India - Delhi

On the 16^th of April, we arrived in one of the most beautiful countries in the world: India. We visited the capital Delhi.

From the moment we entered India, I was mesmerized by the scenery. Everything that Mother Nature has created, can be found in India: mountains, rivers, forests, desserts, lakes, sea and green plains. I had the feeling that I was looking at a painting because all the buildings have such wonderful colours.

There are some facts about the country that you really have to know. Nowhere in the world are there so many people speaking English as in India. It’s the largest English speaking nation.  Do you like to play chess? Well, from now on you must remember that it’s invented in India. In some houses, we could catch a glimpse of people playing it. It was nice to see how old men were wholly absorbed in the game, wanting to win from their friends. Besides chess, yoga also has its origins in India. One can say that India is a peaceful country because it never invaded any country in the last 1000 years. Another historic fact is that India was one of the richest countries in the early 17^th century.

I could talk about India for hours but now I can only focus on a few aspects. I discovered that the country has a unique culture. Dance for example, is very important. We had the chance to watch a performance and talk to one of the dancers, a girl named Aishwarya. Aishwarya told us that dance is a tradition in India that started 2,000 years ago. There are classical and folk dances and themes come from mythology, legends and classical literature.  A classical dance has a rigid rule of presentation. We saw a folk dance and I must say that I liked it. The ornaments on the womans’ dresses made the spectacle really special. While we were walking through Delhi, I saw people playing cricket, badminton and mountain biking. I thought these sports were only popular in Europe? Apparently not..

You can’t talk about India without having said something about its economy. There’s a big contradiction in the country. On one hand, India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world but on the other hand, there’s a lot of poverty. One day, we walked through an Indian slum. You can’t imagine what we’ve seen there. Houses that almost fall apart, extremely mince people, no clean water.. Naomi, I agree with what you said about the good life that we have. We must be thankful for our luxury and realistic that we live in a world of extremes. I assume you were also touched by what you saw? I felt the same miserable feeling as in Yangon. These problems keep me awake at night..

The city of Delhi is a mixture of two worlds. There’s Old Delhi and there’s New Delhi. In Old Delhi, we walked through narrow lanes and impressive mosques while in New Delhi we saw nothing but wide-open lanes and large government buildings. I discovered that Delhi is a mixture of cultures. I saw Chinese people, Americans and even Belgians.  Delhi has been destroyed and rebuilt several times. In the early days, Delhi was the centre of powerful rules. These rulers were not always loyal to their city because they played a dual role: first as destroyers and then as creators of the city.  Delhi is absolutely worth travelling to, simply because you find there everything you need, from markets and galleries to lively performing-arts scene.

Jami Masjid - mosque New Delhi

Let’s talk soon!

Ulrike

Sources:

http://www.indiaforum.org/tourism/beautiful-places.htm

http://www.facts-about-india.com

http://www.thirdworldplanet.com/indian-economy.php

http://www.delhitourism.gov.in/delhitourism/aboutus/index.jsp   

http://borgenproject.org/poverty-new-delhi/