Arrival in India
For all those of you who don’t already know, I am a complete dickhead.
After months of planning and research, the anticipation was just about unbearable. I had spent two months back in South Africa over Christmas and New Year. It was great to catch up with family and friends and also to tour around to see a bit of the country. I spent the month of February in London finishing off my contract with the bank I have worked for the last year. It also gave me time to organize foreign currency, travelers’ checks and Indian and Nepalese visas.
The 28th of February finally arrived. I was so excited I was awake and once again repacking my pack at 4:30 am. Saying goodbye to Carol as she dropped me off at the bus stop at the end of the street was very emotional. I will not be seeing her again until she joins me in Thailand in May. I caught two buses across busy North West London before arriving at Heathrow Airport just after 10 am. I found that my flight to Frankfurt had left already. I had read my itinerary incorrectly; I had seen the arrival time of 12:40 pm and thought this was the departure time. (Loser!) This meant I would miss the connection to Delhi. On checking subsequent flights to India out of Frankfurt, they were all found to be full. I made a quick decision to fly to Frankfurt anyway and wait on standby for a flight to Delhi.
Frankfurt is a big modern German city with tall high-rise office blocks set amongst some older buildings with that distinct European charm. However, this was all a bit lost on me, as I was more worried about getting to India to be able to start the Intrepid Tour I was booked on.
Next day saw me bright and early at the airport but it wasn’t until the plane was just about loaded at 1:30pm that they start calling the names from the standby list. By this time I was frantic but my name was called second and I was on the flight.
After a stuttering start I was finally off on my big round the world trip.
Six and a half hours later we touched down in New Delhi airport. I had to wait an unusually long time for my luggage. Remember, I had been delayed without my bags in Germany so I had visions of my bags not being on the plane to Delhi. Eventually they appeared and I made my way through customs and immigration and then into the infamous gauntlet to get a taxi to my hotel. I found the Delhi Transport Police taxi booth no problem, paid my R210/- and got assigned a taxi number. Almost immediately a tout attached himself to me to help me “find” my allotted taxi. At the taxi a number of unofficial porters wanted to help load my bags. I waved them all away. When the tout wanted to ride up into Delhi with me I refused to get into the taxi. Eventually he gave up and left.
We got horribly lost trying to find my hotel in Karol Bargh. I had to use my cell phone (I wasn’t falling for “you call your hotel from my friend’s shop” routine) to call the hotel so they could send someone on a bicycle to show the driver the way. At 4am (10:30pm GMT) I finally got to bed.
Next morning Cindy and Dean, an Australian couple also booked onto the tour, had left a note for me to meet them at 7 am. We were going on a bus tour of New Delhi. New Delhi is not so new, built by the British as the Imperial capital of Delhi in the late 19th and early 20th century. It was good to get orientated. We saw the Jantar Mantar, an observatory built by the Maharaja Jai Singh in 1752. Laksmi Narayan Temple, where the basics of the Hindu religion were explained. We drove around India Gate, the parliament buildings and the presidents’ estate. By the afternoon, when everyone felt like doing a bit of shopping I felt the jet lag kick in and had to return to my hotel room for an afternoon sleep. I woke just in time for the evening meeting of the group taking part on the Intrepid Delhi to Katmandu trip. After a hearty Indian meal we retired early (I was still feeling the effects of jet lag).
An early start on Sunday, March 3rd saw the group take taxis to Nizamuddin train station to catch the Taj Express to Agra. The trip took 2� hours and I ate my first masala omelet, an egg omelet with onion and green chilli, very hot and very tasty. In Agra we caught these special Electric rickshaws. Apparently the exhaust fumes are causing damage to the Taj Mahal so the authorities are not allowing petrol-powered vehicles within close proximity of the mausoleum and our hotel was literally two doors away. Our first tour was of the impressive Red Fort at Agra. Here we were given an insight into life of the Shah’s during the 16th century. We also had great views across the Yamuna River of the Taj Mahal as it was an unusually clear day.
By late afternoon it was time to make our way to India’s most recognizable icon. The Taj Mahal must be the most impressive and beautiful structure built for love. It was coming up for sunset and the place was packed. I still managed to get some great photo shots though, even the obligatory pensive shot on the bench made famous by Princess Di. Feeling quite overawed by the occasion Denis, my roommate, and I left the group to find a quite rooftop bar to have some beers. It was great to be able to relax. Take it all in and finally realize that you where actually there.
Next morning at sunrise I got up and went down to the river alongside the Taj complex. I paid R35/- to a boat handler to row me the 5m across to the sand bank on the other side where again the Taj Mahal didn’t fail to impress in the gentle orange light. More great shots and more of that surreal feeling that you can’t quite believe where you actually are.
By 10am we had rejoined the Taj Express to Gwalior. Gwalior’s fort is built atop cliffs that rise above the surrounding plains. The town, like everywhere in India is chaotic, noisy, dusty and crowded. Inside the fort complex we visited a Sikh temple. I reckon the Sikhs have it sussed. They have no distinction of race, color or creed, and caste (still a big part of Indian life). You can get food and a bed at any Sikh complex. These guys don’t judge anyone and everyone is welcome. All you have to do is take off your shoes and keep your head covered. The guy that showed us around was such a cool dude I promised I would send him a copy of the photo I took of him.
Next morning before leaving Gwalior we visit the Maharaja’s Palace, which was again, very lush and still in use by the present Maharaja. We then caught a local 6-hour bus to Jhansi. The bus was very uncomfortable and packed with Indian peasants. We then transferred to Tempos (large auto rickshaws) to get to the village of Orchha. Here we stayed in the luxury Orchha resort hotel. Orchha is a small, out of the way place which is slowing being “discovered” by travelers. Thankfully it is still quiet with lots of abandoned palaces, temples and tombs to wander around.
After two days in Orchha we had to spend two days traveling by train (with an overnight stay in Lucknow) across India to Varanasi. It was during the train journey into Lucknow that I had my first (and only so far) problem with Indian food. So the squeamish amongst you look away now. It must have been something I ate before boarding the train, I reckon it was the packets of biscuits we bought. By the time we had reached Lucknow I was feeling awful and as pale as a sheet. On the station platform…well, it just all came up. It wasn’t a pretty sight. That night I went straight to bed, opting out of the Chinese meal the group were going out for. Next morning I was right as rain and thankfully we had some time to kill to explore Lucknow before continuing our train journey.
We are now in Varanasi and it’s our last day in India. Varanasi is sacred Indian city. People come here to cleanse themselves and to die to be cremated in the holy Ganges river. It is a beautiful sight, apart from the pollution, dirt and tout-wallahs everywhere. The sunrise boat trip was special, seeing all the Hindu Indians bathing in the Ghats. The burning Ghats are also something special, although a little disturbing, with bodies being cremated just about 24-hours a day.
Tomorrow it’s off to Nepal. We have a 9-hour road journey to the border in 4×4 vehicles. India has been great with some very special sights. It is dirty and overcrowded and people are always trying to extract money from western tourists. But you have to come and see it to believe it.
