After 20 hours of flight time I've finally made it to Delhi. My contact in Delhi, a native Ladakhi, eagerly awaited my arrival at the airport and drove me to the World Buddhist Center, where I will stay until I fly out to Leh tomorrow morning. Let me just begin by saying that Delhi makes downtown New York City look like the Japanese Tea Garden. The rules of the road are merely optional here. A parked car in the middle of a highway or a bicycle riding against the flow of traffic is not uncommon. Red lights will result in a swarm of people around the stopped cars looking for quick sales. This place is a true free-for-all, but surely a sight to be seen. I am grateful for having a prearranged contact, for I would not have been able to enjoy the experience had I been in control of the situation.
my old boss, joanne, who was the HIV/AIDS policy chief for UNICEF Africa, said that being in Delhi for the first time made the dirtiest parts of Africa seem "pristine" by comparison. is this true?
ReplyDeleteGranted, I probably haven't seen the worst that Delhi has to offer, but I'm sure it can compete with the dirtiest parts of Africa. On my way back to SF I'll see more of it, and then I could probably give you a more definitive answer
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