May 27, 2009

[Departure for Srinagar, Kashmir.]

Sitting in the Delhi airport with Max. Our flight was delayed 3 hours and Max left his wallet in the checked bag... so we are a bit hungry and out of sorts. Max also left his phone in the cab and we made several phone calls (with a pay phone we thought was free...) to find the number for the travel agent. Luckily, he called the cab driver and Vakesh brought the iphone back. We were not allowed back outside the airport, though, and had to ask all of the 4 door guards and receptionist and Kingfisher staff multiple times before someone let Max out. Each kept sending us in a circle to ask someone else.

A very kind boy Max's age has been sitting and talking with us. He reminds me a lot of Max's friend Dede. He and Max love the same music, movies, and are getting along very well. He has finished his third year of college and is studying computer engineering. He may get a phd in the U.S. His father is a surgeon in a sketchy town near the Nepal border and since age 8 he was sent away to boarding school. He explained that arranged marriages are still common, especially in his home town. Families of his caste have already been making financial dowry offers to his older brother.

[Note: the guy we met (named Nekman) somehow remembered our names and found us on facebook after the trip. We are now friends and keep in contact... what a world!]