Our Life in Delhi, 14 Days Later, on John ki Jaan

14 Days Later – July 27, 2007

After two weeks in Delhi, Gitanjali and I have finally settled in or at least as settled in as we can be while not living in our own space. However, it’s finally sunk in that we’re not here on chhutti (vacation) but here permanently.

The Daily Grind

Establishing a daily routine really helped create the feeling that Delhi is now our home. Of course, contrary to some predictions about our life here, our day does not revolve around watching Hindi movies, gorging ourselves on butter chicken and aloo (potato) paranthas, and socializing with the Delhi elite.

We begin each day with a two-mile run (sometimes walk) in a beautiful park that’s a short 10-minute walk from the flat. The walk involves crossing a fairly major avenue (between 6 and 10 lanes across depending how tightly packed the cars, autorickshaws, scooters, motorcycles, and bicycles are).

Once we’re inside the park, we can’t hear the traffic or any other noises that would suggest we’re in the middle of a city with a population of 15 million people. Actually, some sections of the park verge on being desolate, which is simultaneously pleasant and strange.

After the morning workout, we usually have our main breakfast (we have a snack of chai [tea] and toast before the run) and head to Malviya Nagar market (the local market) to buy fruit and whatever ingredients we might need for lunch or dinner. Unlike the US (or like the US was 30-some years ago), the fruits and veggies are seasonal.

Some fruits and veggies are available year round, like bananas, eggplants, potatoes, and tomatoes, but we were lucky enough to arrive at the peak of mango season, so we’ve been eating two or three of the most amazing mangoes every day. (Don’t worry, I plan on dedicating one entire blog to the delectable nature of mangoes.)

Then it’s suddenly time for lunch. We generally eat at home, mostly because it’s easier (and because for the first week, we were waiting for the technician to come and set up the Internet connection). A little later in the afternoon, we have a nice nap.

We would probably be going out more in the afternoons if the heat wasn’t so extreme. Last week, the afternoon temperatures were only in the low 90s, which doesn’t sound too terrible, but the heat index pushed the temperatures over 100, hitting anywhere between 102 and 110 degrees.

Although these temperatures send nearly everyone running for the nearest air conditioned room, I really enjoy the heat. (Those who know me well know how I hate, hate, hate the cold.) So I sometimes sit in an AC-free room by myself using only the ceiling fan.

Once we rouse ourselves from our naps, we have chai. (Tea time is one of remaining British holdovers. It’s a great tradition; everyone should follow it.) Around this time, some family or friends generally show up and stay for dinner.

If we’re not going anywhere for the evening, we have dinner at home. We’ve been varying our meals since we’ve arrived (and we’ll continue doing so once we have our own place). We alternate between Western food and desi khana (Indian food), even though the desi khana is plentiful and I don’t have to cook it.

About an hour before going to bed, we turn on the television for some mindless channel surfing. I have to confess, the cable TV is quite intriguing. It features a mix of Western and Indian programs (which includes programming in Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati, and Tamil). The range of news channels is pretty impressive.

The Western programs come from the US and UK. They cover the most recent season of shows and plenty of syndicated shows, including CSI (all three cities) and Desperate Housewives. However, I wonder how well the Indian audience follows some of the more ethno-centric humor in shows like Seinfeld and The Simpsons.

The Indian programming is really enjoyable (even if I have some trouble understanding it because it’s mostly in Hindi). They show all of the recent Hindi films, which is great (although not surprising). This past week, they’ve shown Dhoom, Dhoom 2, Guru, and Kholsa ka Gholsa.