Moving in Delhi: Metro

Unlike going and coming back from classes by a taxi provided by the program we preferred not to move by a car in Delhi. Instead we were using Metro, Rikshaw and of course Bike.

METRO is the best means of transport in Delhi. It's very comfortable and flexible. We went to the Metro on the very first day оf my arrival and I was amazed to see how well designed and organized it was.  After several days almost all our group members had already learned the metro map by heart and could move around the city quite confidently. Whenever anyone was telling us a name of a place to visit we would open up our Delhi map to find it and then Metro map to see the route.

Despite of having a Metro in Yerevan and being used to traveling by it whole my life I saw a big difference between these two in Yerevan and in Delhi. Just imagine the one in Yerevan has only 1 line with 9 stations and short trains have two coaches. Delhi Metro has 6 lines with  more than 142 stations covering almost all Delhi area and Gurgaon as well.

It surprised me a lot when I saw police checking points at the stations with two different gates for both male and female. That was new to me and quite strange but in the meantime I felt more safe in a big and diverse city like Delhi. Another difference was double entry barriers at station for both entrance and exit. You can  buy either a token informing the cashier about the station you want to get off or a smart card. Tokens for each destination have different value. While entering the station you put the token on the display of the entry barrier and you leave it inside the entry barrier while leaving metro. Similarly it goes with the smart card and while putting it on the display the system is calculating the value of your destination and charges accordingly. So being unfamiliar to this I would always forget to get my card out again while leaving the station and would create queues after me trying to find it in my purse.

Smart Card

It was a huge fun every time being in Metro in a group of foreigners accompanied by an Indian(s). We would speak in different languages attracting the passengers' attention to us who were trying to hide their smile especially when we were repeating the announcements like "kripya, darvazoon se hat kar khare ho"  or "Agla station Udyog Bhavan hai". believe me it sounded quite funny and even we were laughing at ourselves. Whenever my sweetheart was not with us (it happened rarely) we were taking special coaches for women. These are separate coaches only for women to make their travel by metro more comfortable and troubleless.

Metro Map. New stations are being constructed yet...

Within two months of my stay in Delhi only once I traveled by Metro alone when I left the girls with their shopping at CP to get back to the hotel for another meeting. Imagine that was also the only time when the automatic announcement machine got broken and I couldn't get where actually I was. When I decided to clarify it with the lady standing next to me it appeared that I missed my station:) 

Unfortunately, it was prohibited to take photos inside Metro. Especially I regret about one poster which was announcing "Spitting in Metro is prohibited". However my friends managed to click some and I'll post one here. Hope they don't mind:)

Refreshing memories

I came back to Yerevan with enthusiastic plan to write down everything happened to me in India. but soon I dived in so many different projects and work that I left my blog for a while (again). While  am preparing new posts I decided to upload here some photos taken in India as a shower to my Tulsi not to fed away:)

Lotus temple - my first sightseeing destination in Delhi

People visiting Akshardham

Mandir - a Hindu temple at Chandni Chok , old Delhi

My favorite flower tree

Humayun Tomb - dedicated to a husband by a wife

Malls are everywhere in Delhi. This one I liked because of
its excellent decorated surroundings

Kutub Minar

Mother

Purana Qila

At Isckon temple in Vrindavan

Amber Forte, Jaipur, Rajastan

Red Fort, Old Delhi

Arriving in Delhi

My first meeting with India was through the illuminator of the airplane landing at Delhi International Airport. It was a long journey of 3 hours flight from Yerevan to Dubai, 8 hours wait at Dubai airport and almost 4 hours flight from Dubai to New Delhi. However I could feel neither tired nor sleepy but excitement to see the land which had been calling me for more than two and half years. 
Delhi was still sleeping and only street lights were welcoming us in the dusk.  The monitors in the plane went on and we could see the road on which our plane was landing. I don't remember how I went off the plane, how I passed the immigration desk, how I received my baggage I just wanted to get out of the airport as soon as possible to see my sweetheart one month after his departure. Finally the doors opened and there he was, my fiance, my sweetheart, my future husband for whom I am here...

 

Since the moment my feet touched the Indian land one thing was in my mind. I had been told and read a lot about specific smell one can feel right after getting off the airport. Despite of my efforts to smell something strange or unpleasant I could feel nothing but happiness for meeting people I hadn't seen for long time and those whom I new quite long but hadn't met yet. Even when I was asked if it was hot I said "no, it's quite normal" :) The only thing which looked strange to me was seeing so many people. Unlike the early morning hour when the sun was only starting to rise the airport was crowded with different different looking people and some of them were lying or sitting on the ground itself.
After warm hugs and introductions, bouquets of flowers and a cup of hot coffee it was the time to leave the airport for the Hotel we were supposed to stay.

Then only we realized that there was no one to meet us and take to the hotel. Before leaving for Delhi I made sure that I would be transferred to the hotel by a driver who would be waiting for us at the Gate with a banner announcing the name of Institution from which we got the scholarship. Simply he was not there even though our flight was delayed for about one and half hours. I tried to contact with one of the moderators to find out what was the problem. Finally one of them answered my call and ensured me that the driver was at the airport. After I asked him several times to check with the driver it appeared that "he is on way", then "he is looking for space for parking". In the end the driver (a nice man of around 50-60 who later became our driver taking us from the hotel to classes and back every day) arrived in the airport informing us that he even wasn't aware that he had to meet us... Anyway it happens sometimes but I wonder what two young girls are supposed to do appearing in a country for the first time, at 4 am without a mobile and without anyone to meet them. What if one of them didn't have a fiance ready to take them to the hotel. How would they contact the moderators? However I was insisting on following the rules and ethics of the scholarship instead of braking the rules from the very beginning and for that we had to wait for 2 hours.

View from my balcony

We reached the hotel and were welcomed by another nice Indian man  whom we later used to call Uncle. Lucky we were to arrive one of the first and to have a chance to choose the room we liked. This room had become my shelter for the next two months. In this hotel I met my dear friends. Here I had nice breakfasts and here I had reunion parties which I will never forget in my life.

My room at the Hotel

But then it was just a room with a big bed where I wanted to rest a bit before starting my journey to the new world called India...

Incredibly Nostalgic India

I am back home - my home in Armenia. Still I have such a feeling that I left my home. ...

I was in India for 2 months. That was a scholarship program sponsored by the government of India called ITEC/SCAAP. So I was both a student and a traveler but also went to visit my new family.

Cultural shock, climate, new experiences, likes and dislikes, new food, new people, friends and more than friends, new knowledge, parties, sight-seeings, discoveries, new family, new home and much more...I had experienced within these two months. But apparently the most important was the reunion with my sweetheart.

We traveled a lot all over Delhi - both New and Old and also managed to visits 3 cities - Vrindavan with the family and Agra and Jaipur with the whole group. Red Fort, Purana Quila, Lotus Temple, JNU, Qutub Minar, India Gate, Raj Path, Akshardham, Amer Fort , Agra Fort, Jantar Mantar and of course no visit to India without seeing the famous Taj Mahal. Food- lots of different restaurants and cafes with varieties of Indian food from North and South -Puri, Roti, Dosa, Raj kachori, Chana masala, Sabji, Thali, Khir, Lassi...so spicy and chili but so yummy. Moving round the city by metro, Rikshaw, Bike was such a great fun. But the most joyful pastime especially for girls - shopping in huge malls and street markets, Dilli Haat and at the buses...

Lots of interesting discoveries, events, people altogether was such a great experience to me and I want to write about each and every thing in detail. but now I just want to thank God for this opportunity I had, for those two months which changed my life a lot. i had so many apprehensions about the country I was going to spend my life. I was worried so much simply not to like it. I went , I saw and  I want to go back. Thanks to my sweetheart, his family, friends and of course my new wonderful friends I enjoined my life there.  Now I can say I really want to go back. Why? I'll try to give the answer through my posts about all the things mentioned above and much more. They say people cry twice in India, first time when they arrive and second time when they leave it. Hope you will enjoy the journey with me to India ...

India, I am coming...

My last night in Armenia before so much awaited journey to India. Yes, I am finally going to India for 2 months. All is set up for the trip and now I am so much sleepy and tired of the preparations that the only thing I can write is I am so much happy and excited. I am going to see India, my friends, my new family.

Amazingly this new adventure starts on the day when my sweetheart was born. So I want to wish my dear fiance to have such wonderful Birthdays every year. I big hug to you.

I am coming ... :)