Finally a Home of Our Own

After running around Delhi with the other Fulbrighters learning about India, the Fulbright program, getting sick, and safety concerns, Michele (a fellow Fulbrighter) and I have moved into our Delhi flat in Saket. The flat is spacious and well furnished, but hot, like everything else! Hopefully it will cool off soon (fingers crossed). The market by our apartment is also really nice, it has a movie theater, lots of shops and resturants, including a McDonalds (which I probably wont eat at) and a Benningan's (which I am kind of intreged by).
I headed up to North Delhi to see the University of Delhi campus, and to see how long it will take to get there from Saket. The School of Economics looks like any other college in Delhi, but the whole campus is huge. I am glad I know where I need to go, becuase I am meeting professors from the Dept of Sociology on Wendesday, and now I wont get lost. Everyone I talked to said it would take an hour to get to the University from Saket (to see the distance look at a map- they are practically on different ends of the city), but I might leave two hours for my first visit, just in case.
For now I am happy to have two days off until I have to start my Hindi studies and my research.

In Delhi!

Hi,
I am sitting in an internet cafe in New Delhi (South Delhi). After a long (14 hour) flight to India, where I had a free seat next to me (yay!) and two kids screaming and kiking my seat behind me (boo!). I am finally here. The flight got in about 5 min early (to India, I did not even think that was possible) but that just ment that I waited over an hour for my bags to appear. Once finally getting my baggage, I wheeled my cart out into the card of people looking for a sign with my name on it (my driver). I did not find him but I did find Aditi (another Fulbrighter) who had been on my flight (except we did not know it). We hugged, it was so nice to see a familiar face! We found our driver, got out of the airport, wheeled our carts through tons of traffic, thick smoggy Delhi air, and way too many people, to our taxi. our driver litterally pushed a car out of the way to enable us to get our bags and persons into the taxi, and off we went. After a nights sleep in our hotel we both woke up at 5:30am (ahhh jet lagged). We went to breakfast, and then Aditi invited me to visit her Nani ji (grandma). So we hung out with her and went to get cellphones with the help of her uncle, this was a chore within its self since you need so many documents its crazy (you need a photo, passport, drivers lisense, offical documents etc). When that was finally done, we went back to the hotel and met up with some other Fulbrighters for Dinner. Then it was off to bed. Orientation starts today, I hope to be fully oriented by Thursday.
Till next time,
Suzanne

Leaving on Sat. 23rd!

I am leaving NYC to begin this new adventure and blog!