Delhi

I am staying in Gurgaon Haryana, just outside Delhi, with two very good friends Michael and Barb.

Their home is in a nice housing area, with leafy streets, grassy areas, small shopping and eating centres close by. Relatively speaking. Walking outside in the morning and evening is pleasant, almost temperate. But stepping out of the air-conditioned haven of the house in the day, the heat hits you in the face like a wave, a rushing, stifling, solid mass. 40 degrees centigrade in the shade. The oppressive pall of Delhi smog covers the sky, looking like a thunder storm building weight.

Cows wander freely in the streets, the life of a holy and emblematic animal. They think nothing of crossing a ten lane road, or sitting down in a bustling market street. And of course everyone else is used to it, navigating round the cows in everyday life.

Dogs scratch in piles of rubbish, or lie in the minimal amounts of shade, too hot to flick away the flies. They vary from mangy, dieing, feral creatures to domesticated pets, groomed and chained to gates. Packs roam the streets at night, and bark at dawn.

I haven't even ventured into central Delhi yet.

We must leave soon.