The first thing I see as I exit the metro are the walls lined with people begging. The young girl in the middle of the walkway was missing her entire right leg. Dirty toddlers waddle past you with no clothes and no shoes on while women with no teeth put their hand out for money. It is a devastating and almost surreal experience at the same time because surely this kind of poverty cannot exist. Hearing about it, seeing it on television shows or movies like Slum Dog Millionaire cannot prepare you for the heart stopping reality. Their poverty is tangible every time they touch you and palpable through the look of despair in their eyes and desperation in their voices. It is unlike anything I have ever experienced.
The hardest thing is whether to give or not to give. This is definitely not a black and white issue, and even if you have made your mind up not to give, having a filthy man missing a leg hop over to your auto rickshaw and stand there for five whole minutes begging for money...even your strongest convictions can become muddled in your mind. The controversy stands over supporting a flawless system. Women and children in particular are often controlled by mafia type lords who are the real benefactors and they will see nothing from the money except a bit of rotten food. The horrible stories about blindings and maiming are realities and child kidnapping is a problem as well. Giving to children especially is unsupportive because they are forced to be filthy, stay up all day and night, and the money will go right into an adults pocket. That being said, how do you ignore a little girl with rags for clothing and no shoes as she practically holds your hand for six blocks? You could weep for the corrupted system and it is difficult to take that stance against it because there may not be any social programs in place for these children or women and what may seem like a little to you can mean a lot to them. That being said, we did submit and offer the man with one leg a little money, but it wasn't enough and he wanted more which surprised me and confirmed my deeper instincts. I have read that the best thing to do, especially for the children, is to buy them a meal and have them eat it in front of you so it is not diverted. In a technical sense, I believe it would be better not to give money but in reality, all bets are off.
The best part of Old Delhi was not really the sights at all but just the overwhelming experience of taking it all in. Even maneuvering the street is impossible with the people, beggars, garbage, and tuk tuk drivers literally stalking you and nattering in your ear every second as you try in vain to ignore them. We quickly succumbed and got in an auto rickshaw and I am so glad we did! First off, what a conveniently inexpensive way to travel since they are readily available everywhere. Secondly, what a thrill! It was more adrenaline producing than any roller coaster I have ever been on with the highs speeds whipping through traffic, people and animals to the peril of anyone that doesn't hear the blaring honk to run out of the way! To be honest though, I actually felt rather safe. It is clear that these drivers are experts and everyone is so defensive that although you would think you would see an accident per second, we have yet to even see a fender bender. If only they would stop honking- yikes!
We arrived at our first sight, the Red Fort which was built in the 1600s by the Mughal king and later taken over by the English. It is an important fort for the history of India's independence as it was vital to them that their tricolor flag be flown on top of the forts gate. It was good to see but I felt distracted half the time by the people throwing curious stares our way. Another difficult issue I have is everyone wanting to take my photo. I am not really comfortable with it and thus far have tried to politely say no however some are so persistent and I have had to be rude. Others just take my picture without asking. On the one hand, I am uncomfortable with it and I also don't want to pose for photos all the time. On the other hand, it is probably harmless and maybe I should have a more relaxed attitude. For now I think I will continue to say no unless I develop a relationship with the person but I really dislike when people on the street grab my arm and try to snap a photo. I know for sure more than ever that I would not want to be a celebrity!
Afterwards we took a break and went to Connaught place for lunch. We just relaxed for two hours and rejuvenated ourselves. As with most places in India like stores and restaurants, they really shut the outside world out so you can fool yourself into thinking you have discovered some piece and quiet. With our bellies full of amazing Indian food, we strolled through a park and it felt lovely to get in touch with some nature.
For whatever reason, we ventured back into the chaos and visited the Jama Masjid, the biggest mosque in India. The mosque itself is gorgeous with a large courtyard in the middle and beautiful old buildings all around. However to get to it you have to walk the gauntlet through the Jama Masjid bazaar with hundreds of touts and street children following you and once you arrive, imagine hundreds of people on the stairs leading up all silenced to point and look at you. Dozens of cameras come out at once and try to take a photo without asking and everyone is excited that you are there. Not exactly blending into the crowd, we were quickly the target of a scam of blocking our entry (while literally everyone else walks in for free) with official looking ID badges and ensuring that we pay. Luckily this fee includes a trip up a minaret for a beautiful view- not! Although annoyed, we weren't going to argue and made the best of it by taking lots of photos. We paid again to go up the minaret and although it was too crowded to really enjoy, you could see the way the city sprawls and just keeps sprawling.
We returned exhausted but in good spirits. We have been hearing stories and preparing ourselves for India and I felt really impressed that we took it all in stride (knock on wood!). Ironically, today was more stressful but in a completely unrelated way. We knew that booking trains could be difficult and heard that you need to book them a week in advance but that is such an understatement! We literally spent the entirety of our day buying a mobile with which we could use to book online tickets, registering with the rail way system, and then trying to find the available tickets. My mind boggles just reliving it and truly after hours of doing this, we narrowed down our itinerary with what worked with the trains and wiped our hands of it. We may not see as much of Rajasthan as we wanted but we often enjoy spending more time in fewer places anyway.
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