Chaos, Confusion, Resolution: Tales from Delhi, India

We have been rocked. Our experience in Delhi had been the toughest part of our trip so far. Here we go…

Right now Corey and I are taking refuge in our hotel and recovering from culture shock. The last couple of days were extremely hard and I came soooo close to having a breakdown. Up until that point, we were having a great experience in Chennai with the family we were staying with (with some low points but they were minimal). Since we arrived in Delhi, we have been totally overwhelmed.

 At first, it all started out great. When we arrived, we were greeted by William (whom we had already met in Chennai)

Kiids at the orphanage in Delhi

and two boys who gave us each a bouquet of flowers. We hopped in an air conditioned car and drove 30 minutes to where we were to be staying. The brother, William, and his wife, Priya, are both devout Christians and have committed their lives to run an orphanage (in which they also live). Right now they only have five children living there because they can only afford to take care of five. They receive 8,000 rupees a month (160 USD) in support from a pastor’s out-of-pocket money. Half of that money automatically goes to rent so they are only left with 4,000 rupees (80 USD) for the rest of their expenses. When they need extra money, Williams does computer repair work. They are such hard workers and so incredibly kind. They seem to always have smiles on their faces despite their very difficult lives. Even though they didn’t have much to offer, they fixed up a room in the orphanage for us to stay. William cooked wonderful Indian meals for us and did the best he could to make sure we were comfortable. 

 

Our first meal at the orphanage. It was delish!

Our room at the orphanage

While we were greatly appreciative of their hospitality, we were also overwhelmed by the living conditions. I’ll try my best to describe our experience but it really was one of those that is difficult to describe with words. To start, there was no A/C, frequent power outages, tons of mosquitoes and flies, a very small and hard bed, lizards crawling around on the celing above us, dirt and grime covering the walls, and a “shower” that consisted of a faucet and a bucket. There was a fan outside our room that, in addition to air, also blew dirt and who knows what else into the room. The first morning I woke up with a sinus infection and would have sinus problems whenever we were inside the room. Also, one side of our room opened up to the living room and they had a curtain hanging up. Unfortunately, there was a hole in the curtain and at one point we saw someone watching us through the hole (we found out later that it wasn’t anyone from the orphanage but some neighbors that were visiting). We had one window to the outside that was also opened to the outside so there was only one area in the corner of the room where we could change clothes. Being stared at all day while we were out and then having no privacy back at where we were staying was incredibly difficult. 

 

Our first night was our first “low-point.” The reality of our surroundings was settling in and as night closed in around

A miserable night...

us, the power went out. We were in a very unfamiliar place that was now pitch black and getting unbearably hot without the fans. I almost vomited from the heat. During that night, Corey and I didn’t do much talking. We kinda just laid there on our bed with our eyes wide open. When the power came on, so did the fan that blew air from the outside. We started coughing and then resorted to tying a cloth around our faces. All we could manage to say at first was “wow” and “this is rough.” Then we prayed.

 

The next morning, the power went off again and we woke up hot, sore, and surprisingly uplifted. It seemed that our prayers had been answered! How cool is that? I stepped outside for some fresh air and then the neighborhood children and I played with the cutest puppies. Meanwhile, Corey sat inside and discussed religion with a friend of William’s who is Hindu (which Corey loved of course). Despite the rough conditions, we were feeling great.

 

The immaculately clean and comfortable metro in Delhi

That day, Corey and I walked to a Metro stop a few minutes away and took the clean, modern, air conditioned metro about 30 minutes into the heart of Delhi. We walked around, did some sight seeing, and tried to make plans for the rest of our stay in Delhi. At one point, we got overwhelmed by the heat and constant hassling from the locals so we ducked into a restaurant for some Coronas and spaghetti bolognese. Yum! When we arrived back at the orphanage, William had a delicious meal of beef and potatoes waiting for us. Whereas the night before we were wondering how long we could last, now we were feeling a hundred times better. Before bed, William, Corey, and I made plans with the driver, who was one of William’s friends, to take an air conditioned car around for a nice tour of Delhi’s famous sites. Or so we thought…. duh duh duh…

 

This is where our second low point comes in (our breaking point if you will) that leads us to make the difficult decision to leave the orphanage and find a hotel room in the city. When we begin the tour, William tells the driver to take us to a school where the kids used to go and where the orphanage used to be. This was not on our original agenda and because we are paying for this tour, we thought it was a little odd. He walks us inside an office, tells us to take a seat, then leaves to find the school principal. While staying in Delhi, we had several experiences similar to this where we felt like our hosts were victims of “show-and-tell.” We know that most likely this was not their intention but it sure felt like we were being paraded around. After meeting several people at the school, we got back in the car and quickly learned that there was no A/C. William reassures us that it will be OK because the time between sights is only 10-15 minutes so we won’t be too hot. Turns out to be more like an hour to an hour and a half between sights because of traffic and getting lost a few times. The heat and humidity are overwhelming. It was over 100 degrees outside but felt more like 110 in the car. We stop at one historical site to snap a picture, and then drive Hindu temple which Corey loves. He’s in his element here and his spirits start to lift. I, however, am learning more and more each day that being a white woman in India is very difficult. Not only is there over-the-top staring, but people want to take my picture and make attempts to touch me. It’s exhausting.

Our second stop on the sightseeing tour. Finding it difficult to smile at this point.

This all hits the fan when we visit the Lotus Temple, a Baha’i place of worship and meditation. The temple itself is beautiful but I found it impossible to admire the building with everyone around me hassling and staring. I begin to feel the tears coming and tell Corey that I need to escape. When I felt like this back in Chennai, we had a private room back at the house for me to recover for a while. But here in Delhi, there was no such refuge. After much discussion, we made our decision to leave and find a room in the city.  If it weren’t for the crazy sightseeing tour, we most likely would have stayed and toughed it out. We really wished to stay with Williams at his orphanage but honestly felt too overwhelmed. They took everything really well and we left on good terms.

So the good news is that I feel back to normal now… Ok, almost back to normal. Today, we took an excursion to the Taj Mahal. Not as easy as it sounds. Without going into all the details, things are just more difficult here in India. Our 6 hour round trip car ride turned into a 12 hour round trip car ride. On the way there, we had traffic and road closures and on the way back, we ran into the monsoon. Yes, the monsoon. The one that lasts two months and wreaks havoc on the country. It’s basically a torrential downpour that causes severe flooding and lots of problems for the people of India. Within minutes of the rain starting, the flooding began and after 30 minutes, the flooding had reached up to a foot in some areas. We could actually feel the water sloshing up beneath our feet on the floorboard. Fortunately, we made it to safety and have no flooding here where we are staying. Tomorrow we fly out to Kolkata and then leave for Phuket, Thailand on the 31st.

Us at the beautiful Taj Mahal

There are many more stories but there is just not enough time in the day to post them all. I look forward to seeing you all soon so we can catch up on everything. Also, I just posted some pictures on Facebook so check them out when you get a chance!

I hope everyone is well! Miss you guys!!