Traveling between Gurgaon and New Delhi in addition to seeing Old Delhi I see many distinct differences. Gurgaon is a suburb of New Delhi that has become modernized in the last 10-15 years. As you drive along the freeway system you see many large corporations, such as 3M, in buildings much like what we have in MN. The shopping areas look like our outlet malls or like Arbor Lakes shopping area.. but what you see around these large modern buildings is old India. Old buildings, partially crumbling, garbage along the roads and in the street, and many structures made of tarp, branches, and other scrap materials that make up people's homes here. Cows roam the street. Some garbage piles are smoldering during the day. At night fires burn to either stay warm in the winter or to cook food all year around.. I would guess these fires create the haze in the sky that acts as a ceiling at night..
40 percent of the population in India do not have electricity. Blackouts are common throughout the day. Many businesses and hotels have back-up generators that kick in after everything goes dark for about 60 seconds. Imagine running on the treadmill in a room with no windows and the electricity goes out. That happens here! Most streets are uneven and do not have sidewalks. People walk and bike in the streets with traffic. There is no running outside in most of where I have seen.. unless your running across the street in front of traffic to avoid being hit!
In New Delhi, many streets are lined with manicured lawns and flower gardens. This is particularly noticable around the Foreign Embassies and the President's home. New Delhi is the capital city of India. I can only describe the area around the Foreign Embassies and the President's house as much like Washington D.C. I have never been to Washington D.C. but heard of the homelessness that surrounds the Capital area. In India, there are large grassy park areas where the Indians beg for money, and where you see Indians sleeping in the lawns. The roundabout in the Capital city is not like our new roundabouts in St. Cloud. Here it is congested with stopped traffic. While sitting in rush hour traffic, we watched monkeys in the lawn. Sanjiv (Tony) explained the monkeys like this: Do not make eye contact. Keep your windows and doors shut because they will look for any opportunity to enter your home and steal your food.. they even know how to open cupboards and/or the refrigerator.
Today, we visit more of the city. We have also confirmed a meeting at United Health Group this afternoon, a Minnesota company doing business in India.
40 percent of the population in India do not have electricity. Blackouts are common throughout the day. Many businesses and hotels have back-up generators that kick in after everything goes dark for about 60 seconds. Imagine running on the treadmill in a room with no windows and the electricity goes out. That happens here! Most streets are uneven and do not have sidewalks. People walk and bike in the streets with traffic. There is no running outside in most of where I have seen.. unless your running across the street in front of traffic to avoid being hit!
In New Delhi, many streets are lined with manicured lawns and flower gardens. This is particularly noticable around the Foreign Embassies and the President's home. New Delhi is the capital city of India. I can only describe the area around the Foreign Embassies and the President's house as much like Washington D.C. I have never been to Washington D.C. but heard of the homelessness that surrounds the Capital area. In India, there are large grassy park areas where the Indians beg for money, and where you see Indians sleeping in the lawns. The roundabout in the Capital city is not like our new roundabouts in St. Cloud. Here it is congested with stopped traffic. While sitting in rush hour traffic, we watched monkeys in the lawn. Sanjiv (Tony) explained the monkeys like this: Do not make eye contact. Keep your windows and doors shut because they will look for any opportunity to enter your home and steal your food.. they even know how to open cupboards and/or the refrigerator.
Today, we visit more of the city. We have also confirmed a meeting at United Health Group this afternoon, a Minnesota company doing business in India.
Have you been without power at the hotels much?
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