New Dehli,
India
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Easy flight from Bangkok to New Dehli (around 4 hours). My prearranged ride wasn't there when I arrived so I was lucky to catch a lift with a girl that I met on the plane whose prearranged ride was there! The smell of smoke and incense hit me as I stepped off the curb. Strangely enough, the streets around our hotel are fairly calm, clean and the weather is around 70 degrees...I think I must have landed in an alternate universe than the one I was expecting. I am staying in a hotel in the Karol Bagh area of the city...a place my guidebooks warns me is the place many 'touts' take unsuspecting tourists. My brother described it well after experiencing it when he traveled to India. Basically, you get someone who takes you to a hotel where there is a prearranged agreement. This 'tout' get a huge kickback from the hotel and then you are basically tracked everywhere you go after that. There are large commissions to be gained so it's difficult to get away from them.
Luckily, my hotel doesn't seem to be affiliated with this scam.
We'll see what tomorrow and the daylight brings!
Namaste
Comments
it is shocking...
that you are still traveling. everytime i check in, i expect you to be done, but no, you keep motoring through, while bigger and bigger adventures unfold. i look forward to your reflections in india. from steve's narratives and all have read of the country, india should be both fascinating and eye-opening.
as always, love!
amanda