Delhi Fog

As we left the Arrivals Hall in Indira Gandhi International Airport, and even before we left the building, we became aware of the sight and smell of smoke.  When we asked the driver whether it was always so smoky, he said "It's fog." 

Blue Skies!

With the "fog" and generally overcast skies, even after we left Delhi for the Golden Triangle Tour, we did not see blue sky until Friday (November 12) as we traveled from Agra to Jaipur.

Back in Delhi, we asked our travel coordinator about the smoke.  She said that it was probably the result of all of the fireworks and burning of incense used to celebrate the five-day Dewali, or "Festival of Lights," that had just completed on November 9, the evening before we arrived.  The air did become less smoky over the next few days, even though we saw trash being burned in the streets.

Then we entered the wedding season.  Every night until well past midnight the fireworks boomed like artillery around our Guest House. The next morning we would see the "fog" again and smell the smoke.  

In the future, the smell of wood smoke will always trigger memories of Delhi.

Electronics

It is impossible to travel these days without sufficient electronic support:  for us, this included a computer, a camera, and everything necessary in interface them together and to recharge their batteries.  We took 834 still pictures and video clips; these fit easily on one 8GB Kingston Class 6 SDHC flash memory card.  We did not use the two backup memory cards (same type) that we took with us, since we were easily able to upload the pictures to the computer.

We brought an interface between the camera and computer for uploading pictures; unfortunately, we could not find software to allow us to then upload the pictures to the blog.

"Electronics" also included power converters and adapters.  Just for this trip, we bought a Travel Smart By Conair Adapter/Converter Combo with Surge Protection ($26.48 from amazon.com).  It refused to stay plugged into any outlet we tried in India and will be returned to the seller.  Luckily, we had thrown our old Norelco Model TC160 voltage converter into the luggage at the last minute as a backup.

Two other (both dual-voltage) electric appliances we took were a hair dryer and a curling iron, but we did not use either.

We also brought along a small pair of (non-electronic) binoculars, but never used them.

How do people stay so clean?

Beautiful Saris: A Common Sight

One thing we've noticed is that, despite the environment, most people seem very clean and neatly dressed. This is a difficult environment to thrive in -- let alone survive -- and they seem to do it well.

Last Day in India

Wednesday, November 24.

Today is our last day in India. Our flight is scheduled to leave at 11:35 pm from Indira Gandhi International Airport. Even though the Guest House is literally under the arrival path to the airport, we must allow 1 hour to get there so that we will be 3 hours early for our flight. So we will bid farewell to our hosts here at 7:30, missing our 8:30 dinner. But if the flight out is anything like the one in, we will be stuffed with food shortly after departure! Our driver will get us safely inside the airport as far as he can take us; then we will really say goodbye to the good people who have done so much to make our stay easy and happy.

Our Room 1st Floor Main House

Today is a lazy day. We have seen and done about everything we can in such a short visit. We will go out for a short time this afternoon, but otherwise we are just taking it easy. We are all packed up and Pati is napping. The Wifi is down, due to a short rain shower this morning. If it doesn't come back, then this will be posted tomorrow.

We are the only guests here today. The guests in the next room left for the airport at 5 am this morning for Kerala in the south of India, to spend 2 weeks on the beach. Tomorrow and the next day they will have a full house, renting all their rooms to a local wedding party.

Our Room Behind Main House and Steps to Room Above

Library

The Guest House has 5 rooms they rent in addition to their private rooms on the second floor. Each rented room has 2 single or full size beds. One of the rooms is on the first floor of the main house; we stayed there our first night before going on the Golden Triangle tour. There is another building behind the main house, with two large rooms and a library on the lower floor and a small charming room reached by outside stairs up above. For the last week, we have been in one of the downstairs rooms. Before that, we spent one night in the upstairs room when we got back from the Triangle Tour. (The couple that was booked into the upstairs room couldn't navigate the stairs, so we traded rooms for a night.) The 5th room, we are told, is just inside the front gate, but we really can't figure out where it is, since there doesn't seem to be enough room from the outside for a room to be on the inside!

We are fed three delicious meals a day, at 8:30am, 1:30pm, and 7:30 pm. We guests take our meals together family style in a large dining room in the main house. From the windows of our current room, we can watch the cook work all day in the large kitchen.

The house has a staff of 10. In addition to the 4 drivers, there is a guard always at the gate, the cook, a nanny for the 2 children, a gardener (who sweeps the yard), a young woman who cleans and does laundry, and a woman who cleans the bathrooms.

The family that lives here includes the owner and his wife, their son and his wife, and 2 grandchildren (8.5 year-old boy and 5 year-old girl). We have seen the father once to say hello and the son once to present our passports and sign the guest register. The children play in the yard sometimes but spend their evenings in the family quarters. The boy is very proud of his razor scooter. The women really run the house and make all the arrangements for their guests.

This Guest House will be our first choice of a place to stay if (when!) we return to India. When Pati awoke from his nap, he started reading planning guides for trips to India!

Location:New Delhi, India

Malls

"The Largest Silver Ganesha in the World"
at Select Citywalk Mall

Tuesday (November 23) we went to a modern shopping mall in South Delhi; well, three of them, actually. From the outside, they look like one large mall, but each has its own security system: guards, scanners, barriers. To go between malls, you first leave the one you are in through its security exit, and then enter the next mall through its security entrance. Men and women have separate queues; bags are searched; bodies are wanded. At least Beebee wasn't patted down again!

The three malls are called Select Citywalk, MGF and DLF Place Saket.
These malls have many of the same store you see at home: Levi's, Marks & Spencer (British), DKNY Jeans, in addition to a few Indian stores (labeled "ethnic wear") such as Fabindia.

While so very very modern, these malls miss in trying to be hip hop Western. As we entered the first mall, we heard (and reheard many times as the set repeated) "You took a fine time ... to leeeeave me ... Lucillllle ... four hungry chill'rin ... and the crops inn ... th' fieeeeeeld."

We were probably the only people in the whole mall(s) to appreciate that tune! Or, we could be the only ones who don't appreciate it!!

Location:South Delhi, India

Beggars and Con Men

One thing that has been sad to see in India is the beggars. Some are adorable children, others old women, and most of the rest are maimed. We're advised to simply ignore them but this is difficult. From what we've read, the children are run in gangs by adults who take any money the children are given. The children stand at intersections and pound on the doors of cars containing foreigners. If you're on foot and give money, you'll be surrounded by a mob of beggars who are said to distract you while picking your pocket once they see where your money is kept. The old ladies chase people! India produces superb female sprinters. We've ignored the beggars as advised but it seems cruel.

Something more on the irritating side is the con men. We were at a park yesterday and one targeted us like a heat-seeking missile. Before we could get away, he pinned an extremely cheap "flag of India" pin on Pati's shirt leaving two pin holes and a dark smudge with it while saying "Welcome to India!" He then asked us to sign his book giving our names and where we are from. The book was a handwritten page from a notebook with names, home countries, and donation amounts of as much as 5000 rupees ($125). When Pati declined the opportunity to donate and gave the pin back, he told us we must donate "for the poor" and he was "just doing his job."

About a minute later, a nearly toothless man "gave" us a one minute tour of a tomb we were passing through to get away from the con man. We didn't want the tour but I gave him 10 rupees anyway. He looked at it and said "Only 10, give me a dollar!" Even by US standards, the tour was barely worth the rupees we gave him. Pati and Beebee ignored his indignation and ran. We can sprint too!

Our drivers

Indian tourism could not succeed without the Indian driver. We would not have gotten beyond the Arrivals Hall of Indira Gandhi International Airport without the Indian driver and we would never have seen all the wonders that we did see without the Indian driver. This essay is a testimonial to drivers Prem, Yogi, Thapa, Shiva, and Kumar (or, to be precise, we think Kumar is his name: all we really know is that he said he is the father of Naresh, who was supposed to be our driver but came down with a fever the night before we were to leave for Agra).

We first met Prem in the Arrivals Hall of Indira Gandhi International Airport on Wednesday, November 10. Our flight was scheduled to arrive at 2:40 am, but actually arrived at about 3:30 am. After a horrendously drawn out process of passport control and waiting at baggage claim until almost the last piece of luggage came off the plane, we trudged out into a small crowd waiting patiently behind a metal barrier. The time then was about 5 am. Prem was at the very end of the line of waiters, waving a sign with our name on it. No doubt he had been waiting there since well before 2:40 am. We were so pleased to see his welcoming smile and knew that everything would be all right. He took control of our luggage cart and got it onto an elevator to the car park. Leaving it with us only until he could retrieve his car, he then loaded it into the back of the car and proceeded to drive us to our Guest House through the unexpectedly heavy fog and traffic of the Delhi morning. Arriving there at about 6 am, he and another Guest House driver carried everything to our room, and then left us to try to salvage something of the night.

We first met Kumar (the father of Naresh) on the morning of Thursday, November 11. He was our driver for the Golden Triangle Tour and drove hundreds of long highway miles as well as many bumper-to-bumper fender-to-fender (any-car-body-part to any-other-car-body-part) miles inside cities and small towns over four days on the Delhi-Agra-Jaipur-Delhi loop. Riding with Kumar gave us a real appreciation of the skills of the typical Indian trying to get safely from one place to another when the roads are woefully inadequate for all the demands placed on them. As we learned on our last day with him, Kumar "owns" (that is, the bank owns) three cars that he uses in his driving business with his son. This business supports him, his wife, his parents, his son, his son's wife, and his son's children, all of whom live together, as a typical Indian extended family. When we arrived safely back at the Guest House, we each ( Pati and Beebee) had our picture taken with Kumar. Kumar said it was an experience he would always remember, and I know that we will, too.

Thapa is another driver associated with the Guest House. Thapa has taken us on trips around the city for sightseeing and shopping, to the ATM machine, etc.. Earlier in our stay, Thapa was assigned to us more, but Yogi seems to have become "our" driver now.

There are more Guest House drivers (perhaps four in all), but we haven't met them yet. Update: Shiva drove for us on Monday (November 22) since it was Yogi's day off.

Because of the distance involved whenever we leave the Guest House (really, it is distance measured in the time you are stuck in traffic jams and the gasoline expended trying to get anywhere), the driver makes only one trip out and back: he does not drive you somewhere, leave you there while he returns home, and then drive back to get you to take you back home. No, he drives you somewhere, parks near where you will be, waits patiently until you are ready to leave, and miraculously appears the second you appear to want him. And is cheerful about it. Yogi spent 7 hours with us on Friday while we visited a temple, ate lunch at a restaurant, and shopped in a small square. We don't know when or how (or whether!) he eats and drinks, but we hope he does. For this service, we pay the Guest House a reasonable half-day or full-day fee and give the driver a small tip, say 200 rupees (around $5 US) for a full day.

And yes, Yogi is "smarter than the average bear."

Why can't Pati get clean?

During most of our stay we have been in a comfortable guest house with a modern bath. However, for two days, we stayed in a room where the bathroom consisted of a modern shower head, an equally modern bucket, no soap, and no towels. Pati saw a mall down the road and went on a quest to find soap and a wash cloth. When he got there he found an Indian massage salon with a sign that said free shower and steam with oil-based massage. Pati went in and was given a menu that he couldn't understand so he pointed to an entry about half way down the page and said "Is this oil based?" The receptionist said yes and Pati said he'd take it.

Pati was lead to a wood paneled room and given a pair of paper undershorts to wear. Since he saw the sought-after shower in the corner, he put them on. He immediately noted that most of the salon's customers must be fairly slim. The image that came to Pati's mind when he finally got them on was Baby Huey.

Having read about Hindu modesty, Patty expected a male masseuse. He was quite surprised when a female Korean masseuse entered. As Pati was pummeled by hands of steel, he guessed she must be North Korean with some kind of military background. Finally, the massage ended and - aside from some swelling in one arm - it wasn't too bad.

The masseuse left and it was just Pati, some soap, a towel, and the much sought after steam shower. The shower was high tech with a control panel. The instructions Pati had been given on its use were "Do steam, then shower, then steam." Pati found a button that had a steam icon and pressed it. He soon noticed that, because of the steam, he could no longer see the control panel. Since it was getting really hot, Pati jabbed the control panel where he roughly remembered the shower button to be. Through the fog, he saw the word "ALARM" flashing. Obviously, the wrong button.

Pati started pushing buttons randomly hoping to turn the alarm off before he was dragged naked to safety without his shower. Finally the alarm stopped and finally the shower started. A shower, soap, a wash cloth, bliss. After showering, Pati pressed the steam button again. He really didn't like the steam but he was going to use it since he had paid for it! After a couple of minutes, the shower suddenly stopped and the lights went out. Using a carwash model of what was happening, Pati assumed his bath was over. He dressed and went to the receptionist to pay with a charge card. She said "No can use charge card. Power went out." Oh, well. Pati finally felt clean.

Location:Delhi,India

Practical Philosophy

Meditation in the City

Pati has noticed a custom in India that could have saved him much physical agony over the years. Many times, Pati found himself stuck in traffic on the beltway in anguish because he needed to go to the restroom. That does not happen here! It seems hard to travel as much as a mile without seeing someone facing a wall or a dumpster in a state of nirvana, seeking relief from the physical pain brought on by the constraints of the Western mind. For example, the tuk-tuk driver behind the car Pati and Beebee were riding in today jumped from his vehicle at a stop light and meditated on the nearest wall, returning to his vehicle before the light turned. This also answers a question that Pati had about why he was walking through so many mud puddles on days without rain.

Meditation Along the Highway

Location:Delhi, India

Pictures across time

Making Biofuel/Recycling

While being driven down the road in an air conditioned Toyota van, the driver stopped and backed up so that we could take a picture with our 10 MP camera of a woman making cooking fuel by mixing manure and straw. A thoughtful person would have thought about the 11th century meeting the 21st or the economic inequity or some other profound thought. Unfortunately, all Pati could think about was the debate over whether propane or charcoal give the better barbecue flavor.

Reverse culture shock

Ronald in India

While we're on the receiving end of culture shock most of the time, we shocked our driver once. We stopped at a McDonald's to use the restroom and I noticed that the entire menu was either vegetarian or chicken. We mentioned told the driver that we were surprised to see a McDonald's that didn't sell hamburger. in a shocked voice he asked "You mean in the US McDonald's sells beef?!?"

 A few days later in a shopping area, we came across a Subway shop with another interesting menu.  According to Subway's website, there are 185 Subway shops in India.  At 75 Rupees for a 6-inch sub (between US$1.50 and $2.00), this is a bargain compared with home prices, yet quite expensive for many Indians.

India's Subways have many more options for the vegetarian than we see at home. A Veg. Shammi is a "kebab specialty authentically made from lentils, enriched with the distinctive flavours of garlic and onion. " A Paneer Tikka is "cottage cheese slices marinated with barbeque seasoning and roasted to a light crispness." The Aloo Patty is a "100% potato patty seasoned with special herbs and spices."  The website also describes a Corn & Peas Sub (ingredients self-explanatory although incomprehensible to Westerners as a sandwich filling) , not featured at this Subway.

God everywhere

We realized we don't know much about the world's religions but we've observed some things. Every morning we wake up to the sounds of the local mosque issuing the call to prayer to us and all our Hindu neighbors. I assume they think we're hard of hearing because they crank the volume up for us. The call is nice but the tunes aren't catchy. During our breakfast in the guesthouse where we are staying, they continually play the Hare Krishna song. I didn't know any place other than an airport or anyone not in the cast of Hair actually sang that song. At least it's easy to learn the words and a pleasant way to start the day.

Baha'i Lotus Temple

We visited two temples this week. The first was the Baha'i Lotus Temple. It's an extremely modern building in the form of a nine-sided marble and glass lotus. The interior is a large hall with no statues or icons. I read the handout describing their beliefs. They seem to accept all major religious beliefs. At home these people would vote a straight Democratic ticket. These people seem to be quintessential Type B personalities.

The second temple we visited was a Hindu temple dedicated to a Swami who lived in the early 1800's. We went there expecting something out of the Jungle Book. What we found was a huge complex covering 100 acres and more security than an airport. They wouldn't allow food, electronics, or about anything else in the temple. Beebee was carrying a guidebook and they made her check it at the door. However, inside there were snack places, a food court, guidebooks, visit photos, etc. for sale. Most of the complex was free but there were three optional halls with a small admission fee (125 rupees - about $3). One was an Imax-type theatre, the second a series of rooms with animatronics explaining the Swami's life, and the third a water ride through the history of India similar to Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean but more educational The Baha'i may be nice people but they need to pick up their game to compete with this!

Agra and the Taj

Agra

Taj Mahal

On Thursday (Nov11) we visited Agra. Since we had a late start (9 am instead of 7 am) as well as bad traffic, we visited the Taj Mahal first before checking in at our hotel. Because the day was foggy, we didn't see the sparkle in the marble described in the guidebooks but it was still beautiful. Our guide seemed knowledgable about the history and construction of the Taj. The Taj took 2,000 workers 22 years to build and has a 144 foot dome topped with a brass finale. The original gold finale was plundered (along with any other treasure they could pry loose) by the British when they were in India.

Precious Stone Inlaid in Marble

Since the Taj is double domed, the interior space is smaller than would be expected from outside. However, the elaborate marble carving with brilliant stonework was still impressive. As a building, Haga Sophia in Istanbul is more impressive but the craftsmanship of the Taj is without parallel.
After the tour, our guide was extremely anxious to convince us to "visit" high-end souvenir sellers. Even before we left the grounds of the Taj, he was trying to interest us in carpets, stone inlay work, and embroidery all under the guise of a cultural experience. When we declined, our relationship quickly cooled. He did not mention the other sites we had paid to visit on our itinerary. After leaving the Taj, he directed our driver down a dusty road toward a stone inlay "handcrafts" display. Realizing his intention to turn our afternoon into a high pressure sales pitch, we plead fatigue and illness and asked to be taken to the hotel.

View through Marble Screen

After checking in at the Mansingh Palace Hotel, we napped until dinner which was an international buffet in the same hotel.

Likes, dislikes, and regrets

Friendly Kids on Bus See Strange Foreigners

LIKES

We like the constant activity and infinite range of activities of people we have seen here.

We like having a driver since almost no one from the US could drive a mile here without being killed or killing someone.

Lovely Little Girl Unafraid of Traffic

DISLIKES

We don't like being seen as walking piggy banks and being charged many times more for things than the locals. For example, the going rate for a tuk-tuk ride is 15 rupees. For us, a "special price" of 100 rupees. India may be a developing country but it isn't a cheap place for tourists.

We're uncomfortable with the baksheesh system which involves giving someone a tip every time you move. For example, before you reach a door, someone races ahead to open it for you and expects a small tip. To make the problem worse, the small bills are rarely available so that tips for minor, and frequently unwanted, services can become overwhelming.

REGRETS

No Johnny in Car Park!

When we went on the elephant ride, there were a lot of "professional photographers." One caught our eye and took our picture on the elephant. He told us his name was "Johnny - other guys not me just look like me and not my brother" and we could pick the photo up in the car park after our tour. When we got to the car park, it was such total chaos with no lane structure and cars parked at every angle just inches from one another that we forgot to look for Johnny. Sorry, Johnny.

Elephant Ride

Today (Saturday, November 13) we spent the whole day touring the important sights of Jaipur, the Pink City.

Elephant Ride to Amber Fort in Jaipur

Tourist-Laden Elephants (uphill) vs. Empties (downhill) at Narrow Gate

Traffic Jam

We met our driver and guide at 8 am and set out for the Amber Fort. Our first activity was an elephant ride to the fort that cost 900 rupees (about $20) for both of us. A long line of western tourists wound through a tout filled park waiting for a turn (we believe that the last Indian who rode an elephant without a tourist on the back was seen in 1963). We gave the guide 1000 rupees to get the ride for us. After a brief discussion with the driver, he told us we would get our change from the driver at the end of the ride. On the way up the hill, the driver told us to try to sit more in the center of the elephant and that there would be no change. We didn't care since the ride was amazing fun! Where else could you find yourself in traffic jams consisting entirely of tourist-bearing elephants? Near the end of the ride after passing up several opportunities to wear the driver's extremely "authentic" looking turban, he started to tell us something that we didn't quite understand. As he became more frantic, we realized that he wanted a tip before the end of the ride because tipping is illegal there and a policeman was at the end of the ride to enforce that. We gave him another 50 rupees. We knew the ride was a tourist rip off but we're glad we did it and would do it again! Also, had we walked rather than ridden, we would have been dodging elephants and walking through their poop.

Location:Jaipur, Northern India

Industries we have observed

Woman Carrying Bundle of Sticks Larger than Herself

Aside from extracting money from tourists ("just look, no buy"), one of the main industries we have observed is moving impossibly large bundles of sticks from one place to another. This is generally done on a bicycle but tractor-, bull-, camel-, or horse-drawn vehicles also seem popular. Most amazing are the women who gracefully carry bundles larger than themselves on their heads.

Commonly-Seen Mystery Load

Another industry we have seen is brick making. However, the bricks are so soft that they are crumbling before they are used. The finished bricks are packed in giant loads into very small vehicles and driven down the road. They seem to eventually be dumped into piles where they appear to remain unused.

Brick Kiln

Buildings

Monkeys Inhabit Abandoned Building in Agra

The buildings we have seen generally fall into one of three categories: abandoned, falling down but occupied, and unfinished. Many buildings seem as if they were once very nice but now are old and not maintained. The major exceptions are western-style tourist hotels and Honda dealerships. Both of these are modern and well kept.

The Road to Agra

Thursday (November 11) we began the Golden Triangle Tour from Delhi to Agra to Jaipur to Delhi. We got a later start than we wanted (9 am instead of 7 am) but that probably didn't affect the amount of traffic in any way. India has 1.2 billion people. At least 1.1 billion of these must be in the wrong place since they seem to be going somewhere on the roads.

We encountered every type of conveyance imaginable: walking, bicycle, motorized bicycle, motorcycle, rickshaw, auto-rickshaw (in some countries called the tuk-tuk), autos, trucks, tractors, busses, carts pushed by a man, and carts pulled by a man, a horse, one or two oxen, or a camel. All of these mix together in an amazingly effective (and inevitably inefficient) chaos.

The most common vehicles are the bicycle, motorcycle, and auto-rickshaw, and these slip through traffic using whatever tiny spaces are left by the larger vehicles. The observed capacity of a bicycle or motorcycle is four people, with the larger load including one or two children. A typical load is husband, wife, and one or two children. The auto-rickshaw, on the other hand, can hold 16 people, as we observed. (Later we saw this capacity increased as 3 or 4 men road standing up on the outside of the vehicle.)

Auto-Rickshaws

What is an auto-rickshaw, you ask. Imagine a motorcycle with two back wheels, enclosed in a metal body. The front and back seats are bench seats. The driver sits on the right hand side. In this configuration, it "comfortably" seats 4 or 5 people: the driver, a front-seat passenger, and 2 or 3 people in the back seat, all facing forward. Now imagine that the front and back seats are modified to be wider from front to back, and the back end of the vehicle is removed (the hatch of the hatchback is removed). Place 4 people in the front seat facing forward. Place 4 people on the back of the front seat, facing backward (with their backs to the previously mentioned front seat passengers and driver). Repeat this configuration with the back seat, resulting in 4 more passengers facing forward and 4 facing out the back of the vehicle. Voilà - 16 people! The auto-rickshaw is the workhorse of the road for transporting people and anything else imaginable.

Before coming to India, we read that the yielding order of vehicles (ordered from most yielding to least yielding) is people, bicycles, rickshaws, cars, trucks, busses, cows. A better way to understand this ordering is to think of it as an audacity order (most audacious to least), except that cows are the very most audacious.

After observing traffic behavior since arriving in India, the rules of the road seem to be these:

1. There are no rules.
2. Lane markings, as well as direction of travel, are suggestions only, even on divided highways.
3. The horn is the most important equipment for navigation, announcing "Here I am - move out of my way."

Once when our driver was passed at a stoplight by a motorcycle he said "Why did he do that? He knows the rules!" All we could think was "Rules????" Many cars were missing side mirrors. It is unclear why any of the others still have them.

Each motorized vehicle has a horn that beeps, toots, trills, or warbles, and each horn sound is as unique and individual as cellphone ring tones. Together, they create a cacophony of sound somewhat like an orchestra of only the horn instruments warming up, neither unpleasant nor cohesive. The backs of trucks generally request "Honk Please." (This may be considered an alternate form of the signs on the backs of trucks at home that state "If you can't see my mirror, then I can't see you.) It made us wonder if any hand gestures considered impolite at home are considered friendly greetings here.

The roads we took between Delhi and Agra are in various states of disrepair, ranging from merely potholed to a washboard of crumbling concrete and dirt. Luckily, we are beyond the monsoon season, or mud would also add to the problem. Some of the highway we encountered was fairly new, which meant that the "rules of the road" (see above) were executed at a much faster pace! Just as at home, we made our very slowest progress in areas where road construction was under way. (To give an idea of just how slow construction appears to be, we saw a large family making itself at home underneath a bridge being constructed, using a pile of construction sand as a huge bed. Meanwhile, atop a flimsy ladder, the lone road worker dabbed beige paint at the top of one huge bridge support.)

Other exotic animals that we saw on the way (thankfully not used for transportation) were monkeys and an elephant. We did see a monkey sitting on the seat of a bicycle being peddled by a man who was standing up as he peddled. It wasn't clear who was the boss.

Laundry vs. Monkey

Entering Agra, just hundreds of meters from the sleeping family, we saw a colony of monkeys freely using an ancient mostly-uninhabited building. The only occupied part was a residence on the top floor overlooking the new bridge, with a balcony hung full of laundry guarded by a woman. The colorful fabric was undoubtedly attractive to the monkey perched just above her.

Location:Northern India

Our first day

We arrived in Delhi around 3:30 AM local time. Our first experience with the difference in cultures came in the immigration line. After discovering we had to fill out a form no one mentioned (and finding one in an unmarked location), we joined the back of a long, slow moving line and gradually worked our way to the front. At that point, the official promptly took a break leaving a line of at least 50 people wondering what to do. An official-looking lady told us to go to the first class line to be processed. Everyone else beat us there and we were at the back of the line again! In the line to the right of us (also first class), the official gave everyone a lecture about being in the first class line without being in first class before he processed them. The line to the left was for diplomats and the official was totally idle. Someone went to him and asked if he could process a few of the passengers from our line. He responded "What?  Do you think I'm here totally idle?" That was the end of that and our line continued to move slowly. Eventually, we got processed.

We met our driver and were driven through what appeared to be a scene out of the Road Warrior. We finally got to our guest house and were shown to our room. We like it!

In the next blog, we'll write about our first daylight ride in Delhi traffic, it was crazy but we loved it!!!

Location:New Delhi,India

Our luggage

Luggage Before Trip

Our luggage consisted of one checked bag, one carry-on bag, and one personal item each. The checked bags weighed 27 pounds and 25 pounds, respectively, for Pati and Beebee.  Coming home laden with souvenirs, they weighed 19.8 kilos (43.5 pounds) and 14.4 kilos (31.7 pounds) , respectively.

Preparing to Travel

Culture Shock

These are a few of the books that  we have read to get ready for our trip.

The first group pictured includes three "culture shock" type books plus one book that promotes places and activities so expensive that culture shock is not an issue.  Another great book (not pictured) is Holy Cow: An Indian Adventure by Sarah Macdonald.


The second group pictured are the two best guide books we found.  We are taking an electronic copy of Frommer's India with us as well as a copy of DK's Delhi, Agra & Jaipur.

Guides

The third group pictured are excellent books covering packing and safety.


The fourth group pictured include Hindu language lessons and vocabulary. We are taking along with us Hindi in Three Months and the Hindi & Urdu Phrasebook.

Packing and Safety

The most valuable book to us, the one we used most, was DK's Delhi, Agra & Jaipur.  We carried it into sites we visited. We used Frommer's India as a second source for deciding what to visit. We used the Hindi & Urdu Phrasebook only when shopping for spices.  We did not even open Hindi in Three Months (we had studied it before leaving the US).

Hindi Language

Who We Are

We are a married couple from the U.S. traveling to India for the first time.  We are blogging as Pati (Hindi for husband) and Beebee (Hindi for wife).

Our journey begins tomorrow, flying out of Washington Dulles in the late evening and arriving in Delhi very early Wednesday morning.  All of India is in the same time zone; India Standard Time (IST) is UTC/GMT +5:30 hours, or 10:30 hours ahead of EST.