Day 57 - New Delhi
Saturday, October 09, 2010
Monday 4th October - Day 1 Commonwealth Games
Although I set an alarm, I was awake well before 6:30am, thanks to a night spent clock-watching. I squeezed in a quick breakfast of toast at the 'breakfast buffet' before setting off to the Park Hotel. I had arranged to pick up my tickets at 7:30am from my Aussie sports agent here, as I hadn't been in Australia to collect them. This hotel was a posh 5* hotel with very tight security - in fact, I had to pass through a metal detector and have my bag x-rayed before being allowed to enter,
Tickets collected, my driver then took me to Tyagaraj stadium, home to the netball competition. He had no idea where it was though - in fact, when I'd said I was going to the netball, he'd thought I'd said 'Nepal'. I was finding that Indians really had no idea about the Games - stadiums, sports, or anything. Even when I'd checked in to my hotel they'd asked if I was here for work our a holiday - they seemed surprised when I said the Games! (Interestingly, they refer to it as 'Commonwealth', not 'Commonwealth Games'.
That's when my nightmare started. At the front entrance, the group of guards and officials stopped me. "You can't bring a bag in here". I protested, as both the tickets and the website clearly stated a reasonable size bag was allowed. They played 'pass the parcel' for a while before eventually saying I could pass onto the next security checkpoint but my bag would be confiscated.
100m down the path, I came to the official security entrance. I had to submit my bag to an x-ray whilst I walked through a metal detector and wash then frisked very thoroughly. The x-ray machine beeped and the security guard made me open my bag. "You can't bring a camera in .. or a phone ... you are only allowed a wallet. That's it." I protested again - the terms and conditions of entry did not state they were banned items. Again, the officials played pass the parcel - each time I was told, 'Wait here, we check'. It went from volunteers to guards , supervisors to military and police (could you tell I was the first person in? Since the seats weren't allocated I wanted to make sure I got a good seat, not realising there would be no competition ...). It was obvious they had no idea - India had clearly just thrown people at the games without any training or clue.
"No Madam, you cannot bring your camera in. We cannot take responsibility for it either." Another fight ensured - I was close to tears and booking a flight home rather than an hour of this rubbish. Basically, the list of banned items included everything you could think of. No phones, cameras, flags, backpacks, handbags, coins, keys ... the list went on. The food and drink was the most ridiculous part. You couldn't bring any 'eatables' in, including water - you had to purchase it at the venue. Fine - so when I made it into the venue (camera-less - stored at the info desk - but with bag and mobile), I went to buy a drink of water - but the stalls weren't open. '10 minutes', I was told. I sat in my seat for a while and then jumped up to see if they had opened.
'Where are you going?' said a volunteer. 'I need a drink', I replied. 'I will go and get you one then, please sit down'. She returned later and said, 'Sorry, they're not ready'. By this time, the players were on court, so I settled in for the match. At 1/2 time, a lady I was sitting with went to get a drink. She came back empty-handed - 'they refused to sell me a drink!'. At the match's conclusion, I went out and was finally able to buy a drink. But you cannot take it inside with you - you must drink it outside and then return inside!
On top of the limited drinking facilities (only options were warm coke or water), there were absolutely no eating options. So, you couldn't take any food in, but they had no food for sale. Even worse? The day's session had 2 parts - 9-1 and 3-7, with a 2 hour break for lunch. Except - there was no food at the stadium, and if you left the stadium you weren't permitted to return. Aaah, it makes me made just thinking about it!
Anywayz, onto the match. When I'd arrived at the stadium, 45 minutes before the match started, I had walked in to find - no one there. Seriously, it was embarassing - I was the only spectator.
A few media personnel drifted into the stands opposite me, including Liz Ellis and Luke Darcy, commentating for Channel 10, but I started to think I would be the only spectator there ... Just as the Aussies came on court, 2 Aussies came in. Turned out they are the mother and sister of Kimberlee Green, one of the players. We were also joined by one of the PNG players' mothers, and the 4 of us made up the crowd in a 4,500 seat stadium. (The Greens' father kept sending messages from Aus saying we were on TV - we wouldn't have been hard to spot!)
We were also joined by a couple of the players' partners. One of them sat in front of us and pulled out a camera, snapping photos. We gasped, wondering how we'd smuggled in such a contraband, and waited for him to be pounced on. Quickly, a volunteer came over and spoke to him. He turned back to us and in his Aussie larrikinism said, "Apparently I'm not allowed to sit here (pointing to his seat in the 2nd row) because it's reserved, but I can sit here (pointing to the seat immediately behind him)' (remembering the stadium was completely empty) - but not a single word about the camera!
I had joked prior to leaving Australia that maybe I'd be the only supported there (as Vineet had foretold) and so the Aussie players would see me and recognised me and invite me to join their gold-medal win celebrations - I didn't realise how true this would be!
Following the Aussie match, Sharelle McMahon signed the match used ball and gave it to a little Indian girl. At first, she refused to take it, as her father said she'd been raised not to take things from strangers! She did finally accept it and I explained to her family how lucky she was - I was super jealous! I got speaking with the family, who lived close by and said they had watched the stadium go up brick by brick, and they wanted to see it in use. They were very eager to hear my opinion on the stadium and Delhi (I was very polite!!) I asked for some tips on where to eat at lunch and where the closest ATM was, and they offered to have their driver take me to the Defence Colony and return me for the 2nd lot of matches.
I had initially accepted the offer but soon realised that if Left with them at lunch, I wouldn't be able to return for the second lot of matches. But then I realised that there was still no food in the stadium. SO either I could a) stay in the stadium to watch the remaining matches but starve OR b) leave for lunch and miss the second lot of matches.
My hunger headache dictated that I leave for lunch. I retrieved my camera and asked the officials for transport options away from the stadium, and they advised me there was a metro station 800m away. 'Are you alone?', they asked. "Yes', I replied, 'Why - is it not safe to walk?'. 'Yes, very safe, there are soldiers the whole way' they replied (good point - there were soldiers everywhere, even snipers lining the surrounding rooftops), 'It's just a long walk by yourself and you will get lonely!'
I found the metro ok (inhaling a diet coke and chocolate I purchased from a market stall along the way) and disembarked at Connaught Place, a main tourist area. I started walking and a man immediately accosted me, asking me questions about where I was from and where I wanted to go. (I can't walk a step without someone coming up to me, I find it difficult to work out if they're just being polite or not!). "Just a shopping centre", I replied. "I take you to a government shopping centre" he said. I tried to refuse, but he said there was nothing in it for him - he just wanted to practise his English. He ended up taking me on a 20 minute walk to a souvenir type place. Not what I wanted!!
I started to walk back from where I'd come from and kept being 'accompanied' by random Indians to various souvenir places (even if I ducked into an ATM, they'd be waiting for me outside). Eventually I found the tourist area I was looking for and cheered when I found a McDonalds. I wasn't that proud of having McDonalds as my first meal in India, but when you haven't eaten in 8 hours and are in a completely new country, it's nice to have some familiarity. (Random fact: As beef is not eaten in India, there are no Big Macs).
All of the 'Western' shops had security guards in them. If your bag was allowed in the store, it had to be checked first. In most cases you'd had to leave your bag with guards at the front of the store. You have no idea how much security there is here!!
I did a little bit of shopping - I was most excited to find a shop with a wall of jelly shoes, purchasing a pair to replace my pink ones that have fallen to bits. I also finally found a Lonely Planet guide to Delhi and a map, so I had some direction.
I then noticed a sign pointing to an underground market, 'Parlika Bazaar'. O.M.G. I was like being at Patong Beach - counterfeit bags, clothes, electronics - but the salespeople were insane! Every step you took, one would be in your face. "T-shirt Madam?' - 'Handbag for you, Madam?' I walked past another female tourist who took one look at my face and burst out laughing. I must have looked so shocked - and laughed back with her, a mutual understanding of how we felt!
I spent an hour back at the hotel watching the Commonwealth Games coverage before returning out again to explore the local streets for dinner. Stepping out, I felt like I'd entered another world - like entering Ox, or Narnia. The sky was dusty as the sun set and throngs of people were flowing down the dirt paths. I didn't venture too far as it was getting dark (and, being a Monday, most of the shops were shut), and returned without eating. I ended up ordering room service of rice and chapattis, spending the evening planning my days in India and watching the Commonwealth Games (no netball coverage unfortunately; I did notice that almost all of the stadiums were empty though!)
Although I set an alarm, I was awake well before 6:30am, thanks to a night spent clock-watching. I squeezed in a quick breakfast of toast at the 'breakfast buffet' before setting off to the Park Hotel. I had arranged to pick up my tickets at 7:30am from my Aussie sports agent here, as I hadn't been in Australia to collect them. This hotel was a posh 5* hotel with very tight security - in fact, I had to pass through a metal detector and have my bag x-rayed before being allowed to enter,
Tickets collected, my driver then took me to Tyagaraj stadium, home to the netball competition. He had no idea where it was though - in fact, when I'd said I was going to the netball, he'd thought I'd said 'Nepal'. I was finding that Indians really had no idea about the Games - stadiums, sports, or anything. Even when I'd checked in to my hotel they'd asked if I was here for work our a holiday - they seemed surprised when I said the Games! (Interestingly, they refer to it as 'Commonwealth', not 'Commonwealth Games'.
That's when my nightmare started. At the front entrance, the group of guards and officials stopped me. "You can't bring a bag in here". I protested, as both the tickets and the website clearly stated a reasonable size bag was allowed. They played 'pass the parcel' for a while before eventually saying I could pass onto the next security checkpoint but my bag would be confiscated.
100m down the path, I came to the official security entrance. I had to submit my bag to an x-ray whilst I walked through a metal detector and wash then frisked very thoroughly. The x-ray machine beeped and the security guard made me open my bag. "You can't bring a camera in .. or a phone ... you are only allowed a wallet. That's it." I protested again - the terms and conditions of entry did not state they were banned items. Again, the officials played pass the parcel - each time I was told, 'Wait here, we check'. It went from volunteers to guards , supervisors to military and police (could you tell I was the first person in? Since the seats weren't allocated I wanted to make sure I got a good seat, not realising there would be no competition ...). It was obvious they had no idea - India had clearly just thrown people at the games without any training or clue.
"No Madam, you cannot bring your camera in. We cannot take responsibility for it either." Another fight ensured - I was close to tears and booking a flight home rather than an hour of this rubbish. Basically, the list of banned items included everything you could think of. No phones, cameras, flags, backpacks, handbags, coins, keys ... the list went on. The food and drink was the most ridiculous part. You couldn't bring any 'eatables' in, including water - you had to purchase it at the venue. Fine - so when I made it into the venue (camera-less - stored at the info desk - but with bag and mobile), I went to buy a drink of water - but the stalls weren't open. '10 minutes', I was told. I sat in my seat for a while and then jumped up to see if they had opened.
'Where are you going?' said a volunteer. 'I need a drink', I replied. 'I will go and get you one then, please sit down'. She returned later and said, 'Sorry, they're not ready'. By this time, the players were on court, so I settled in for the match. At 1/2 time, a lady I was sitting with went to get a drink. She came back empty-handed - 'they refused to sell me a drink!'. At the match's conclusion, I went out and was finally able to buy a drink. But you cannot take it inside with you - you must drink it outside and then return inside!
On top of the limited drinking facilities (only options were warm coke or water), there were absolutely no eating options. So, you couldn't take any food in, but they had no food for sale. Even worse? The day's session had 2 parts - 9-1 and 3-7, with a 2 hour break for lunch. Except - there was no food at the stadium, and if you left the stadium you weren't permitted to return. Aaah, it makes me made just thinking about it!
Anywayz, onto the match. When I'd arrived at the stadium, 45 minutes before the match started, I had walked in to find - no one there. Seriously, it was embarassing - I was the only spectator.
A few media personnel drifted into the stands opposite me, including Liz Ellis and Luke Darcy, commentating for Channel 10, but I started to think I would be the only spectator there ... Just as the Aussies came on court, 2 Aussies came in. Turned out they are the mother and sister of Kimberlee Green, one of the players. We were also joined by one of the PNG players' mothers, and the 4 of us made up the crowd in a 4,500 seat stadium. (The Greens' father kept sending messages from Aus saying we were on TV - we wouldn't have been hard to spot!)
We were also joined by a couple of the players' partners. One of them sat in front of us and pulled out a camera, snapping photos. We gasped, wondering how we'd smuggled in such a contraband, and waited for him to be pounced on. Quickly, a volunteer came over and spoke to him. He turned back to us and in his Aussie larrikinism said, "Apparently I'm not allowed to sit here (pointing to his seat in the 2nd row) because it's reserved, but I can sit here (pointing to the seat immediately behind him)' (remembering the stadium was completely empty) - but not a single word about the camera!
I had joked prior to leaving Australia that maybe I'd be the only supported there (as Vineet had foretold) and so the Aussie players would see me and recognised me and invite me to join their gold-medal win celebrations - I didn't realise how true this would be!
Following the Aussie match, Sharelle McMahon signed the match used ball and gave it to a little Indian girl. At first, she refused to take it, as her father said she'd been raised not to take things from strangers! She did finally accept it and I explained to her family how lucky she was - I was super jealous! I got speaking with the family, who lived close by and said they had watched the stadium go up brick by brick, and they wanted to see it in use. They were very eager to hear my opinion on the stadium and Delhi (I was very polite!!) I asked for some tips on where to eat at lunch and where the closest ATM was, and they offered to have their driver take me to the Defence Colony and return me for the 2nd lot of matches.
I had initially accepted the offer but soon realised that if Left with them at lunch, I wouldn't be able to return for the second lot of matches. But then I realised that there was still no food in the stadium. SO either I could a) stay in the stadium to watch the remaining matches but starve OR b) leave for lunch and miss the second lot of matches.
My hunger headache dictated that I leave for lunch. I retrieved my camera and asked the officials for transport options away from the stadium, and they advised me there was a metro station 800m away. 'Are you alone?', they asked. "Yes', I replied, 'Why - is it not safe to walk?'. 'Yes, very safe, there are soldiers the whole way' they replied (good point - there were soldiers everywhere, even snipers lining the surrounding rooftops), 'It's just a long walk by yourself and you will get lonely!'
I found the metro ok (inhaling a diet coke and chocolate I purchased from a market stall along the way) and disembarked at Connaught Place, a main tourist area. I started walking and a man immediately accosted me, asking me questions about where I was from and where I wanted to go. (I can't walk a step without someone coming up to me, I find it difficult to work out if they're just being polite or not!). "Just a shopping centre", I replied. "I take you to a government shopping centre" he said. I tried to refuse, but he said there was nothing in it for him - he just wanted to practise his English. He ended up taking me on a 20 minute walk to a souvenir type place. Not what I wanted!!
I started to walk back from where I'd come from and kept being 'accompanied' by random Indians to various souvenir places (even if I ducked into an ATM, they'd be waiting for me outside). Eventually I found the tourist area I was looking for and cheered when I found a McDonalds. I wasn't that proud of having McDonalds as my first meal in India, but when you haven't eaten in 8 hours and are in a completely new country, it's nice to have some familiarity. (Random fact: As beef is not eaten in India, there are no Big Macs).
All of the 'Western' shops had security guards in them. If your bag was allowed in the store, it had to be checked first. In most cases you'd had to leave your bag with guards at the front of the store. You have no idea how much security there is here!!
I did a little bit of shopping - I was most excited to find a shop with a wall of jelly shoes, purchasing a pair to replace my pink ones that have fallen to bits. I also finally found a Lonely Planet guide to Delhi and a map, so I had some direction.
I then noticed a sign pointing to an underground market, 'Parlika Bazaar'. O.M.G. I was like being at Patong Beach - counterfeit bags, clothes, electronics - but the salespeople were insane! Every step you took, one would be in your face. "T-shirt Madam?' - 'Handbag for you, Madam?' I walked past another female tourist who took one look at my face and burst out laughing. I must have looked so shocked - and laughed back with her, a mutual understanding of how we felt!
I spent an hour back at the hotel watching the Commonwealth Games coverage before returning out again to explore the local streets for dinner. Stepping out, I felt like I'd entered another world - like entering Ox, or Narnia. The sky was dusty as the sun set and throngs of people were flowing down the dirt paths. I didn't venture too far as it was getting dark (and, being a Monday, most of the shops were shut), and returned without eating. I ended up ordering room service of rice and chapattis, spending the evening planning my days in India and watching the Commonwealth Games (no netball coverage unfortunately; I did notice that almost all of the stadiums were empty though!)
Post a Comment