a month in New Delhi

For the last month, I have been adapting to a new work environment while gliding over the surface of a country with unimaginable depth. The lore surrounding most international schools is that teachers rarely interact with the host culture, preferring to stay within the confines of the bubble instead. Throughout the year in Bangkok, we playfully mocked this lifestyle. But upon arrival in New Delhi, I immediately integrated into it.
Last week, a student pointed out that I had spelled New Delhi wrong (I was reversing the l and h,) and it hit me: I am living in a city that I don't even know how to spell. So over the last week, I have taken a brief inventory of life here so far, and planned to become more active. Here are my thoughts so far:
School and the international school life: My school is great. Really, everything about is extremely well setup. The students are nice and engaged, the staff is friendly and professional, and the campus is beautiful, well-resourced, and rich with opportunity. I have already swam, played tennis, played ultimate frisbee, and done Zumba. I'm planning to join the group that does bike tours of Delhi, play softball, etc. Lots of happy hours and dinners, and with so many teachers who have lived in so many interesting places (a lot of Middle East and East Asia) I'm always regaled by stories and travel tips. 
Combine the richness of school life with the fact that I'm doing back-to-back culture shock, and I can understand why I've made little effort to put myself out there. I've visited a few shopping districts within the city. I take taxis everyday. I've made two weekend trips: one to Agra and one to Neemranah Fort. But now I'm wanting for more interaction.
Through this month, I've made a few observations.  I'm reading a book called City of Djinns by William Dalrymple. Its weaves his travelogue from a year in Delhi with interesting historical facts from the Delhi's history. The main theme is that modern Delhi is actually the eight successive city built over the same location. This place on the banks of the Yamuna river has been continually inhabited since the 6th century BCE. As I've mentioned before, there are ruins all over the city. The part of Delhi where I live and work is New Delhi, the British colonial city. I'm excited to learn more about the history, and unfold as many layers as I can. India is highly literate. (Before I came here, I had been charmed by several Indian author.) Book stores are packed with novels and historical works about India. There are countless weekend field trips to take within the city. My co-workers rave about the walking tours available. OK I'm rambling a little, but basically I'm excited by the rich, complex and evocative history of this region. Delhi is also a weekend trip away from so many unbelievable sites that it makes me excited just to type. These include:
-The Himalayas
-Dharamsala, home to many Tibetan exiles including the Dalai Lama (perhaps more on this soon)
-Armritsar, the center of Sikh culture
-Rajasthan, an evocative desert region west of Delhi
India is more pluralistic than most people probably think. Within Delhi, people speak English, Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Bengali, and many more languages. India is famously economically stratified, and this is very evident.

Agra, pt. 3

After a nice long Saturday, we did a quick visit to another site (sight?) on Sunday. On our way, we passed this man transporting balloons on his bicycle.

and then to Fatephur Sikri, another Mughal complex. I believe this was built by a descendant of the Taj Mahal ruler. It is built out of red sandstone, an abundant building material in this area. Here is a large enclosure where the ruler's harem stayed. Our guide showed as a lifesize parchisi board where the ruler played, using his lovely ladies as pieces.

Here we are, enjoying the complex.

Agra, pt. 2

The Taj Mahal, like Angkor Wat, is a sight that exceeds any picture you have ever seen. But before we get to the Taj Mahal, here is the Baby Taj.

BT was built by the father of the Taj Mahal builder, a little foreshadowing if you will. Look at these gorgeously carved slabs of marble. And there was intense symetry

More Baby Taj

and behold!

The Taj Mahal exceeds any pictures. Basically you see it from afar are impressed, look at it up closely and realize how intricate every square foot is are are more impressed, and then take in the size and scope again and are totally floored. It is immaculately designed and executed. All the walls are carved and inlayed with intricate designs. Everything is incredibly planned and mirrored, which is exceptional considering how difficult it was to carve large slabs of marble with basic tools.

Here's an example of the inlay. The precious stones came from India, Afghanistan, Africa and more.

Agra, pt. 1

Maki came into town this weekend, and after a day tour of Dehli and a trip to my school, we embarked on a tour of Agra. We were able to serenely sit in an air-con van while traveling the crazy route from Dehli to Agra. Here is a typical bus on the highway.

So yeah, there are a lot of people in India. Although the distance was about 100 miles, it took us over six hours to get there. Things that got in the way of traffic: cows (of course), people hanging out in the street, people selling things, cars going the wrong direction, goats, etc.
Our first destination was Sikandra. This gorgeous building, like the Taj Mahal and the Baby Taj, and tombs. The history and lineage of each particular Mughal ruler and there resting places are a little jumbled in my head, so I will get that straightened out and lay it down as a comment at some point. But the entrance to the tomb always faces south. The body is buried head to toe along a north-south axis, and the face is turned towards Mecca, or east in this case. The Mughals were Muslim (the Persian influence is evident, especially in the arches) but were fairly tolerant of the multiple religions practiced in India. 

All the buildings are intricately detailed with marble and precious stones.

The amount of patterns and neat detail are amazing. Here's a photo that captures the many different designs.

weekend pictures in New Dehli

My street. Very quiet and neighborhoody, a nice park across the street. 

Laundry time at an informal housing settlement

Cricket, the national obsession. Most parks are filled with cricket games on weekends. They range from casual games to full head-to-toe white uniformed matches.

This area was the political center of the Mughal Empire, which lasted from the sixteenth century to the British Era. There are various structures, some intact and some ruins, all over the Dehli area. I went to  shopping district down the road from my house, and discovered that it is set amidst the ruins of a giant mosque.

Cows EVERYWHERE. Picture your local shopping center. Now pictures cows meandering by Starbucks and dropping dumps on the sidewalk. Picture a crowded and busy four lane road. Now picture traffic winnowing down to one lane to swerve around a cow lounging in the middle of the center lane. Here is a cow checking out the new window display at, of all places, Benneton.

Festivals all the time. Here's a procession I came across in my neighborhood.

Lodhi Gardens. Picturesque gardens centered around an old mosque.

India has been great so far, but finding little time to upload and post my pictures. Did Taj Mahal this weekend and can't wait to post those pictures, it is truly spectacular!

Bikes and Fresh Bread

Sigh.

old post

Here's a post I've been procrastinating on since last year. As part of my teaching English stint, I worked in three seventh grade classrooms last fall. On the last day, we discussed the differences between Thai culture and American culture. The students wrote something up in groups, and I finally looked at them this July as I unpacked my stuff in the US. The quotes are in italics, and I'll respond briefly to each one.

Americans have little respect of older people. But in Thailand we have to be respectful of older people. 
This is sort of a stock answer that people throw out there when asked to compare Thailand and the US. I initially resisted this line of thought, perhaps out of defensiveness for my own culture. My mind would scan over my students in NYC public schools, and I felt that the media's depiction hyperbolizes their behavior. Really, its not that bad. And I've witnessed plenty of Thai children acting cheekily. But returning to NYC this summer sort of shocked me. Numerous people I encountered (a security guard, cashiers) were outright rude for no reason. Subway cars are a perfect microcosm to display the vacuum of social structure. Teenagers and young adults play terrible music at an obnoxious volume and curse and shove around the train. Older, disapproving riders shoot furtive tut-tuts to each other, and then put their heads down to avoid repercussions from the unruly young'ens. I just can't imagine this happening in Bangkok. I now reassess my first thought, 'its not that bad." Well, "its not that bad" is not very good. OK, point expressed, now I can get back to shaking my fist and telling kids to get off my lawn.   
On birthday, in Thailand we usually have small party and eat small cake but in America, people usually have big party, big cake, and many people come to party.
Hmm. Thai people eat a lot of cake. Not sure about this one. 
Thai people dressed politely but American people dressed sexy.
There are some Americans who wear ridiculously revealing clothing that would probably never fly in public in Bangkok. But on the whole, I don't think the scandal factor of the clothing between these two countries is too different. This comment was probably influenced by media portrayals of Americans. 
People in America are fatter and taller than Thai.
Check and checkmate. 
Girls and ladies shouldn't wear shorts out of their homes.
OK...boo.
Americans are expressive and brave to do everything.
I think expressive is really the right word to characterize Americans (and other westerners) in comparison to Thais. So much of my experience in America has been the search to describe more candidly, truthfully and vividly. I didn't get a comparably strong sense of this in Thailand, and I don't think it was only because of my lack of ability in Thai language.

Alright, this was super-oversimplified and off-the-cuff, but thats about all your gonna get.