Some thoughts

I'm now in Mumbai. Mumbai is the Indian name, but the British couldn't say it properly (yes, we really are that stupid sometimes), so it was called Bombay. Now, like most places reclaiming their heritage - I'm thinking of Mt. Cook/Aoraki in NZ - the name has changed to it's native term. Bombay, sorry, Mumbai, is quite cool. I much prefer it to Delhi. Delhi was sooo crowded and the infrastructure is pretty poor, whereas Mumbai seems a bit more with it, if you know what I mean. I also love that it's next to water. I know Glasgow and London aren't next to the sea, but I get so used to cities being near some form of water and, what with Britain being an island, get used to having sea within the vicinity. My hosts here - Deepali and Gaurav - took me to the harbour after work. It was really cool just to wander and chill out and breath in the fresh sea air. Granted, the freshness wasn't quite the same as places like Tignabruiach and Skye and Scarborough, but good none the less :) Mumbai is still crowded though. The whole of India is crowded. I know it has over one billion people and it has the largest population in the world, but you cannot begin to comprehend until you see it. I mean, what's a billion? How can you picture a billion? I just sit in the car and gaze out the window, absorbing what's going on in the streets. Like tonight, I thought, wow, it's busy just now, there are people everywhere - but it's like that all the time! Everyone walks in front of cars and other people. It's like ants crawling around an apple core. Without meaning to call Indians ants, but the concept - to me - is the same. It just feels like everyone is scrambling over things. I think, because of that, there isn't the same awareness of personal space here as I feel there is elsewhere. For example: On both my internal flights, I got up when the seatbelt light went out and then my neighbours (in my row) got up and leant over and round me to get their bags from the hatch (I know it's not called a hatch, but I totally can't think of the name right now). Then, as if that wasn't enough, they proceeded to knock me with their belongings and kinda push out in front of me. The thing is - to them - that is normal. Just like it's normal to spit everywhere and burp and cough without covering your mouth. And so, because it's normal, I feel I can't give them a look of disgust, because they would think I was a weirdo. Anyway, I had had enough of the man beside me, with his burping and shoving, so when he tried to walk through me (I had made sure he was behind me) I turned round and asked if he could possibly wait the two seconds it would take me to lift my bags down. Polite yet sarcastic. Oh the joys of being Scottish!
Anyway, I've digressed. The thing about India, is that poverty is so obvious. I know there are more people here and therefore, one could conclude, that there will be more rich people as well as poor people, when compared to the UK, however, it's so in your face that it makes it seem much much worse. And the spectrum is wider here, of course. On the way to my hotel from the airport, we passed streets, where people were lining the pavements, on sheets and blankets, just sleeping. Many with babies. It's insane. I think that is worse in Mumbai than in Delhi. Part of me is immune to it all - you have to be, same as in the UK - but part of me feels a bit guilty. Especially when I get served a huge meal, that I can't finish and that the remainder will go in the bin, when there are people literally living on the streets. But, it's not by problem right? You can't help everyone can you?
On a lighter note - there are some direct parallels between "the poor" as we know them in the UK (i.e. those who rely on government help) and those way below the poverty line over here.. We were driving to one of the hospitals this morning and passed a large slum area and they have satellite! Yay! I mean, they use tarpaulin sheets as roofs, but they manage to fix satellite dishes to their homes. Where there's a will, there's a way! I don't even have satellite...

Picture the scene - I arrive in Ahmedabad after such a chilled day in Jaipur yesterday. I had been to the Amber Fort, which is an old palace that is surrounded by Jaipur's version of the great wall of China! It was a bit manic trying to get up there, as there was loads of traffic and, with the craziness of Indian driving, loads of cars were driving on the wrong side of the road, thereby blocking it. I mean, I'm no genius but... Neelam, one of my hosts said that you could get an elephant all the way up - it was a really steep and long hill and there is no way you would get me on an elephant! Anyway, it was really cool. I then had some chill time by the pool (it's a hard life) and then we went to a temple in the eve, where they had prayers and stuff. I was trying to get some pics, but people kept getting in the way (this happened at the Fort as well) because they wanted their friends to take a picture of them with me. How ridiculous. I asked Neelam if they had ever seen white people before and she said yes, but they just really like staring at them! One guy actually sat next to me on the step wanting a photo and I was like "MOVE!". It's bizarre. Oh yes, so the scene - having had luxury in Jaipur, I then arrived in slumdog land (ok, that's an exaggeration) but the hotel was awful. The room stank, it was really old looking, the reception looked like it belonged in a 1940's Polish hotel and the staff were really creepy. I didn't even begin to unpack. I just went on expedia to find a better hotel and then informed my host that I would be moving. I felt like the people at the desk were mocking me a bit (which never goes down well) so I was just ignoring them. Then the cheeky bugger tried to charge me for half a day and thought he was being reasonable by not charging the whole day! I went into a long and forceful rant on why, exactly, I wasn't staying there and that I thought his hotel made Faulty Towers look like the Taj Mahal and, therefore, no, he would not being getting any money. So I'm in a nicer place, but it's still not the same as lovely Jaipur..

I've just been out for dinner - they eat so much! I thought I would lose weight over here, because I wouldn't be able to eat much (heat and spice) but EVERYTHING has butter in it! They even have butter milk. One of the girls tonight asked if we had butter milk in the UK. No, we have butter and we have milk, but not even us Brits are stupid enough to put the two together.

Anyway, I'm being picked up at eight, so I'm going to sign out as I think I'll watch a film. I bought quite a few cheap dvds to pass the time, but so far haven't watched any. It's been 24 all the way!

Driving in India...

...is crazy. Really. It's like the eternal game of chicken. There don't appear to be any rules, in that there are lanes, but nobody really sticks to them, preferring instead to drive down the middle of them or lane hop all the way to their destination! Everyone beeps their horn at anything that moves, be it a car, motorbike, bicycle, pedestrian or cow (yes, it's true - there ARE cows on the roads). Am sure they would toot at passing clouds if there were any. We cut up one guy - not badly - who had side rammed about five cars on his way up to us and he was so fuming! I was like - you've dominoed the population of Jaipur into the ditch, but it's US who's in the wrong? You're completely screwed if you need to cross the road. It will be the 2010 Commonwealth Games (which are incidentally in Delhi) by the time you actually make it and by then, you will have forgotten why you wanted to get across in the first place!

Anyway, I could go on about this some more but that would be boring - if this already isn't - so I'll stop. In any case, as crazy as it is, it still beats the M25 :)

I'm staying in a hotel now :) It has a bath and a proper shower (yay) and a toilet lid that doesn't fall on my back whenever I sit down AND it has normal air conditioning, so I don't need to listen to the generator style one that was in the last place.. The thing is doesn't have, however, is my wee friend upstairs. They have a cool rooftop bar, with views across the whole of Jaipur, so I had a snack and drink up there tonight.

Oh my goodness, the Taj Mahal is unBELIEVable! I don't understand how something can be that symmetrical. The best time to see it, is at sunrise or sunset, but it still looked pretty amazing at lunch time. It was built by Shah Jahan, for his late (third) wife, in 1632. She was his favourite, as she was the only one who had managed to have children. Anyway, the whole thing took 20000 people, 22 years to build and it almost perfectly symmetrical - the only thing that isn't is the emperors tomb, which was laid beside Mumtaz Mahal (his wife). The emperor wanted to build another palace, this time in black marble, for his body to rest in, however he died before it was completed. Ok, enough of the history lesson. I didn't go for the Diana pose, because only she could really pull it off, plus there were about a billion (yes, the entire population of India WAS there today) other people in the way. I did, actually, feel as famous as Diana, because people kept taking photos of me (I know, who wouldn't?). Oh - for Slumdog fans - my shoes didn't get stolen! If you are a foreign tourist, you get these shoe covers, so you don't need to take your shoes off. Which is good, if nothing else so you don't burn your feet walking to the mausoleum.

It's funny, because I feel more comfortable in a hotel, as there are other tourists here! I mean, I know it's good to be where the locals are, but I was getting to the point where, if I saw a westerner, I would stare at them like people stare at me! There are loads of dutch people in my hotel. I'm not too fond of the dutch right now. They could totally have let Scotland win our recent match and therefore qualify.. Not that I'm bitter or anything.

Anyway, am going to watch 24. Only three more hours to go in this series and it's so exciting!

India

Ok, so I haven't blogged for a while, but I figured if I am going to get back into it, now would be a good time! I am in India - a prospect that I wasn't looking forward to. You might say I was dreading it, however that would be a wee bit extreme.

I arrived at night, so I couldn't immediately tell how it was. My guest house is fine. There is a wee man upstairs who cooks and cleans up after me - I know ladies - that's how it should be! He seems nice, his English is marginally better than my Hindi (ok, a lot better but we can't have lengthy heart to hearts put it that way). It took me ages to figure out what the bucket and measuring jug next to the shower was for.. An India bath? I mean, I've been to Turkish baths, but this is an entirely different matter. I tried to shower, so that any excess water went into the bucket - would they use it for watering the plants? Or cooking my next meal in?! However, I seemed to get most of the water all over the bathroom floor - which slopes downwards from the shower to the toilet.. It wasn't until the next day that I realised the bucket and jug are actually for wiping your arse :) Apparently it's cleaner than toilet paper (not to mention better for the environment). I think I'll pass on the testing out of that theory...

It's my last day in Delhi today, so we drove past a couple of the sights which was cool. They have something called India Gate, which looks very similar to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. The Parliament building looked pretty cool behind it, with the sun on it, but I didn't manage to get a good enough photo! Always the way.

Anyway, tomorrow we head to Jaipur, via Agra. It will be a long drive but hopefully worth it! Shall keep you posted...

Running

I went for a run - didn't collapse, but at what point does a stitch actually become the first signs of a mild MI? I'm sure it should have gone by now.. It was duly apt that the tune on my ipod was Amy Mac and Run - the lyrics being, .."run until my feet no longer run no more.." Uncannily true, but I pushed through the pain barrier (albeit at snails pace) and finished. Next time I think I should eat first, I mean not right before, but at least more than a bowl of cereal at 10am. Am shattered, but almost too tired to sleep - if that makes sense? Running is not good for you - I've just decided. If I had continued to sit on my arse, I would not be feeling this way. There is just no dignity in running - the face goes red, the panting gets louder by the metre - as if you are bellowing through a microphone - and the annoying thing is - you can't stop if it gets too much. It's not like a game of tennis. In tennis, if you get tired, you can bounce the ball a bit longer, have a bit of a rest between points, wipe the sweat off your arm so your raquet doesn't slip away and people wouldn't guess, but in running - if you stop it's because you have failed. You can only stop when you finish, so if you pass someone in running gear, looking like a tomato; and they are walking - it's because they can't run anymore. So they haven't made it. Anyway, that's why I don't like it. Too much pressure. I'll still do it though, because running is the done thing. Everyone does it, it's just some look better than others. Unfortunately, I'm not one of the some - I'm the tomato. But I made it :)

So, I've sat on my bum for the last five hours, which, for me, is an achievement in itself because:
1) I haven't needed to go to the toilet in that time,
2) I'm normally running around all over the place, through choice I might add,
3) I've resisted the temptation to delve into the fridge and eat more Nutella out the jar - I bought it for some friends to have on their bread, Scandinavian style, however I've eaten it out the jar instead, like it's yoghurt or something.
I'm contemplating that old question of what to do with one's life. I haven't really gotten very far. I've made about 70 phone calls to various people, most of whom are annoyingly studying, packing, unpacking, working, or sensibly not answering their phones. So the contemplating continues in my head, thoughts continuing to bounce off each other like atoms and those other tiny things that I'm sure I learnt in chemistry. At the moment, to no prevail. I might go out for a run and get some fresh air. I run the risk (pardon the pun) of collapsing from exhaustion - ok, slight exaggeration - but I'm not much of a runner really. I did buy some lovely and unbelievably comfy running shoes, which to be fair haven't really been out much, so I guess I owe it to the shoes to go out.. It's all about the shoes, right girls?