explore. Our world traveler friend, Tina, recommended a tour of Old Delhi. The tour blends all aspects of the culture, from food to work to religion. Mykola, Meadows and I really enjoyed the day, but I must admit that it is probably the most culture shock I’ve ever felt in my life.

We began the tour at a densely populated intersection. We noticed an unbelievable amount of power lines and other cables all over Old Delhi. It seems unrealistic that very many of them remain functional today!

Our tour guide, Pratima, announced that our first stop would be for a bit of breakfast. We enjoyed poori (the puffy fried deliciousness) with some chickpea curry.

From there, we visited a Hindu temple, which was bursting with color and music. Ornately dressed and decorated statues of the Hindu gods filled the walls of the temple. The people inside gave us fresh flower garlands and placed a dot of paint on our forehead. (Meadows clearly loved his new look!)

 

They insisted we dance, and we obliged …despite feeling completely silly!

The rest of the afternoon, Pratima introduced us to the various markets in Old Delhi. People lined the streets selling all sorts of things! And they are apparently there every single day – it’s not like a farmer’s market where it’s one day a week.

 

Of course, the monkey hung around the banana stand. Eventually, he even got his hands on one!

From here, we continued to the spice market. Upon entering, we sneezed about a hundred times! Though it was fascinating to see massive bags of spices being hauled around, we were saddened by the lifestyle we saw within the compound.

As we stood atop the spice market, we could see flowers drying in the sun on a rooftop nearby. We walked downstairs and to the flower “shop,” where all of the dried flowers were bagged. This is a huge market given all the garlands for religious holidays.

With our tour almost complete, we took a rickshaw to a haveli (old private mansion). The owner explained how this beautiful home and the hand-carved furniture were passed from generation to generation.

We concluded the tour with a delicious traditional meal. After a full day of culture and food, we needed a nap afterwards!

 

Throughout these two months, Meadows and I ate a lot of fabulous Indian food. We loved the local food, and we were very careful about where we ate (so we never got Delhi belly!). But even these curry lovers gave in from time to time… we were known to frequent the McDonald’s at the airport! Since the McD’s there don’t serve beef, we took a break from curry with a spicy chicken sandwich.

If you recall from our Maldives trip, Meadows and I enjoy celebrating our proposal-versary. Unlike last year, this special day (March 23^rd) fell on a weekday in New Delhi. We celebrated with Meadows’s favorite, Nando’s peri peri chicken, and my favorite, champagne!

Speaking of alcohol, we witnessed a major change in legislation during our time in India. With demonetization just a few months earlier (when the government discontinued the use of two banknotes in an effort to reduce money stashed and used by criminals), the country banned alcohol within 500 meters of the highway. Overnight, the liquor store near our hotel was wiped completely empty and guarded by policemen, our hotel no longer offered alcohol anywhere (from mini bars to restaurants) and our favorite mall/dining area was also completely dry. The change was shocking, and it had a massive economic impact on bars nearby. Businesses simply did not know what to do! Though it was after we left, the government thankfully loosened restrictions within city limits.

Our time in India concluded with two unforgettable team dinners. The second was especially fun, as we visited some local clubs afterwards!

We thoroughly enjoyed our two months of exploring India and its many treasures. We packed our bags and braced ourselves for our next two-month adventure in neighboring country, Myanmar.