First 48 hours in India
Below are few thoughts about my stay in India after being here for a couple days…
1. Delhi looks nothing at all like the US. I know this sounds stupid, but in the past 48 hours I’ve traversed much of the city and it looks absolutely nothing like a city in the US. To clarify, most international cities don’t look exactly like American cities, but if you were to see just a snapshot of a particular landscape, office building, city intersection you could at times be convinced that it was a snapshot of an American city. In my experience this is true for cities like Madrid, Vienna, Sydney, and even Bangkok. But when you’re in Delhi and you look around, there’s no mistaking where you are. Everything is DIFFERENT.
2. I’d heard about it before I didn’t really believe it until I saw it. Men hold hands in India. Not in a gay way. In a bro way. I didn’t snap the photo below, but trust me it’s accurate.
3. I don’t know how I ever lived life in NYC without a personal, full-time driver. My man Abdul is always waiting, ready to take me where I need to go. It’s awesome. So awesome that I think I’d even hold his hand if we were out on the town.
4. I successfully survived my first 24 hours in India without having to take imodium. But only 24 hours.
5. The people here are incredibly inviting and hospitable. My colleague’s family has welcomed me so warmly that in 48 hours I’ve been a guest of theirs at the Delhi Golf Club and been treated to three meals (including one truly special dinner at their home). The staff at my hotel is similarly eager to please. This morning when I didn’t come down for breakfast, the front desk called and asked why. When I told them I wasn’t hungry (see #4) they offered to bring me up an omelette.
