I stepped forward as my turn had now come to show the immigration officer my passport and visa. He asked where I would be staying. I answered Jaipur. ‘Ah, the pink city’, he said with a smile. I instantly got all girly and excited and he laughed and let me through.
I walked out into the pick-up area thinking don’t panic, don’t panic, he’ll be here. He wasn’t.
If you haven’t been in a situation like that, having no one to pick you up in a country you've never been too, it’s quite terrifying. Fortunately I was feeling confident enough to just give them a call, like a rational human, but usually your first instinct is to cry and find someone who looks like a mother to take care of you. I called a few times until someone picked up and let me know the driver was in the outside area waiting for me and sure enough, he was.
Shivrag greeted me with a smile and shook my hand. He is a very skinny Indian man with a strong accent and a very welcoming presence. He has a five-year-old son living in Jaipur that I cannot wait to meet. We drove along the road from the Airport chatting about the culture and history of India as we casually cruised by an elephant taking a walk.
The guesthouse is in a really nice area, just outside of Delhi in a city called Gurgaon. Sudha and Keerti are the two ladies that run the guesthouse. Sudha is the head honcho and is very motherly. She has beautiful long dark hair with red streaks and wears gorgeous colored sarees around the house. Keerti always has a huge smile on her face and laughs constantly at my horrible jokes and tells me I’m adorable. She’s always on her cell phone, but then again everyone is India is. Dinesh is the cook and his food is incredible; lots of curries and breads. He doesn't speak much English but he is very sweet and accommodating.
I woke up in the middle of the night to my roommate, Anna. She had just flown in from Germany and was just as tired and excited I was. We made plans to travel to Old Delhi in the morning and that is precisely what we did. Eager to get out, we awoke at 7:30am for a quick breakfast. We filled our stomachs with thin omelettes filled with sweet and hot peppers, toast, porridge and chai. We hailed a tuk-tuk, also known as a auto-rickshaw, and headed to catch the metro. After an hour of men staring at us and getting to know each other a little more, we stepped out at Chandni Chowk station. The air was hot and smoggy, and the crowd was endless. You are constantly dodging men, woman, children, dogs, cows and bikers. Picture the smallest lanes in your city and now imagine an endless line of cars, bikes, tuk-tuks, people and cows coming at you. A tuk-tuk actually ran me over!
We walked along the markets and Mosques capturing beautiful photos and taking in all the colorful shops. I bargained for a beautiful pair of Indian style pointed shoes in a burgundy and black design with gold trim (shown above). They are so beautiful that I don’t even want to wear them; I just wanted to own them! I also bought a beautiful transparent white scarf with gold trim and gold designs to wear over my hair and shoulders. I smiled as soon as I put it on. The men in the shop didn’t really care for my bargaining but I did manage to get 50 rupees off and chai.
It is common to be given chai when entering shops. It is how they welcome you. It’s also better than any chai I've ever tasted. Starbucks ain’t got nothing on India!
After a few of hours of walking, dodging and shopping, we headed back. But of course I stopped for my favorite food item in the whole world, a samosa. And oh my goodness was it good! I also dipped it into the hottest chutney I've ever had. It was a pretty dehydrated ride back to the guesthouse.
Tomorrow I will begin my orientation into my volunteer program, both working with women empowerment and the education project for young children between the ages 5 and 10. I will also be participating in a Bollywood dance, Hindu and Henna class!
But first, I must go stuff my face with Dinesh’s food.
Jazz