Nizamuddin Walk

Nizamuddin Neighborhood

 Lovely ladies in the Muslim temple

We took a step outside our normal routine (go to work, the gym, shopping, home) to experience something cultural in Delhi.  Something we should do much more often!  Organized by a friend at school, we took a walking tour through Nizamuddin.

Nizamuddin is a Sufi Muslim neighborhood about 1 km from our house...Sufism is described as an inner, mystical dimension of Islam.  Sufis believe they can become closer to God through turning away from everything except the love of God.  They can achieve this closeness to God through praying, dancing, singing, and other forms of art.

 

Boys playing and jumping off of a wall around the Mausoleum

He was taking a photo of us on his phone while I took a photo of him!

This boy was shouting "photo, photo"!  On the rooftop of the mausoleum.

 

Girl in red watching the boys' cricket game.

 

Cricket in the courtyard

  

Muslim men at the entryway.

Man selling flowers and offering blankets outside temple.

Inside the covered market before going into the temple.

Street scene from a window.

Street scene again - hundreds of sandals piled up on tables for sale.

Ghalib museum - he is known as the last great poet of India before British rule.

Offerings for sale

They loved that she was recording a movie on her iPad!

3 tombs - The tombs of women are flat to represent paper, and the tombs of men have raised part to represent pens.  This symbolizes the man writing the life story of the woman.

The entrance to the maze of streets in Nizamuddin.  It is low so everyone must bow when they enter.

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

Our apartment's gate

Today is a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day in the neighborhood... OK so I'll stop with the Mr. Roger's references!  But today was truly a beautiful day with bright, blue skies and crisp, chilly air.  One that I will have to document and reminisce about in the midst of the heat that's just about a month away.  Today was a great day for a walk to get to know the ole neighborhood a little better.

Almost every house in Delhi is "gated" - meaning there is a gate (and usually a guard) in front of the house.  Walking around our neighborhood today, I was surprised that not a single gate looked the same as any other one.  It makes sense... this IS a country where many things are custom or hand-made.  To give you an idea of some different gates (and guards) around our 'hood, I took my camera out with me on my walk today.  Enjoy!

With a view into their garden.

Very ornate gate!

A modern wooden gate

Guard (in typical uniform) was happy to be photographed (next he asked me to photograph him with his friend).

Beautiful detail

Typical "guard house" outside many of the gates.  These guards were smiling and laughing before I took the picture!  There was also a fourth man inside the guard house.

Cool shadows

Rustic charm

Lazy Sunday afternoon card game (notice the man sleeping)

Finally back at our gate (with a view of our guard house).  Our guard works part-time, mostly in the evenings.

I often wonder what's going on behind many of the gates in Delhi... if these gates could only talk, what a story they would tell!

Wedding Season

As we sit in our living room, the sounds of a saxophone playing Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" waft through our living room... and that's how we know it's wedding season.  Winter is wedding season in Delhi, maybe because of the cooler weather, and today seems to be an auspicious day.  For good luck, Hindu weddings are planned to take place on auspicious days (according to the Hindu and lunar calendars).  The music will only get louder and louder... now our windows are rattling.  It's going to be a long night!

On the drive home recently, the subject of marriages came up in my conversation with my taxi driver.  He noted that Western marriages often end in divorce, while Indian marriages usually last forever.  This is his explanation why:  In India, families pay so much money for a wedding.  If the marriage doesn't last for the rest of their lives, it's a big waste of money.  I can think of a few better reasons to stay married, but who am I to judge...

Typical Indian Bride - BLING!!!

Mehendi hand designs

We haven't totally grasped the entire cultural aspect of Indian weddings yet, but we know they are lavish affairs which reflect on the wealth of the families involved.  There is no expense spared.  We have a few photos from a wedding last year to give you an idea of what they look like.

Wedding tent from afar

Wedding party dancing with marching band - love the shades cool daddy!

The groom arrives by horse-drawn carriage, yes, the groom!

Wedding party and family dances to the beats coming from a large truck with an amplifier in the back

Most Indian marriages are still arranged, but I've been told the brides now get a little more say in the process.  Talking with an Indian coworker, she said the culture of arranged marriages means the husband and wife learn to respect each other early on in the marriage and both understand they need to compromise in order to build a life together.  Here's a TV commercial for an online matrimony service that struck my funny bone.  Enjoy!

Goodbye 2011!

Dear Family and Friends,

This will be our last post of 2011 so it's time to say GOODBYE 2011 and give a short recap of the year.  2011 was the first year we were full-time residents of India (at least for U.S. tax purposes).  We ushered in the New Year with a New Year's Eve flight from Bangkok to Delhi and arrived back at our apartment just before ringing in the new year.  We were invited down to our landlords place downstairs to have drinks, drinks, and finally a huge feast a little past 2:00 a.m.  That's how parties here in India usually happen.

Around the 3rd day of January was when I (Karen) first got hit by what they call "Delhi Belly".  I call it an olympic event running to the toilet and figuring out which end it's going to come out of first (or even better... simultaneously).  No more gory details, but this Delhi belly lasted off and on until May, the worst of it being 2 weeks in mid-February after a somewhat sketchy banana lassi (milkshake).  Tim was also struck by symptoms off and on, but we both survived (and now have guts of steel?)!!

We were thrilled and excited to spend time in India with my Dad in February and Tim's parents in March.  We enjoyed playing host and tour guide.  With my Dad we traveled to the Taj Mahal, Jaipur, and a tiger reserve where we went on a tiger safari and saw two of the great beasts.  Tim took his parents to Amristar, the Taj (of course), Dharmsala, and Jim Corbett National Park where they went on a safari on elephant-back.  Tim and I took a weekend trip to Neemrana Fort Palace (a former royal palace converted into hotel/resort).  We were pleased with the amount of traveling we did within India!

Without being able to wait any longer, we finally headed toward western civilization!!  Stopping in London and Scotland for 2 weeks, we enjoyed the scenery, but were glad to be home finally in June!  We loved being home with friends, family, and other Americans.  Boy was it nice to hear that southern drawl once again!  We ate as much mexican food and Chick-fil-a as possible (sometimes even several times a day).

Leaving our family and going back to India in August was difficult, but the adjustment our second time around was much easier.  Within the first month, there was a small bombing at a courthouse nearby our apartment, and the same day there was a sizable earthquake that rumbled through our apartment.  Despite those shaky events, we have been happy and healthy this year.  We hired a part-time cook and purchased a water cooler which have improved our quality of life here tremendously.  Ranuka (our cook) makes dinner 3 times a week, most of which is Indian food (paneer and tomato sauce, tandoori chicken, dal makhani being our favorites).  She has kept us very well fed and away from suspect restaurants.

In September, after a year and a half, we were finally successful selling our condo and are happy to have that off our shoulders.  If you read the blog post about the termites and ceiling collapse at our apartment in India, all is repaired and good as new!  We spent Thanksgiving in the Himalayan foothills in Dharmsala (home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Tibetan Buddhism).  We are now spending Christmas in Chiang Mai, Thailand and then going to Phuket to the beach in a few days!

Last month, we signed a contract for another year (2012-13 school year).  That gives many of you another year to book your flight and come for a visit!  Before moving here, it was hard to imagine what our daily life would be like.  But we both agree now that it's better than we had imagined it would be.  There are many things we miss about life in America (mostly our friends and family... and a few restaurants, too).  We are almost up to date with our favorite American TV shows, but are way behind on movies.  That gives us something to look forward to at Redbox this summer!

In 2010, when we made the decision to come to India, many people say "Why India?"  We still don't have the answer... but why not India??  In the new year, we wish the best for all of you, the most happiness, peace, and good health.  We appreciate your love and support, and we look forward to a wonderful 2012!

With love and best wishes,

Karen and Tim

Christmas Tree Lighting!! 2011

I love when Christmas lights are the only things lighting our living room!  Please witness our Official Christmas Tree Lighting 2011!

Happy Dussehra!

This is the beginning of the Indian festival season... 

it starts with Dussehra (pronounced doo' shera) and ends with the festival of lights, Diwali, in a few weeks.  We are nearing our Indian 1-year anniversary (October 15th) and this holiday took place during our first weekend in India last year, so it holds a special place in our hearts.  (That, and it's just fun to watch Ravana burn.)  

On this holiday, Hindus celebrate the victory of good over evil and burn effigies of Ravana and his 2 brothers in neighborhoods and parks all over India.  We are lucky that Ravana is burned in our neighborhood right outside of our apartment.  We gathered at the traffic circle with our neighbors and were delighted when the fireworks began to go off mere feet from our heads.  The crowds gasped and began to step back and burning sparks got just a little too close to their faces.  A few minutes later, an honorary person (neighborhood elder or maybe government official), lit the bottom of Ravana's leg and it wasn't long until he exploded in firecrackers and flames.  Enjoy a bit of Indian culture with this video we captured of the event!

The sky is falling... and don't let the closet bugs bite!

Very happy no one was in bed when the ceiling fell!

When we came home from Neemrana, Karen found large chunks of our bedroom ceiling on her side of the bed and on the floor.  We noticed cracks forming a few weeks before, but never thought it would be such a disaster.  Thankfully, we went on vacation and Karen was spared!

Now to our closets.  When we moved in last year, we noticed wood powder and cracks in the tops of our closets in both our bedroom and guest room along with some dead bug skins.  We notified the maintenance department that takes care of our home, and they promptly came in blazing with a bug spray.  They ended up drenching the closets with termite spray diluted in kerosene (I just found out about the kerosene part...another story), leaving us with a uninhabitable house for a few days.  We ended up staying at a friend's apartment while the clean-up crew (one poor guy who is ordered around by 4 "supervisors") eventually cleaned up the mess dripping from our closets.  I figured any living creature was now dead in our home!

Fast forward 8 months.  When we came back to India at the very end of July, we noticed a chirping or gnawing sound coming from somewhere in our bedroom.  We ignored it for a few weeks as we thought it was probably our air conditioner or some other noise India makes.  The chirping grew louder over the next few weeks, so I started to investigate.  While doing the manly job of testing the closet's wood integrity, I just about put my entire fist through the paper thin upper-side panel.  I shrieked.  I remembered I had pictures of the bugs from last year and so began a Google investigation.  After 20 minutes, I came to the conclusion that the bugs were known as "old house borers".  They are known to make noises after their 4th year of infestation (after their pupa stage).  You don't want to see what they look like the 5th year!!  Nasty!  Karen and I immediately placed a work order to have these closets taken down as they were infested!

Below is a slideshow of pictures with an audio clip of me talking to the bugs.  You can definitely hear them in this clip...especially after the 3rd hello!!  I wish I got Karen talking to them...they respond to her voice more!!  I don't know what they are saying.  I don't know if I want to know...

What a day!

Turns out is was only a 4.4 earthquake!

Our home is "A" and the Delhi High court is "B".

BOMBING

When I hear the deep sounding far away rumbles of thunder here in Delhi, sadly, my immediate though is, man, I hope that's not Pakistan dropping a nuke. I don't know why this always quickly runs through my head, it just does. Yesterday, a bomb went off at the Delhi High Court. It is less than a mile walk from our home (on the map A is our house and B is the High Court). Sadly it killed 11 people and injured many more.

According to news sources, a terrorist group based in Pakistan and in Bangladesh, took responsibility for the attack. The email warned that attacks on Indian courts would continue unless the death sentence against a former Kashmiri insurgent involved in an attack on India's parliament in 2001 was repealed. Karen and I will make sure we don't hang around any courts.

EARTHQUAKE

About 13 hours later around 11:30pm, Karen had just lay down in bed and I was transferring Hindi notes into my new notebook. While I was writing, "Give me a good price," I heard a very loud rumble and about a second later felt heavy shaking for about 4 or 5 seconds. The quaking moved like a wave across the room. The shaking stopped and Karen and I both ran down the stairs and went outside. The birds were chirping and squawking and all the street dogs were barking. It was a strange feeling. Our landlord thought it best to run outside too. At first Karen and I both thought maybe this was a bomb... because that was on our minds from earlier today, but we knew better that it was an earthquake. This was Karen's first earthquake and my second (New Zealand 2003). We sat outside in the garden with our landlord for the next 2 hours just in case the BIG one was about to hit. The epicenter was 90 km outside of Delhi and thankfully, there was no noticeable damage or injuries (although you might not notice damage since there are so many holes and cracks around the city anyway).

Finally we nestled all snug in our bed while visions of bombs and earthquakes shook in our heads... What a day!

Back at Neemrana Fort Palace!

We made our second trip to Neemrana Fort-Palace this past weekend.  We went in March for a weekend trip.  This time we went with a large group of Karen's coworkers from AES.  Highlights include, exploring the village of Neemrana and playing cricket for the first time.  I hit the ball at my first at-bat ever.  The bowler got me out with the next pitch though....seemed like he put a lot more spin and velocity on the second bowl!  Another highlight was meeting a young man sitting on his front step learning statistics.  He proudly showed us his work....looked much like my notebook in college stats!  The weekend included many really good food buffets, emerald green swimming pools (something was wrong with the pools...they blamed it on the rain.  I went in but not for long), and our room which was huge!

Here are some pictures we both took during the trip.

A picture of the top of the fort palace from our trip in March!

The Fort-Palace was converted into a "heritage hotel"

Beautiful view from the entrance

Three Porters

Karen spent about an hour on this swing reading a book!

Our room - "Malabar Mahal"

Our room

Amazing views from our room

The before-dinner show: "bicycle wheel boy"

Fire-breathing people.
You can't see me (Karen) cringing--as I inhale his kerosene fumes. 

On our walk into the village, we attracted the attention of a "friendly" group of Indian boys, teenagers, and even an interesting man with a lot of hair (can you see him in the background?) and a few gold teeth.  The boys are all telling Tim that he has to do a Punjabi dance... or play cricket!

He chose cricket!  Oops I think the stick that fell down is a bad thing...

They are all telling me that I have very soft skin.

They are playing "push the boys into the foreigners".
It's similar to bowling.

This is much of what we saw.

Village woman

Quality time with grandpa!

Neemrana Village

Streets of Neemrana Village

An advertisement for a local jewelry shop.  Makes me want to buy a nose ring
(and grow a mustache).

Pickpocketed!!

The Delhi metro is clean, cheap, fast, reliable, and crowded.  On Saturday, we decided to go on a shopping expedition to the Old Delhi camera market for some photo equipment for Tim.  We put a little extra money in the wallet and we were off!  We traveled one stop on the Delhi metro to Central Secretariat where we change to the yellow line.  The first train was too crowded and the security guard was yelling at people to stand back so we waited for the second train.  I decided to travel in the women's car because it was less crowded and Tim waited at the door of the next car.  When the train arrived and the doors opened, someone started pushing Tim from the right side (not unusual in India).  Tim was holding a bookbag with his workout clothes in front of him with both hands.  After the train doors closed and the train started to move, he felt back where his wallet had been (in his zipped back pocket), and felt nothing.  He turned around and said "who stole my wallet?"  Someone responded, "Whoever stole your wallet will not tell you sir."  Yes, common sense.  The person behind Tim held up his hands and said, "I did not take your wallet sir, you can check me."  Tim walked towards the women's car and signaled for me to come over.  He told me the news and we both knew this was going to be a very long day.

We got off at the next stop and told the security guard there what happened.  Unfortunately he didn't speak English and just started yelling and motioning toward the station entrance.  We walked up to customer care, who told us to go to the control center.  At the control center, there was a sign saying if you had been the victim of a pickpocketing crime to go to the police station at Kashmere Gate.  We gave up and decided to go home.  There was a mobile police unit in our neighborhood lounging in their police jeep.  We approached three police officers there and after thinking we wanted to exchange money, they finally understood that we had been pickpocketed.  We spent hours with those police officers - first waiting for the investigator, then going to the local metro station control room, then police headquarters.  After 5 hours of this, we were allowed into the metro central control room where all the metro surveillance video footage is kept.  We knew exactly when and where we were when the crime happened, so we were able to watch ourselves on the security footage (very cool!).  It looked like a 2-3 man operation, one pushing, the other taking both hands to unzip his pocket and take out the wallet, crowding onto the train, handing the wallet off to another man, who jumped off the train before the doors closed.  Tim realized what had happened 10 seconds afterwards, but it was too late!

Saturday was an Indian holiday celebrating the bond between brothers & sisters, called Raksha Bandhan.  While those criminals should have been celebrating with their families, they were targeting and stealing from us!  At the end of our day, however, we were happily surprised by some generosity.  At our local milk stand (Mother Dairy), we stopped to buy some ice cream to ease our troubles.  The man in front of us was buying several small cups of strawberry ice cream (the kind you eat with a small wooden spoon) for his family.  He smiled at us, ordered 2 extra, and gave us each a cup of strawberry ice cream with a "Happy Raksha Bandhan" and a smile.  A sweet end to an exhausting and frustrating day.

Lessons Learned: Don't wear your wallet in your back pocket in a crowded place EVEN if it has a zipper.  If someone is pushing you, keep your hands on your valuables.  Don't travel on crowded public transportation on an Indian holiday.

Happy Hindustan Independence Day!

Happy Independence Day from New Delhi!  I thought I would share this image from Google India.  It is the Red Fort, which is in New Delhi.

We are celebrating by staying inside, doing yoga, organizing the office, watching the rains, and catching up on Mad Men Season 4, The Inbetweeners, and an episode of Cops!