Jaipur to Delhi

 Today started quite well. I got to sleep in as late as I could manage and I figured out how to use the shower here. Rest assured that it’s more complicated than it could be. We pack up the van and head off to Delhi. On the way I’ve booked some treats for myself when I get there. Shave, tea, other stuff to be disclosed at a later posting. Just nice things.

Before hitting the road we popped into a monkey tamale nestled into a canyon. Monkey man asks me if I want a picture with the monkeys. Assures me he can grantee my safety. Promises me he is friends with all the monkeys. That’s not impressive, all my friends are monkeys. Sorry monkey man. This place is, luckily, filthy enough to prepare me mentally for a return to the capitol.

Monkey… Man

On the long ride to Delhi I’m thinking a lot about the tour itself. Of all the countries I’ve been, this is the one where I’ve interacted with the least number of strangers. When I did talk to locals, it was arranged and safe. Having someone else plot out my itinerary has been a novel change of pace but I think I’ve had enough of being told what to do and where to go. Also, the endless parade of monuments has been exhausting. I feel myself getting rock pile fatigue again, too many monuments. A sign of the approach here is that I haven’t learned much, or maybe any, Hindi on this trip. Granted, I knew more than most coming in but it still strikes me as an outlier among the way I’ve been approaching the culture here. I did learn a new way to shit, so that’s a worthwhile cultural experience. 

I’ve also noticed that I haven’t have the urge to eat a burger or do an American thing since I got on the tour. Maybe that’s because I’m tired. Maybe that’s because Indian food is already familiar (literally) to me. Some members of the group have even been asking me for help with navigating menus if the guide is occupied. The flip side of that coin is listening to people complain about the food. What we’ve been eating isn’t freaky or intense by any margin and still some folks are having trouble with it. I can’t say for sure if that’s gastric or cultural but I am growing weary of how culturally permissible it is for westerners to rag on food.

We arrive at the hotel and settle in. Over dinner, we thank the driver and guide with a thick envelope from the group. Most of the people will be gone by sunrise but Kristen, Honor, and myself have a day and a half or so to hang out together. For a night out we hit The Imperial, the old money hotel in Delhi. This is Delhi’s premiere vestige of the empire to lodge yourself in. The atmosphere is as formal as it is welcoming. Kristen and I are relating and ordering drinks. Honor, being from London, feels as through she’s traveled far and wound up right where she started. Our second round happens at a local club that my friend from Delhi calls his favorite place to go growing up because they’d serve an infant there. Can confirm, there were a shocking number of infants there. Delhi’s drinking age is 25 but you’d never notice.