July 10, 2012
I arrived in India yesterday morning. I've placed the main reason for my trip mostly on hold (business-related stuff) and I took yesterday to get out a bit and explore the city of Chennai.
The first glimpse I got of the country was across an airplane aisle and out a window. I arrived at 3:30am local time so there wasn't a whole lot to see from my poor vantage point. My initial impression was that Chennai looked like every other major city from an airplane at night. A correct and superficial view, and I immediately recognized it as much. I waited until getting out and about to begin my cultural experience.
A colleague of mine who is also here on business summed up India very succinctly. When he's asked, "What's India like?" he replies with "It's a country of contrasts", and that's the most accurate description I've been able to apply thus far. Granted I've only been in the country for a day or so, but cruising around Chennai really gives you appreciation for that description. On one block you can be amidst some really modest upper-class housing, then you drive a few more blocks and encounter slums. The people themselves are equally varied; while walking around you're likely to see women wearing the traditional Sari, then you turn the corner and there's another woman wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Walk another block and you may see a woman in a hijab and burqa.
Yesterday was interesting. I'd ridden in a right-hand drive car once before (in Dublin), but that ride was brief. Yesterday I got to experience a far more extreme version of right-hand driving. Sure the cars are the same, but the rules of the road are quite different. Chennai (and likely India as a whole) reminds me a lot of Cairo in both appearance and road activity. Like in Egypt and to a slightly lesser extent in Italy, Indians drive with their hands constantly on the horn. Sounding the horn is used to say "hey I'm here" rather than the more recognized "HEY GET OUT OF THE WAY" we know back in the states. Lanes are only a suggestion, and most people just drive through any open area. Drivers don't give a second thought to cutting anyone off, be it a bus or a bicycle. It's your responsibility to get out of the way of other cars. Offensive driving at its best! Oh, and Autorickshaws are everywhere.
Yesterday was a very light sightseeing day around Chennai, but I got in some interesting sights. Out of the three churches in the world built over the tomb of one of Jesus's apostles, I made a trip to the second of three that I have visited. St. Thomas Basilica was built by the British in 1893, superseding the previous construction built in the 16th century by the Portuguese. Not too far away, I also visited a "home" of St. Thomas himself ("home" being in quotation marks since it's actually just a cave) with its nearby bleeding cross and holy water well, as well as a few museums and shops. A good first day to get a feel for the city.
The food is as delicious as I'd expected it to be. The food at my hotel is absolutely top-notch and I've been enjoying a breakfast of random Indian foods for two days in a row. I am now addicted to idli.
(11:50)
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