- by Pasbaan I do not know why all of a sudden and without any planning I wanted to visit Delhi. Everything seems to have worked in favor of this trip. The people at work said go and airlines seating were confirmed without a hitch. So on March 25th; I had no choice but to board the Delta flight from RDU airport for Atlanta. From Atlanta, the Air France flight to Paris was smooth and its crew was courteously attentive. Finding cheap lodging in Paris was a hassle because of overnight stay there. Even though I was tired, I strolled along the Seine for a while. This was not my first trip to Paris; I had been here before. Next morning, I took the Air France flight to Delhi, watched an in-flight Indian movie and ate spicy desi meals. After flying eight hours, the plane landed at Palam airport at 10 p.m. Soon I was with my two sisters and their family. A nephew, who lives in Oxford, was there too. It was now 2 am in the morning; exhausted from my long travel, I fell asleep. It was probably 4:30 am, when I awoke again to the sound of azaan followed by chanting from a local gurdwara and temple. By 6 am, the religious sounds had died down, but the birds had started chirping and I was asleep too. For the next three days, I just ate and slept trying to fight off the jet lag. While I listened to the ghazals of Mehdi Hassan and Munni Begum, the sounds of vendors reverberated as they brought bread and vegetables to the house. Delhi is a huge city bustling with traffic and people. It has cyber cafes where you can check your email but the Internet response time is slow. At every corner you can buy Coke or Pepsi. Of course, McDonald, KFC, Dominos and Pizza huts were everywhere. While in Delhi, my 12-year-old nephew called Dominos and ordered in English a pizza for home delivery. I asked him why he did not order in Urdu. He replied that English is the only language they understand; and if he had ordered in Urdu, the pizza might not have gotten delivered. The kids in India love Pizza and junk food just like their American counterparts. Just eating and sleeping each day was beginning to wear me; I decided to move on. My next destination was Jaipur, the pink city where my relatives were expecting me. It took five hours in an air-conditioned compartment of a train to reach Jaipur. Unlike Delhi, this pink city is an attractive tourist place to go to, being cleaner and with fewer people. My nieces and a nephew in Jaipur were eager to host their uncle from America. Some of them were completing their computer education from the famous and expensive National Institute of Information Technology (NIIT). Their mother wanted me to get them married in America. They would get up early in the morning and prepare sumptuous breakfast and other meals. In between, we all would visit the bazaars and sight see old Rajput palaces, museum and forts, which are a blend of Mughal and Rajput architecture. I rode in a Tonga. The state of Rajasthan is a colorful place. Here India tested its nuclear might few years ago. Its gypsies migrated to Europe in the 12th century. The local dress and music is similar to that of Sindh across the border. Words of a popular song by Pakistani singer Adnan Sami Khan resonating in every nook and corner of bazaars was captivating my attention: Bheegi bheegi raaton mein phir tum aao na Aisi barsaaton mein aao na.... This song was making waves all over the country and I ended up getting the CD. I visited Khalajaan; her son had just bought a new house, which was both spacious and modern. Here I also, met a cousin who was a textile designer. Using computer software, she designed home furnishing fabrics that were exported to London, Paris and New York. She was a professional woman who drove her own car, a rarity in our family. After four days in Jaipur, I headed back to Delhi. Next on my itinerary was Moradabad where more relatives live. I traveled again in AC class and the train pulled in at Moradabad station at 11 p.m. The station was cleaner than last time I was there. Shaukat Bagh relatives left me a telephone message asking me to visit them. Moradabad is known as the brass city of India, whose economy depends on exports. But I was told that exports in Moradabad were down by 50% and most of the workers were without jobs due to competition from China and Taiwan. I took a rickshaw next afternoon to go to Shaukat Bagh. I was shown in the office where one of the relatives, a CEO of Horizon Enterprise was getting the flatware and garden tools orders ready for shipment to companies in America. And he was doing quite well. He had a 933 MHz Dell computer with Internet connections. I went to Shaukat Bagh again in the evening for dinner. Shaukat Bagh is a huge haveli spread over 1/4 of a mile. In its heydays, mushaira and literary activities were held and Nawab of Rampur used to be a frequent guest there. As I ate delicious food, I admired the large courtyard with its Mughal style arches and architecture built during Emperor Shahjehan's time. Intoxicating were fragrances from nearby jasmine and motia flowers. Early next morning, I rode the train for Delhi. After a few days, I decided to go to Aligarh where loads of relatives live. I once again took a late night train. Aligarh rickshaws are most uncomfortable and the ride from the train station to Waheed Mazil was bumpy. There was hardly anybody on the road. The tall trees lined on the way had a fragrant smell and bougainvillea bushes made part of the landscape. Next day, I went to Nizami Villa to be with my elderly aunt. She was old and frail. I spotted the papaya tree whose fruit I use to eat when I lived here working on a research paper many years ago. The guava tree was there too. Only some faces were missing and the Villa looked empty without them. Next door was our Italian style house build by my father. I just stayed for a day in Aligarh. Back in Delhi, I went shopping at the Palika bazaar, Chandni Chowk and sections of old Delhi. It was now time to head back to America. On the way, I stopped in Oxford and London for a few days. I met my two aunts in London for the first time in my life. After having lived in Rawalpindi, they were now settled in London with their husbands. The weather in London and Oxford was very cold but it was fun to be there. I arrived at RDU airport late in the night and next day I had to report for work. |
