The Other Side of Paradise

Today, we met Delhi. After the general relaxation that the last 5 days has been, it has been great to reconnect with the heart of this country. The streets bustle, we are constantly accosted by locals, there are cows everywhere, and I wouldn't have it any other way.  We are also still sickness free, and long may that last. A lot had been mentioned about the pollution in Delhi and although many elected to wear masks today, it was not noticeably any worse than any of the other cities we have been so far, save Darjeeling. Indeed, we were even greeted by sunny blue skies. But enough about that, let me tell you about our day...

Monday 18 December

7:30am - Tom and I fell off our respective Indian Railways beds as we checked to find our train was half an hour early, and about to arrive at its destination. We promptly woke up the group, disembarked, and walked to our hotel located only 10 minutes away. I did not believe it. Things could not have gone smoother.

8:00am - we arrived at our accommodation for the next 4 nights, Hotel Namaskar. This hotel would have to be one of the few in the world where its cost per night is almost the same number as its star rating. Whilst some ungrateful members questioned the decision-making of the staff, I for one think we continue to nail the accommodation. Indeed, the ability to shower and use the toilet at the same time is a great touch from the bathroom 'designer'. We were greeted warmly by Mr. Budhraja, the owner, who was as baffled by our being on time as we were. As a result, only two of our rooms were ready, so we decided breakfast was required.

8:30am - with the entire group still in shock at the timing of the train, and possibly also the state of the accommodation, we made our way up Main Bazaar Road, where our hotel is based, to Cafe Festa (not a typo, despite the Spanish theme) for some breakfast. This writer, amongst others, was particularly thrilled by the NZ cafe style coffee. Cafe Festa sits beautifully across from my favourite named Indian hotel, Cottage Yes Please. Callan Adams was heard saying "yes please can we stay there instead?" He was promptly fined for dissent.

10:00am - Mr. Jordan got extremely excited about a large park in close vicinity to Cafe Festa, so we crossed through there on the way to catching rickshaws to the Red Fort. Delhi, more so than any other city we visit, is filled with historical monuments of significance. The Red Fort is the place of Nehru's Indian Independence Speech (Nehru being India's first Prime Minister). Here, he spoke to the masses about a new India, "At the stroke of midnight, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom." I'd encourage anyone reading this blog to read the whole speech, known as Tryst With Destiny - http://nehrumemorial.nic.in/en/gift-gallery.html?id=214&tmpl=component The messages in the speech still hold immense relevance in this country today. 

12:00pm - we took a short walk to Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque. Here, Ben Lerner delivered his Experts in the Field talk on the Islamic faith, colouring the importance of this immense building. The courtyard inside the mosque fits 25,000 worshipers, and is bounded by four towers and two minarets, one of which provides an awesome view of the surrounding areas. The mosque was built in the mid-1600s by Shah Jahan, the head of the Moghul Empire, who also built the Taj Mahal. 

2:00pm - after this writer's rickshaw got dropped on the wrong side of town (more to come on this in the MVP section), and we finally made it back to our hotel area, we dined like kings at Malhotra Restaurant, albeit after a one-and-a-half-hour wait. 

4:00pm​ - we allowed the group a couple hours of free-time, conscious of the fact that many were still recovering from 12 hours on a train. It also allowed the boys to get accustomed to an entirely different city. As some of the boys commented, Delhi is so far the most Western city, with a number of tourists (compare this to Kolkata, where we were lucky to see one tourist a day). Some also commented on the feel of the place being a lot more 'in your face', with the locals trying to make the most of the tourism, although one group of boys was drawn into a local store by a welcoming 'Kia Ora" from a local.

7:30pm​ - we regrouped back at the hotel lobby for debrief. The theme tonight was 'who do we honour, and how do we do it?' We then followed this up by challenging the group to acknowledge who they should be honouring more. On both accounts, many spoke of the love and appreciation they have for their parents. The support and opportunities they have provided for their boys was the source of a lot of emotion, and we were again privileged to share in these discussions with them. 

9:30pm - with an early departure for Agra, and the Taj Mahal, tomorrow morning, we sent the boys off to sleep.

Thought - On the walk to the mosque today, we passed a Sikh temple, a Hindu temple and a Buddhist temple, all sitting next to each other. In a country of more than 1 billion, it does seem rather obvious that a multitude of religions would exist. However, less obvious is the degree to which they coexist. In Kolkata, the Muslim call to prayer echoes throughout the streets five times a day, one of which is at 4am. Here, today, we saw bastions of three different religions almost touching. I've always thought, imagine if this was the case in New Zealand, would we be as accepting? The peaceful coexistence of religions in this country never ceases to amaze.

MVP - Cam MacFarlane. As I mentioned briefly above, our return journey from Jama Masjid went somewhat awry. In my rickshaw group was Cam and Richard Boswell. We initially set off for Main Bazar Road, only to be dropped off at Main Bazaar, an easy mistake to be made, I suppose. This left the three of us about 45 minutes from the hotel, and feeling rather hungry. Cam then took it upon himself to sort our next rickshaw, barter the man down to an acceptable price, and get us on the road again. However, what he's really earning MVP for is what then followed. For the next 45 minutes, as the rickshaw weaved, tooted, braked and dodged its way through peak-hour traffic, Cam had the greatest nap of his life. I will not be surprised if he now has a golf ball sized lump on the back of his head, given the number of times his head snapped back onto the railing. Even if this is the case, it didn't seem to affect the quality of his sleep, and for this he is unquestionably today's MVP.

Reuben