Scott Visits India

Shopping and More Crazy Traffic

May 16th, 2006 at 2:30 am

Our second real day in India meant more sitting around the hotel waiting for something to do. We had gotten word that one of the employees at our host company would be taking us to the mall after lunch and we eagerly awaited the opportunity to get out of the hotel. We haven’t really felt “safe” leaving the hotel and walking around on our own since we had no clue where we were and what was around us, so this would be our first real introduction to the city. This person was nice enough to drive and hour to pick us up and then hauled us to the mall where the traffic chaos carried over into people chaos. Same basic rules (meaning no rules) applies to walking in crowded public spaces - no set direction, very closely packed areas, and people upon people all eager to get where they want to go. The mall itself was one of 3 or 4 new malls right in the same area and really made it apparent how quickly this town is growing. It was 5 stories, fairly large in diameter, and did I mentioned it was packed?

My wife will be the first to tell you that I am probably one of the worst people to take to a mall. I don’t like dragging around, and I don’t like having to fight through crowds. However, I was so glad to not be cooped up in a room and so excited about seeing the town and the people that I think I was pretty patient with the 130 different India stores we went in that had scarfs. Dolores managed to find something she liked in every store we went in (she claims she was buying for family and friends, but when we got back to the hotel, she tried to explain why she just had to keep this item and that item for herself) and to be fair, a lot of the items were really nice. While at the mall I did manage to find a thing or two for my wife and something that will hopefully make up for the fact that I will be missing my 5th wedding anniversary and our closing on a new house while I am in India…sometimes life has it’s own timeline that is out of your control.

While at the mall I accidentally did one of the no-nos that we were warned about and I had some ice in the form of a blended coffee drink. I didn’t think about it until afterwards and after a temporary panic about the stomach pains I was soon going to have, I decided to not worry about it and fortunately it didn’t seem to cause any problems. While the mall was tiring and crowded, it was interesting and different enough that I have been interested in going to see some of the other malls while here. So I came all the way to India to go to malls? Hey, we gotta find something to do other than work!

Last night while talking to my mom to wish her a Happy Mother’s Day, I noticed the wind was whistling and looked outside. There was a pretty remarkable sand storm kicking up and at one point it got to where all the cars were pulled over and the whole sky was one big tan cloud - sand blowing everywhere. Pretty amazing to see from the comfort of my hotel window, I can’t imagine being out in it.

I also found out that the reason we saw so many of those old trucks on the way into the city the night we arrived is because cargo trucks are not allowed into Delhi in the day. There is so much traffic that the trucks have to wait until nighttime to enter the city. While that doesn’t seem like the most effective approach to traffic congestion, it is interesting and results in a pretty massive line-up at the border as it gets close to nighttime.

One final observation for the day…the first day we were here Dolores had breakfast in the hotel lobby by herself and when I saw her afterwards, she told me that the waiter had asked her out to the movies that night. We were both pretty surprised he was so forward with the offer and she said they hadn’t really talked that much during her meal other than her saying yes she was married when he asked. Well, the next night at dinner, a female waitress she had met at lunch, asked Dolores if she wanted to go shopping with her today. She proceeded to ask for Dolores to exchange phone numbers with her, and told her should would be in touch. So to make sure you are keeping track, we were here two days and Dolores got two invitations for activities (or as I like to tell her, “dates”) from the hotel staff. I was starting to feel a little left out when at dinner tonight, our male waiter began asking us how long we were in town. I told him two weeks, and he asked if we were going to have any free time while we were here. I said maybe some on the weekend and we were hoping to travel the 4-5 hours to see the Taj Mahal. Well sure enough, he came back after a little bit and asked if he could go with us. Whaahh??? I mean sure, I don’t know you, I think it is kinda weird you randomly ask a hotel guest if you can travel overnight on a 4-5 hour trip with them, but hey, maybe that is how it goes around here. So we have been here 3 days and every day we have gotten an invite to do something with one of the hotel wait staff. Do we look bored? Are people here just that friendly? Do you think the hotel cares that their staff is asking patrons this? You be the judge.