So
India is proving to be a most ridiculous country filled with contradictions and contrasts that I have never seen before. Let me paint a picture for you, Bapa Kapur is a neighborhood in New Delhi that is government owned and without a doubt, swanky. Wealth is apparent on the outsides of the building which is a rarity here and only usually seen in government colonies.
Right next to Bapa Kapur is Kaka Kapur, which is a much lower scale neighbourhood. I would not go so far as to call it a ghetto; but it is very run down. Both of these neighbourhoods lie next to the Old Fort (Pictures attatched) Which was from a 13th century Muslim Sultanate that controlled the area at that time. The Indian government is trying to claim that the old fort stands on a 6 millenia old Hindu ancient city and has made several dig attempts to find the city, but to no avail.
Anyway, the point of that was, all within one block you can see every class of society coupled with the ancient sites. You will see a cow in the middle of the street eating from a pile of trash, while a mercedez and a rickshaw (3-wheeled carts that drive you places, not at all like taxis...) drive by. Its unbelievable.
We have been encouraged to not be so positive with this trip and to make sure that we criticize as much as we praise so here's the not so great side:
Being white here is not a good thing. You are instantly targeted by everyone who is trying to sell something; no one will give you a fair price unless you spend a lot of time bargaining for it, beggars will not leave you alone and it sounds a little obvious but its not fun to always stand out...
Course work here is pretty interesting, we have a multitude of professors that come and give lectures to us in our apartment here in New Delhi. The topics have ranged from Contemporary Indian Politics (included Foreign Affairs :D) to Gender Studies (Also very interesting)
The place we are staying in definitely surprised at first. I thought we may be "Roughing it", but thats not the case. We have 2 live-in servants who clean and cooke which is actually quite unsettling for me. I'm not used to it and I really do not want to become used to it.
For the pictures, top left is Bapa Kapur, top right is Kaka Kapur, lower left is the place we are staying at (Golf Apts) and the bottom right is the Old Fort.
Take Care,
Mike
