It's hard to know where to begin. But my overwhelming impression is one I've heard mentioned again and again with regard to India: the contrasts in this country are startling. Rich and poor, squalor and grandeur, graciousness and indignity. It all hits you full force after only a short exposure. I've been in many crowded spaces in my life -- Times Square during holidays, Japan, China, and New York City subways -- and I've seen my share of vehicular traffic. But there was an orderliness to those spaces that doesn't seem to exist here. Yes, people will line up in neat queues to file into a monument, but on the streets there seem to be no rules of personal space. Humans and animals rush in every which direction; cars, rickshaws, trucks buses and bicycles wander all over the road in a chaotic rush like particles in entropy looking for order. Everyone surely gets to where they're trying to go, but at the same time they appear to be going nowhere.
At this time of year, the landscape is dull and dry, the skies mostly gray, but the women are wrapped in rainbow colored scarves and the men in bright sweaters and hats , which gives almost every scene a vibrancy that can put a smile on your face. Still, nothing can take away from the grimness of the conditions here. In the city it's filth and want for even the most basic things. In the 40-degree nights, people go barefoot and lack shelter. They sleep under tarps and in their rickshaws. Everywhere you go, you see the smoke from small campfires along the roadsides, men and dogs huddled around them in tight circles. These fires fill the air with a smog that spreads far and wide and reaches into your throat as a constant reminder of the poverty that is everywhere. But the people are resourceful, piling 18 to a rickshaw that comfortably seats six, and four to a scooter. They collect cow dung, dry it and fashion it into bricks for their huts. And they sell you whatever services they can: a chance to take a picture of their monkey or the offer of shooing away the people crowding the background of your family picture at the Taj Mahal. It can be heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. That's India in a nutshell. Comments are closed.
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