An old Beetle

It's a slow start to the day. And an attempt to break free from the inertia of the night before. They drive to the Delhi Railway station to pick his brother up, who is visiting for a few days. No one knows the way for sure. The area around Connaught Place is perennially confusing. They keep him waiting a bit longer than they had anticipated. It is a warm day. The roads leading up to the station are crowded and it is a good idea to follow those yellow auto-rickshaws since all seem to be going towards it. Once B is picked up, the initial plans of returning home to freshen up before embarking on the day's travels are abandoned.

They take rounds of Connaught Place, find Nirula's. The hot chocolate fudge is quite memorable. More walking leads them to Jan Path. Perhaps B had not anticipated all the walking in the sun immediately after his arrival but he is comfortable. Each of them buys few things. For a newcomer it is easy to lose the way, though. Bits of things are remembered, like the bottle of water or the lime drink that failed to quench their thirst. Or the group of policemen who entered the place and the hawkers, who had been gradually encroaching into the street had to retract the shelves with their wares. Both he and B are baffled with the large numbers of people enthusiastic to shop.

As the days go by, he realizes, that contrary to one of the stereotypes surrounding Delhi, people seem far too polite. And definitely more so than Hyderabad. The ask for directions to an elderly auto-rickshaw driver with a white cap and a long beard. The man takes his time to explain the route in detail, much like a teacher making sure he understands. When a couple of potential customers come, he does not turn to them until he finishes with the instructions. But by then it is too late. They have moved on to the next.

The evening has some interesting table-tennis and badminton in it. He teams up with S to play badminton against a couple of enthusiastic youngsters. They win, but barely. It is fun. After sitting by the pool for a while exchanging stories, they return for some dinner before hitting the bed.