India is ... Everything! From Lisa

India is...everything! Hard to capture it in a few words; hence my looong post, an A to Z summary of our first week here:

• Aromas: from the unsavory to the pleasant and the spicy, scents abound.
• Bustling Crowds: weighing in at 382 persons per square kilometer (compare to 36 in the US), the streets, markets, and sidewalks of India are lively indeed.
• Chandni Chowk: This old market has everything from spices to motorcycles. I bought a shirt in about the hottest pink I've ever seen.
• Drenched in sweat: It's hit 100 more than one of our first few days, and monsoons are beginning, so the humidity is off the charts. I keep telling myself that we're glowing or glistening...but we're really just dripping.
• Excellent metro: we're so impressed with Delhi's metro, which is refreshingly air conditioned, with frequent and speedy trains crisscrossing this vast city, and courteous gents making me feel old but grateful when they offer me their seats.
• Foreign Secretary: What a treat it was to have breakfast with the former Foreign Secretary of India, and former Ambassador to the US, Harsha Shringla today! He's a relative of a student at SPTC, and warmly welcomed us, offering a rich perspective on India.
• Grace Home: We're staying in a guest house shared by a family here with an extraordinary gift for hospitality.
• History: So eye-opening to learn some of the harder aspects of India's history. E.g., did you know that India sent 1.4 million soldiers to fight on behalf of the British in WWI? They were promised independence in return, a sadly broken promise.
• Intestinal Troubles: My tummy reacted to the spicy food on the fourth day. Grateful we have a panoply of remedies with us.
• Jet lag: It's brutal. We have not found a way around this in all our travels. If you have a magic cure, let us know!
• Kurtas, Saris, Shalwar Kameez: Indian clothing is stunningly beautiful and dazzlingly colorful.
• Lush green gardens: Even in a densely packed city, we've seen lovely parks and arboretums.
• Marigolds and other lovely flowers abound.
• New Delhi features impressive rose sandstone architecture in the Parliament and other official buildings in this part of Delhi.
• Old Delhi: home of the Red Fort, the spice markets, and other historic sites
• Papayas, mangoes, and other yummy fruits are in season now.
• Quite a lot of poverty and beggars. We're torn on how to respond and handle it differently in different settings.
• Red Fort: this impressive defensive structure was built by the Mughals in 1658, and now houses a series of small museums telling India's story.
• Spices: Rich especially is a connoisseur and even though we're traveling light, managed to justify a few purchases.
• Troubles: India is a strong nation and has made extraordinary gains against poverty but it was hard-hit in every way by Covid and faces many challenges, from air pollution to water quality to ethnic, caste, and religious tensions. But, one week in, we're more impressed by how well it is responding to its challenges, with myriad fresh initiatives.
• UESI: It was a joy to meet with Saji Easo, the General Secretary of the Union of Evangelical Students in India, the sister movement to Inter Varsity. He and his wife Annie inspired us with their faith.
• Vibrant colors: as mentioned, Indian clothing and art revels in gorgeous shades of turquoise, pink, purple, and orange.
• Water buffaloes still share the streets with auto-rickshaws and trucks in parts of the city.
• Xtraordinary kindness: We have experienced this from so many people at every turn.
• Youth: the average age in India is 28, compared to 38 in the US.
• Zoom teaching: We are both still teaching in Malaysia, China, and India, and are grateful the internet has been for the most part up to the task. This is one reason you don't see here the most iconic stop on a typical trip to Delhi: the Taj Mahal. It's a three hour drive from Delhi, and there was no day we could afford that long an outing around our teaching schedules. But we did see a few other Taj's (palaces) near the Red Fort. It gives us a reason to return.