hola, india

The heat and that unique Delhi smell are the first things that hit you when you get off the plane. The smell is a mix of smog and pollution and gasoline and everyday life...it's not unpleasant but it's thick and clings to everything-- we have a small room off of our basement at home in Atlanta full of suitcases, and everytime I walk in there, I can "smell India." The dry heat is evident from the moment you walk through the "nothing to declare" section of customs, and poverty is rampant--I saw a devastating amount of people sleeping on the sides of the roads with nothing more than a blanket underneath them and only a shawl or scarf covering their face from the heat and have already been swarmed by children begging for food twice. A friend of mine told me last week that China was at least 50 years ahead of India with regards to infrastructure, and being here again really makes me believe that.
It was 47° C, which is approximately 117° F, when I got off the plane--and that was at 11 at night. As a comparison, it's 73° in Athens, GA now, at noon EST. The heat here is dry stifling, it settles onto your skin like glitter does and is impossible to shake off. I busted out my SPF 55 as soon as I woke up this morning and have been drinking water nonstop.  

I arrived in India after an easy flight from Paris-- the seat next to me was empty, I scored a vegetarian meal, and, funnily enough, they showed "Love, Actually" after I'd spent the entire last leg of my trip thinking about the movie. My bags were first off the plane (they're usually lost or last), and I found my uncles with no problem and presented them with two bottles of Johnny Walker Black Label, fresh out of the duty free store. For those who were wondering, Black Label is $17 cheaper at the Delhi airport than it is in Charles de Gaulle. Someone was complaining that there were no English books in the store at our gate in CDG, which made me roll my eyes-- why should there be books in English in a French airport? I browsed the books in French, but most of them were philosophical or self-help titles, the vernaculars of which are beyond my scope of comprehension (which is essentially comprised of Harry Potter and other novels I've read enough times to have basically memorized). For the first, but definitely not last, time during my trip, I wished I understood Hindi as well French.

The water here is different-- it tastes flatter and is rarely drunk cold. I rarely take drinks with ice even in the States, but here it's a necessity-- ice is usually made from water that hasn't been purified. We have a "geyser" water heater that warms the water that comes out of the "red" tap on the sinks and showers, and the heat has gotten so bad that the water from this geyser is colder than the water from the cold water, or blue-labelled, faucet. Ridiculous.
I spent some time last night after everybody was asleep trying to watch Glee and HIMYM...I could get them to start playing on a certain (name-withheld) website but couldn't get them to finish loading or stop buffering. I am on wireless Internet, but the connection leaves something to desire. I might try again soon, as it's 10:30 pm and everybody is asleep agaiinnnn. My grandparents wake up at 5:30-6ish every day, so it's early nights for everybody in B-13!