Dilli Diaries : Chapter One

You know you had an amazing childhood, when you can recognise the taste of chlorine in water – one of the many valuable lessons Delhi taught me. Going from what could be one of the most green and clean city in the country to the most polluted one has given me a lot of tales and lessons. If I had perhaps kept a diary, I could publish a book on it. But this lean girl is as lazy as she is lean and despite the name of the blog, has never been able to keep a diary for more than half a month 😐

But this post (or if my memory is benevolent, series of posts) is an honest effort to produce whatever little I have learnt from the city in the past one year. The journey has been a real rollercoaster and sometimes it might not even make sense to you, but please bear with me – there is a happy ending or so I assume.

It’s only fair that I begin my telling of Delhi chapter with the first time I visited Delhi. It was in sixth grade for a cousin’s (now my local guardian) wedding. The thought was exciting – first time in an aeroplane, visiting the Taj Mahal except the experience wasn’t . I came to a city which made me nauseous with one look at it.  There were heaps of garbage and all sorts of waste everywhere. Every place I saw was crammed and I actually felt the city suffocating. By the time my journey ended,  I was convinced living in Delhi was the worst punishment there is and that I was never going to come back to the city. 

I was never so sure about anything in my life as I was about my aversion to the city and I was never so wrong. I don’t love it now,  neither do I think I’ll consider living here for long but hey, it’s not the worst punishment ; it has its charm,  you just need to look for it. So how did I end up here?  Well,  the city happened to have one of the best universities in the country and my journey led me here. My admissions were my second trip to Delhi and it didn’t make a grand second impression either. I was plagued with the heat, homesickness and the terror of exploring the unknown. With a lot of persistence from my family,  especially my sister Pheba who was with me,  I stuck to my decision to study here and I’m so glad I did. 

The city not only showed me it’s good side,  but also made me realise the different sides I had to me, sometimes through little, everyday things and some other times through certain people. And how do I know for sure that the place has started to grow on me?  Ask the people near me,  I’m sure that they’re tired of hearing Delhi this and Delhi that…. 

So this is chapter one of my Dilli Diaries.  A brief introduction to how it all began and what to expect in the coming days.😊