Day 1 in Delhi

well we had another overnight flight, so today has been a tired day in Delhi.

Random comment that isn't REALLY related to today: I love that the world cup is going on while we are traveling. It is connecting our travels in an amazing way. Everywhere we go, we have SOMETHING to talk about because everyone has world cup fever. All the bars and restaurants show all the games! Right now we're cheering for Ghana (cuz...well...the world cup is in Africa, so you have to cheer for an African team) and the Netherlands (who are currently tied with Brazil!!) because we THINK Mark and Rae (Mari's parents) will be in Amsterdam during the final, and that would be pretty amazing!

ok...so...Delhi. Our flight was delayed coming in, so we didn't arrive until after 10 am. The airport went smoothly...easy immigration, customs, bought a voucher for a pre-paid taxi...got in the taxi and traveled to the Karol Bagh area of Delhi, where our hotel is. Unfortunately, when we got close, our driver started to pull the..."where are you staying? how much did you pay? I can get you a better hotel..." schtick, but we knew better and INSISTED adamantly that he take us to the hotel we had ALREADY paid for. Well, of course he couldn't find it...and to give him some credit, it was hard to find and construction was blocking some roads. FINALLY we spotted the hotel.

We were pleasantly surprised when we walked into the air conditioned lobby and were greeted with Chai. Our room was really nice. The hotel feels like...an upscale hostel. It has a...communal feel and travelers hang out in the lobby chatting, but we have our own room (with ac) and bathroom, so that's nice. The bathroom's funny because it has a shower just...kind of...in the bathroom...no tub or anything...just a drain in the bathroom floor. Haven't tried it yet, but I will soon!

We took a quick nap and then ventured out. We took the Metro (and were quite proud of ourselves for navigating on our own) to Connaught Place which is under A LOT of construction because the Commonwealth Games (cricket, I think) are coming in October and they want everything to look good for that. We ended up holing up in a mexican restaurant (of all places) and enjoyed the food and drinks (all you can drink included in a world cup special) while planning our 4 days in Delhi. It was nice, but kinda strange to be eating Mexican in India.

Then back to the hotel for hotel social hour in the lobby. :) Free beer and Indian snacks (and chicken nuggets...hilarious) :) Chatting with a couple from Toronto who have been teaching English in S. Korea and are now on their journey home (they're stretching it out quite a bit!!)

I'm already enjoying Delhi a lot and I look forward to seeing the sites tomorrow. Thinking it's red fort day...not sure what else. We'll keep you posted though.

Keep emails, texts and comments coming. It's so nice to hear from home!