Welcome to India!

Delhi

~I cannot give a very full impression of Delhi as we arrived at 11pm, went directly to our hotel, and left about twenty hours later. My observations of the city came from our rides to and from the airport and the embassy, as well as the sur-reality of our posh hotel that was located in Delhi’s answer to Embassy Row. ~

As soon as our delightful Jet Airways flight landed, the crew passed through the cabin with disinfectant to kill any remaining swine flu we might be carrying on board. Next, we proceeded to the health screening where we handed-over a document stating that although we had recently been in an H1N1 infected country, we were not exhibiting any symptoms. Apparently, India does not mess around with epidemics. At the health screening we also passed by a thermal camera that checked for persons with higher than average temperatures. Cool, however imperfect the system as we had just come in from weather in the upper 90s. After sufficiently convincing the official that we were not harboring the new plague, Matt and I strode over to the immigration line marked “Diplomatic/Official Passports”. This line happened to be the slowest, thanks to a family of six standing in front of us. Luckily, the officer in the next line over waved for us to join his line. Without much trouble, he granted us entry into India!

We waited for our bags for what seemed to be quite a long time, sure all the while that they had been lost. Jet Airways proved us wrong, which was a very welcome surprise in our bleary state. Now came the real test. Would there be anyone to take us to the hotel? We hoped so but were not confident. As we passed what seemed to be hundreds of young Indian men holding signs, we found the one bearing our name! Phew. Another challenge: fitting four people, five suitcases, two computer bags, and a trombone in a mid size sedan. Amazingly we made it work and were crowded but not uncomfortable.

Our driver fought his way through the airport traffic to the highway where we finally saw a bit of our new country of residence. At breakneck speed we flew past brightly colored trucks painted with the curious request "honk please", tiny green and gold auto-rickshaws, SUVs overloaded with passengers, and entire families precariously seated atop scooters that were designed for the driver alone. Even in the darkness of that first night, the famed colorful nature of India revealed itself. We passed hotels with neon lights as bright as their counterparts in Las Vegas and Times Square. We passed people sleeping on the sidewalks in the warm air. We passed apartment buildings and other dwellings that would be better called settlements. The drive provided such a wealth of things to see.

As we pulled up to The Claridges, guards checked under the car with a mirror and, seeing that we would not pose a threat, welcomed us with a nod and a namaste. At the door, a man dressed in white and red and donning a turban, helped us out of the car and started the unenviable task of dislodging our luggage. In the lobby we were invited to sit at a beautiful wooden desk to check in with a sari-clad woman with a huge smile.

Would we be staying long in India? Yes, about two years.