The First Week

I arrived in India on September 6, 2006. The trip had only two legs this time, thanks to a cheap, new non-stop service by Continental Airlines from Newark, NJ directly to New Delhi. That second leg is 14 long hours, but the seats have those neat personal video screens, and they were showing episodes of House, M.D. and some other crappy movies, so I stayed entertained enough.

New Delhi will be my home until the end of October. I am serving in the P.R. department of a cultural monument built by BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, the vaishnavite Hindu sect to which I belong. This monument, called Akshardham, is unbelievable. It is a tribute to the cultural heritage, art, and timeless values of India. I'd attempt to describe it to you, but I still find it hard after being here a week. The main monument is about 13 stories tall, and is almost entirely hand-carved. It has revived the ancient (and almost forgotten) traditional art of temple-building, and has upped the ante in doing so. No structure even close to this magnitude has been built in India in the past 8 centuries. Check out the file photos of the monument, and the carvings from the website - it'll give you an idea of the amazing place where I spend my day.

Needless to say, it's an honor to be serving here. And they keep me busy. As the only native English speaker in the department, I started getting work from day one. In fact, the very day I arrived, I had to interview the Chief Justice of the High Court of Delhi. Talk about no adjustment period. Guests to Akshardham come from all over, though. I've given tours to Australians, Americans, Indians, Iranians, and more. We also don't really get a break, either. Akshardham is open 6 days a week, and we prep for the next week on the one day it's closed (Monday).

On top of being a tour guide, I've been assigned quite a few other projects, too. Much more than can be easily done in 2 months time. Well, we'll see how it goes. This entire complex was built in 5 years. I figure that I should be able to get it listed in the next edition of guidebooks within two months. For those of you who knew how much of a bum I was this past summer, God's going to have me make it up. Fast.