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After visiting Varanasi we packed up the circus and headed for our next destination, New Delhi. Although we had originally flown into Delhi we had only stayed there a few hours (just long enough to catch a train) so this would be new territory for us… but first we had to make it there. Getting to Delhi basically required us to retrace both train trips we had taken prior (Delhi-Agra, Agra-Varanasi) but as one very long overnight train. After the missing bag incident and people wandering the train on our Agra-Varanasi leg we opted to get a first class ticket because each berth has hard doors (as opposed to a curtain) and would allow a pessimist of my stature some peace of mind.
We reported to Varanasi train station in time for our 3:00 pm train and as soon as we arrived on the platform the game of lets stare at George & Venny started in earnest but by now we were kind of used to it and just made due… I guess there isn’t much else you can do. We ended up having plenty of time to kill at the station as our train was over 2 hours late
which was nerve wracking because I kept thinking that we were somehow missing our train or that it had been diverted to another platform (as happens frequently). We ended up having to listen to the intercom for updates on our train over the general noise and activity of a busy train station… as a backup I intermittently kept running back to the main station to read the digital arrivals/departure board just to make sure we weren’t missing the train. During our down time at the station we were entertained by watching the people watching us, a band of rats sifting through trash on the platform about 25 feet away, a panhandling kid so high from sniffing glue it was almost comical (until he decided to touch Venny) and a little 6 year old girl dragging her 3 year old sister around the station asking for money. When our train did eventually arrive, it was accompanied by a brief rain storm that sent everyone ducking for cover under the station awning… here I remember a classic Indian moment, a mass of people huddled under the awning to keep dry, accompanied by a rather large cow that had been wandering the platform
and decided to stay dry as well.
After making it back to New Delhi we kind of tapped out on India. We were initially planning on spending a few days in Delhi and then traveling to Amritsar before returning to Delhi for our onward flight to Thailand. As fortune would have it we bought our tickets to Amritsar ahead of time and then I got a stomach bug and we decided to skip Amritsar and just stay in Delhi for the remainder of the trip. We spent the next 5 nights visiting some of Delhi’s sights at a relaxed pace… some days we went out and about, some days we didn’t go further than a few blocks from the hotel and it was a good change of pace from spending long nights on trains and days out in the heat on foot… just what the doctor ordered, some a/c, a soft bed and a quiet hotel when we wanted it… and the sights of Delhi when we wanted to get outdoors. During our time there we visited Humayun’s tomb, the Lotus Temple, Red Fort and wandered some of the Pharanj *sp* neighborhood where our hotel was located… now it’s
time to put India behind us and Thailand here we come… again.
Thoughts on India I guess I have officially joined the camp of people who will have to give a disclaimer when speaking to any travelers thinking about visiting India. I arrived in India just knowing that I would like it, we were supposed to sit down and talk things out over some rice and curry and both leave with a smile on our faces… but India turned out to be a doozy. I struggled writing these blogs because I felt like I was throwing a nation of over a billion people under a bus based on our little 3 city tour but… I have to call it like it happened… we just didn’t really get along. I left loads out of these blogs because I didn’t want to sound like I was just whining on and on about the place but we just didn’t see eye to eye. There were high points, the Taj is magnificent, the food was very good, boating the Ganges at dawn was great… even the train (staring aside) was enjoyable once you got your seat and could watch India go by out
the window but the lows were always there to detract from the hi’s and bring the tone of the trip down from where it could have been. There are those who swear by India but I’m just not one of them… even after saying that I would possibly visit again although probably to the south of the country to see if things panned out any differently. I imagine a return trip would be more enjoyable because one would have a much better idea of what to expect and how to avoid some of the potholes in the road… but with so many other destinations on this planet… not sure that it would get moved back to the top of the pile anytime soon.
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Leida
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New Delhi Dally
Venny & George, thanks for the update. Sounds like you're not going to pursue IT jobs there. Great photos, nice storytelling. Can't wait to hear what you have to say about Thailand. Stay safe, and send us more.