On to Delhi - January 23

I threw out everything non-essential that was heavy or bulky - 3 books on India, a padlock, my make-up and make-up bag (figuring people in an Ashram don’t wear it), all the candy I brought for the children and my plastic water bottle. I gave my small backpack filled with about 10 pounds of stuff to a fellow traveler who didn’t have a carry-on. I wore 4 tops and 2 scarves, my heaviest shoes and stuffed my pockets with everything heavy and . . . China Air didn’t weigh ANYTHING.

Uneventful 7-hour flight. Right before landing I went to the bathroom and took off 2 of the tops – just too hot. I maneuvered all my stuff – carry-on bag, small backpack, purse with laptop in it, my 2 extra tops, my jacket loaded down with stuffed pockets – and before I got through customs the tops were gone. I don’t know where I left them - just too many things in my hands. I wonder how many pounds of stuff I tossed/lost/gave away in the last 48 hours?

Delhi – where to begin. The ride from the airport - such contrasts. A new shopping mall with high-end stores under construction – surrounded by a hovel-filled hillside. Cows meandering, beggars with babies knocking on our bus windows, billboards advertising expensive cars placed above streets filled with rubble. Row upon row of small “shops” - - each the size of a single car garage, each with a pull down garage-type door. One shop had tires piled everywhere, next to a man shaving a customer on the street, next to a fruit stand, next to a space with plastic chairs serving food. It is not neat and tidy– it is a frenzy of activity around piles of products. But this doesn’t begin to convey the overall color scheme – everything is dusty – brown, grays, tans. No lawns, no greenery, no neat sidewalks or curbs – instead brick walls tumbling down, a few trees surrounded by weedy dirt, piles of refuse, more cows – and the cacophony of car horns.

Our hotel – $250 a night – in the southern end of town. Older but recently renovated. Had a Raj feeling to the hallways – wide, rattan furniture, prints on the walls. Checked in by 3 pm – but I was almost catatonic. I couldn’t even think of going out for a walk – I was so intimidated by the overwhelming nature of Delhi. I recognized that, although I am on this journey to be stretched, I have to remember that the process of stretching can be painful. I am SO outside of my comfort zone. I do not know how I will be able to deal with beggars.

Instead of facing my fears, I went up to my room, unpacked, sat down and almost trembled. Have I taken on a journey I can actually do? My roommate (a charming 22 year old from Victoria Island in Canada) and her sister joined me. They were both in tears by the drive into Delhi. Men leered at them in the airport and through car windows on the drive. They are both young and Delhi had them in tears. We agreed to take it easy and plan on going out tomorrow. I was asleep by 8 pm.

I will conquer this feeling of being completely overwhelmed.