New Delhi

Well hi folks!! At last I sit in front of a computer. Its been a real issue to find internet over here (so get used to that!). Far more difficult than in Latin America, which I found surprising. For example, the version of IExplorer is 5.0 - yeah so that means I can't upload photos from either of my cameras without the drivers (on CDs). Hmmm... so don't know when I'll be able to do this, but keep watching this space I guess is all I can say. So now I'm going to do a little retrospective blogging. (I'm in Varanasi right now) I've been a week now in India so a little bit of time to soak up the shock, let it sink in and make my heart a little harder, my brain a little fuzzier (I'll explain that later!) But, healthwise I've been fine!! Every hour my BabyG does 2 little pips, and every hour I just go ... Haahhh, I'm ok! Its a wonder and when I tell you what I've been up to, well.... I'm sure you won't believe it either. But I'll save the details for future blogs so you'll have to wai and watch this space.

So I'm going back a week now to Craaaaaazzzzzyyyy Delhi!!! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Hear that sound? That's the sound of Wendy getting whacked in the face by this amazingly diverse place. Hoooollllyyyy doooooley - its like nothing I have ever seen or experienced. You don't visit Delhi, you experience it! While I've read plenty of travelogues and such to prepare, NOTHING, I repeat NOTHING prepares you for the shock that is India and Dehli epitomises it. As many of you know I'm a pretty seasoned traveler to all parts of the world, but this place is a different planet. I'm not kidding! Crowds in your face, unrecognisable smells, dust, smog, incense, beggars in rags, children with pleading eyes, burning incense, cows nudging, horns beeping, amputees with empty bowls, mangy dogs, filthy streets, people eating, cooking, spitting, washing, bathing, urinating (and worse) amongst plastic bags, washing, piles of rubble, ashes, dog shit, rubbish, cow dung, aromatic cooking smells, sand, mud, bricks, women beautifully dressed in their colourful saris with sullen eyes, rickshaws beeping, sirens wailing, trucks honking, motorbikes whizzing, trains thundering .... and it goes on. The word chaos was invented for this city I'm sure, but its chaos makes it one of the most interesting places I've ever had the privilege to visit.

Amazing Delhi!

Now let me see. After 24 hours transit time and very little sleep I met my travelling buddies -1 each from Belgium, USA and Canada and 4 Aussies. The guide is very well read, patient, friendly and pretty hot looking too! Seriously though, he's a wealth of information and very proud of his country. I'd never really grown up wanting to come on a pilgrimmage to India, but Narji has provided a fantastic introduction to the place, and perhaps an understanding for those folk who do come here for that purpose. I can now see the attraction for this place, for the sights, the smells the excitement, the energy the sheer juxtaposition of all things - in one huge swirling pot of coloured, mesmerising heady brew. One of the first things we did was hit Old Delhi... Man, that place is a trip. If you don't get knocked over by the cows that have right of way, its either an out of control rickshaw, bicycle, car, motorbike or rabid dog. The smells hit you from the pavement, from the cooking stalls, from the smog, smoke, incense ... to the extent that you don't know whether to gag or just suck it up. It certainly is one of the most confronting experiences of my life. Something I've written about before on previous blogs as well. It concerns the abject poverty, misery and sheer hopelessness of the plight of many of these people. I can never seem to shake this awful sense of ... I guess its guilt, as I wander through their crowded streets gawping and oggling (all the while pitying) the people who have no choice but to live this way. I'm sorry, but its just so damn brutal and hard and I can't help it. To those who say, "Ohh but they're so happy, such a contented people. Its soooo kultural." I say, "Yeah right!" So getting a good dose of kultcha I am. Christ almighty, that is such a cop out! I have found myself crying just about every 2 hours at the sheer enormity and the  abject misery of humanity that is India. I can no longer be objective, and it'll probably change me forever - I don't know how or why, because I'm still trying to process it all....

Anyway now that I've gotten that bit out the way, I'll continue with what I've been up to. I just add this bit in because I want you to know that I get no comfort from watching some of the most distressing things, even though its so colourfully gift-wrapped. Anyway moving along.... we also visited Delhi's oldest mosque, the impressive Jama Masjid, the Sheeshganj Gurudwara (Sikh Temple). We stopped and were treated to chai and bread making at the temple. I even had a crack at rolling the dough to the peels of laughter from the group of 20 or so women sitting around the floured floor. Although we were wearing no shoes, it was still pretty dirty, but I guess that is somethig I have to reconcile. From there we were lost in the labyrinth of crowded, narrow alleyways overflowing with exotic smells, colourful sights and stalls selling all kinds of goods from festival paraphernalia and silk to copper, brass and spices. And being Holi in the next few days, people were gearing up for the yearly festival (which we experienced in Agra!) Anyway as I continue with this blog, you'll have to excuse the lapses sometimes. The lack of internet makes it difficult to keep it regular like i could in Latin America. Also, you'll have to excuse the grammar, spelling, and tenses ... I dont check this once I've typed, and I go like the clappers as they say, because there's little time to waste editing. So just bear with the sometimes clumsy turns of phrase and uncomfortable expressions.

Next stop Agra and HAPPY HOLI!!