Advertisement
Published: August 8th 2007
Edit Blog Post
After being in transit for nearly 19 hours with no sleep I finally touched down in Delhi at 2 am to a blistering 30 degree heat. As I came through customs I walked into the familiar aroma of incense mixed with spices and sweat. I collected my bag and was welcomed at the exit gate by a driver holding aloft my name and was truly grateful for my forward planning. I emerged out of the airport into the heavy smog of Delhi and climbed in the battered taxi which drove the quiet roads until we reached the Paharganji area where I would be staying. Exhausted I collapsed in bed and slept for a full 3 hours. Now it was time to face the outside world. As I tentatively made my way outside for the first time every sense was assaulted, the searing 45 degree heat, the smell of urine, rubbish, cooking, the colored saris and the lack of any kind of personal space, what so ever. I dodged the cows, rickshaws, tuk tuks, bikes, cars, people, beggars, lepers and touts to run the gauntlet of Paharganjs' main bazaar. After a few hours of sensory overload I returned to my room to
lay under the air con. This soon became my favorite place in the city and I would while away many an hour avoiding the insanity of outside.
Although it must be said that the touts and scammers in the area are amazing, taking their job extremely seriously and must spend hours researching their prey. You get every conceivable line given to ensure you are ensnared into their shop/tuk tuk/rickshaw/sympathy etc. The only way to survive is to march along, sunnies firmly on and ignore everything and everyone around you. Welcome to India!
Early on I began to realize that I wasn't going to fit into India's Backpack network. The majority of people I had met so far were trip out hippies reveling in their own spiritual high or else far too cool for just being in this country. I began to crave some decent company.
On the second day I was overjoyed to receive an email from a Danish girl, that I had met in Wellington, informing me that she would be in Delhi the following day. At last some moral support to become accustomed to India's ways. The next day I was up early and arranged a taxi to
take me back to the airport. When I got there I discovered that her flight was delayed but after nearly four hours of waiting Marie finally emerged through the arrivals gate. We got the taxi back to the hotel and ventured out to find somewhere to eat. Later on when we returned to the hotel I wasn't feeling too well. 48 hours and a doctors visit later I was told that I had an infection (later I found out that this was caused by the E-Coli bacteria). Smashing, sick so soon, well hopefully it will give me some tiny resilience for the next 2 months. After feeding myself up on antibiotics I began to feel a lot better and myself and Marie decided to get out of Delhi's oppressive heat and intense scamming and booked the train north to Haridwar.
We pulled out of Delhi just as the city was waking up and drove through the slums which seemed to be built on the chard remains of the city's rubbish; the earth was blackened and the piers of burning trash filled the air with thick grey smoke. As we pulled into the flat lands we were greeted by an array
of Indians completing their morning ablutions along the railway tracks. The rivers were choked with rubbish and seemed strangled of all life. Life however, in the country was busy and we passed fields of wheat being chopped by hand, bundled up and taken away by ox and cart, intricate bricks of clay were being hand molded and left to dry in the sun. Next to this primitive way of life the contrasting agricultural factories belched out plumes of black smoke. After alighting the train at Haridwar we walked into tout chaos before we finally found the bus that would take us to Rishikesh. From here it was a short tuk tuk ride to Laxman Jhula.
Laxman Jhula is a small town which sits on the banks of the mighty Ganges river and is home of the Ashram culture. Westerns flock here to immerse themselves in the spiritual journey of yoga, meditation and enlightenment. However, it is also where the Indians come on holiday and for India it is pleasant and relatively relaxed and hassle free. The heat however had not abated and due to a lack of AC we settled for a room with a ceiling fan that rotated just
slowly enough to have absolutely no effect on the surrounding air and I spent the entire time covered in a thin veil of sweat.
The night we arrived a storm was brewing and a hot wind picked up, swirling dust and debris around the streets. As we walked back from an enjoyable dinner of pasta an electric storm lit up the surrounding hills. We sat on the roof terrace and watched as the sheet lightening turned to fork that looked like bright purple veins streaking across the sky. Then came the rain, big fat drops that came all of a sudden and to my joy I felt the first goose bumps for over a week. The next day was overcast and slightly cooler if not a little humid. This respite was to be short lived and the next day the blistering sun shone once more. I decided to treat myself to an Ayervedic massage and halfway through remembered quite how personal they can be. I left feeling extremely good if not a little uncomfortable! One day we went down to the Ganges and paddled in the holy water. The water was so cold that my legs had never felt so
refreshed. On our way back we stopped to talk to two young girls who were drawing water from the local well. Soon we were taken home and paraded in proper white monkey fashion for all the family to see. After a few hours we left with gaudy nail varnish and to a chorus of giggles.
The heat is soul destroying so now it's time to go further north and into the mountains.
3 Comment(s) - Add Comment
20th May 2007 23:46 - Natalie!: just read!
lol Lynne your a very amusing story teller! love reading your journey! I kept thinking Bart Simpson as you said your were harrassed by a holy cow! lol keep us updated! I spoke to Andrew the other day he is doing well too! xx
21st May 2007 11:55 - Anna: Hello
Hi Lynne, Great pics. Hope you enjoy your travels in the cooler north. In Sri Lanka at the moment. Very very hot. Off to Tamil Nadu in a couple of weeks. Take care and keep blogging 😊 Anna
23rd May 2007 07:44 - Sarah:
BITCH!!!!!! You make it sound sooooooooooooooooo terrible! Poor you! It looks like my trip will have
to be postponed a wee bit as the money situation has not improved, so I will be here if you ere return again Molly Woppy. Feeling even more peeved reading your friends note from Sri Lanka!!!!!!!!!!!!! However I will take a deep breath and get over it. Great to hear your'e alive. Fantastic photos! Looking foward to hearing and seeing more soon XXX
Advertisement
Tot: 0.074s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 15; qc: 33; dbt: 0.0398s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Natalie!
non-member comment
just read!
lol Lynne your a very amusing story teller! love reading your journey! I kept thinking Bart Simpson as you said your were harrassed by a holy cow! lol keep us updated! I spoke to Andrew the other day he is doing well too! xx