Brilliant

So how do you find India? The phrasing of the question would literally require an answer that asks me to locate the country. So India lies in the area between China, Tibet, Nepal and Pakistan with the lower portion of the country surrounded by the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. But what is meant by the question is what do I think of India and do I like it here.

It’s brilliant. I love it here.
I’m usually asked why and more often than not I just follow those two statements with my reasons:

The people- the people that I have met embraced me as part of their family. They have redefined hospitality for me and have shown me aspects of the culture I could never find out as a tourist. As for the people I don’t know I am in awe of their work ethic and sense of well being.
There is a house being built across the street from me and the entire construction crew, at least three families, lives on the work site. It’s hard to imagine, but they’ve constructed brick huts with low ceilings. The women carry at least ten bricks on their heads, wear a sari, and climb a split level stair case to deliver the materials to the men on the upper level. My mom wanted to snap some photos when she was here and they more than welcomed her over to their side of the road. They posed with bricks on their heads and smiled joyfully when my mom showed them the digital image on the camera. These people see my house and the way I live but they are content living with their living arrangements. That amazes me.
The colors of fabrics and flowers and foods-yes, I enjoy Indian food and the spices are not too much for me. I’m partial to Pushpa’s cooking though.
I like everything that’s going on around me on the city streets. I can see a man getting shaved by another man, a bull strutting down the street, a man napping in the middle of a lawn, and a friendly game of cards on another grassy area. (I don’t see as many women out on the streets but I figure they are working or at home.)

These reasons typically suffice.

Waste management, pollution, electricity, water and road conditions are the less appealing aspects of New Delhi. The limited infrastructure shocks me and marks India as a developing country. Though the city is gearing up for the Commonwealth Games in 2010, New Delhi will look nice but still fall short of meeting the standard of living that most Americans consider normal. Hopefully the government and the people will consider creating a waste management system that will preserve the beauty of the city and ward off disease and general filth. At Greenwich High School I preach about cleaning up after oneself. The litter in the classrooms and in the student center irks me tremendously. The “oh, that’s the custodians’ job” excuse does not suffice. One must clean up after him or herself. If I don’t take responsibility for cleaning up after myself and the students don’t either, the surroundings would be littered with as much rubbish as I find on the streets of Delhi. The people here tolerate it; in fact I’m not so sure they see it the way I do. The trash is often burned and I believe the plastic bags and certain other materials emit a noxious fume. Breathing in these fumes can endanger one’s health and further pollute the environment.

Though I like India, when I come home to my clean and quaint home in Gurgaon, I find that I am much more relaxed. Seeing the streets and the differences here can be exhausting.

I have a great deal more to see in New Delhi but more often than not when I come home from school I prefer to stay inside and rest. Yet time is running out and I must take in as much as I can.

Music: “Shiver” Coldplay-Parachutes