India Intro--A country of So's

"Welcome to New Delhi, India where the local temperature is 39 degree celsius". Yes, that is 102 degree Fahrenheit. After I found my bag I was picked up by a driver from the airport, yet we had to walk about 15 minutes to get to the taxi because he didn't want to have to pay the airport fee. As we began driving an intense hot breeze entered the car and the driver told me that this is the low season in India because of the heat, great. 102 degrees doesn't sound that hot actually but it just seems so much hotter, in fact everything in India is just so much more soooooo.
And it is a constant so.
There are so many people, rickshaws, cars, and SOOO much garbage.
There are so many sounds: cell phones, music, both Indian and pop rock, chanting at mosques, women and children begging, men trying to sell you something "hello m'am, how are you? would you like to buy something?"
There are so many smells: urine, garbage, petrol,shit, and this sour smell that I can't explain, probably a mixture of all of the above, that comes without warning and lingers for a bit, kindof pierces you, and then it leaves again. But then every once in a while there is a also a nice smell of sandalwood or jasmine incense burning.
The constant professionalism of con-artists is also apparent. When I arrived at my "hotel" i decided to quickly go and buy my train ticket for Agra, the home of the Taj Mahal where I wanted to go the following day. The reception desk guy told me to "walk straight down the street and the train station is there, then go to the first floor to buy your ticket". Simple enough. So i walked down the street and easily found the train station. But, I didn't know how to get to the first floor so I asked what looked like an "official", and who had just helped another foreigner with directions how to get to the first floor to buy my ticket. He said "come with me", and we proceeded to leave the train station and cross the street. Hmm, he walked ahead and me and we kept walking down the street but the "go the first floor of the train station" was echoing in the back of my head", so I stopped. "This isn't right", I said to the man who was actually leading me to a travel agency to get commission. So, I left him, he followed me insisting that where he was taking me was correct. I ignored him and told him to leave me alone and crossed the street again. I tried to go up some stairs but another "official" asked me for my train ticket. "I don't have one, I want to buy one, on the first floor". No, he said, you have to go down the street (the other direction from where the man told me). He also said "don't listen to anyone trying to tell you differently, there are many people who want to get commission off of you". I got frustrated with him as well but his argumetn was convincing so I went down the street to look for this place. Another guy followed me there and when I got there, I saw a sign saying "tourists, please go the first floor of the train station to buy your ticket". Oh yeah, I forgot, there was one more guy in the midst of all of this who also told me to go down the street. Anyways, after I saw this sign I knew that the ticket office was at the train station and I would find it. So, I returned and went to the train police post and asked what really was an official where to go. And, he said, yes, just go up those stairs over there.
Damn, they were good. When I went upstairs I was a bit shaken and the ticket vendor knew it.
-"Take a moment, and breathe", he said. I did and proceeded to try and purchase a ticket. And then he asked me for my passport.
-"What? I don't have my passport, why do I need my passport, I didn't want to carry it around with me."
-"I'm sorry, you need it to purchase the ticket."
I took another breath and walked, quickly, looking down for most of the time to avoid the "hello, where do you want to go", "hello, do you want to buy something?", hello, where are you from?"

I entered the hotel, got my damn passport and walked back, with the same background noise and pestering.

So, yeah, got the train ticket as well as a train ticket out of New Delhi for two days from then.
And then, I did some wandering through the streets of Patchanj. I don't know if the pictures do it justice. After, I took a tuk-tuk to another area that said they had coffee shops. I just wanted to sit in a place and write. The area is called Connaught place and it is strikingly different to where I had been. shopping malls with fashion shops. Ah, India.
What will I see next in a country that is so big, so diverse, so intense.
I am so anxious and excited to find out.

Sorry, it has been so overwhelming in Delhi that I haven't taken many pictures.