As soon as we land in Delhi, we can immediately tell it is going to be a different experience. Delhi is the capital of India, and we will stay here for only one day. From our hotel, we can see two amazing and beautiful temples. The weather is very humid, about as humid as Hawaii, but so, so smoky.
A bus meets us at the gate of our hotel. Our guide tells us we are going to Old Delhi, and he reminds us we are in New Delhi right now. As soon as we arrive, we are already overwhelmed. There are people scattered everywhere – up and down the streets and alleyways. We immediately realize this is going to be a very different and interesting experience. We get out of our van, a little nervous.
We go to the main market, which sells trinkets and food. We notice there are no other tourists here. The market is in alleyways which seem to come out of a dystopian movie. Wires hang everywhere, dirt and trash litter the concrete ground, and crumbling apartment buildings are over 400 years old. This is not my favorite market ever, but it is very interesting to see how other people live so differently than what I am used to.
Later, we visit two different temples: a large Muslim temple and a large Sikh temple. The Muslim temple has a nicer vibe, but the Sikh temple is extraordinarily cool because it serves 40,000-70,000 meals a day. We check out the kitchen and it is amazing! The pots could fit 10 people in them. Volunteers roll out hundreds of parathas and throw them on a giant skillet. All sort of people are helping, including old men and moms with children. One toddler helps roll out bread. An old man with an aged beard and a light blue turban stirs hundreds of gallons of lentils, beans, and rice in big steel pots, using a huge metal saucepan as a spoon. We could have hopped in and started cooking as they would not have minded, but we had to go home to get ready for our next event.
We walk back to our car, through the traffic. A homeless family on the side of a busy street enjoys what little they have, which happens to be a game of ‘Sorry,’ my favorite. Delhi is VERY crowded and busy, and everywhere we turn, we bump into someone.
It is very cool to see how so many other people live, but I have no desire to spend more than a day here. When we tell our guide Delhi is less organized than the streets and towns where we live, he says he had just visited Florida, New Jersey, and New York. He explains they were way too empty and organized for him. This makes me realize wherever you grow up is tremendously going to affect how you look at new places because you will always compare them to what you are used to.
Hi Paloma, I love your description of Delhi, especially of the kitchen in the temple. I can picture it in my mind, and imagine the smells of the food cooking mixed with the smells of the city. I imagine there are many different kinds of neighborhoods in Delhi, and it would take years to explore it all. Several friends of mine from here have friends and family there. I wonder what their lives are like. I think there are a lot of technology jobs there, which is probably really hard to imagine compared to the severe poverty.
Thanks for your thoughts on your experience of Delhi, India…a place oh so different from Palo Alto. I can feel it my body as you remind me of the humidity and the crowds and the chaos. Your reference to a dystopian movie speaks volumes.
The idea of things being relative to different people based on where they grow up and what their experiences are is an incredible life lesson. For you to really feel that is worth all the effort of traveling. If only I could remember to apply that empathy to all my interactions with people in my daily life!
Thank you for your wisdom, Paloma.
So true; we all like what we’re used to.