Tomorrow is a full solar eclipse about 200 miles south of Delhi. Delhi is supposed to see about 80% of it. It starts at 6:30am to 7:30am. According to the paper this is the first full eclipse in 120 some years. I brought it up on my car ride in and Mukesh said the eclipse was bad superstition so not many locals will be looking for it. I am hoping it isn’t too hazy out. I will be out there; hopefully I will not go blind by staring at it.
At the swimming pool the swimming suits of the Hindu women are almost like shorty wetsuits. They look like a one piece that covers from the elbows to the knees. It must be difficult swimming in those things.
I have been having health issues since Saturday afternoon. My stomach feels like it is tied in knots and something is stabbing it from the inside out. I don’t know if it is from something I ate or from the malaria pills I started taking. For Saturday’s lunch I had mutton for the first time from the work cafeteria. Pepto and Tums are not doing anything for it. However I am not running a fever so that is a good sign.
THe big news around here is Hillary Clinton is in town. Every speech is on every news channel. She is talking mostly about education.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Monday, July 20, 2009
This morning I was awoken at around 6 am by some loud Indian music blaring from outside. I looked out the window and saw about 20 of the pilgrimage walkers in bright orange clothing walking barefoot down the middle of the road followed by a truck with two large speakers in the back. I can see why this would hold up traffic if it was on a busy road. I can’t imagine what a full walk would look like with thousands of people. I was too slow to react to take a picture of it.
The concert outside the apartment on Saturday night turned into a fireworks show. After the fireworks three drummers and 6 men carried in a carriage looking thing that had a candle lit with in. They placed the carriage on the main stage, sang a few more songs, then it looked they took the candle out and each person individually came up looked like they said a prayer while holding the candle to the poster. The music finally stopped around 11:30. These pictures are from the 6th floor of the apartment complex. As you can see in the pamarmomic pic, all the shoes are in the lower left hand corner.
I ventured in a new area walking around on Sunday. About three blocks of the walkway was covered in marble. It was a very nice area that had mostly banks and real estate places. I also found a Dominos and a miniature version of Target called Big Bazaar. Once again to walk into the store I went through a metal detector and a pat down. When I walked out the store they patted everyone down again but me. I must look honest enough.
Of course at the end of the marble walkway were three dumpster and 4 cows. The cows where eating some corn out of the garbage. The flies were buzzing all over the place.
For the first time I saw some PDA (public display of affection) which I thought was frowned upon. However right in front of me in the middle of a road, a bull mounted a cow. It must have been love at first site. This also caused a backup in traffic, but he was a quick one.
The concert outside the apartment on Saturday night turned into a fireworks show. After the fireworks three drummers and 6 men carried in a carriage looking thing that had a candle lit with in. They placed the carriage on the main stage, sang a few more songs, then it looked they took the candle out and each person individually came up looked like they said a prayer while holding the candle to the poster. The music finally stopped around 11:30. These pictures are from the 6th floor of the apartment complex. As you can see in the pamarmomic pic, all the shoes are in the lower left hand corner.
I ventured in a new area walking around on Sunday. About three blocks of the walkway was covered in marble. It was a very nice area that had mostly banks and real estate places. I also found a Dominos and a miniature version of Target called Big Bazaar. Once again to walk into the store I went through a metal detector and a pat down. When I walked out the store they patted everyone down again but me. I must look honest enough.
Of course at the end of the marble walkway were three dumpster and 4 cows. The cows where eating some corn out of the garbage. The flies were buzzing all over the place.
For the first time I saw some PDA (public display of affection) which I thought was frowned upon. However right in front of me in the middle of a road, a bull mounted a cow. It must have been love at first site. This also caused a backup in traffic, but he was a quick one.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Here is a front page newspaper title that you would never see in the US. It was from a couple weeks ago. I got a laugh out of it.
I get a newspaper everyday here. The only difference I have noticed so far is on the Sunday classifieds. THe first 4 pages are for real estate. They the next 20 pages are for personal ads.
They are split by religion and caste.
Otherwise it I went into work again on Saturday. THere were only a few people in the office compared to last week.
The monsoon was a false alarm. It was only one day of rain. The good news is the sky is now blue instead of a gray haze. THe bad news is the temps are back up again.
As a result of the rains being delayed, prices are beginning to go up. THe farmers in India do not have adequate irrigation systems or access to water. If there is no rain, there are no crops. Then it is all supply and demand.
Gas is also going up here. They charge by the liter. Gas has been the same price for the last 3 years because the government subsidizes prices. I read an article that last year the subsidy was around $13 USD billion.
Inflatioin is also around 10% around here. For the forecasting I am working on projecting out the next three years, it is the first time I have ever had to think about an inflation factor as it has a major impact.
Tonight there is some kind or party going on outdoors next to the apartment. There is a live band and it is echoing throughout the apartment. I will take some pictures later tonight and post tomorrow. Plus there is a big poster of one of the Hindu gods.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Today I experienced my first true traffic jams. Everything before was minor compared to this. We started off later today around 9. It ended up taking 45 minutes to go 2 miles. From what I heard this will be happening for the next month. There is an annual religious pilgrimage and the people of this cannot be bothered as they walk from site to site. They walk from Delhi to a city about 500km away over 300miles barefoot. The people do this who made a wish during the year and the wish came true. The walk is there way of praising the gods. There feet are covered in cuts and sores as a result of walking barefoot. They all wear a saffron color clothing so they can be easily spotted. They say there are thousands of people that do this. People driving on the roads respect this and just wait. Kind of like the cows. If a cow comes wandering on a road, people just stop and wait for it to move off. If it takes a while someone will finally get out of there car and try to kindly persuade it to move on.
I met my first deadline today of creating three Three Year Plan for India Shared Services and allocating it to 3 business units. I have learned quite a bit already in these three weeks while accumulating all the numbers. Then I entered it into Hyperion. Now onto all the summary and bridge reports.
The monsoons started up again. It rained all night. They do not have the best drainage systems in the area. There are large pools of water in the low spots of the roads. The good news is the base temperature is now around 90, but the humidity is 95% so it still feels like it is over 100. When we walk outside, everyone’s glasses immediately fog up from the humidity. At least I no longer have to worry about that.
I have had no issues with my eyes since I have been here. I had lazik surgery in January and was suffering from dry eyes back in the US. Maybe drinking all the water has helped.
I am sure the mosquitos will be coming out soon. I stopped taking the malaria prescription as a result of the side affects, but will start it back up again.
I have upgraded to the 2 liter water bottle. It is heavy to carry around, but only 22 rupees or about 45 cents.
The biggest issue I have right now is the feeling of independence. In the US I can go anywhere at anytime I felt like it and not get worried about getting lost or possible safety issues. First I don’t know where anything is around here yet. Then when I ask I get three different sets of directions. I haven’t seen a street sign with a road name on it. I am sure I will get to that comfortable point here, but right now I do not feel that way. When I get home from work it is pitch black dark out already as it gets dark around 7:30. There are very few street lights. If I walk 5 feet outside the security gate at the apartment I feel like I am in one of the Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome type of movies. People are burning fires and cooking their meals on the road right outside their tent houses. There are no sidewalks so the cars drive by just missing you by inches at times. I think I am safe, but I really stick out walking around. I brought a flashlight, so I have a little light to look out for stray dogs, cow patties and the occasional cow sleeping on the side of the road.
Talking about the darkness, that is one of the biggest surprises when I flew in. With the population here, I was expecting to see miles and miles of lights from the buildings. However there were only a few spotted areas of lights. It was like flying into a place smaller than Minneapolis. I don’t know if it was as a result of a less populated area or what.
I am also surprised by the amount of garbage that is on the side of the roads. Some areas it is 3-4 feet high. It is mostly plastic items. Any food gets eaten by the cows and dogs roaming around. They do not have recycling over here. On my water bottles it says “Crush the bottle after use”.
Today I watched the sunset and the sun was a bright pink color. I have never seen the sun that color before. I will try to snap a picture of it one of these days.
The monsoons started up again. It rained all night. They do not have the best drainage systems in the area. There are large pools of water in the low spots of the roads. The good news is the base temperature is now around 90, but the humidity is 95% so it still feels like it is over 100. When we walk outside, everyone’s glasses immediately fog up from the humidity. At least I no longer have to worry about that.
I have had no issues with my eyes since I have been here. I had lazik surgery in January and was suffering from dry eyes back in the US. Maybe drinking all the water has helped.
I am sure the mosquitos will be coming out soon. I stopped taking the malaria prescription as a result of the side affects, but will start it back up again.
I have upgraded to the 2 liter water bottle. It is heavy to carry around, but only 22 rupees or about 45 cents.
The biggest issue I have right now is the feeling of independence. In the US I can go anywhere at anytime I felt like it and not get worried about getting lost or possible safety issues. First I don’t know where anything is around here yet. Then when I ask I get three different sets of directions. I haven’t seen a street sign with a road name on it. I am sure I will get to that comfortable point here, but right now I do not feel that way. When I get home from work it is pitch black dark out already as it gets dark around 7:30. There are very few street lights. If I walk 5 feet outside the security gate at the apartment I feel like I am in one of the Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome type of movies. People are burning fires and cooking their meals on the road right outside their tent houses. There are no sidewalks so the cars drive by just missing you by inches at times. I think I am safe, but I really stick out walking around. I brought a flashlight, so I have a little light to look out for stray dogs, cow patties and the occasional cow sleeping on the side of the road.
Talking about the darkness, that is one of the biggest surprises when I flew in. With the population here, I was expecting to see miles and miles of lights from the buildings. However there were only a few spotted areas of lights. It was like flying into a place smaller than Minneapolis. I don’t know if it was as a result of a less populated area or what.
I am also surprised by the amount of garbage that is on the side of the roads. Some areas it is 3-4 feet high. It is mostly plastic items. Any food gets eaten by the cows and dogs roaming around. They do not have recycling over here. On my water bottles it says “Crush the bottle after use”.
Today I watched the sunset and the sun was a bright pink color. I have never seen the sun that color before. I will try to snap a picture of it one of these days.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Another Day
Wow, a little over 3 weeks into the trip and there are now more than 650 clicks on the blog. I just signed up for the Adwords ads. Feel free to click on an ad every once in a while. Maybe I will make a couple bucks.
I was contacted by the India BBC today to do an interview on why American Expats are coming to India. More to come if I get interviewed.
Last night I had Dominos. I ordered enough to make a couple meals out of it. For less than $10 I was able to get a large chicken and onion pizza, a coke and a calzone. I did have a coupon for a free calzone though. They put the spicy chicken in it though instead of the plain chicken. After one piece I was sweating and my nose was running. There is no need for hot wings over here.
There are many pigeons around here. When I am swimming in the outdoor pool they will come down and drink right out of the pool. They also nest between the ac unit and the window outside. I can hear them flapping around every once in a while
I am going to have to make a trip to the distribution facilities out here at some point. Gary told me there are about 100 monkeys that live around the distribution building. I was told they won’t bug you if you don’t bother them. However if you do something they don’t like they will stand up on their feet, screech and show their teeth. Rabies here I come.
Last year they introduced tables for the first time to the distribution facilities. Before the workers would sit on the floor and do there work. So what did they do with the tables the first day? They climbed on top of the tables, sat down on the table and worked like they always did. Makes training a little more difficult.
Gary was also telling me that the only bathroom there is for management. If a laborer worker were to go in and use this bathroom they would be docked a full days pay.
I have seen a few men peeing on the side of the road driving around. I have yet to see anyone squatting. Just one more thing to look forward to.
I also found out a big business around town is picking up the cow patties from all the cows wandering around. Then they dry them out and sell the cow patty like firewood to use to cook food and such. Nothing goes to waste around here. I especially enjoy watching the cows eat out of the garbage. I wonder what cows the cheese comes from that I am eating. It might even be goat cheese.
I have only run into a few international people over here so far, this morning a couple of businessman from Scotland. Most of them tell me I am crazy for doing this alone. All of them come in groups of 2 or 3, stay for only 2 weeks and have a host. The have also told me what they think India really means – I’ll Never Do It Again. I have heard that from a few different people. That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
I was contacted by the India BBC today to do an interview on why American Expats are coming to India. More to come if I get interviewed.
Last night I had Dominos. I ordered enough to make a couple meals out of it. For less than $10 I was able to get a large chicken and onion pizza, a coke and a calzone. I did have a coupon for a free calzone though. They put the spicy chicken in it though instead of the plain chicken. After one piece I was sweating and my nose was running. There is no need for hot wings over here.
There are many pigeons around here. When I am swimming in the outdoor pool they will come down and drink right out of the pool. They also nest between the ac unit and the window outside. I can hear them flapping around every once in a while
I am going to have to make a trip to the distribution facilities out here at some point. Gary told me there are about 100 monkeys that live around the distribution building. I was told they won’t bug you if you don’t bother them. However if you do something they don’t like they will stand up on their feet, screech and show their teeth. Rabies here I come.
Last year they introduced tables for the first time to the distribution facilities. Before the workers would sit on the floor and do there work. So what did they do with the tables the first day? They climbed on top of the tables, sat down on the table and worked like they always did. Makes training a little more difficult.
Gary was also telling me that the only bathroom there is for management. If a laborer worker were to go in and use this bathroom they would be docked a full days pay.
I have seen a few men peeing on the side of the road driving around. I have yet to see anyone squatting. Just one more thing to look forward to.
I also found out a big business around town is picking up the cow patties from all the cows wandering around. Then they dry them out and sell the cow patty like firewood to use to cook food and such. Nothing goes to waste around here. I especially enjoy watching the cows eat out of the garbage. I wonder what cows the cheese comes from that I am eating. It might even be goat cheese.
I have only run into a few international people over here so far, this morning a couple of businessman from Scotland. Most of them tell me I am crazy for doing this alone. All of them come in groups of 2 or 3, stay for only 2 weeks and have a host. The have also told me what they think India really means – I’ll Never Do It Again. I have heard that from a few different people. That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
The weekend
I feel like I am in India version of Office Space. Around 7pm on Friday I was asked to come in on Saturday to do some work. So I ended up coming in for a few hours. About 50% of the people in the area I sit in were working on Saturday. In most departments a 6 day work week is expected. On Saturday they put in 4-6 hours instead of the 9+.
I did go to the local mall after work on Saturday. It is called the Shipra Mall. It is the largest mall in the area. It is about 1/3 the size of Southdale mall. Most of the stores were clothing and the majority were on men's business clothing. It felt like it was about 90 walking around in the mall. Most stores were very small in size, about 20 feet wide and 50 feet long. There were a couple larger stores and a movie theater also. I recognized a couple brands and store names from the states. The mall had valet parking which we used. Entering the mall and having to walk through a metal detector and getting padded down. The highlight was going to McDonalds. I had a chicken sandwich and a coke. My friend had a veggie burger and a coke. The bill came to 140 rupees or about $2.80. There was also a Papa John's in the mall.
Earlier in the week I also saw an interesting comedy called Outsourced. It is about a call center manager who has to train his replacement in India because his job has been outsource. The beginning of the movie with his experiences in India were pretty close to what I went through.
As far as TV there are about 60 channels, but only 5 are in English and 2 are the same movie channel. 2 of them are Star Movie channels and they other 3 show movies or old episodes of US tv. The movie channels all show commercials. There is an ESPN but all I have seen on it is cricket, golf and tennis. There is a CNBC but it is only focused on the India markets and only in Hindu.
Here is a link to my favorite commercial out here. The song in the background is my new theme song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls-uSu4h248
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Random babbling
Starting tomorrow I am the only Shared Services Finance person in India. Ruchika is going on maternity leave today and the other person resigned last week. Now the adventure really begins.
The place I am staying at has an excellent power generator. Power goes out quite often at the apartment, but it kicks back in within 30 seconds. From talking to others at work, power can go out for up to 3-4 days at a time in the area I am staying. For one of the coworkers who lives in the area, the power last night went out around 9pm and her backup generator did not kick in. Finally the power turned on around 6am. It was a sleepless night for her because of the heat. At least I know I am not the only one struggling with the heat.
Another difference I have noticed in the dress of some of the men is they will leave the first two buttons open on their shirt to show off a little chest hair. It might be for better ventilation also.
As for the food it is one of two menus, veg and non-veg at restaraunts. The non-veg consists primarily of chicken, mutton and fish. I have only gone with the chicken so far. To me all of the dishes have been too spicy and too oily. I have only had lunch at work and I have only gone with the veg. You get a stainless steel tray and there are 3 choices - rice and two curries. Most of the people here go about 20% rice and 80% curry where I go about 90% rice and 10% curry, and it is still too hot for me. There are also a tortilla type flat bread, can be fried, grilled, and sometimes have spices in it.
I have ordered room service a couple times. Each time they have either brought me something I didn't order or brought me something that sounded similar but cost 3 times as much. It is always a suprise when they come to the door.
There are no bugs to eat here like in China, the Hindu’s do not believe in killing any form of life. I haven’t seen any chocolate since I have been here either, it is too hot for it. The guy that drives me is purely vegetarian. The only thing he ingests that comes from an animal is milk. He has never eaten eggs or any other animal products. If I were to go to his house to eat, they would never use that dish and silverware again since I am a beef eater. Most families have different sets of dishes for such visitors, but they can never touch or be stored in the same area.
Last night he brought a desert in called keel. It is made up of milk, rice, sugar and dried fruits. It was sweet and very good, almost like a light rice pudding with more liquid in it. It is only for special occasions, it was his wife’s birthday the day before.
I also have not seen a mosquito over here yet. I think since I am in a residential area and it has been a drought so far, there have not been any issues. The only bugs I have seen are a few flies. I did see my first lizard this morning walking to breakfast. It was running across the sidewalk.
The place I am staying at has an excellent power generator. Power goes out quite often at the apartment, but it kicks back in within 30 seconds. From talking to others at work, power can go out for up to 3-4 days at a time in the area I am staying. For one of the coworkers who lives in the area, the power last night went out around 9pm and her backup generator did not kick in. Finally the power turned on around 6am. It was a sleepless night for her because of the heat. At least I know I am not the only one struggling with the heat.
Another difference I have noticed in the dress of some of the men is they will leave the first two buttons open on their shirt to show off a little chest hair. It might be for better ventilation also.
As for the food it is one of two menus, veg and non-veg at restaraunts. The non-veg consists primarily of chicken, mutton and fish. I have only gone with the chicken so far. To me all of the dishes have been too spicy and too oily. I have only had lunch at work and I have only gone with the veg. You get a stainless steel tray and there are 3 choices - rice and two curries. Most of the people here go about 20% rice and 80% curry where I go about 90% rice and 10% curry, and it is still too hot for me. There are also a tortilla type flat bread, can be fried, grilled, and sometimes have spices in it.
I have ordered room service a couple times. Each time they have either brought me something I didn't order or brought me something that sounded similar but cost 3 times as much. It is always a suprise when they come to the door.
There are no bugs to eat here like in China, the Hindu’s do not believe in killing any form of life. I haven’t seen any chocolate since I have been here either, it is too hot for it. The guy that drives me is purely vegetarian. The only thing he ingests that comes from an animal is milk. He has never eaten eggs or any other animal products. If I were to go to his house to eat, they would never use that dish and silverware again since I am a beef eater. Most families have different sets of dishes for such visitors, but they can never touch or be stored in the same area.
Last night he brought a desert in called keel. It is made up of milk, rice, sugar and dried fruits. It was sweet and very good, almost like a light rice pudding with more liquid in it. It is only for special occasions, it was his wife’s birthday the day before.
I also have not seen a mosquito over here yet. I think since I am in a residential area and it has been a drought so far, there have not been any issues. The only bugs I have seen are a few flies. I did see my first lizard this morning walking to breakfast. It was running across the sidewalk.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
A Hindu Funeral
I saw my first ever road rage fight this morning. It happened at the underpass that is always backed up. Right behind us a motorcycle was trying to sneak through and bumped into a car. Well the driver of the car did not take kindly to this. He proceeded to get out and started to beat on the guy. All of a sudden, right outside my car window, about 5 men were punching each other and others were trying to break it up. Traffic finally started to move and we went on our way.
Last week, a coworker’s husband passed away. I was invited to the funeral last Friday but turned down the invitation since I had only met the co-worker once. However Gary did attend the Hindu funeral and filled me in. About 1,200 people attended as they have very large families out here. A Hindu funeral is very different than a Christian in one area. It has a live, open flame cremation during the funeral process. The body is put into a platform with a tee-pee shape of wood surrounding it. The body is only covered by a linen sheet. The oldest male of the family is the person that lights the fire with a torch, in this circumstance it was his 6 year old son. Then the body slowly begins to cremate in front of the crowd and is very visible.
In this same location were 20 such platforms with 5 other proceedings happening with bodies in various stages of cremation, but easy to see and smell. Gary said this is a sight he will never forget.
Once the cremation is final the remaining ashes are taken to a river to float away.
Before I left for India, I was watching a show called Deadliest Fish on the Discovery Channel. The deadliest fish are fish that go after people. The show was in a Northern India river where this ritual takes place and when the body is halfway cremated it is sent down the river. The killer fish, a catfish, has now grown very large 200+ pounds as it is eating the cremated bodies. The catfish has acquired the taste for human and is now going after live swimmers. The catfish come close to shore when there is a lot of activity on the shore and a fire is started. I will not be scuba diving in that river.
Last week, a coworker’s husband passed away. I was invited to the funeral last Friday but turned down the invitation since I had only met the co-worker once. However Gary did attend the Hindu funeral and filled me in. About 1,200 people attended as they have very large families out here. A Hindu funeral is very different than a Christian in one area. It has a live, open flame cremation during the funeral process. The body is put into a platform with a tee-pee shape of wood surrounding it. The body is only covered by a linen sheet. The oldest male of the family is the person that lights the fire with a torch, in this circumstance it was his 6 year old son. Then the body slowly begins to cremate in front of the crowd and is very visible.
In this same location were 20 such platforms with 5 other proceedings happening with bodies in various stages of cremation, but easy to see and smell. Gary said this is a sight he will never forget.
Once the cremation is final the remaining ashes are taken to a river to float away.
Before I left for India, I was watching a show called Deadliest Fish on the Discovery Channel. The deadliest fish are fish that go after people. The show was in a Northern India river where this ritual takes place and when the body is halfway cremated it is sent down the river. The killer fish, a catfish, has now grown very large 200+ pounds as it is eating the cremated bodies. The catfish has acquired the taste for human and is now going after live swimmers. The catfish come close to shore when there is a lot of activity on the shore and a fire is started. I will not be scuba diving in that river.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Lakhs and Crores
One of the basic items for my job that I am trying to get use to is the numbering system. The numbers of hundred thousand and millions do not exist over here. 100,000 is 1 lakh, 1,000,000 is 10 lakhs and 10,000,000 is 1 crore. Commas are used after 2 digits 1,50,000 or 1 lakh 50 thousand is 150,000. This is definitely throwing me off in conversations, but I am starting to get the hang of it.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Pictures posted to Google Picasa
I tried uploading all of the pictures I took on Sunday's trip to http://picasaweb.google.com/JasonsBigAdventure
I took many pictures from just about every angle.
If this works, I will post all of my pics out there.
I took many pictures from just about every angle.
If this works, I will post all of my pics out there.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Taj Mahal
On Friday I received a call if I wanted to join a couple people on a trip to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. I could not pass up the opportunity to see on of the seven wonders of the world. The trip began for me at 5:40 am on Sunday. I was picked up by Rajendra Mandal, operations India, and a driver. We went to pickup Garry Reetz from Dallas. He is also in Operations. Some of the Clinical Assessment people might recognize the name as he assisted with the inventory moves for AGS and the most recent move to San Antonio. He has been here 7 times over the last couple of years staying a couple of weeks each time.
The drive was about 3.5 hours in total each way. I finally got to see some of the real India at this time. First it was water buffalo, cows and pigs eating out of the garbage at the side of the road. At a gas station a monkey handler and snake charmer trying to get tips. Congested traffic, honking and near accidents one after another. People living in carboard boxes. Children knocking on the window begging for money. There was an area of looked like rice patties with 50+ people bent over picking up the rice in the fields. There was a small temple with the same marble color and architecture about 45km before Agra. There was also a big market there. Traffic came to a big standstill. As we drove by a bus that was pulled over on the side of the road, we notice a large one foot in diameter steel pipe had gone straight through the engine. Who knows how long it was, but it did some damage.
We finally arrived in Agra and traffic once again slowed down to less than 5 miles an hour. The first building we saw was the Agra Fort. A large red fort that only 20% of the fort is available to see for tourists. The other 80% is for the Indian Army. We visited the fort after seeing the Taj.
Another mile down the road was the entrance for the Taj. As we entered we were immediately surrounded by children trying to sell different items. Raj told us not to make eye contact or say a word. We did that for about 20 feet and all they did was follow us. Raj was talking to a guy in Hindu and told us to get in a vehicle that was parked next to us. He had already arranged a tour guide. It was just in time to escape the peddling kids. The other mode of transportation were camel pulled carts and electric vehicles. No motorized vehicles are allowed within a mile of the Taj to help protect the white marble.
We got out of the vehicle and were attacked again by the peddling kids. By this time I was already in a full sweat as it was about 110 degrees out. It was over 120+ by the time we left. Our tickets were bought at about US price of $15 each and we were off to go through the security check which involved walking through a metal detector and a pat down.
Once inside the tour guide explained the first set of buildings which were originally hotel rooms for tourists before the 1960’s. They are no longer used.
We entered the main entrance, a massive arched doorwaty topped with topes and covered in inlaid floral designs. Through these door the white marble of the Taj Mahal stands. There is a long pool that falls before the Taj. In the right light the reflection shines in the pool. I am hoping my pictures caught this. We then took several pictures from several angles of the Taj. We moved to the middle of the pools where there is a large square. There is a bench in this area which every politician and famous person has taken their picture on. We had to wait a good 10 minutes for an opportunity to take a picture from this site. Eventually we made our way to the Taj Mahal. You can not enter with shoes, however they did provide us slippons to cover our shoes. I don’t think my feet would have lasted 5 minutes on the marble.
The tour guide explained how the marble inlay was done. There are about 250 inlayed marble pieces to make a flower and there is a flower about every 6 inches around the building. It is very remarkable. Also the marble is a unique kind of marble that should never stain or corrode.
Cameras were not allowed inside the tomb which was completed around 1666. The Taj is symmetrical in every way if it was cut in quarters except for the tombs themselves. There were two. A larger one in the middle and a smaller one to the left. The marble workmanship and designs were amazing, especially since it was all done by hand. I think it must have been 140 degrees in there. We walked around a couple more rooms which had more esquisite inlay and marble designs. Finally we walked out the other side to face the Yamuna River which has nearly dried up as a result of the drought this year. There were a few water buffalo in the river.
By this time all 4 of us were sweating profusely. The only thing I can compare it to is walking around in a sauna with intense fluorescent lights shining on you. It is hot to start off with, put 80% humidity and add an intense sun. I did end up with some sunburn on my face.
Next we went to the Agra fort. The fort was last captive by a King. The king was overthrown by his son, who put his father in jail within the fort. The new king then had his brother killed. The fort was full of architecture and elaborate carvings in red stone and marble. From one wall of the fort overlooked the Taj Mahal. This is were the kings jail was.
We ate lunch at Pizza Hut and were off to out 3.5 hour ride back. Having Raj on the trip was immensely important. Only a few signs were in English, and everyone was trying to sell us something or point us in a different direction. Alone, I do not think I would have made it to the front gates of the Taj Majal. The experience was once in a lifetime. The building is truely remarkable being built almost 350 years ago.
The drive was about 3.5 hours in total each way. I finally got to see some of the real India at this time. First it was water buffalo, cows and pigs eating out of the garbage at the side of the road. At a gas station a monkey handler and snake charmer trying to get tips. Congested traffic, honking and near accidents one after another. People living in carboard boxes. Children knocking on the window begging for money. There was an area of looked like rice patties with 50+ people bent over picking up the rice in the fields. There was a small temple with the same marble color and architecture about 45km before Agra. There was also a big market there. Traffic came to a big standstill. As we drove by a bus that was pulled over on the side of the road, we notice a large one foot in diameter steel pipe had gone straight through the engine. Who knows how long it was, but it did some damage.
We finally arrived in Agra and traffic once again slowed down to less than 5 miles an hour. The first building we saw was the Agra Fort. A large red fort that only 20% of the fort is available to see for tourists. The other 80% is for the Indian Army. We visited the fort after seeing the Taj.
Another mile down the road was the entrance for the Taj. As we entered we were immediately surrounded by children trying to sell different items. Raj told us not to make eye contact or say a word. We did that for about 20 feet and all they did was follow us. Raj was talking to a guy in Hindu and told us to get in a vehicle that was parked next to us. He had already arranged a tour guide. It was just in time to escape the peddling kids. The other mode of transportation were camel pulled carts and electric vehicles. No motorized vehicles are allowed within a mile of the Taj to help protect the white marble.
We got out of the vehicle and were attacked again by the peddling kids. By this time I was already in a full sweat as it was about 110 degrees out. It was over 120+ by the time we left. Our tickets were bought at about US price of $15 each and we were off to go through the security check which involved walking through a metal detector and a pat down.
Once inside the tour guide explained the first set of buildings which were originally hotel rooms for tourists before the 1960’s. They are no longer used.
We entered the main entrance, a massive arched doorwaty topped with topes and covered in inlaid floral designs. Through these door the white marble of the Taj Mahal stands. There is a long pool that falls before the Taj. In the right light the reflection shines in the pool. I am hoping my pictures caught this. We then took several pictures from several angles of the Taj. We moved to the middle of the pools where there is a large square. There is a bench in this area which every politician and famous person has taken their picture on. We had to wait a good 10 minutes for an opportunity to take a picture from this site. Eventually we made our way to the Taj Mahal. You can not enter with shoes, however they did provide us slippons to cover our shoes. I don’t think my feet would have lasted 5 minutes on the marble.
The tour guide explained how the marble inlay was done. There are about 250 inlayed marble pieces to make a flower and there is a flower about every 6 inches around the building. It is very remarkable. Also the marble is a unique kind of marble that should never stain or corrode.
Cameras were not allowed inside the tomb which was completed around 1666. The Taj is symmetrical in every way if it was cut in quarters except for the tombs themselves. There were two. A larger one in the middle and a smaller one to the left. The marble workmanship and designs were amazing, especially since it was all done by hand. I think it must have been 140 degrees in there. We walked around a couple more rooms which had more esquisite inlay and marble designs. Finally we walked out the other side to face the Yamuna River which has nearly dried up as a result of the drought this year. There were a few water buffalo in the river.
By this time all 4 of us were sweating profusely. The only thing I can compare it to is walking around in a sauna with intense fluorescent lights shining on you. It is hot to start off with, put 80% humidity and add an intense sun. I did end up with some sunburn on my face.
Next we went to the Agra fort. The fort was last captive by a King. The king was overthrown by his son, who put his father in jail within the fort. The new king then had his brother killed. The fort was full of architecture and elaborate carvings in red stone and marble. From one wall of the fort overlooked the Taj Mahal. This is were the kings jail was.
We ate lunch at Pizza Hut and were off to out 3.5 hour ride back. Having Raj on the trip was immensely important. Only a few signs were in English, and everyone was trying to sell us something or point us in a different direction. Alone, I do not think I would have made it to the front gates of the Taj Majal. The experience was once in a lifetime. The building is truely remarkable being built almost 350 years ago.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Pics from construction area acrross from the apartment
H
Here are a couple pics that I took over the weekend of the construction area across the street from the apartment I am staying. The first tent building is for a construction worker family. It looks like there are about 10 people living in that. It is held up by sticks and is about 2 feet off a 3 lane road. The picture of the shower is on the fast lane of that 3 lane road at about 5 on a Saturday. Yes cars were whizzing by. Talk about your privacy issues. The other pic is the nice construction worker housing. It looks like they are about 10 ft by 10 ft rooms. The door is a piece of wood that they use to either block out the sun or keep the bugs out. The roof is tin with rocks on it to weigh it down so it does not blow away. It is union free over here.
The workers were working all weekend and primarily by hand. I only see one bulldozer, everything else is done by muscle. I have seen bamboo ladders and scaffolding.
From what I have seen so far, it is about 10 solid blocks of apartment building after apartment building. It might go on further, but that is as far as I have made it so far. It is just unbelievable the number of people in such a confined area.
It did get up to over 47 Celsius this weekend or about 117 then add another 10-15 degrees for the sun and humidity. The pool area was even shut down from 11am-8pm from the heat.
After some advice from a friend, I decided to take my first Z-Pack that the travel clinic gave me. I am hoping after the 3 days of antibiotics the Delhi belly issues will disappear and I will get an appetite. Otherwise this trip might turn out to be like the show Survivor for me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)