New Dehli Wake-Up Call

Today I awoke to mooing mixed in with the constant honking of a nearby road. At first I thought I was imagining it but then I remembered where I was and that cows are perfectly at home in the city, though sometimes they look a little confused. Then there was honking, mooing, and call to prayer music. Then there was honking, mooing, call to prayer and an owl hooting. Jose had informed me at the Taj Mahal where I first heard an Indian owl, that it is good luck to hear an owl in the morning. So I decided it was time to get up.

Tom spent the night awake and sick so our touring plans for the day were cancelled. We still plan to visit Ghandi sites this afternoon; hopefully Tom will feel well enough to accompany us. We came fortified with many meds; now we'll test the effectiveness of at least one. I am actually glad for the time to work on this blog and have added a number of pictures to past posts.

Despite the good luck owl hoot, I also woke up in bad shape today: with a migraine. I think it was triggered by the heavy smog in the Dehli metropolitan area. There is a great deal of dust in the air from all the construction and heavily travelled dirt roads. It is hot, hazy and the air is "close." The air smells terrible at times and was particularly strong early this morning. It reminds me of Gary, Indiana years ago. The plug-in mosquito repellent contributes to the bad smells so we turned that off. We wear mosquito repellent to bed and faithfully take our Malarone pills.

Did I mention the food is wonderful?! We have acclimated to the varieties of very different dishes and their "pungent" nature. Especially here at the NISCORT "hostel" we have become quite spoiled. Sr. Amelia (I am delighted we share names) serves a scrumptious meal and encourages us to eat far more than we should. Also, I have taken to drinking tea steeped in hot milk (rather than water as at home) and sweetened with the delightful granular sugar they use here. It is a good thing these Indian clothes I am wearing have drawstring closures and baggy pants!

Which reminds me: I love the scarves Indian women wear, even adorning Western styles. But I have definite scarf management issues. Today I asked a couple of women how they keep from losing their scarves off their shoulders and received a welcome lesson. A gentleman in on the conversation added to my enlightenment on this issue. As I suspected, it involves life-long practice. Poise and posture are clearly also factors, and occasionally pins with heavier fabrics.