Harsh Realities of Life For The Poor

 When you first move into your flat , word quickly goes round the sector that a 'firengi' ( foreigner) has moved in  and a whole procession of people proceed to knock on your door asking to be maids or clean your car and so on. The problem is, who to choose? A popular pastime among middle class women is to grumble and complain about their maids, sharing horror stories of how badly they clean, how unreliable they are, how they steal and are disrespectful!
Well I have to say that both times we have lived in India our maids have been wonderful and a real God-send. Our first was a tall Rajastani Hindu woman who was a real character! At breakfast times she would break into impromptu dance when we had  guests to stay and she certainly knew her mind but she was fiercely loyal and hard working. On our return we looked for her in our old sector but someone said she had moved to the next city. Fortunately the maid we have now is just as good but completely different. She is a muslim girl , tiny in stature and only looks about 18 but she has an 11 year old so must be in her twenties! She doesn't know her age and was a child bride travelling from her village in Bengal to the city. Here she spends her days running from one flat to another cleaning as many as she can each day.  We communicate quite well considering she has no English and can't even read or write in Hindi and my  Hindi  is limited to basic sentences! She giggles a lot and finds Tim extremely funny! Tim is definitely her favourite- she's always concerned for him , asking for him as soon as she enters! It totally bewilders her if she encounters him in the kitchen cooking, something an Indian village husband would never dream of doing!
About a month ago we were sitting on our balcony just after breakfast when we notice a huge cloud of black smoke rising just beyond our sector . We commented at the time that there must be a bad fire somewhere! Little did we know as Zohra was cleaning our flat that her house and all the houses around her in the slum were burning down at that very moment! That evening she arrived back exhausted and bereft  - everything she owned had gone and she just had the clothes on her body. All their hard earned money that had been hidden in the house was gone as well! A gas cylinder had exploded and the shanty town of cardboard, wood and tin had gone up in flames causing more and more cylinders to explode. Over 500 families lost their homes and had nothing left and nowhere to go!
 We managed to gather some utensils, mattresses and money for her and her husband to start rebuilding their lives. It has amazed us just  how resilient poor people are!!! I'm reminded of the words of a song where the refrain goes " pick yourself up, brush yourself down and start all over again"  This is certainly true of them for a few weeks later they had rebuilt their house of bamboo poles and tin sheeting and they invited Tim and I to go and visit. We helped her carry the mattresses and pots and pans one evening trying to make our way across the waste ground area in the dark. Coming over a small hill we were amazed at the slum spread out before us- row after row of tin shacks criss crossed by tiny passage ways. We felt like we were in a maze as we wove our way deeper inside the slum, the eyes of everyone upon us as the 'white outsiders' entering their domain! At last we arrived at her room, smaller than our kitchen and empty apart from a bedlike structure down one side. Even at 7.30 pm the temperature in the room was unbearably hot and I couldn't imagine what living in a tin shack would be like in the daytime when it hit 46C! Poor as they are they insisted on finding us a drink and some crackers to eat and the room was soon full of curious neighbours crowding in to get a look at us!
I was a little worried about how on earth we would ever find our way out of the slum  but we were escorted right back to our car by the neighbours and friends and Zohra herself. I'm so glad we had the opportunity to go and see what her life is like, where she goes home to at night , having to cook on an open fire with no running water and so few possessions!  Her strength , her cheerfulness and her perseverance is a  real testimony and a challenge to us living in our comfortable surroundings. 

 26/5/14                                  The crazy hot season arrives!

Summer here doesn't just creep up on you slowly and tap you on the shoulder, no, it hijacks you suddenly overnight with a full frontal attack! One day we are leisurely strolling  in Lodhi gardens enjoying the vibrant display of flowers and the next morning we awake to a blanket of heat.The heat is relentless and vicious. It creeps under doors and through  windows, heating the house up to oven temperature! I swear I could bake a cake in my sitting room!! When I exit the flat, the sky is white with heat and the sun attacks my  skin with fiery darts. How did the 'Britishers' survive with no ac's? The worst is when the power cuts come and the ac's and fans stop whirring - an intense, suffocating heavy heat settles over me! I sit, unable to move, every part of me slick with perspiration! I  can imagine Tim returning  from work and finding all that is left of me is a puddle of water on the floor!
Even a cold refreshing shower is just a thing to dream about as the sun  heats the water in the tanks on the roof!! Short relief does come occasionally with squally thunderstorms and impressive lightning displays! I never thought I would be so deliriously happy to see dark clouds in the sky!!!

Towards the beginning of the hot season in April we escaped the city for a few days and headed up to Manali in the Himalyas. There is no direct train route there so we  went by bus, fourteen hours of nerve jangling, bone shaking travel! Driving along treacherous mountain roads in the pitch dark , narrowly avoiding lorries and trucks was terrifying! Especially as most of the time we were only a few centimetres from the edge of the road. At one point, I stared through the window into the darkness ,just making out the pinprick lights of dwellings hundreds of feet down in the valleys beneath us. I firmly shut  my eyes after that and willed sleep to come so that I would be oblivious to any impending disaster! Well, we made it there in one piece and proceeded to enjoy three beautiful, relaxing days.

It was wonderful to open my door in the morning to a vista of snow capped mountains and to breathe in the clear, crisp fresh air. 

Life on our sector

OK, so apologies that it is over a month since the last post but we've been totally preoccupied finding a place to live which proved harder than expected and very frustrating with landlords pulling out of deals etc. Finally we are now settled in a lovely flat on the third floor of a small sector in Vasant Kunj.  We suffered the normal vagaries of Indian life with no water on the first morning  and no power on the second and then only water out of one tap but gradually things are coming together and we are building good relationships with plumbers and electricians!!!

Spring is definitely here, for as well as a profusion of flowers in riotous colours, everything that moves is mating! The pigeons are particularly annoying and i'm waging war to try to stop them nesting on my balconies! Helium balloons tied on string to the railings and water pistols at the ready to aim at them don't seem to be working very well! The dogs on the sector are also driving me crazy especially at night when they just bark and fight and mate!!! The government is trying to sterilize the strays to stop the proliferation of dogs but there are so many 'animal rights' supporters on the sectors that refuse to let the people in to round them up that it doesn't seem to be having much effect and everywhere there are cute little puppies! Shame they have to turn into skinny mangy creatures. The other annoying night time activity is the round of the bored security guard who takes it into his head that at 4 o'clock in the morning he should walk around the sector banging a large stick on the ground and blowing loudly on a Whistle! I presume this is to wake everyone up to let them know that he is not asleep but doing his job! I doubt very much whether it would deter any burglars.

The weather at the moment is warm and sunny but still fresh early in the morning and in the evening. It's the only time of year where it is really pleasant to sit out on the balcony and I love sitting here surrounded by my plants and looking down on to the street below. As i'm writing this I can see chipmunks chasing each other up and down  the branches of the  tree nearby and green parakeets  balancing on the topmost branches . Every so often a man pushing a large handcart laden with fruit and vegetables calling out for customers as he passes below and a man wobbles by on a bicycle laden with brooms, mops and brushes. I can see maids out on the balconies opposite sweeping away the dust and washing the floors or hanging out washing. A mixture of \Hindi, Bengali, Urdu and other tongues wafts around me.

My maid is a little young girl who looks no more than 18 and who speaks not a word of English so I manage to communicate in my broken Hindi and much waving of hands and pointing. I have found out that she is from Bengal and that she has an eleven year old son and five year old daughter!! When I asked her how old she was she didn't know her age but through an Indian friend translating I found out that she was married as a child and came with her husband to Delhi for work. Child marriage is still quite a common practice in rural villages in India even though it is supposed to be illegal. Now she hurries from one flat to another trying to do as much cleaning as possible in order to earn enough to live on and send her two children to school .

A spiritual rickshaw ride!

The other day a friend and I were out and seeking a rickshaw to take us back home  through Delhi. A very cheerful man with a big smile stopped and positively welcomed us aboard which I can tell you is very unusual among the usually grumpy Delhi drivers.  His English seemed very good and his opening sentence was "do you believe in God?"  He then proceeded to talk non stop about God being in everything and "Do you know what girl stands for ? God In Real Life! so I'm carrying two Gods in my auto!" 'we've got a right one here!' I thought. He was so busy talking away looking at us in his rear view mirror that at one point he nearly crashed into another vehicle! " Mind out bhaisaab!" I cried out, " Oh don't worry " he grinned wobbling his head  from side to side , " I'm not driving this auto, God is, so we're perfectly safe!" I think that was taking the God thing too far and I told him very firmly that if god was driving this auto then it was through him and he had to pay attention!

 Amazingly we got home safe and sound. Perhaps God was driving after all?!! 

Our Indian Adventure : part two

                  OUR INDIAN ADVENTURE: PART TWO

Monday 20th January 2014          Return to Delhi

On Thursday 26th January we finally arrived back on Indian soil nearly two years after my last blog! I said then that we would be back and after months of planning, endless company paperwork, visa applications and tearful goodbyes we struggled out of Indira Gandhi Airport with our 200kg of luggage! The familiar smells of India filled our nostrils and through a sea of waiting faces pressing up against the barriers we spied the smiling faces of our good friends.
 

Now a few days later we are slowly recovering from jet lag and acclimatising to life here again.
 

Our most immediate need is to find a place to live in as we are at the moment staying with friends so most days we have been taken out by agents and shown various flats mainly  out of our price range!!!
 

Its so hard to make a decision about where is the best place to live! None of the flats look appealing totally bare but once covered up with furnishings and given a good clean they are often transformed!One visit to a sector and we really don't know what the neighbours are like or if the water and electricity are bad in this area during the hot months! Of course the agents and the landlords answer our questions  with much nodding of heads and affirmatives saying everything is good! Hmmm, not sure  I believe them ?!! well we have to make a decision soon so today we shall try and shortlist some and take a second look.

 

Leaving behind a windswept and rain sodden England we had been looking forward to some sunshine  and warmer temperatures but since our arrival the sun has been hidden behind a foggy grey sky! It makes travelling around in auto rickshaws a test of patience as the drivers are even more grumpy and obstreperous than normal refusing to take us unless we pay over the odds! They sit huddled in their seats wearing an interesting  array of jumpers, woolly hats, scarves and old blankets while the cold foggy air freezes faces and hands! Fortunately today the fog  burnt off and everyone's demeanour visibly lightened as the sun's rays took effect.

LAST DELHI BLOG 

I can't believe there are now only five days left living in India! How time has flown on this wonderful, amazing adventure!!!

 February was spent travelling: firstly with good friends over from the UK touring around Rajasthan and then the rest of the month saw us visit two other continents; Dubai in the Middle East and South Africa. Dubai was glitzy, flashy and awe inspiring

in the range of amazing glass buildings of all shapes and sizes that rose up out of the desert. The God of Dubai is definitely money! Cape Town on the other hand was astoundingly beautiful , not because of what man has built but because of the majestic mountains that tower over the city and the Indian and Atlantic oceans that wrap themselves around it. We were really taken aback by the glorious golden , clear light that made everything look bright and sharp – probably the contrast seemed greater to us after having lived under the white smog filled haze of Delhi skies!

So we returned from our travels to the last three weeks in Delhi. Gradually we have been selling off all the possessions that we

have acquired since we've been here and the house has now taken on an empty , forlorn look .The weather has been amazing, especially in the early mornings when it still feels fresh. I've taken to going out early and walking around the small park at the end of our road. The trees are laden with bright pink and white blossoms and the park is filled with flowers. It's surprising how many people are up and about early, jogging , power walking, gossiping, doing yoga or martial arts – the park is a hive of activity at seven in the morning! Outside the park gates street children scavenge for recycling material amongst the rubbish, large white sacks slung across their backs and women gather firewood dropped from the trees, carrying large bundles of it down the road on their heads. How I will miss scenes like this when back in England!


 Amazingly all the items we needed to sell went and the kitchen cupboards were empty again! Soon we were standing , keys in hand looking at the empty shell of our flat. Despite it's ill -fitting windows , its rain stained walls and insect inhabitants, this house had become our home and leaving it was very sad. We padlocked the gate for the last time , taking one last look at the busy street, the shady trees full of chattering birds and chipmunks and drove out of the sector and away from Vasant Kunj for the last time!

 Later on , in the plane , I craned my neck to look back at the city .We rapidly left behind the maze of dusty roads , ancient ruins, modern malls and squalid slums as we rose up through the smog haze and entered the blue sky above! India has a way of getting under your skin and working it's way deep into your heart so that leaving it is physically painful!! It's like being separated from a loved one !!! It is also a very addictive place , once tasted you need to return again and again so I know that although we have to leave now it won't be forever.

WE WILL BE BACK!

A Sunday Outing

Last Sunday the smog cleared and sky was the bluest I'd seen it for a long time! The temperature headed for a balmy 22C so we decided it was an ideal afternoon for a walk. An Indian friend of mine looked at me in astonishment “ why would you want to go for a walk when it's sooo cold??” she asked. “well, walking will get you warm for a start” I answered, “Oh no, far too cold to go out! I'm going home to drink hot chocolate !” was her reply. Some other 'more hardy ' Indian friends of ours decided to come with us and we headed westwards to the ruins of an ancient fort known as 'Tughlukabad.

Even though this fort is now just ruins rising from the plains and forest areas of Delhi, it still impresses with it's ancient yellow stone walls and crumbling towers.
It was built in the 14th century by Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq and is known as the third of the seven cities of Delhi. It was so well built that the 4 mile perimeter walls still survive intact! It was lovely walking down the dusty paths, clambering over the stones and climbing up the crumbling steps to stand at the top of some of the towers to look across the city. We could look down and still see the grid like patterns of the house walls and palaces built inside the fortress. With a bit of imagination you could imagine the once bustling streets, bazaars, armouries and stables of the king's fighting elephants.There seemed to be no other tourists around – just a few indian families wandering around and groups of young boys playing cricket on the dry open patches of ground. A few wild donkeys searched in vain for grass and one or two stray dogs lay sleeping in the sun. We were still in the suburbs of the city and yet here you could hear no traffic noise – it was so peaceful!!!


STORIES FROM THE NEWSPAPERS!

Don't read if you are squemish!

Indian daily newspapers are mainly made up of corruption stories, Bollywood gossip and horror stories , usually involving road accidents, murders or hospitals!! At the moment they seem to be concentrating on government hospital stories involving rats!! One was about a paralysed patient who was attacked by rats whilst the night guards and doctors slept! The rats managed to eat a lot of the person's face and bite through tubing whilst the poor person was unable to raise the alarm! There are similar stories daily involving rodents or stray dogs entering hospitals and eating patients! If you have money to pay then hospitals are great in India but the vast

majority of people here are reliant on hospitals with the most basic of resources. Yesterday I read about a poor pregnant lady who was turned away from several hospitals because they didn't want to admit her and she had to give birth to twins right outside on the pavement and bled to death. I must remember to never complain about the NHS again !

Christmas in the UK

Having spent last Christmas in India, this year we returned to the UK for three weeks to spend the festivities with family.
The first thing that hit me, as I came out of Terminal 5, was the cold, fresh air! I inhaled deeply! How good to fill my lungs again with relatively clean air compared to smog filled Delhi! Having acclimatised to the Indian weather the English weather seemed perishingly cold to me even though it was above freezing!

There is nothing like spending Christmas in your home country! It is such a time of family traditions and where strong memories are evoked so that, in my opinion, spending it abroad is never quite the same! So this Christmas was wonderful ! What did I love about it ? Well, a whole week with the extended family, carols by candlelight on Christmas eve, mulled wine, Christmas dinner with all the trimmings, presents round the tree, warm central heated houses with soft carpets underfoot (rather than the hard marble floors of Indian houses), satsumas, pavlova with raspberries (oh how I've missed rasberries!!!), the delight and amazement of my 16 month old granddaughter at all the sights and sounds of Christmas and the general family banter that you miss when apart. It was a great time all in all.

England did strike me as a depressing place to be however. It felt quite oppressive and the people in the street appeared glum and weighed down by life. India, by contrast, is a very positive place to live in..... the economy is booming, the people seem very positive , even amongst the poor there is an air of optimism. they might live in appalling conditions but they haven't given up!!!


BACK TO DELHI

January 3rd saw us return to India for our last stint before our move back to the UK. Only 12 weeks and we will have to pack everything up and say goodbye to Vasant Kunj! What an amazing adventure we've been on and how I will miss this place …. but I don't want to think about leaving yet!!!!

We had forgotten how cold our house is in January!!! The days are foggy with faint hazy sunshine and the cold air seeps in through all the gaps under the doors and through he ill-fitting windows. The marble floors are icy and as you sit still the chill creeps into your bones! Hopefully it will only be for a few weeks and the warm spring weather will return. It's crazy to think that only a few months ago we were wilting under the intense heat, with hot water coming out of the cold taps and unable to sleep with even a sheet over us! Now we huddle under duvet and blankets , walk around in jumpers and scarves and hope that there are no power cuts so we can heat up water to wash in! At least my house is now free from all rodents and cockroaches, for the time being anyway.