18th October - 27th October

There is little point trying to track the past week and a half, so I will just summarise right now and get us all up to speed before I leave for Pushkar.

1.   5 Muslim widows were beaten and stripped in a village in the North for being labeled witches. The village had women with supposed spiritual powers to find witches and named these widows as some. What makes this incident different though is that someone managed to catch it on camera. The BBC had thirty seconds of the footage on their website; it was quite shocking actually. Widows are generally targeted in Indian society with discrimination, but little is done about it. This video has cause outrage however, as no one can ignore it when it is all over the internet. It is strange that these sort of things happen still…the whole village turned out to see these women be ridiculed and abused, and did nothing to stop it. they didn’t all actively participate, but they at least obviously accepted it.

 

2.   The weekend was a bad weekend for me and men. Apart from Saturday morning, when I got to speak to Iain on skype for the first time in a while (which was brilliant), the male sex did not show themselves particularly well. Firstly, on our way to AIM, Amanda and I saw yet another (or maybe the same) wanking man at the bus stop near our hostel. Just lying in the middle of the pavement. We could have screamed; we were so angry and frustrated. That bus stop isn’t quiet – little children use it to get to and from school! Any one could have seen him! I mean, if you are going to do it then for fuck’s sake go down a back alley or something! It ain’t like we have a shortage of them! Or at least, somewhere other than at the freaking bus stop! So angering. In the evening we went out to Brunelle’s for a drink as it was her birthday a few days ago. She has a friend called Samuel who seemed to have interesting ideas about me, and Guillame told him that I had a boyfriend. However, later in the night once we had returned from our dub-step night (more on which later), he was sitting with me outside and then asked me what my views on commitment were! I told him that if you were committed to someone, then that was it. He asked how that could make you happy and I said that if you love someone and they make you happy then there is no issue as far as I can see. He was a persistent little one. Telling me about how long it was since I had seen my boyfriend…urgh…the French…why must they be sleazy! Worse than Frenchie though was the men at the Dub night. The music was surprisingly good for a Dub step night in Delhi, but the club was terrible. Full of men who spent the night groping us. Horrible! I have never had so many gropes/attempts upon me made in the space of two hours in all my days. The men at Urban Pind at least have the decency to ask your permission to dance with you. These men just decided to take their chances and cheap thrills. It was so nasty, and some of them were quite violent about it. Not impressed. You can imagine my mood when I had had to deal with all this and then came back to have amorous French man try it on. It was all topped off on Sunday when I had a bag full of peanuts lobbed at me by two guys on a motorbike. It hurt like hell. Turns out nuts are quite good ballast.

Bastards the lot of them.

3.   I got an A in two of the three essays I have handed in! I am so happy about it.

4.   I am off to Pushkar on Thursday! There is a camel fair in which loads of camel traders come together and try to sell their camels. First though they dress them up in pompoms and ribbons and race them. What more can you want from a festival? It is a return to Rajasthan as well, so I will hopefully be able to acquire many more shiny things…will be good!

5.   It has finally dropped below thirty degrees. I am shocked. At night I need a sweater. I think I may actually have caught a cold from shock. It isn’t good for my diet though, as now everything isn’t a massive effort due to the heat so I will have stop eating so much ice cream…not good!

Episode Five - the best one really...

SO here I am at the end of the saga. It was spent lazing around Delhi, and few notable things happened. Except for one particularly traumatic experience. I was picking up a saree blouse I was getting made at a tailors in Connaught Place and they asked me to try it on to make sure it was ok. So I went upstairs to the changing room, and, knowing that it could be one of those situations I might come to regret, I looked all over for spy holes. I couldn’t see any, so I took off my t-shirt to try the blouse on, and just as I took it off I happened to glance upwards. What I had thought was a fan grate was in fact not really, and there was a man staring down at me! I was completely shocked and yelled ‘Fuck Off!’ but he kept looking while I put my top back on as quick as I could and came out the changing room and started to yell. How dare they! And then they had the tenacity to deny it had ever happened! Telling me it couldn’t be true and that I needed to calm down! Twats. I just couldn’t believe somewhere on Connaught Place would allow that sort of thing. My mum was really angry as well. I yelled for a bout five mintues then went outside and began to cry. Some men came up to me to see if I was ok and told me to go tell the police. Their concern restored my faith a little bit, but there is no point going to the police because it’ll just be a big palaver and even then a shop full of men and one white girl kicking up a fuss: who they going to listen to? I was so angry. Absolutely furious. Mum and I got an auto back. The man who got it for us told me not to cry. I like how people use ‘baby’, or ‘sister’ or ‘didi’ here as terms of address. I was furious for a good hour afterwards. Told Amanda and she shared my fury, which helped. Me and mum had a green tea body wrap booked in as well, and I think that helped calm me down. They sit you in a steam room and cook you for ten minutes. I had to sit with my eyes closed breathing through my nose or else I thought I would choke. And then they cover you in green tea mud, and then wrap you in a sort of electric blanket, and cook you some more. They also give you a head massage. All most relaxing. The icing on the cake was the cup of green tea they gave you afterwards. My skin felt like a baby’s as well. It was great. It was very annoying, when we went out later that night for dinner, I couldn’t help but feel scared of the fan grills in the ladies’ loos. That night Amanda and the Dutch and Egle joined us for some drinks in the hotel. My parents approved of them I think – none of them are particularly insane, and all much older than me, so better at holding themselves well in conversations with new people.
Today, the last day, is Diwali. We got up late and went to the Lodii Gardens for a wander. There were only a few families out having picnics…I thought there would be more, but I guess it would be kind of like going out on Christmas Day for a picnic. Mum and Dad much preferred this bit of Delhi. It is hard to believe it exists really when compared to everything around it. Euan got hungry as well, so we went along to the American diner and he had half a fried chicken and cheesecake. So at least he had one definitely good meal. We just went back to the hotel and swam a lot afterwards and then got ready to go to the Imperial hotel. The Imperial is an old hotel from colonial era, and has been recently renovated. It is beautiful. I would love to spend the night there: so luxurious and opulent! It was covered in white fairy lights as well, which made it even more beautiful and extravagant feeling. I had on my new saree, which makes me feel like a princess. It is pink and blue silk with golden highlights throughout the fabric. I had it on myself, but the lady in the Lalit loos showed me a different, and better, way of doing it that stopped it falling down all night. I was most grateful: I like how older Indian women just commandeer you if you are in a saree and treat you like their daughter for ten minutes while they fuss over you. It is very maternal and a good feeling. I got compliments on my saree all night actually, including from the restaurant manager in the Imperial, which made me very happy, as I felt great so it was nice to know I didn’t look half bad too. It is definitely getting an airing when I get home!
Sunday: the rents went home. I got up for a last swim and then we just sat and chatted. It seems that India has made an impression. Mum wants to come back and go to the North East and to the South. I think Dad wants to come back too, but I am unsure about Euan! They said that they agree with me when I say that this place makes a mark on you – you can’t help but feel differently having been here. Even if it just makes you think twice before throwing away a plastic bottle that can be used for water again because you have realised where the rubbish will end up, it does make a distinct impression.
I can’t quite believe that the rents have left actually. When they went on Sunday morning, I was nearly in tears and mum was crying again. It wasn’t very nice. But I have had such an awesome time with them. It was so god to just get out of Delhi finally and see a bit more of the country and have a deserved holiday. I am also glad they came out here and saw where I am for themselves, as there really is nothing I can say that can ever fully communicate what it is to be in this country. It felt very weird not to be leaving to go home with them though, just like any other family holiday. I am finding it hard now to get back into the daily grind, especially as it is still holiday mode for a few people, and so many of my classes have been cancelled in favour of celebrations for various diwali-related things. It has made me miss home as well. I have been here almost three months now – it is a long time to go without the familiar. So to have the family here was…weird, and brilliant and also sad, as I had to remain and they went back home. I guess the fact that I have the hostel and so many friends there is very lucky. Though I will miss the Lalit beds…

The Saga Continues....Episode Four

Got up at half past five to fine dead black beetles all over. They make a satisfying crunch noise when you stand on them though, so I don’t really mind. Had a cup of tea and a banana in preparation for our tiger-finding mission. Our guide seems very nice, with purpley hennaed hair. As we went out into the forest, I felt infinitely better. There is dew on the grass, mist (not smog) hanging in the dawn air and there is so much foliage. Everything is incredibly green. There are hardly any flowers even – it is all just greenery. As we traveled through the forest we passed through greenery into open spaces with dark, low trees in golden grass, all of which could have been hiding a tiger and I would never have known at all. You can hardly see ten feet never mind an animal that is adept at hiding itself. It was hardly as if we were stealthy anyways: we were in a large jeep making tones of noise. We did see a lot of black-faced monkeys, tiny, fluffy spotted deer and these huge deer quite like red deer at home. There were loads of birds as well, the most exciting of which was the kingfisher, which was an incredible blue colour. There were partridge as well, which reminded me of the painting we have in our hallway back home of the bird on the old wooden wheel. I think it is a partridge…Unfortunately, in all our excursions into the jungle, we saw no tigers. We heard one eating it’s lunch, we had one fifty feet from us having a nap, and we saw one’s fresh tracks in the road going to opposite direction from us. Our driver on the last day, Shakeil, was completely insane and tried his level best to find us a tiger, which meant driving like a complete maniac over rubble and dirt tracks as if they were the smoothest racecourse in the world. I think I damaged my lower back quite a lot at some junctures as we slipped and bounced over rocks at a vast rate of knots down a mountain side. He was ‘a character’. And yet, despite all the excitement, no dice. I didn’t really care – I hadn’t expected to see one, though it would have been brilliant if we had. It was good enough just to be able to get out and go for these drives through the forest and breath in the fresh air and feel the cold of the morning and the wind. A complete escape from the city. I can see why the Gurgaon couple take their chance and come here as often as they can. I would too if I had the money. All the waiters in the resort want me to come back anyways. They found out I could speak a little Hindi and that I study at DU and now I am a local interest. Every one of them when I was alone would open with ‘So you are the girl at DU yes? You speak Hindi?’ It was quite sweet. One took it upon himself to try and teach me a little more conversation, but I failed miserably, as per. It took me a good thirty seconds or so to actually work out what he was saying, and then another thirty seconds to reply, generally with bad grammar. Even the safari guides and drivers got wind of it. one of Shakeil’s opening statements was, ‘So you are in DU…’ and my dad started to laugh. He thought it was hilarious that I had become so popular so fast. I have made a few informal promises to go back one day with my friends, but I somehow doubt that I can seeing as it was a four star hotel and I don’t have that kind of money really. I was disappointed not to see Ranthambore fort though, so maybe I will come back for that. There were troops of pilgrims going up to the temple inside the fort to Lord Ganesha. We found it slightly strange that they happily travel, sometimes in the dark and on foot, through tiger country to get to the temple. That’s devotion for you.

We left the countryside to go to the capital of Rajasthan: Jaipur. Jaipur is the ‘pink city’ that has the Amber Fort. It was painted pink for the visit of some British royal, and has just stayed that way ever since. I would like to see Jodhpur as well: the ‘blue city’. That is one thing about Rajasthan – everything is colourful. Before we left Ranthmabore we visited a craft house where they were making beaded wall hangings like my yellow one back at the hostel. They are so colourful and strangely intricate and all over the place. We also saw a camel dressed in purple and green ribbons and pompoms. Most cool. Jaipur appears to be a concentration of all these crafts. The city is heavily reliant on tourism I think, as it was a very commercial city, with a lot of beaded textiles, umbrellas, gems and carpets for sale all over the place. We were staying in yet another lovely Hilton hotel, right on the artificial lake. The lake was made to showcase a particular maharajah’s water palace, which is now being made into a restaurant. The food here is superior to Agra though, or perhaps I am just more well-disposed. We are only in Jaipur for 36 hours before we catch a flight to Delhi on the Friday morning. As such, we rushed around from half eight in the morning to half five at night with hardly a breath to spare. First we went to the Amber Fort. It is absolutely massive and painted a kind of butter yellow. The current maharajah still lives in the most modern portion of the fort. Not bad for a defunct monarchy. They are incredibly rich though, as they own a lot of the land around Jaipur and have lots of gem mines. They also command a lot of the proceedings of tourist trade, seeing as they still own the fort and the city palace for themselves. We took an elephant ride up to the fort, which was absolutely amazing. I had so much fun up there. It was a wee bit bumpy and we kept getting sprayed with water from the elephant. The equivalent of an elephant sneezing on you really. Boys ran beside us trying to sell us mock turbans and photos of us on the elephant. One told me I looked like a Bollywood star, which was quite sweet. I was slightly disconcerted though when our elephant driver made like he wouldn’t let us off the elephant if we didn’t give him two hundred rupees tip. Slightly difficult when your parents have all the money and they are on a different elephant at some distance from your own. Also, some of the drivers had metal spikes to drive the elephants with that they had dug into them behind their ears to hide the cuts. I didn’t like that very much at all, and was more than a little disturbed. It reminded me of the horses we saw in Agra: one with a chunk of its flesh hanging off it with barely a scrap of muscle keeping it hanging limply on, and another dead under the rickshaw cart it must have been pulling.

We wandered around the Fort, and I have to say you can see how rich the royals are in Jaipur by the way they preserve their monuments. The Fort and the City Palace both had beautiful mirror work everywhere and 24 carat gold flake ceilings and so on. There were golden paintings as well, and we were shown into a painting workshop where, of course, we had a demonstration that happened to include showing all produce for sale. They were very good artists though, so dad bought a wee painting of some elephants. Went to a vegetable print factory and carpet makers as well. I have realised that if you book a driver they will inevitably take you to as many as these ‘craft demonstrations’ as possible. I imagine they get one heck of a commission if the tourists they lead along buy something. We ended up buying silk pyjamas for ma and pa, and a purple print dress for me, all made to measure. My dress is for someone with a far larger chest than I, however, so I will need to get it altered. We also bought three rugs of pashmina and silk. They are beautiful and a good two grand or so cheaper than they would be in the UK, so a good investment, they are being shipped though, so we will find out in two weeks or so if we have been conned. One of the highlights of the day though was the observatory. It was a kind of park with huge astronomical instruments in it for making all kinds of measurements, from the time to the position of the zodiac. It was a very European looking park actually, in its own way. It was nice to wander around and sit in. Our guide was very informative about it all, but I have forgotten quite a lot of it unfortunately. The instruments were deadly accurate though, despite their age. After the observatory, dad and Euan went back to the hotel. Euan is still feeling a little bit delicate unfortunately. So mum and I hit the shops of course. This city is famed for its attraction for women who like to shop. We went to Bapu Bazaar, an excellent clothing bazaar that had loads of the Rajasthani traditional skirt and blouse outfit, all covered in mirrors and beads. I ended up getting one in blue and pink, with beads, sequins, shells and mirrors all over it. It is totally mad, and I look like I have dressed up for a party in the whole shebang, but in stages I think it’ll be really cool. Hopefully… Also got some silver antique earrings and mum got a silver bracelet. So a good day had by all in the spending stakes. Euan even felt well enough to eat dinner. So we are all returning to rude health. I would have liked to spend longer in this city. It reminds me of the interesting parts of Delhi except with wider streets. The streets are all decorated at the moment as well with purple and red cloth hung over the street lamps and there were fairy lights. Alongside all the stalls selling flower garlands and fireworks and the pink painted buildings, it was a very colourful and welcoming looking city. Tomorrow we must get up early once more for our flight to Delhi. I am glad of the flight – it means we don’t have to spend 6 hours on a train and instead more time in the Lalit’s pool! 

The Familial Saga Cont'd, Part 3

Today was my first, and possibly only, experience of first class train travel in India. I was slightly amused to see that the ratio of white people to Indian was greatly increased here. I have to say, it was quite pleasant traveling first class. You get a lot of space, meals, tchai (though they don’t make it for you, like they do in second general class), a newspaper, and a rose (a welcome but slightly useless addition). The rose made me think of TB and the plague. Possibly we are meant to smell it on the station platform to protect our upper-class noses. There was a mahaaraani on the train as well. She was very glamorous and had booked two seats together so that no one could go near her. I think this may be my only brush with royalty ever.
Once at Agra a new driver met us at the train station. I am actually quite glad of this driver, as Agra is a hole, and so being able to get through it form the comfort of a curtained minibus is highly preferable to the alternative of being exposed to Agra city in an Auto. As before, there really is no way to describe the horrifying prospect that is Agra. I just don’t understand why that city, the home of the Taj Mahal of all places, had become such a dump. And coming from Delhi, I know what a dump is. Agra is like the worse parts of Delhi rolled in to a city. Our hotel however, was a beautiful paradoresque Hilton that sat just outside the main city of Agra. It was like an oasis of calm greenery amongst all the dust and rubbish. I couldn’t quite believe somewhere like that could exist in Agra when I saw it on the net beforehand. We dumped our stuff and went into the pool. I am getting used to this pool malarkey. Mum is feeling a bit delicate again. Not so good.
This afternoon we went with our very helpful guide Amu to the Taj Mahal. The family were all blown away, as you must be when you first see it, but I didn’t have the same sense of awe I felt the first time. I think because the sun wasn’t great for some reason that afternoon, so the marble wasn’t shining as brightly as it could, and also the huge amount of tourists. When we went up inside the structure there was such a crush of people and the queue went on for absolutely ages, right down the steps to the point where you take your shoes off. Euan was feeling a bit funky as well, which didn’t really help proceedings. After the Taj we went to Agra fort, which was more interesting than expected. It was beautiful inside, with mirrored rooms and gold plating all over the place. There were fountains everywhere, no longer running unfortunately, but they once ran with rose water apparently. We wandered through Agra fort (which is lived in by monkeys it seems) for an hour or two until Euan began to complain of cramp. On the way back we stopped off at a marble workshop where they still make marble in the style of the Taj Mahal. There was a huge showroom downstairs that had all these beautiful tables and vases and things in the marble. One table had blue semiprecious stones arranged into intricate rose patterning. I would have loved to have had it. Unfortunately, the price tag was a bit above our range, so we bought two coasters: one with an elephant and one with a parrot.
Had food in the hotel. My first steak in three months. It was quite exciting, but I don’t think it was cow…probably buffalo. A new meat to add to my list of ‘Foods I have Eaten’. We are only here for tonight, which is completely fine by me. There really is no more to do in Agra than the Taj and the Fort. I am glad I got to see the fort this time, as last time we just left straight after seeing the Taj. I can now safely not come anywhere near Agra…until Iain comes here...
This morning Euan is most definitely out of it. He spent last night being quite sick, which is not so good. So we are no longer going to Fatipur Sikri. It is an abandoned city outside of Agra that was built by Akbar and then abandoned, probably due to lack of water. I would like to have seen it. We passed by it, and it is absolutely massive: a perfectly preserved and unused city in the middle of nowhere. Very weird. We needed to travel for some time before reaching the station at which we get the train into Ranthambore in Rajasthan. I can’t wait to get out into the country side proper. The roads here are so dreadful it took us about 2 hours to go 60 km. You keep getting stuck behind trucks, or camels, or buffalo. We passed through some pretty villages though, and took some interesting photographs. On the train, we were in 3rd class A/C I think. It was like second general class, but with air con and a bit more space. I am quite glad mum and dad get a small experience of what the trains are really like here for the most part. The journey is like 3 hours. So we will get into Ranthambore in time for tea. Euan is still sick, but mum has recovered. Going vaguely well. The train passed through a lot of desert land or just scrub. It is so completely unpopulated and untouched. So strange in comparison to the crush of the cities. Ranthambore station is like something out of a novel. There were wild boar kicking around, cows, women and naked babies cooking their tea on the platform, holy men in bright orange bands and not much else. It was completely hectic. We drove out of the main town and out into more scrub land. There are hills here as well, which is also very strange coming from somewhere so stubbornly flat as Delhi. Our hotel is called the Tiger Den Resort. It is lots of little cottage type things grouped together. It is really nice actually, and has a pool and then a buffet style canteen where you can also sit out and have drinks if you like. It is quite hot though; so sitting outside is a bit uncomfortable. Decided to test this pool immediately and it proved to be excellent. I am trying to take advantage of the swimming as much as I can, as I won’t get another chance I fear until December when I come home. After the swim we had a bit of food. Euan has recovered enough to eat plain chapatti, which is better than nothing. After dinner we were sitting out and got talking to this older Indian couple. The lady turned out to be a lecturer in DU in English Lit at south campus! Small world. They live in Gurgaon, so they are evidently minted. Their talk showed it – all about golf, their ‘little place in the himalayas’ and how they came to Ranthambore in order to escape the city on occasion, like it was a completely regular and unremarkable thing. They were very nice however, but my dad resented them not offering him some of the massive bottle of Johnny Walker they were taking drams from. There were all these little black beetles everywhere, which apparently come in with the harvest and then die. We happen to have come within their ten-day life time, and so we were covered in them by the time we went in to sleep. It is nice to be in the fresh air and away from the dust. Makes you realise how bad Delhi is for my lungs.

Installment Part 2

Woke up obscenely early with Amanda and went to the Lalit for a morning swim before breakfast. I have got all my clothes and things together that I need, so I am waving farewell to the hostel for the next week or so. It feels good to be finally leaving for a holiday. I have worked my ass off for the past few weeks and I deserve this break. Hopefully everyone is feeling a bit better than they did last night.
We got to the hotel and met my dad and went swimming. They don’t seem to care that Amanda is not in fact a guest. Swam for ages. It was great. The water is just amazing after so much grime. We even got our legs out and sunbathed for a wee while with no one staring or even in our vicinity. Loved it. Then had a (hot!) shower and went to breakfast. Breakfast here is far superior to lunch, and I feel thoroughly dairied out. Tried to get masala tchai for mum but it failed miserably. Evidently only plebs drink masala tchai. This hotel is lovely, I will forgive them their lack of tchai. Euan has already made friends with a chef.
Spent the morning at the Lotus temple. The Temple is a Baha’I sect temple, which originated in Iran I think and was heavily persecuted. It seems to support all religions really, and uses an amalgam of their teachings to inform its own. The temple looks like a giant white marble lotus flower – it is really a beautiful piece of engineering. It is surrounded by pools and gardens as well. Inside, it is incredibly echoey and spacious. There is a service held every five minutes it seems for the benefit of tourists more than actual worshippers that covers all the major religions. There are marble benches inside for you to sit on. I was annoyed that I couldn’t just wander around inside, you have to sit and pay attention to the service instead. After the temple we went to Khan Market for lunch at Café Turtle, which my father highly approved of and Euan was able to eat pasta at. My mum seems a lot better as well, so I am happy. After Khan Market we continued our journey into the rich south and went to City Walk mall in Saket. It is just like a very upmarket and clean Braehead. Wandered the shops and mum got a lovely dupatta from FabIndia. Amanda and I found a travel agents as well and bought out tickets to Goa. So excited. My dreams of lying on a beach with a pineapple replete with cocktail umbrella are drawing ever closer. I think today was a far better success than yesterday. We went for dinner in a revolving restaurant round the corner from the hotel and Euan was once more able to eat – meaning he was happy and didn’t moan as much. The restaurant has a motorized floor, so you get a brilliant view of central Delhi, especially of Connaught Place, which looks almost negotiable from up here. All my good work will be undone tomorrow in Chandni Chowk maybe, but I hope I have shown that Delhi has a lot to offer whatever your tastes.
Discovered a new cocktail: Berry Spicy. Sloe infused gin with ginger and strawberries. Most tasty.
So Old Delhi is the order of Saturday. We took the metro to Chandni Chowk despite dad’s many protests over taking a taxi instead. Once he got out the metro though, he understood why. The streets here are always packed with cars, rickshaws and people and are narrow to boot. A taxi ride here would be a pointless exercise in staying still. We took a manual rickshaw up to Red Fort. A twenty rupee ride that quickly became 50 rupees as soon as we turned up. Not in the mood to argue though, as I think the ride will be traumatic enough for the family. I have never been to Red Fort (I am such a bad Delhiite), and so I was really interested to see what it was like. It is absolutely huge, all of red sandstone and quite similar architecture to the Jama Masjid. When you go in there are loads of little shops lining the corridors selling glittery jewelry and other tourist trap souvenirs. I find it strange that there are shops in the monument, but apparently a lot of the army still use the buildings in here, so I suppose it is more of a working place rather than just an attraction. We wandered around the gardens and different buildings for a while, a lot of which were decorated white marble like the Taj Mahal. Amanda joined us as well, which was nice. We are swimming later once more…it is too good to not take the chance. Family complained about how hot it was and I found it quite funny, as this is very pleasant weather and not too hot at all in comparison to what it has been. I can walk around with my hair down for god’s sake. Took another, slightly pointless, rickshaw ride across the road to the entrance path of the Jama Masjid. Littering the path were stalls selling Muslim iconography and beggars. One had clubbed feet that looked gangrenous. Not great. Euan is having a hard time adjusting to these things I think – most of his complaints surround the beggars. It must be difficult for someone his age to come to terms with although, so I can see how he could find their presence a bit threatening. We got into the Jama Masjid without incident though, and the women amongst us were wrapped up in the ridiculous bright pink smock things. The man on the door bluntly told us they were only for white women. As if we weren’t conspicuous enough. I would like to see what would happen if a white Muslim woman tried to enter and they told her she looked immodest and tried to cover her in a bright flowery sack.
After the mosque we left through the gate leading into the melee of Chandni Chowk proper. As you go out you turn into the fireworks market, which was packed out for Diwali. There are buckets of water everywhere to be dodged, in case one explodes. If it did though, we would all be buggered as there is no way those buckets would do any good, everything is too tightly packed in. if you continue down the fireworks stalls, then take a left, you are in the silver market. There are lots of little silver stores and then bigger emporiums where everything is obscenely expensive. Amanda, mum and I had a wee look, but the guys started to complain very soon. Euan had had enough of the dirt and the difference, and wanted to return to the clean familiarity of the hotel. Dad, due to his asthma, was finding it hard to adjust to the high levels of dust and smoke caused by hundreds of people eating/drinking/smoking/driving/cycling/living/cooking etc in a tiny alley way meant for no more than twenty people and definitely no motorbikes. So we had to negotiate our way back to the metro. To be fair, today is the busiest I have ever seen Chandni Chowk. Sure, it is busy usually, but Diwali seems to have tripled the shoppers. It’s a shame we didn’t get to the spice market though – I would have liked mum to have seen it. Thankfully, she seemed to quite enjoy Chandni Chowk, so not a total loss. I am glad they saw Old Delhi as well, as most tourists do not venture in here, much to their loss. It is the reality of Delhi: over-crowded, vibrant, dirty and full of brilliant little treasure troves of silver and sweets.
Felt amazing to go back to the hotel and get in the pool and wash the grime of Chandni Chowk off of our skin, Me and Amanda could get very used to this routine.
Tonight we went for dinner in the best restaurant in Delhi, apparently. It is called Bukhara, in the Sheratoun. Bill Clinton has eaten there apparently. It is a Punjabi style kebab restaurant, with little low tables and cushioned stools. It has a very nice, chilled out atmosphere and wasn’t too obscenely expensive for the best restaurant in the city. I had a really nice chicken kebab thing, but I have to say dad’s lamb leg was the official dish of the night. If I ever go back, I will have to have it. However, there is too much food, so I suggest going having eaten bugger all for two days or else take a friend and share. We got complementary dal as well, which was much appreciated and very tasty. I don’t know if it can be called the best restaurant in the city, as I have not been in them all and it wasn’t mind blowing food, but I reckon it is pretty high up there.
Tomorrow morning we leave at an obscene hour for Agra, so I think that will be another installment in the saga.

FAMILIAL INSTALLMENTS PART 1

So, I haven’t been here in a while due to many visits from home. I have been running around like an idiot for the past two weeks working/touring/relaxing/safari. The blog did not come first. In order to address this, I figure that one BIG entry is a good way to get the whole story out in one and begin once more into the old routine of things.

So where do we begin?

We begin with Kapil.

Kapil is one of my friends from Glasgow whose family are originally from India. Every year he comes out to visit the family that he still has here, and it just so happened that he was coming out for Diwali and would be staying for a few days in Delhi. We arranged to meet in Connaught Place, as Kapil seems to know nothing about Delhi or anything in it. So Connaught Place: you would think it was easy for his aunt, who lives in Delhi to find. But apparently not. So there was Amanda and I standing there looking like twerps for some time before he appeared with a small woman in a glitzy green saree (the aunt). As soon as he appeared he fished out the letter Iain has written me from his trousers. Apparently in an effort to save on paper, it has no envelope and is instead sellotaped together. He is a strange one.

Had argument with Kapil’s aunt about his curfew. We met at half six, and she was saying she would pick him up at quarter to eight. I find it hilarious that here in India, the man’s world, Kapil has an earlier curfew than the Indian girls’ hostel. We managed to get his curfew all the way up to 8.45! Rebels…Apparently Kapil’s family are of the opinion that he is incapable and will be attacked and/or raped if left to his own devices for more than two hours. We suggested sending him home in an auto and that was met with much consternation. I think I made a bad impression as a corrupting influence. We went to dinner at United Coffee House and Amanda got what was possibly the worst sandwich in the world. It was two pieces of white bread with green paste between them. Not nice. It was like baby food. Restored Kapil to his worried family at the appointed time. Met his aunt, uncle, mum and sister, all of whom had packed themselves in to his uncle’s car to collect Kapil, just in case of something happening…They all seemed very nice, though I am annoyed with his sister for eating jaffa cakes that Kapil apparently brought with him to give me.

Spent the next two days doing assessments. On Wednesday night however, we managed to convince the girls to come out with us to Urban Pind. There were seven of us: Amanda, Rachna, Nandini, Mernoush, Elmira, Anjilika and me. We all went to the American diner beforehand and then piled all of us into one auto rickshaw. There were nine people in that thing. It almost refused to start, but we got it going and we made it no time, all things considering. Danced for the whole night and had a brilliant time. Found it funny that everyone was commenting on how nice my dress was when it was actually a skirt. The girls say they will come out with us again: success! I think they just needed to realise that going out in Delhi isn’t a huge issue and that the city is quite safe when you are a bit savvy. Also, in somewhere like Urban, there is never going to be a problem as it is just so full of internationals and very nice people. It has great atmosphere – something a lot of the clubs at home could do with a bit more of.

 

THURSDAY: THE DAY OF FAMILY.

Met Kapil briefly in the morning to say good bye till next time. It was nice and weird having him here. It has made me miss home very much. I got gossip and stuff from him, and it feels strange that I am outside of it all.

IN OTHER NEWS: my family came today. I was so stressed out about it. I just wanted them to like Delhi so much. This is a difficult city to get along with. So I can sort of understand why they would hate it, as I did. But I don’t want them to: I like it here now, and I want them to see Delhi beyond the nice façade of the South but also to like what is beyond that, not just how dirty or poor everything is. I wanted them to see Delhi as I do: a city of contradictions, frustrations and also beauty and excitement.

Seeign them all for the first time in so long was amazing. It felt so weird and also brilliant. Their hotel is incredibly grand as well, I was a bit bowled away by the whole encounter actually. It was brilliant to see mum and dad again. Spent some time setting out a vague plan of action for the day and had one of the most expensive lunches of all time in the hotel. Apparently their first impressions are good: I can see why being in this place. It is a beautiful hotel. They are staying at the Lalit near Connaught Place. The doormen wear huge golden turbans and namaskar when you come in…it is all so grand in comparison to what I am used to.

So I may have lost the battle for my rents to like Delhi…I brought them to where I live. My mum came up stairs in the hostel and declared it a prison. Before this though, I had come out of the metro intending to take a rickshaw as usual and the policeman had waved a screwdriver at us before advancing on the rickshaws to burst their tyres. Not a good impression for mum and dad. We then walked up the road to AIM café. Also maybe not a great plan. Saw three men peeing and smelt the evidence of many more. The open sewer didn’t go down well either. As I said to my dad, “I know what dysentery smells of now” and he replied “Yes, so did I, but I never thought I would have to smell it again.” Not brilliant… They liked AIM café though; a haven from the street. They met Amanda for the first time as well, and seemed to really like her as well, which is good.

Went back to the hotel for a swim and a chill out. I think everyone is a bit tired and overwhelmed, which is fair enough. The hotel has a brilliant swimming pool on the third floor out on a veranda type thing. It is blue tiles with these funky green and red lights playing over them – looks so cool. It felt amazing to be in the water and be able to just swim and be cool and get the grime off of my skin. Amanda is going to come with me tomorrow morning and we will swim and feel clean! Cannot wait. Finally, my quest for a pool is temporarily over. Took the rents to Satyam Bhavan, a south Indian joint on Connaught Place. The whole thing was very stressful. I don’t think they expected Connaught Place to be such a dump. Especially at night, when it is full of beggars and the rubble is difficult to negotiate. It was made worse by my mum being sick. I hadn’t thought it would take as little as an afternoon to make one of them succumb to the delights of Indian food poisoning but there we have it. Euan didn’t like the food in the place either, though he liked the sweets. So not a total loss, but pretty close. Felt a bit crappy by the end of it in the taxi they insisted that I take home. So stressed. It was such a shock to see them again and then for all of it to go sort of wrong…I don’t know. It was maybe not a great first day.

 

So maybe I should split this entry up? It is turning into a bit of an epic.

Will the family survive the night in India? Will my mother’s food poisoning be relieved? Will everyone else get it instead?

FIND OUT IN OUR NEXT EPISODE!

3rd October

Watching shit at 1 am appears to also work quite nicely as a cure for insomnia. I managed to sleep right through till the morning. I was shocked and infinitely glad. I need to today to finish my Plato/Sidney essay and do a little bit of reading for these internal exams. I am still completely unsure as to what is happening there, but we will see what comes of it.

Went to the gym for a bit with Amanda and then got bored and ended up doing some yoga instead and then the power went.

The power has been going on and off for a good few hours. First it was the water, and now it is the power. The unfortunate thing is, is that it is about 38 degrees outside. And with no fans on in your room, it is unpleasant to say the least. I am currently making patches of sweat on my clothes where you shouldn’t really get such things. My cleavage and my legs, for example. I feel like I am sitting in a puddle. It is truly horrible when you go to shift position and your legs are so slick they just slide off one another. Urgh.

It is also wholly terrible for working: the essay being on the laptop with no battery that I cannot charge. Bah. Trying to read over my Swift and Dryden notes instead, but to be honest it is really just sending me to sleep. The other problem with heat: sleep is bloody tempting – you just can’t actually have any of it. so you lie there and kick around and it is just so depressing.

Gave up and went to AIM. We spent the whole afternoon and most of the evening in there. There was internet, electricity and fans. What more can a girl ask for? It was actually very sweet – one of the women gave me a cupcake with sweet potato and apple icing for free. I have no idea why I merit such things. Possibly, because Amanda and I could keep the business afloat through our consumption alone. It was very sweet of her, and also very yummy, I would pay for that cupcake. I think they are opening a Korean restaurant next door, which will be awesome. Not only will we have the café, if we feel like something more substantial than noodles out a packet or sushi then we can just pop next door to the rest of the family and have some dinner! I was looking at a book of Korean food as well and most of it seems to have some amazing health property. Like ‘this beef soup with ginseng cut into nice shapes will cure cancer’ sort of thing. Sounds good to me. Food that is tasty, pretty and cancer-preventing: all a girl could ask for.

When we got home we tried the stay up tactic once more. Except tonight the movie isn’t even comedy. It is a film about stop-losses: soldiers who are recalled in America despite having served their time. It was supposed to be gritty, but I don’t think I had the level of interest necessary for it. Ah well.

2nd October

Last night was the worst night’s sleep I have had in memory. Here is my night:

Went to bed at 11 and woke up as chirpy as anything at 1 am. Decided I must be too hot so got up and got some water and walked about for five minutes. By this point, pretty sure I am not going back to sleep any time soon so went downstairs to TV room. Six other girls in the TV room watching films. I sit in with them until 3.30 am. For a while I chat to some of them about religion. Tried to explain scientology, which was fun. They had no idea that Tom Cruise was one, but once I explained it they said that it made sense, as he is crazy. They were shocked and appalled about John Travolta though. After that enlightening conversation, I went back up to my room to try and sleep. Sleep still wasn’t happening, so I went on Facebook. Since it was half ten or whatever at home, loads of people were on. I asked Gavia her usual insomnia coping techniques and her advice was fanfiction. It was not so bad though that I felt the need to resort to rambling tales. Instead chatted for a while and then decided another attempt to sleep would be made. The attempt once more failed. Switched comuter back on and wrote 500 words of my essay straight off that I am incredibly happy with. Surprisingly lucid at 4.30am. Went for another walk to try and cool myself down and tire myself out. A shining example of how bad it is: a girl was in the gym at 5am. I decided to join her and tire myself out with a ten minute walk on treadmill. Finally managed to sleep at half past five, and then woke up chirpy once more at 7am.

NOT NORMAL.

I usually need like twelve hours sleep at home or I am a zombie. Today I have had three hours of sleep and yet I am up and at ’em. I do not understand it. I have even been to the gym AGAIN this morning to try and tire my body out. I should not be able to run 5 km on three hours sleep. I have even written most of my essay. I just do not understand.

Stayed in the hostel all day working. Managed to do a bit more as it was a bit cooler. It is never good when your night is more eventful than your day is.

After dinner Amanda and I went to the TV room and watched some films. I brought my cookies and sat munching most of them. They are amazing cookies: oats and everything. I am going to sit in here until I can stand it no more. I feel that if I tire myself out enough before the first attempt at sleep it may go better.

Had a chat with Elmira this evening about SWA and the new president. Apparently she got in a fight with our Provost about Elmira. She had called Elmira to her room saying that every day Elmira would have to come and take down points for an agenda that she had thought of for every meeting. Elmira didn’t know what ‘agenda’ meant and apparently this disqualifies her from being in SWA. Elmira also pointed out (when she knew what was meant) that she doesn’t have the time to come to the girl every day and take down these notes and that she should make note of them herself so that when SWA meets everyone can contribute straight off. And that was that for Elmira. The girl said she was out of SWA! The president of our hostel union doesn’t have the power to fire people from the union – everyone was elected. Just because Elmira didn’t have time to take down her thoughts! So the president told the the Provost Elmira was out, and the Provost pointed out she couldn’t do that, as Elmira, as we all were, was elected. And apparently the girl went crazy and now the Provost is saying if she doesn’t calm down then she will hold new elections. We had no idea she was so power-driven. It is true that whenever she has spoken to me she has been very serious and sour-faced – as if she were president of India, and not a student house for girls! All our SWA is for is to make life easier and better for ourselves; it isn’t to run a tight ship! Elmira also told me that she had the hair fall problem as well, and started using henna to condition her hair every month or so. It doesn’t dye her hair because it is black, but I think if I put it on my hair for only 45 mins or so it should be alright. I used to use henna when I was younger. You get it in blocks in Lush, and then make a paste with it that looks ever so slightly like manure. Ah well, if it stops my hair coming out I don’t mind. We have all decided it is the water. It made Amanda’s eyes burn the other day. It is full of god knows what. With all the pollution and the acidic water, my skin is buggered as well. I have spots! I never had spots…and my skin is really rough. One of the nuns who has been here for 8 years now has black marks on her skin that have developed due to the pollution. How horrifying is that?

I stayed up and watched Hot Chick: an awful film about a girl and guy who swap bodies due to some African voodoo earrings. It was entertaining enough however and to be honest, at 1am, who cares? My artistic appreciation has gone out the window. This had better work...

1st October

I have discovered the cure for insomnia is mojitoes. I slept from half two till half eleven today. It was glorious. I hope it keeps up, though maybe not the half eleven part as I technically have a lot or work I am not really doing.

Despite the late start I have managed to avoid work all of this morning. Not very good going by me. I just can’t seem to get down to it. I am finding it really difficult to get my argument together. I want to be able to talk about Sidney in such a way that combines what I have said about Plato so far and neo-platonic theory without sounding like an idiot/jackass. So far, this is proving difficult. Every sentence sounds terrible and I forgot how to spell ‘influential’. Never a good sign.

After lunch decided that half the problem was the scenery and went to AIM café instead of the hostel. My room feels like it has under-floor heating for most of the day anyway (there is a brief period between 4am and 6am when it is normal) and my bed ALWAYS feels like it has an electric blanket on it. There is no way to get cold…its terrible to work in. And even if you open the windows, it is just as hot outside so there is no change, and all you get is some pollution. Last night in the rickshaw we were stuck on a road between some trucks for a little while and today my silver bracelet that I cleaned only the other night is rusty brown in colour. All due to the air which we breathe. Yummy. I may as well start smoking 20 a day; I hardly think it’ll make much difference to the mass amount of smog I am taking in daily.

I managed to get a bit of work done in AIM finally. I have finished the Plato section, and begun to talk about Sidney. So we are on schedule for finishing by the weekend, although I already know that won’t actually happen.

Tonight we are going out to Brunelles and Guillame’s flat to have dinner. They have been very sweet and invited us round, as they are going away on Friday and want to spend time before they go. I love their flat – so nice and homely and studenty. Marie is going to come with us, as she is slightly better today compared to last night. When we met Marie she told us she had been sitting in Barista all day and had ordered almost everything off the menu. A pleasant change to the puking.

We bought lots of crisps and some pomegranate juice in payment for the food. Brunelle was typically French and made crepes for us with cheese and ham with courgette or else you could have apple chutney and nutella or jam. Absolutely amazing, and so much to eat! I think I ate my weight in crepes and nutella. It felt like we were at home. Such a nice feeling. We sat and chatted about everything and anything. The girl from South Africa was there as well and she told us about South Africa: about Johannesberg and the area she lives in, which is more countryside. Apparently it is very unsafe for girls to go out, and there is a lot of violent crime. She thinks that the tourists don’t see it, as they only go to Cape Town or on safari. She was very enthusiastic about her home though, despite the crime being so widespread. I would love to go to Africa I have to admit. Brunelle and Guillame think they will go and stop there on their way home to France next summer. I doubt I would be able to do that, and I don’t think I want to go to South Africa particularly. I would love to go to Botswana, Kenya and Ethiopia however. See all the great ruins of the ancient Ethiopian civilization. It would be wonderful, but I feel more money is necessary and travel companions are definitely needed. Perhaps one day…

30th September

Tonight is Ladies’ Night! EEEE so excited. I am feeling that mojitoes are a sure fire cure for lack of sleep.

I got no sleep last night again. It was another 1-3, 6.30-8.30 job. I was so pissed off when I got woken up by the bloody stalker with a “GOOD MORNING!!!! REPLY PLZ!!!!” text. Absolute twat. I could have done with an extra hour to focus my mind with. Now I can hardly concentrate because I feel like I will go to sleep. But when I lie down I just start to drip with sweat and then I can’t sleep, as the sheets are wet within minutes. It’s awful.

One good thing about this insomnia malarkey is that I have been going through books at a vast rate of knots. I have finished Raymond Chandler’s Big Sleep today. I love a good detective thriller. It is a great book: full of classy one-liners and women in hemmed stockings and fur-collared coats and men in sharp suits and cigarette cases. So stylish and so well written. Some of the metaphors he uses are just such brilliant images. So sharp and so witty. We want to know if there is a film of it. Anyone know?

Amanda and I went to AIM again for a while. We can’t stick the hostel right now. We have managed to convince Lauren and Marie to come out to Urban Pind with Egle and us. Marie is not feeling so great: her sleeping is worse than mine, she has been ill for a while, she has lost her wallet and spilt water all over her brand new mac book. Not a good week. But tonight we can just go out and ignore everything.

It was quite nice: the old Korean woman in AIM came up to me and told me the house on my screen saver was very beautiful. It was a picture of home, and it made me feel very proud and want to go home a bit. Ah well. I will get the December version…cold and grey rather than covered in flowers. Ah well…summer time will be good.

Came home to the hostel to get ready to go out and Marie has gotten sick from something she ate. It is such a shame: she was really looking forward to coming out and forgetting everything for a while. And now this: so unlucky. I feel for the poor girl. I gave her some piritin to try and knock her out. If she can sleep a bit it might be better.

I have decided to wear a dress and get my legs out. Insanity. Got a lot of stares on the metro, but they are still more concerned with Egle and Lauren being tall blondes and all.

We skipped dinner in the hostel and got a Lebanese platter at Urban Pind instead. It was amazing. We are doing this again for sure. We kept being given free mojitoes we hadn’t asked for by an overly attentive waiter. In the end I couldn’t even finish my third one. Poor show. It was enough to get on the dance floor, however. We met a few guys from the Congo who were great fun and we danced with them all night. There was a girl as well who could do proper Bollywood style dancing, not our pissy attempt. She was great – so stylish and fun. One of the reasons I love coming here is that everyone is so friendly and talkative. You meet so many interesting people. Felix and Julien from the Congo, for example. We met a guy from Chicago as well who flirted a lot with Amanda, but who unfortunately did not press home the advantage and come dance with us. It is great to meet so many people from all over. It is one of the reasons I like the hostel as well. I know girls from all over the world: Mauritius, Afghanistan, Iran, Trinidad…people I would never have known probably at home. Lauren decided to go home early as she is getting an early train to Darjeeling tomorrow. So we put her in an auto with some pepper spray. It is good that you can generally trust the autos. She texted us as soon as she got in too so we knew she was alright. We stayed out till 1 or so. No club stays open after that time anyways. In the rickshaw on the way home there were loads of lorries surrounding us and the pollution must have been awful as my silver bracelet is now a horrible brown colour. Not nice.

My stalker still hasn’t given up. Apparently I should not judge a book by its cover, but I reckon I have judged pretty fairly on this one. Stupid, annoying man.

29th September

I have discovered a Neo-Platonic philosopher called Plotinus that I really feel I should have read earlier.
He denies that art is a pale imitation of a more perfect nature. Instead artists struggle to invest bare matter with form and beauty. This beauty allows the artist and viewer to transcend the sensible world and discover the ‘real’ world of Forms with the ultimate goal of unifying with the One (or God). He said there were two parallel worlds: one the intelligible world of Forms, and the material world, which is a changeable image of the intelligible world. In other words, all nature is an imitation of an ideal that exists outside time and space. The goal is to get your soul to transcend through the apprehension of beauty and unify with the One and then there is ecstasy. In a way, art is more real than nature, as art goes back to the foundations of nature: the intelligible world.
I always get a sense of satisfaction when I get to use the phrase ‘outside of time and space’ in a sentence. It’s like Doctor Who. I am easily amused.
Spent today reading in the hostel, and then reading in AIM as well. I have decided I am not ready to actually write this essay, especially considering how much I have realised I need to do in order to understand Neo-Platonism. My version ain’t everyone’s version. I think my version is close to Sidney’s though, so that is at least comforting.
I still can’t sleep very well. I am averaging four hours a night. But those four hours are coming at random moments. Last night it was 1 to 3am then 5am to 7am. Not overly pleasant. I met Marie again in the computer room and we had a long chat about life, the universe and everything. Which is exactly what one should do at four in the morning: you are at your most coherent…
I have acquired a stalker. About a week or so ago I went to the Vodafone store and outside it a man came up to me and asked me if I was a student. I said yes and he said he was one too, and had seen me around the Arts Faculty. He asked for my number (they have no sense of personal information) and I said no. So he gave me his business card and offered me a lift home, which I also refused. I didn’t think about it again, but this afternoon I have had several text messages from supposedly the same guy asking me to meet him. I have no idea how he got my number. Lauren thinks he must work in Vodafone and got it that way. All her stalkers have been Reliance employees after all. I think they must have given it to him for a fee, as he wasn’t in any uniform. I hate the complete lack of private information here. If it carries on I will tell him I am going to the police or something. I am just ignoring for now.
Bah.