Delhi day 1
Delhi - where "fairness" is a cream that gives you confidence by bleaching your face, and people are invited to enter fast-food shops "just to say hi" - like, that way you can go there for the atmosphere without being afraid you'll be pressured into buying something.
I keep accidentally calling this place Dili - partly because that's what my family has been doing, and partly because i seem to only be able to understand where i am by relating it to one of 3 previous travel categories, and to me delhi is a cross between dili and bolivia. I find it a very exciting city.
Road transport is an experience in itself. Honking your horn seems to mean either "I'm nearby, so don't do anything rash and unpredictable" or "hey, I'm about to do something rash and unpredictable" (like cross 4 lanes of traffic to make that left turn 3 metres ahead) or, sometimes, "hey pedestrian, i can see you crossing, but don't think i won't run you down if you're still there by the time I get there". It seems that changing lanes is a bit too bold or rude, so it's much better to drive somewhere between multiple lanes, cause you aren't really pushing in if no one can tell what queue you're in. But given the fairly slow speed there are probably less fatalities than how we drive.
I exchanged some aus dollars in an office this guy off the street who kept trying to sell my friend marajuana led us to, at a much more favourable rate for me than i've seen elsewhere. i counted out his notes, he counted out mine, we swapped. As we left, his friend questioned one of my $50 notes, which had a slight corner missing - he was concerned about it not being accepted, and asked if i had another one. He should have checked before we swapped notes! I tried to reassure him then left. Obviously it's sensible for him to be wary of my type trying to lure unsuspecting men off the street into dodgy exchange scams. (Thanks to mum for the dodgy note in question - the mastermind behind the operation).
I went to see India gate tonight and had my photo taken about 30 times with various men and women. It made me feel a bit like a monument.
Walking around we've tended to attract quite a few friendly young men, and not just the ones who want to take us to their shop/tourist office, but sometimes just to chat and give us helpful directions and advice. They all think i'm my travel-buddy's daughter, which we go along with to keep things simple.
I bought a punjabi suit, dress and top today, so I'm making inroads into the 16 or so kilos of baggage allowance that I still have to work with, with my 4.5 kg carry-on and 5.8 kilo checked baggage. I'm kind of proud of that.
I haven't got the belly experience that this city is famous for yet, but maybe on day 1 it would be tempting fate to brag about how the last few year's training of eating old/suspect food has paid off. Better wait a couple of days.
