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Published: April 26th 2010
ENGLISH
India Pt.One
Well having Africa under our belts India was, I wouldn't say a breeze as India does have its own style of hardships, but it was more about the traveling rather than the survival of getting from A to B. It's depth of culture, religion and colour made India a remarkable place to visit. We traveled all over from the North to the South and from the North East to the West.. in fairness it was more NNE that NE.
We landed at Gandhi International on 1st December 2009. We called a hotel from the airport and they said that they had a room available bearing in mind that it was silly o'clock in the morning. We needed to get a taxi so we teamed up with a couple of German girls heading that way. Taxi mounted and only 100yds down the road, we were given our first dose of traffic incidents. A minibus was quite happily alight in the centre of the road, burning until it had revealed its bare bones. The driver was drinking chai (cup of tea) at the side of the road knowing full well that there was not really
Our trusty Steed
Tak a uz sme zase na cestea lot he could do until the flames went out. On reflection, with no help available at all... drinking a cup of tea really was the only thing he could do and it did offer him some warmth in the cold night air. The tea... not the inferno. With that quickly behind us we reached the city.
At this stage, we were tired and didn't really have our wits about us as it was 3:00am. The driver, being a deceiving sod, had picked up a right sorry bunch. The German girls didn’t book anywhere but wanted to stay in an area called Paharganj and we were going to stay in Connaught Place. The driver got us into the city centre and took us into the most dodgy part of town which was meant to be Paharganj. It was absolutely covered in homeless people, not that there were piles of them one on top of the other, but the number of people was incredible. Most having blankets as a cover but a lot were huddled around fires trying to keep warm as best they could. It was a real eye opener seeing this absolute poverty for the first time. In
First Thali and it was very good
Nase prve jedlo v Indii, ktore sa volalo Thali Africa it's different as they have no one to rely on but this is India and you couldn't see the pavement there were so many. Who the hell forgot these people?
The German girls just looked at each other and we could see that this was a place where they really didn't want to stay!! So they decided to stay in the taxi and chance their luck at the same hotel as us. The driver carried on driving and then all of a sudden, as if a wire had suddenly loosened, he had lost his way. “No, no it all looks very different at night”, came the confused explanation.
“Here, take a look at our map, I think we're here”, we suggested in a very helpful manner. For some reason our taxi driver was also unable to read maps and became in an instant, illiterate, but hey, he could drive.. forwards.
So here we were, lost in Delhi. Suddenly he said “I know, I'll take you to the local Tourist Information Centre!” Tourist information centre? Wow, the first on our travels. That sounded like a great idea at the time.
We arrived at the TIC and it
Our first rickshaw
Hned sme skusili aj Indicky dopravny prostriedok was closed. The driver wanders up to the door and knocks, with purpose. Soon enough one of the agents approaches the door and we were in. Once we'd been let in the office we sat down and were told that another agent will be with us shortly. Out of a comedy show, this chap appears, rising from his chair where he'd been sleeping, cigarette already in his mouth, “Where you want to go?” We explain that our driver is lost and give him the name of our currently booked hotel. The smoking agent calls them and apparently the room was given to someone else. Yes, someone else had checked into our hotel at 4 in the morning. We believed them, this is India after all. They tried to find us another place to stay. He called many hotels but could not find two rooms in one hotel anywhere in the whole of Delhi. So there we were… 4 o’clock in the morning hoping for a place to stay. At one stage we'd suggested staying there for another 3hrs before heading out when it became light.
In the end they sent us to an overpriced hotel where they insisted we
A Jalebi with Anurag and Charu
Nasi kamarati Anurag a Charu s Jalebi check out 6hrs after checking in. It was a massive scam. The driver, the TIC Agent and the hotel were all in on the act. The stupid thing is that we had read about it in the Lonely Planet bible of India just days before! Well, we were so pissed off with ourselves having fallen for it. In fairness, the lights and sounds and lack of sleep seemed to really distract us from what was going on but it did prick up the senses and after our little feux pas it didn't happen again. We just hoped that the German girls were ok... somewhere.
The next morning/ later that day we awoke to find that the hotel was gradually filling with smoke and there was the sound of chanting downstairs. First I thought we were being sacrificed inside the hotel while a crowd gathered outside to watch it burn to the ground. We went downstairs to check out and there was, indeed, a ceremony taking place with a huge fire in the hotel lobby as the hotel was going to be refurbished. So they built a well stocked fire....a big fire. Oils were being burnt and food was being
It made you sneeze there were so many
Vselijake koreniny a kychali sme aj 20x za sebou distributed which we were fortunate enough to try. It was our first taste of things to come. The Indians, of Hindu religion, will perform many rituals throughout their lives for various celebrations/ occasions, each with a combination of the various gods.
We took a taxi into the centre of town and found a more reasonably priced hotel and settled there for the next few days. The taxi driver also wanted to rip us off and asked for more money than we had originally agreed after arriving at the destination. Ohh well… Welcome to India!
We were going to be in Delhi for a few days as we were meeting some friends of ours, Anurag and Charu. They are tenants at my house in Bicester and had invited us to their cousins wedding. We had decided to meet so they could take us around Delhi and show us the ropes to help us find our feet. Our feet might has well have been our elbows as we were really struggling to get up before 1pm due to the jet lag.
Delhi was so very polluted. The light in the morning with the sun breaking through the haze seemed
Tandori Roti baking
Takto tu robia chlieb Tandori Roti not to change all day. Apparently Delhi was preparing for an international athletics championship. This meant that central Delhi was having a bit of a tidy up and lots of developments were taking place throwing dust into the air and creating a very thick smog of which the sun was not able to penetrate. During the first few days we looked around our new city and around Connaught Place to take in the feel of India. Every step of the way we were offered something. Food, clothes, shoe shining... What made us laugh is that we would wear sandals most of the time, but apparently these too could be shined to a sparkle beyond any sandal on earth.
As with Africa there were beggars on the streets. There are, in fact, beggars everywhere as there are all over the world. They're just distinguished by the level of effort, dedication and imagination that goes into the performance. We watched a couple of them hard at work and when taking a break the beggars that were afflicted with a gapping wound or a moist gash, with accompanying flies, took time out to re-pick the areas of the wound that had begun
The Tandori Oven
.. a takto sa piekli to dry up a little. No one's going to be charitable if it's just a scab and on the mend, the fresher the better! Just in case I forget to mention in part 2 or 3 of India, we were in Pushkar, Rajasthan, at a lovely cafe watching the world go by when we spotted a helpless individual dragging himself around on a wooden sled. When you see it, it's sad and does pull on the heart strings. He headed for a break, from his torture and all of the rejection, by going down a small alley where he got up, counted his cash, picked up his sled and walked off, no doubt to bank/ sensibly invest all his hard earned cash.
Aaanyway, back to Connaught Place. One of the offers from the street vendors we had was an ear cleaning. This chap would stick a metal implement of sorts in our ears, wiggle it about a bit and pull out whatever he thought was in there. By the look on his face it was probably gold. Our first reaction, as it would be for any mentally sound individual, was, “No thank you.. we clean them very often.”
He
was quite persistent and showed us a book full of reviews from people all over the world about how good the experience was. He even had a review from a Slovakian written in Slovakian! Before we knew it he was in Zuzanas right ear feverishly beavering away with his tool... his ear cleaning tool. Moments later and he'd managed to pull out this chunk of wax and dirt the size of a meal worm. Wow. We were both shocked and I was a little embarrassed that my girl had let herself go so much. It was a convincing performance and after haggling the crap out of him, we agreed to let him in. At such a great deal we had our ears cleaned. They were disgustingly dirty. I could have made a candle out of the cumulated gunk, but as with everything else, it was thrown on the floor. On reflection it probably wasn't worth keeping ear wax. Another experience added to the trip.
Apart from that Delhi was vibrant. We had some great dinners and were enjoying the atmosphere. We'd start everyday with a 5Rupee chai and a walk to somewhere new. It felt easy and although you
An expert hard at work
Pracoval aj na Davidovi had to get streetwise very quickly it was very enjoyable.
Anurag and Charu met us two days after we arrived and we had a fantastic time with them. They took us all over New Delhi, to Old Delhi, showed us different sights and sounds and invited us to try some more traditional food like a Jalebi at Jalebi Walas. This was the sweetest thing I'd ever tasted and Anurag loved them. One was enough for us to but he devoured as much as he could. You can tell they both really miss their home cuisine/treats living in the UK. We were meeting because they wanted to help us get some items for our outfits for the wedding. Plus give us a mini tour of their India. Zuzana needed some fancy pants bracelets and we both needed some more appropriate shoes as our walking boots just didn't cut the chutney. They were also kind enough to take us to a very secret, secluded restaurant in Old Delhi that cooked some of the more traditional Moghul food and it was fantastic with just the right amount of spice. We were so grateful and vowed to take them out when we got
First Indian Haircut
Davidov prve strihanie vlasov back home from our trip.
Before we parted, their final act of generosity was to buy, both Zuzana and I, some Paan.... This is Indias National past time for both men and women, but mainly for men. It's a cocktail of sweet and sour and bitter ingredients, also tobacco and then wrapped in a beetle leaf. You consume it in one mouthful. My god what a sensation that is. Now men can chew it for hours, their mouths fill with this bright red concoction and this then ends up being spat onto the floor, anywhere really, for them to carry on chewing. I had a few chews and it must have lasted 1,2 maybe 3 seconds before it had to be physically removed. Zuzana wasn't far behind. She chewed the first bit but had to spit the second. I gave my Paan to some kids who couldn’t wait to put their hands on it. They were incredible flavors but our pallets just weren't used to them. However, Paan could now be ticked off the list. We thanked our friends and said goodbye as they were heading home. We would be meeting with them before the wedding.
The next
Delhi streets
Ulice v Delhi few days in Delhi were spent visiting the Red Fort and the Jama Masjid (mosque) in the old city. The Fort was grand and, indeed, very red. We seemed to be the only westerners there and every 30ft we'd hear, “Excuse me, can we have a picture with you?”
Most often it would be a small group of girls and they'd all be giggling and nudging each other to change places making sure they all had their turn in the shot with this western couple. We felt like the Beckhams only £50million worser off. We had a lovely day as the sun was warm and the air was clear for a change. We wandered and did the cultural thing, chatting to children and viewing all the exhibits and then we spent a little time just basking in the sunshine fulfilling the celebrity like requests. Looking back we should have charged for the privilege. We also took in the serenity of the Mosque, it was enormous and it too was grand. It was big enough to house 50'000 people, all preying at once. God never gets a break. If I was him I'd take a day off and at the very
The Red Fort
Cervena pevnost least turn on the answering machine. After our stroll we managed to find Anurags Mogul restaurant and had another good feed. The food was going down very well so far. It was bloody tasty and it was cheap, cheap, cheap!
In preparation for the forthcoming wedding, Zuzana had a beautiful henna tattoo printed on her hands, back and front. With the dress, the shoes, the bracelets and now the henna she was really beginning to look the part. While she was having her print completed, I thought I'd be 'uber' cool and have one printed on my arm. I thought, whilst on my travels, I might get a wee tattoo as a permanent memory but having had this on my arm I'm now free of the idea so panic no longer Mother. Just the nipple piercing for me! Later that day we packed our backpacks and headed to Lucknow on the Lucknow Express.
The trains in India are great. We arrived at Delhi railway station and it seemed like the half of Delhi was waiting for a train. It was all people and blankets. We found a place to sit and wait and took some time to people
Indide the Red Fort...
Vo vnutri Cervenej Pevnosti watch. There were people from all walks of life. Those that traveled in the higher classes and those who, if there wasn't enough room in the carriage, would be on the roof. We managed to find our platform and find a place to wait along with the other half of Delhi. People were getting on the train just before ours and we had the joy of watching those boarding the second class seating carriage. Sardines in a can does not do this Tetris of a people puzzle justice. We had the pleasure of traveling in 3AC (3rd class Air Con). This was perfectly adequate for us. We had our own bunks in a block of six and it all felt rather cozy. However, 2nd class non A/C seater was quite another setup. It's exactly as you see on the television. Men were hanging out of the side of the carriages and you could see children being fitted into all the spaces imaginable. It was one of those, “we are so privileged in the UK” moments. They'd be traveling like that for over 12hrs. I mentioned this to Anurag and he informed me that this is how they travel and that
Red Fort (that is also white in parts)
Cervena Pevnost (niekedy taktiez biela) they are used to it. Wow, hat's off to them, if you think about it, taking your hat off might allow for extra space for someone else. There is no room for fatties that's for sure. I just hope no one needed the toilet for 12hrs.
When our train arrived we gradually worked out the seating/ birthing system and then turned to board. We needed to find our carriage and after a 3min walk and what seemed like a kilometer, we finally found it, boarded and set up camp on the top bunks, out of the way. As you may have gathered health and safety gets as much of a look in as do veterinarians in India and this applies even on the trains. When you're on a train you can casually open the door at 80mph and you can hang out of it, at your own peril, to watch the world go by. This way and when the train turns a corner you can see the size of these track bound snakes. They can be up to 750m long. You're also able to count those that didn't manage to get a space inside the carriage. Poor buggers!
Red Fort
Cervena Pevnost We arrived the next day at 7:00am and Anurag kindly collected us and dropped us off at our accommodation. I, who hadn't been feeling very well (man flu virtually making me bed ridden), wasn't really needed until the evening so was able to get some sleep. Zuzana was collected around 11am and had a fantastic time attending all the traditional bridal celebrations, having her hair done, learning an Indian dance, eating and just being part of a special family event. She also got some money from the bride’s mother … apparently that’s what they do in India. We tried to get her invited to other peoples weddings to capitalize on the bridal families generosity keeping us traveling for longer!
When I arrived at the house everyone was getting ready. Zuzana and I had both been loaned some traditional clothing from Anurag and Charu. Zuzana had all the accessories and I'd bought some delightful Ali Baba shoes. Once everyone was in their regalia, pictures taken and perfumes applied, we got in the car and headed to see the groom, fully 'donned' after his full day pampering. Oh yes guys... it's not just the girls having facials and hair treatment!! The
City Life
Mestsky zivot groom was spotless. His outfit was amazing. Reds and golds were everywhere. He had a Maharajahs turban accompanied with pearls to cover his face and a gold sword. He really looked the part. The events that took place from then on were a privilege to be part of. All the family wished him well and lots of traditional blessings took place which were, at times, emotional and before long he was on a horse riding to his love as all Princes should.
The precession that followed the groom consisted of his guests, a band, some people that wore 4ft light fittings on their heads and a trailer that was playing all the music. It was crazy fun. We stopped all the traffic and the noise from all the horns seemed to add to the music which we enjoyed even more. As I mentioned there were these men that held a lighting unit on their heads. They must have weighed 15kg and were all powered by a mobile generator chugging away behind us with live electric cable keeping us all penned. When we arrived at the reception and before we entered some of us danced to the music while others
The huge Mosque
Moslimska mesita threw money into the air and while this was happening some children, that were not part of the wedding, were quickly snatching all of the notes. Anurag and Charu showed us how to dance in the traditional style and before long there was a large group of us dancing and all the families clapped and enjoyed the celebrations. It's such a colourful occasion. Most of the men wore formal suits but there were a lot of us dressed up in a more regal style. However it's the women that really make the event colourful. Once we'd begun to move into where the reception was being held the brides parents greeted the groom and each of the families equivalents exchanged embraces and garlands. Now grand just isn't the word. It was like a funfair in the sense that there was so much going on. So many lights, sounds, colours and smells, it was an amazing spectacle. They even had a camera on a 30ft arm streaming the ceremony live onto two massive TV screens.
We took a seat in front of a decorated stage where the groom was sitting on his throne and waiting for his bride to arrive. A
Mosque
Mesita band was playing music and people were mingling and grabbing food for the copious amount of food stalls and food types available. There were about 600 people in total and with the stage I was half expecting a concert or theatrical production to take place. When the bride did arrive it was just how I imagine the wife of the Maharajah to look. She was beautiful and so perfectly decorated. Her outfit shined and sparkled lights of gold and silver and, bless her, it weighed around 10kg. Her face was so beautifully made up and finished with a nose ring that was also gold. She arrived on a throne decorated with a display of peacock feathers. I've never seen anything like it. It's far more exciting and vibrant than weddings at home. It's basically a display of wealth that the brides family have been saving for their whole lives.
The Bride and Groom sat in their thrones while all the families had their pictures taken in turn with the happy couple. This took about 4hrs. It would do with 600 guests! Meanwhile Zuzana and I had a great feed on the vegetarian food available from the catering stalls and
chatted to members of the family. Once the photos had finished the Bride and Groom had some dinner and at midnight everyone was heading home. We were staying as we had been invited to witness the 'actual wedding' ceremony with only the closest part of the family present. This really was a privilege.
We all sat under a large canopy and two Indian Sadhus, one from each family, completed various rituals within the ceremony. The happy couple were told stories and took part in activities from which they would gain an understanding of how to raise a family and how to look after each other. They paraded around the centre piece as part of the ceremony and I think after that they were officially married. It was fascinating as both of the Holy Men would take it in turns to tell various stories about commitment and families etc. However, they would be competing to see who is the better teller of tales with the families being the unofficial judges. What was also slightly amusing was the holy men were chanting away very seriously with all heads bowed while texting on the phone.... Almost as if they'd be instructing the
wife to put the kettle on as they'd be home soon, via text message.
The various ceremonies lasted a total of 4hrs before the Bride and Groom were officially Husband and Wife. Admittedly for us it was 4 hours of sitting next to a fire, trying to keep warm under some blankets and although we knew that they were getting married we didn't understand a word of what they were saying. Towards the end most of the men were hinting that the ceremony was going on far too long. We left at 5 o’clock in the morning and although a little tired we both had a fantastic time and we couldn’t thank Anurag and Charu enough for giving us the opportunity to be part of a very special occasion which we otherwise would never have had a opportunity to see. The effort they had made for us have left an everlasting impression. They answered any questions we had and always made sure we had everything we needed on our trip to Lucknow and in Delhi.
At 6am, having agreed a later checkout time with the hotel, we went to bed. Once we eventually rose from our slumber we
City Life
Mestsky zivot needed to get back to the train station. We left our hotel and started the long walk. Being an accomplished map reader I got us lost pretty quickly and we then needed some directions. We asked some school girls and thankfully they could speak English. After several minutes of conversing we'd managed to gather at least 20 earwigg'ers all keen to get a glimpse of the lost pair and where they were headed. The school girls flagged a pedal rickshaw driver down and haggled for the best price. With two 17kg backpacks plus the two of us, his little skinny legs didn't really work quite as efficiently as they do when he chaperone's the locals. At one stage the poor little bugger had to get off and pull the rickshaw up a slight incline. We were doubtful but he did, eventually, ferry us 4km. Mostly uphill.
We got the train back to Delhi and once arriving back at the capital we met Anurag briefly as he kindly agreed to take our shoes home for us. He then left and after a final thank you, we were on our own again, ready to face Incredible India.
Its always lovely
to know that you are reading our little blog so please post a comment and let us know what you think.
Love as always
Columbus and Scott
SLOVENSKY
India, prvá časť
No, Afriku sme nejako zvládli a India bola, nepovedala by som je ako prechadzka ruzovou záhradou pretoze India má svoj vlastný stupeň ťakosti, ale to bolo viac o cestovaní, skôr nez o prezití a ako sa dostať z bodu A do B. Jej hĺbka kultúry, nábozenstva a farieb robí Indiu pozoruhodné miesto k návšteve. Cestovali sme po celej krajine, od severu k juhu a od Severo-Východu na Západ .
Pristáli sme na Gandhi Medzinárodnom letisku dňa 01.12.2009. Z letiska sme zavolali do hotela a povedali nam, ze mali k dispozícii izbu aj napriek tomu, ze sme im volali v úplne hlúpych skorých hodinách. Potrebovali sme sa dostať taxíkom do mesta, takze sme sa spojili s dvomi dievčatami z Nemecka, ktoré tiez isli tým istým smerom. V taxíku sme neprešli ani 500metrov a hneď sme dostali našu prvú dávku dopravnéj nehody. Mini-autobus bol v strede cesty a obrovské horiace plameňe odhalovali jeho holé kosti. Vodič popíjal na strane cesty chai (čaj), pretoze moc
dobre vedel, ze tam nemohol toho veľa narobiť kým plameňe nevyhoria. A bez ziadnej pomoci k dispozícii ... piť čaj bola skutočne jediná vec, ktorú mohol urobiť, lebo mu to aspoň ponúklo nejaké to teplo v chladnom nočnom vzduchu. S týmto rýchlo za sebou, dostali sme sa do mesta.
Kedze boli 3:00 hod ráno, v tejto fáze sme boli unavení a mali sme naše zmysly boli tak trošku vypnuté. Nemky si nerezervovali ziadny hotel, ale chceli zostať v oblasti zvanej Paharganj a my sme šli do časti zvanej Connaught Place. Vodič nás doviezol do centra mesta a vzal nás do najviac riskantnej časti, ktorá mala byť Paharganj. Táto area bola uplne prikrytá bezdomovcami, nie ze tam boli nastavaní jeden na druhom, ale ten počet, to bolo neuveriteľné. Vačšina mala deky ako prikrívky, ale veľa sa chúlilo okolo ohňa a snazíli sa zahriať ako najlepšie mohli. Skutočne nám to otvorilo oči, táto obrovská chudoba. V Afrike to je iné, tam sa nemajú na koho spoliehať. Ale toto je India! Tam ich ale bolo toľko ze nebolo vidieť na chodník. Kto sakra zabudol na tíchto ľudí?
Nemecké dievčatá sa len na seba pozreli a my sme mohli vidieť, ze na
Henna Tattoo
Henna tetovanie tomto mieste definitívne nechcú zostať! A tak sa rozhodli zostať v taxíku a skúsiť šťastie v rovnakom hoteli ako my. Vodič pokračoval v šoférovaní a zničoho nič stratil cestu. "Nie, nie v noci to všetko vyzerá úplne inak ", prišlo zmätené vysvetlenie.
"Tu, pozrite sa na našu mapu, myslíme, ze sme tu", navrhli sme mu . Z nejakého dôvodu náš taxikár bol taktize neschopný čítať mapy a stal sa v tom čase úplne negramotný…. ale hej aspoň mohol šoférovať - dopredu.
Tak sme boli stratení v Delhi. Zrazu povedal: "Ja viem, vezmem vás do miestneho turistického informačného centra (TIC)!" Turistické informačné centrum? Wow, prvé na našich cestách. To znel ako skvelý nápad v tej dobe.
Keď sme prišli do TIC, bolo zatvorené. Nie je čuda, keďze boli 3 hodiny ráno. Vodič pristúpi ku dverám a zaklope. Čoskoro jeden z agentov otvorí a pozve nas dovnútra. Sedeli sme v kancelárii a bolo nám povedané, ze za sekundu s nami bude iný agent. Ako z dákej komédie, tento chlapík sa zrazu vynorí z kresla, uz so zapálenou cigaretou v ústach, "Kam chcete ísť?" Tak sme mu vysvetlili, ze náš vodič je stratený a dali sme mu meno nášho v súčasnosti
Manly henna tattoo
Ani David nechcel byt pozadu rezervovaného hotela. Fajčiaci agent zavolal do hotela a zevraj naša izba bola daná niekomu inému. Jasne, niekto sa zapísal do nášho hotela o 4-roch hodinách ráno. No, verili sme im, veď je to India. Tak nám snazili nájsť iné miesto na ubytovanie. Agent obvolal niekoľko hotelov, ale nemohol nájsť dve izby v jednom hoteli kdekoľvek v celej Delhi. Take sme boli uviaznutí v TIC o 4 hodinách ráno, dúfajúc ze sa niekde najde nejaké miesto na pobyt. V jednej fáze sme navrhli, ze tam zostaneme ďalšie 3 hodiny a vydáme sa von na lov, keď sa vyjasní.
Nakoniec nás poslali do predrazeného hotela, kde trvali na tom, ze musíme opustiť hotel pred obedom. Čo znamenalo, ze zaplatíme plnú sumu len za 6 hodín. Ja viem, ze toto sú regulácie a hostia sa musia odhlásiť z hotela pred určitým časom, ale my sme sa potrebovali osprchovať a dobre vyspať. Pretoze som bola unavená, tak ma to strašne nasralo, ze som začala naňho kričať a pozadovat manazéra a tento tiez spal na zemi pod recepčným stolom. On nakoniec dovolil, aby sme sa odhlásili o 4hod poobede. Toto všetko bol ale masívny podvod. Vodič, TIC Agent a hotel boli všetci v tom.
Hlúpe je, ze sme si o tom prečítali v našej príručke Lonely Planet India len niekoľko dní predtým! No, tak sme boli nahnevaní sami so sebou, ze sme im na to naleteli. Úprimne povedané, zdalo sa, ze plno svetiel, zvukov a nedostatok spánku, skutočne odvrátilo našu pozornosť od toho, čo sa dialo. Ale po tomto kokape sme si dávali pozor, aby sa to znova nestalo. Len sme dúfali, ze tie nemecké dievčatá boli v poriadku ... niekde.
Druhý deň ráno (neskôr v ten deň), keď sme sa prebudili, cítili sme, ze hotel sa postupne napĺna dymom a zdola bolo počuť skandovanie. Najskôr sme si mysleli, ze sme boli obetovaní vo vnútri hotela, kým sa hromada ludí zhlúči vonku a pozerá nás horieť. Šli sme dole do recepcie a skutočne sa tam vykonávala slávnost s obrovským ohňom v hotelovej lobby. Oslavovali začatie rekonštrukcie hotela. Oleje boli pálené a jedlo bolo distribuované, ktoré sme mali tú česť ochutnať. Bola to náša prvá chuť Indie. Indi, ktorí su väčšinou hindského nábozenstva, vykonávajú celý rad rituálov po celý svoj zivot pre rôzne oslavy / príleitosti, kazdý s kombináciou rôznych bohov.
Zobrali sme si taxíka do centra mesta, našli lacnejší hotel a usadili
Almost there
Uz je skoro hotove sme sa tam na niekoľko najbliších dňov. Taxikár nás tiez chcel ošklbať a ziadal nás o viac peňazí, keď sme dorazili na našu destináciu. Vitajte v Indii!
V prvých pár dňoch sme ale naozaj mali problem vstať pred 1hodinou poobede z dôvodu časoveho posunu. V Delhi sme chceli sme zostať na pár dní, lebo sme sa stretali s našimi priateľmi, Anurag a Charu. Sú to nájomníci v Davidovom dome v Bicesteri a pozvali nás na ich bratrancovu svadbu. Dohodli sme sa, ze ich stretneme, aby nám ukázali ich rodnú zem.
Delhi bolo tak veľmi znečistené, ze sa zdalo, ze slnko neprelomilo ranné svetlo po celý deň. Delhi sa tiez pripravolalo na Medzinárodný Atletický Šampionát, čo znamenalo, ze centrálne Delhi sa dávalo do pucu. Veľa rekonštrukcií hádzalo do vzduchu prach a toto vytváralo veľmi hustý smog, cez ktoré slnko nebolo schopné preniknúť. Počas niekoľkých prvých dňoch sme sa rozhliadali okolo nášho nového mesta a okolia Connaught Place, aby sa v pocítili Indiu. Na kadom kroku nám bolo niečo ponúknuté. Jedlo, oblečenie, čistenie obuvi ... Čo sa nám zdalo smiešne, lebo po väčšinu času sme nosili sandále, ale zevraj aj tieto sa dajú vyleštiť, ze sa budú blišťať z diaľky.
Full henna
Konecny vysledok V Afrike boli zobráci na ulici. V skutočnosti, zobráci sú všade po celom svete. Len sa líšia úrovňou úsilia, obetavosti a predstavivosti, ktorá ide do výkonu. Sledovali sme niekoľkých ako tvrdo pracovali vo svojej robote. Veľa z nich je nejako postihnutých, ochrnutých, bez nohy, ruky, s otvorenými ranami a toto je ráj pre muchy. Ako sme ich tak pozorovali, videli sme, ako si vyschnuté oblasti rany nanovo odierajú, aby boli opäť vlhké. Nikto nebude charitatívny, keď to bude len chrasť a čím čerstvejšia, tým lepšie! Len aby som nezabudla spomenúť v druhej alebo tretej časti o Indii, keď sme boli v Pushkari (Rajasthan), v kaviarni sme sa dívali na svet, keď sme uvideli bezmocného individuála bez nôh ako sa tiahol na drevených kolečkových saniach. Keď to vidíte, je to smutné a citite veľkú hrudu na srdci. Keď si ale dal prestávku od jeho mučenia a odmietnutia, vošiel do malej uličky, kde vstal, spočítal svoju hotovosť, zdvihol sane a odišiel. Nepochybne do banky, rozumne investovať všetky svoje ťazko zarobené peniaze .
Ale naspäť do Connaught Place. Jedna z ponúk pouličných predavačov bolo čistenie uší. Tento chlapík strčil kovový inštrument do našich uší, pokrútil a vytiahol čokoľvek čo tam našiel.
Podľa toho, ako sa tváril tam pravdepodobne našiel zlato. Naša prvá reakcia, ako kadého človeka bolo: "Nie, ďakujeme, my si čistíme naše uši veľmi často". No ale on bol celkom perzistentný a ukázal nám knihu plnú referencií od ľudí z celého sveta o tom, aký to bol dobrý zázitok. Dokonca mal referenciu od Slováka písanú v Slovenčine! Nez sme sa ale nazdali, uz bol v mojom pravom uchu a točil o sto-šesť. O pár chvíľ neskôr sa mu podarilo vytiahnuť kus vosku a nečistôt vo veľkosti červa. Uau. Obaja sme boli šokovaní. Bol to fakt presvedčivý výkon a po dohodnutí ceny sme sa ho rozhodli pozvať dovnútra. Naše uši boli nechutne špinavé. Az sme sa hanbili. Mohli by sme z toho vosku akumulovať sviečku, ale nakoniec to skončilo to na zemi, ako všetko ostatné. Ďalšia skúsenosť bola pridaná do našej cesty.
V Delhi zije 12 miliónov ľudí. Je to veľmi zivé, hlučné, preplnené a väčšinu času veľmi smradľavé mesto. Smradľavé z toho dôvodu, ze muzi vykonávajú svoje potreby priamo na ulici. Hocikde. My sme sa mali skvelé, skúšali sme rôzne jedlá a vdychovali atmosféru ha ha. Kadý deň sme začali s 5 Rupee Chai čo je ekvivalent asi 0,08
Delhi Train Station
Delhi vlakova stanica Eura.
Anurag a Charu nás stretli dva dni neskôr a my sme sa mali s nimi fantasticky. Vzali nás do Starej časti Delhi, ukázali rôzne pamiatky a pozvali nás vyskúšať ďalšie tradičné jedlá, ako je napríklad Jalebi. To bola tá najsladšia vec, akú som kedy ochutnala, ale Anurag ich miloval. Jeden Jalebi bol pre nás dosť, ale Anurag ich jedol koľko to len šlo. Môzem povedať, ze obom im veľmi chýba ich domáca kuchyna, keďze zijú vo Veľkej Británii. Jeden z dôvodov stretávky bolo, aby nam pomohli kúpiť nejaké veci pre naše Indické svadobné oblečenie. Ja som potrebovala nejaké náramky a obaja sme potrebovali vhodnejšiu obuv pretoze naše bagance sa proste nehodili. Oni boli tiez veľmi láskavý a ukázali nám tajnú reštauráciu v Starom Delhi, kde sa varilo z tradičných potravín Moghul. Jedlo bolo úplne fantastické s úplne správnym mnozstvom korenia. Boli sme im veľmi vďační, a sľúbili sme im, ze ich pozveme na včeru, keď sme sa vrátime domov z nášej cesty.
Nez sme sa rozišli, ich posledný akt veľkorysosti bola kúpa “Paan”. Toto je Indické hobby pre muzov aj zeny, ale hlavne pre muzov. Je to koktail sladej, kyslej a horkej chuti, aj tabaku a potom
zabalené v obrovskom liste. Konzumuje sa to jedným sústom. Boze môj, to je ale chuť. Indi to môzu zuť celé hodiny, ich ústa sa naplnia s jasne červenou zmesou a to potom skončí vyplutím na zem. Hocikde. David prezul asi 2-3krát predtým nez to musel fyzicky odstrániť. Ja som nebola ďaleko za ním. Zhltla som prvú polku, ale musela vypľuť druhú. David nakoniec daroval Paan deťom, ktoré sa nato uz nemohli dočkať. Boli to neuveriteľné chuti, ale naše chuťové bunky jednoducho na to neboli pripravené. Avšak, Paan bola ďaľsia vec začiarknutá v zozname. My sme sa poďakovali našim priateľom a povedali naše zbohom. Veď ich uvidíme o pár dní na svadbe.
Najbliších niekoľkých dní v Delhi bolo vynalozených k návšteve Red Fort (Červenej Pevnosti) a Jama Masjid (mešita) v starom meste. Pevnosť bola obrovská a skutočne veľmi červená. Zdalo sa, ze sme tam jediní Západniari a kazdých 10 metrov sme počuli: "Prepáčte, môzeme sa s vami odfotiť?" Najčastejšie to boli malé skupinky dievčat, ktoré sa chichotali, navzájom pošťuchovali, aby sa uistili, ze všetky sú odfotené s týmto západným párom. Pripadali sme si ako Beckhamovci len bez £ 50 miliónov. Mali sme ale krásny deň, slnko svietilo a vzduch bol
Squeeeeeeeze!
Tak sa pekne natlacte!!! pre zmenu čistý. Prechádzali sme cez kultúrne pamiatky, kecali s deťmi, prezerali exponáty a plnili ziadosti ako celebrity. Pri pohľade späť sme mali o túto česť poziadať o peniaze.
Mešita bola obrovská a veľkolepá. Bola to dosť veľká nato, aby naraz udrzala 50'000 modliacich muslimov. Boh nemá nikdy prestávku. Keby som bola ním tak by som si vzala deň voľna a prinajmenšom zapla telefónny záznamník. Po našej prechádzke sa nám podarilo nájsť Anuragovu Mogul reštauráciu a mali ďalšie dobré jedlo. A lacné!
V rámci prípravy na nadchádzajúcu svadbu, ja som mala urobené krásne henna tetovanie na oboch rukách, vrch a spodok. So šatami, topánkami, náramkami a teraz hennou som naozaj začínala vyzerať ako pravá Indka. Keďze David nechcel byť pozadu, nechal si urobiť henna tetovanie na jeho pai. Neskôr v ten deň sme zabalili naše batohy a zamierili do Lucknow v Lucknow Express.
Vlaky v Indii sú skvelé. Keď sme dorazili na stanicu Novej Delhi zdalo sa, ze celá polovica Delhi čaká na nejaký vlak. Našli sme miesto na zemi, kde sme čakali a sledovali miestnych. Tam boli ľudia zo všetkých oblastí zivota. Tí, ktorí cestovali vo vyšších triedach, a tí, ktorí budú pravdepodobne sedieť na streche.
The births were a little restrictive
Taktiez postele boli trosku obmedzene Podarilo sa nám nájsť naše nástupište a miesto na čakanie spolu s druhou polovicou Delhi. Ľudia nastupovali na vlak tesne predtým našim a my sme mali to potešenie vidieť ako sa tlačia na palubu druhej triedy - sedenie. Sardinky v plechovke je nič. My sme mali komfort v 3AC (3. trieda s klímou). To bolo pre nás úplne adekvátne. Mali sme vlastné postele v bloku šiestich a cítili sme sa veľmi útulne. Avšak, druhá trieda bez klímy bola uplne o niečom inom. Je to presne tak, ako vidíte v televízii. Muzi boli visiaci z boku vozňov a mohli ste vidieť ako pichali deti do všetkých mozných priestorov. Bol to jeden z tých, "my sa doma fakt máme dobre” momentov. Oni takto cestujú 5, 8, 10, 12 a viac hodín. Spomenuli sme toto Anuragovi a ten nám povedal, ze sú na to uz zvyknutí. Uau, klobúk dole… keď sa nad tým zamyslíte, tento vaš klobúk by mohlo uvoľniť priestor pre niekoho iného. Tu nie je priestor prez iadnych tlsťochov, to je isté. Len dúfam, ze nikto nepotrebuje v priebehu cesty.
Keď náš vlak dorazil, hneď sme zistili aký system pouzivajú na číslovanie vagónov, sedadiel a postelí. Aby sme našli náš
Wedding gifts
Svadobne dary vagón museli sme prejsť asi 500 metrov. Vlaky v Indii sú a 750 metrov dlhé. Usadili sme sa na spodných posteliach, ktoré boli celkom pohodlné. Keďze bezpečnosť v Indii vôbec neexistuje, môzete bezstarostne otvoriť dvere a pozerať sa na svet v 120km/hod. Týmto spôsobom môzete vidieť veľkosť týchto hadov keď sa točia v rohu. A taktie spočítať počet tých, ktorým sa nepodarilo nájsť priestor vo vnútri vozňa. Chudáci!
Do Lucknow sme prišli na druhý deň ráno o 7:00 hod, Anurag nás láskavo prišiel vyzdvihnúť zo stanice a zobral do nášho hotela. Davida, ktorý sa necítil veľmi dobre (chlapská chrípka), nebola potreba az do večera, takze sa bol schopný lepsie vyspať. Ja som ale bola vyzdvihnutá okolo 11hod a bola som súčasťou tradičných svadobných ceremónií, návštevou u kaderničky, učenia indického tanca a samozrejme jedenia. Jednoducho som bola súčasťou špeciálnej rodinnej udalosti. Aj som dostala peniaze od nevestinej matky, čo je ich svadobná tradícia. Keby sme to vopred vedeli, mohli sme sa zúčastniť niekoľkých svadieb, aby sa nám cesta predĺzila o niečo dlhšie.
Keď sa David k nám pripojil okolo 4 hodín poobede, obaja sme sa obliekli do ich tradičného oblečenia, ktoré sme si zapozičali od Anuraga a Charu.
More gifts
Viac darov Ja som mala všetky doplnky a David si kúpil lahodné topánky Ali Baba. Akonáhle sme boli v plnej paráde, urobili me pár snímkov a zamierili k zeníchovmu domu. Jeho oblek bol úasný. Červený a zlatý. Mal turban maharádzu spolu s perlami, ktoré zakrývali jeho tvár a zlatý meč. Naozaj vyzeral ako z rozprávky. Bola česť sa zúčastniť všetkých udalostí, ktoré sa potom odohrali. Celá rodina mu zelala šťastie a konalo sa veľa tradičného pozehnanie. Čoskoro bol ale na koni a frčal za svojou láskou.
Precesie, ktoré nasledovali sa skladali z hostií, kapely a ludí, ktorí drzali na svojich hlavách asi 1meter veľké svietidlá. Bolo to šialená srada. Zastavili sme všetku prevádzku a hluk z trúbenia len pridal do hudby. Ako som uz zmienila, títo muzi, ktorý drzali osvetľovacie jednotky na ich hlavách museli váiť asi 15 kg a boli poháňané mobilným generátorom. Keď sme dorazili na recepciu, niektorí ludia začali tancovať, zatiaľ čo iní hádzali peniaze do vzduchu. Medzitým deti, ktoré "neboli" sučasťou svadby rýchlo chmatali všetky bankovky. Anurag a Charu nám ukázali, ako sa tancuje v tradičnom Indickom štýle a onedlho tam bola veľká tanečná skupina. Zbytok rodiny tlieskalo a uzívalo si oslavu. Je to veľmi pestrá prílezitost.
Zuzana in her full Indian outfit
Ja v mojom plnom Indickom vyzbroji Niektori muzi mali oblečené obleky, ale veľa z nich, ako David, malo oblečený kráľovský štýl. Avšak boli to zeny, ktoré naozaj urobili túto udalosť farebnejšiu. Indi milujú zlato a všetko čo sa bliští.
Akonáhle by sme sa začali presúvať do záhrady bolo to ako keby sme vstúpili do krajiny zázrakov. Toľko svetla, zvukov, farieb a vôní, bolo to úzasné predstavenie. Oni dokonca mali kameru na 10 metrovom ramene a všetko bolo púšťané “live” (nazivo) na dvoch masívnych televíznych obrazovkách.
Usadili sme sa na predných sedadlách blizko k javisku, kde zeních sedel na tróne a čakal na svoju nevestu. Kapela hrala hudbu a ľudia postupne jedli na čo im chuť došla. Bolo tam v celku asi 600 ľudí a s takým javiskom som očakávala ze sa tam uskutoční nejaky koncert alebo divadelné predstavenie. Keď prišla nevesta vyzerala tak, ako by ste si predstavili Maharadzovu nevestu. Bola krásna, a tak perfektne zdekorovaná. Jej šaty ziarili, trblietali a zlato a striebro sa od svetla odrázalo, Tieto šaty vázili okolo 10 kilogramov. Jej tvár bola prekrásna, ozdobená nosovým prsteňom, ktorý bol tiez zo zlata. Dorazila na tróne zdobenom z pávích pier. Nikdy som nič také nevidela. Toto všetko je prejav bohatstva, na
ktorú nevestina rodina šporí celý zivot.
Nevesta a zeních sedeli na svojom tróne, zatiaľ čo všetci členovia rodiny boli s nimi odfotení. To trvalo asi 4 hodiny. No veď so 600 hosťami! Medzitým my sme dali super vegetariánsku stravu, ktorú sme mali k dispozícii a klábosil s členmi rodiny. Akonáhle fotky skončili nevesta a zeních sa najedli a po večeri ludia začali mieriť domov. My sme ale zostali a boli sme pozvaní zúčastniť sa 'skutočného svadobného obradu' len s najblizšími člemni rodiny. To bola naozaj česť.
Sedeli sme pod veľkým stanom s dvomi indickými Sádhuo, jeden z kazdej strany rodiny. Oni robili veľa rôznych rituálov. Šťastnému páru boli povedané rôzne príbehy a zúčastnili sa činností, z ktorých by mali pochopiť, ako si zaloziť rodinu a ako sa o seba starať . Potom pochodovali okolo stredovej časti 7 krát a myslím, ze potom boli oficiálne manzel a manzelka. Bolo to fascinujúce, ako obaja svätí muzi striedavo rozprávajú rôzne príbehy o záväzku a rodiny, atď. Avšak, oni obaja súťazili, kto je lepší rozprávač rozprávok a členovia rodiny boli neoficiálny sudcovia. Čo bolo tie trošku zábavné bolo, svätí muzi veľmi vázne skandovali so sklopenými hlavami, zatiaľ čo tajne textovali .... Takmer
Ali Baba shoes
Jeho Alibaba topanky ako keby kázali svojím zenam, aby postavili na kávu, pretoze to budú čoskoro doma.
Rôzne obrady trvali celkom 4 hodiny po ktorých nevesta a zeních boli oficiálne manzelia. Pre nás to boli 4 hodiny ohrievania okolo ohňa a pod dekou. Nerozumeli sme ani slovo. Ku koncu väčšina muzov naznačovala, ze obrad sa uz tiahne príliš dlho. Odchádzali sme o 5-tej hodine ráno, a aj keď trochu unavení mali sme sa fantasticky. Nemôzme sa dosť poďakovať Anurag a Charu, ze nám dali túto prílezitosť stať sa súčasťou veľmi špeciálnej prílezitosti, ktorú by sme inak nikdy mali moznosť vidieť. Nechalo to na nás večný dojem. Oni odpovedali na akékoľvek otázky a vzdy sa uistili, ze máme všetko, čo potrebujeme. V 6 hodín ráno sme šli do postele.
Keď sme sa zobudili museli sme zase pokračovať na našej ceste. Opustili sme hotel a začali kráčať smerom k stanici. Opýtali sme sa dvoch školáčok o direkcie a našťastie hovorili anglicky. Po niekoľkých minútach konverzovania sme boli obklopení asi 20-timi zvedavcami, ktorí chceli vedieť kam ideme. Školáčky stopli pedálnu rikšu a zjednali mám dobrú cenu. S dvoma batohmi váziacich 17 kg plus my dvaja, jeho malé chudé nohy mali naozaj čo robiť, aby
nás utiahli. Na jednom mieste musel zostúpiť a úbohý chudák musel vytlačiť rikšu do mierneho svahu. Nakoniec nás ale doviezol ku stanici ktorá bola 4 kilometre ďaleko.
Vlakom sme sa vrátili naspäť do Delhi a pri príchode do hlavného mesta sme sa nakrátko stretli s Anuragom, ktorý súhlasil, ze zoberie naše svadobne topánky so sebou do Anglicka. Po konečnom poďakovaní potom odišiel a my sme boli opäť sami, pripravený čeliť “Neuveritelnej Indii”.
P.S. Dufam, ze vam toto davalo nejaky zmysel, lebo ked som si to citala po 10 krat znelo to, ako keby to pisal nejaky Madar! Tak sa ospravedlnujem za gramaticke chyby a zle zlozene vety. 7 rokov zitia v Anglicku sa naozaj zacinaju na mne ukazovat. Asi by som sa mala prestahovat na Slovensko a opat ist do skoly :-)
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Chris Clifton
non-member comment
Hey
Hey there guys, who looks like your having loads of fun in India, Seems so long ago since we met you guys in Nairobi, we finished our trip to Cape town all safe and sound and now back in Australia, working and studying. Do you thiny you guys will ever stop off in Australia? If so come and say hello to us in Brisbane. Keep safe Chris and Leah