Lucknow, India: Day 1

Namaste! :)

For some unknown reason, my first post disappeared, so here I am again with another blog.

May 13 marked my first time to step on Indian soil - Hahaha, did I just make that sound really significant on purpose? -, in New Delhi, at the IGI Airport (Indira Ghandi International Airport). Before my connecting flight, I had to wait for around 6 hours there, so  I had to face one of my biggest pet peeves: WAITING. Good thing the airport was big so I I had to walk far to find my way around. The people at the airport were accommodating enough to lead me to where I had to go: the Transfer check-in.

Then I finally got my boarding pass to Lucknow, and took off at 8AM. It's only an hour's trip from New Delhi to Lucknow, so I was very excited to land. But when we did, as I stepped off the plane and onto the tarmac, I felt as if I just entered a sauna room. It was REALLY HOT. XD I didn't expect it to be that hot when I was looking up the weather update in Lucknow on the internet when I was still in the Philippines! Now I know how hot 41 degrees is, and in the coming weeks, I'm about to find out how hot the weather can be when the Indians say "steamy".

Two AIESEC Lucknow members picked me up from the Airport, and then we headed to this hotel where the last day of their LC was being held. It was a very busy time for them, but lucky for me I got to be introduced to almost everyone. :)

At around 3PM, we went straight to the home of my host family, and the family is indeed very warm and hospitable - I think they're as hospitable as us Filipinos when it comes to welcoming visitors. That night, I got to taste my first authentic home-cooked Indian meal - and it was AWESOME! I'm going to post photos when I get the time because really, words are not enough to recount that first experience. It was a simple meal but very fun to eat, and healthy, too! I think since I got here, I haven't eaten any meat, except for the chicken nuggets that I ordered at McDonald's when some of the AIESEC members took me to this mall. Haha! No need for any exercise or diet, woo!

I'm really excited for the coming days, especially when I'll get to meet the other interns. My next update will probably be in two days :)

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My first meal here in Lucknow:

I forgot the name of the one in the bowl, but its a slightly sour and mildly spicy thick soup with some bits of rice. And the white thing that looks like bread is the roti/chappati. :P That spoonful of green stuff on the left is like green mango puree with some herbs, so it has this tangy and herby taste. The brown ones above are potatoes! It's here in India that I discovered my love for potatoes. I can eat them everyday and not get sick of them. Haha! Those are fried potatoes, but they have this coating that tastes something like curry, or something else. And finally, cucumbers and onions on the side. I don't really eat raw onions but the cucumbers went really great and blended perfectly with the whole meal. Awesome way to end the day. :D

And I have to put this photo here, because this dog is just the most excited dog that I've ever met. He's the dog of the host family whose house I stayed at for a couple of days. Fluffyyy :3

Chulbul, the German spitz