I’ve been firmly entrenched in Indian culture for four days now … and it’s been quite the eye-opening experience.
Here are some of my more insightful musings:
*India has opulent beauty smushed right up against squalor. Some of the most gorgeous gated homes in the country are next door to trash-riddled slums. It’s the ultimate extreme of those who have and those who have not. And it’s everywhere.
*Security is rampant. Your car gets searched every time you arrive at the hotel. A bomb sniffing dog trots up to your car and wags his tail. And an immense security detail frisks you, wands you and politely says thank you every time you enter the hotel. And that’s after you walk through a metal detector. After the bombing in Bombay three years ago, India isn’t taking any chances. It’s a minor inconvenience in the ongoing war on terrorism.
*Every usable square inch of surface space is used as a billboard. There’s not a blank wall to be found in India. And that includes the teeniest villages who — I swear — are one big advertisement for cellphone carrier, AirTel. They’ve painted entire blocks in red and white and slapped their logo on everything from livestock fencing to bridges. I’m not sure what their marketing budget is, but their saturation level is at 98%. If they could get away with putting logos on the sacred cows — I’m sure they’d do it.
*Walk in to a Courtyard Marriott in the States and there’s one, maybe two front desk people poised to check you in. Walk in to a Courtyard Marriott in India and you’ve got a dozen staff members at your beck and call. While one person checks you in, another one gives you a hot towel and another hands you a bottle of chilled water. Your luggage is whisked away and the Concierge is standing by feverishly ready to answer your questions. And no matter what I ask, the answer is always the same, “Yessir. Right away, sir. Our pleasure, sir.”
*If NY is the city that never sleeps, then Delhi is the city that never shuts up. There is a constant barrage of sirens, buzzers and beeps. And that’s on top of the never-ending car horns from every possible direction. It’s audiotorily-offensive 24/7.
There’s my take on life in the big city. I’m headed to a much quieter city tomorrow at the base of the Himalayas — where I think tire screeching will be kept to bare minimum. And the temps will be a cool 80 degrees instead of a blistering 105. Heck — who knows — I may even take a day trip to Tibet. Roam if I want to — roam around the world.