Incredible India: Part 1- Atmosphere

The atmosphere isn't like anything I have grown accustomed to, and for that reason I am eager to arrive at my destination.

As I focused on the outside cameras of my plane, I was entranced by the landscape of New Delhi. It wasn't striking in the way that most major cities are. It wasn't overrun by skyscrapers covered in glass or necessarily screamed, "you're here!" I later realized that it was just tough to see the entire landscape. There was something else about it that caught my attention. As we got closer to the ground, the cabin was buzzing with sighs of relief and excitement to be home. This was a place that you hear about people leaving to make their lives in other countries, causing the much maligned brain drain. Yet, there they were, so excited to be home and I couldn't wait to find out why.

Going through to customs, the culture was already present with the nine large hand sculptures jutting from the wall, elegant and beautiful. They are hand gestures, or mudras, that are essential and expressive of Indian culture. All classical Indian dance forms use mudras and it is known as a common vocabulary. They are incredibly large and stop-in-your-tracks beautiful. They each have their individual significance. To learn more about the meaning behind each of the mudras, click here.

My friends came to pick me up from the airport, which I am very grateful for, considering that upon stepping out of the airport, I was already disoriented with sensory overload. The first thing to hit me was the pollution. The air was so thick, you could cut through it. I think living in Southern California helped prepare me for that part, but it was still a bit of a shock to my system. Thank goodness I eventually got used to it. Even the greenery throughout the city tends to suffer a bit and it becomes all too apparent when it finally rains and the trees go from looking like a dying brown to a brilliant green. The weather was actually a pleasant surprise, as it wasn't cold despite it being winter. This was also a lucky development since this was the first time that I had ever forgotten to pack or wear a coat (thank you fake California winters).

As we were driving through New Delhi to get to Gurgaon/Gurugram, Haryana (where I stayed for the first half of my trip), I started to understand the true scope of where I was. There were so many people walking near the cars and the police were arbitrarily stopping people for "speed violations" whether you were speeding or not. It was loud, busy and there were no real lanes on very wide roads that accommodated cars, rickshaws, pedestrians (old and very young) and the occasional animal. Everyone was driving with their horn, aggressively honking at their fellow drivers, whether the need to honk was present or not. For some strange reason, I didn't feel uncomfortable though, just excited and curious.

You've never been in real traffic until you've been in Delhi traffic

During my entire visit, there were a few constants. The one that stood out the most was the massive number of people that were present wherever we went. This was not too much of a surprise in the second most populated city in the world, in the second most populated country in the world. There I was, just hanging out with my 25 million closest friends and counting. The strangest thing for me, coming from the US, were the animals that also strolled some of the streets. It was not uncommon to see stray dogs, cows and the occasional stray pig. Although, it wasn't an oddity for the people that live there and even though I looked on in awe, the general public didn't even bat an eye. Hello cows... Enjoying your day? I bet all the cows living in other countries would give anything to be in your shoes, especially those Chick-fil-A cows that have been protesting for years.

Traffic, pedestrians and cows... why not?

When it comes to the atmosphere that the people themselves produce, it constantly made me think. I had heard of the caste system and was interested to see if it was obvious when traveling in the country. The short answer is, yes. The disparities among people that live just in the city of New Delhi are stark in comparison to the US. It wasn't as simple as homeless or not. It was levels, so many levels. From the desperately homeless and those that live in slums and orphaned children selling things on the street between cars to house cleaners, cooks and drivers to finally cracking the middle class and the educated to the affluent. So many levels before you even scratch the surface of educated and gainfully employed. It was crazy to me to think that many of these people in their varying situations were there merely by birth, but it's not only India that deals with discrimination of this level. India has it's own social, economic and political struggles, as do all other countries. The large population lends itself to growing pains, but India exists in a unique reality that is hard to overcome. This all contributes to the atmosphere there and a bit of guilt that you can't help but feel about the plight of the disenfranchised.

Below, you can see examples of the diverse nature of the city. It can be absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking, all in the same drive.

Everyday was something new for me, but it also felt very familiar. It was not far removed from the sights, sounds and smells of a bustling city like Lagos, Nigeria. There was a mixture of the old and the new. The city consists of centuries old monuments, especially from the Mughal era and remnants from British rule mixed with a very modern metro system and office buildings and an excessive number of malls. It's a unique juxtaposition. You can go to a very modern mall one day and go to a congested market to haggle the next. You can see the slums, but also see the beautiful houses in the well-manicured diplomatic zone where the embassies and consulates are. When visiting various monuments and holy places, they are clean and very well maintained, but the second you step outside, reality hits you again that this may not always be the norm.

I was a foreigner in a strange land, getting the looks, curiosity and sometimes disdain that came with that, but yet I was content and my contentedness turned to comfort. The biggest contributor to my feeling of comfort in this strange land was the people that I came in contact with and the kindness that they met me with. Welcome to Incredible India.

Make sure to check out part two of this series to learn more about the amazing people that made this trip one to remember.