It’s interesting how much pre-conceived notions, assumptions and apprehension play into travel. On the one hand I had this idea that I would love India because it would be different and I would feel like I’m actually experiencing something new (not just western culture in a slightly different place – like Ireland for example).

But on the other hand, I was (and still am a little) nervous about what that would be like because I’d heard how dirty and chaotic India was (would I even be able to figure out how to get from one place to another, would people be aggressive, would it smell so badly I wouldn’t be able to stand it, would I not be able to find food because it would all be bacteria ridden and basically poison, and even – would I see a dead body on the streets because South Asians have a different perspective of death than we do and I’d heard that a dead body is no big deal to them – possibly because they culturally have a healthier, more enlightened concept of the inevitability of death than our culture…?).

Coming here was kind of like that caving trip we went on in Australia – as I stood there looking at this hole in the rock that I was supposed to wiggle though on my stomach, arms stretched out in front of me, not entirely sure it was actually bigger around than me, I had to consciously decide that I was just going to do it – no turning back. I have to psych myself up here and be prepared to take whatever comes.

Turns out it’s not nearly as hard as I thought it would be – sure, it’s a little uncomfortable, but so worth it! If the experiences I’ve had so far are any indication, this will be the first of multiple trips. This country is huge – it’s kind of like visiting Canada in 17 days and expecting to get any kind of cross section of what it has to offer – impossible!

Also the solo travel thing adds another element of difficulty. I don’t have my usual sidekick(s) to bounce things off of or be my back up (or help make sure I don’t lose things or leave them behind – since that’s often my m.o.). But when things go right – the feeling of accomplishment is unmatched 😆!

Also impossible would be choosing a single photo to represent my first impression so here’s a little gallery instead:

The positives:

My homestay! I would highly, highly recommend Tatvamasi to everyone for their first time in Delhi. It’s located in a (relatively) quiet neighbourhood in New Delhi, about a 15 minute walk (or 65 inr = $1.08 rickshaw Uber) from the Greater Kailash metro station. The host, Pankaj has a wealth of information and advice and most importantly, he didn’t make anything here sound overwhelming or difficult! He’s super ‘matter of fact’ – basically just ‘go here and do this’ – which totally gave me the confidence to do just that. If he thought I could do it then I must be able to. Also, the best piece of information he gave me was that ‘Indians are introverts’, so if someone approaches you and is being overly helpful and friendly, beware. Not that Indians aren’t friendly and helpful, the difference is in whether you approach them or they approach you.

Of course, his advice didn’t 100% completely keep me from getting ‘sucked in’. I lost an hour of my day (and my patience) with a pushy rickshaw driver who must have told me 5 times that he ‘respects me’ while taking me shopping to 2 places and past another 3 places I didn’t ask to go to. And those who know me, know how much I hate shopping when I travel! He was supposed to take me past India Gate and to Humayan’s tomb which should have taken maybe half an hour at the most and ended up taking almost 1.5 hours. And I haven’t yet figured out what the scam is with the tourist office he wanted to take me to (he tried to convince me at least 3 times) but I managed to get out of that – mind you I had to say ‘absolutely not, do not take me there, take me directly to the tomb now!’. Obviously here is where I essentially lost the last grain of patience I had left. I always have to learn things the hard way! Truthfully, I think what leads me to take a little of this garbage is that I feel sorry for people who have to work this hard for their livelihood – it must be such an energy suck to have to scam people all day long every day just to put food on the table. I gave him double what the Uber would have cost me for the trip I originally asked for. He called me ‘cheap’ and I (angrily) reiterated that I was still paying him double, even after he took my to a bunch of places I didn’t want to go and wasted an hour of my day, before I turned and walked/ran to the entrance of the tomb.

24000 steps, 17km and an hour and a half on the metro yesterday taught me how to say ‘No’ (at least to rickshaw drivers and other random men approaching me on the street and in parks). Oh – I also learned to say ‘no’ to people approaching me to take my picture with them – young, older, male, female – everyone wants a photo with the old, tall, white lady! 😆

Wait – somehow I managed to work the only negative into my first positive! So that’s that – no heading entitled ‘The negatives’. Oh, I could also complain about how the hard foam mattress doesn’t work well with my arthritic joints but that’s definitely a first world problem and really has no place in this blog 😬

I’m thrilled with how much I’ve managed to see and do so far – mostly thanks to the metro system which is incredibly easy and gets me huge distances in a reasonable amount of time – really important in a city as big as this!

But overwhelmingly, I’m thrilled with how India (so far) is living up to all my greatest expectations of the food and the architecture and the culture! All of the niggling worries due to stereotypes and negative opinions are gone. It’s definitely not perfect here – it’s dirty in places, the sidewalks are terrible, it’s loud (so much traffic and so many horns), the crush of the crowds can be intimidating, I had to make a wide circle around a rat on the sidewalk once already, and the scams are real. But if you just breath, relax, exercise street smarts and take it all in, it’s fascinating, even mesmerizing and most certainly thought provoking!