Stephanie experience on Delhi and rest....

Each day for me brings a new adventure, and waking up each morning, I really have no idea of what will lay ahead of me for the day. I was invited to the Delhi Gymkhana Club by a Vanderbilt alum named Dr. Lalvani who did his fellowship at the Vanderbilt Medical School in the 90s. The Delhi Gymkhana Club is a relic of India’s colonial past, started by the British nearly a century ago. Nowadays it is one of the most elite clubs in Delhi, something akin to an American country club. Dr. Lalvani told me that he had been on a waiting list for 20 years to join this club. This experience showed me a completely different side of India, that of wealth, power, and opportunity. Dr. Lalvani, who is an ophthalmologist, invited one of his female colleagues to have lunch with us, and I asked her what her experiences had been as a woman in India. For her, she had none of the restrictions on her freedom that I had witnessed in the village of Hathoj. She explained to me that the main difference between what I had witnessed and her experiences was the difference between the rural and urban environments. India, as often described, is a land of contrasts, and I am certainly seeing that during my time here.Coming into this experience, I never would have imagined I would have lunch at such an exclusive institution in India or that on the same day a terrorist attack would rock Delhi. That evening 5 bombs exploded in crowded, touristy areas, planted by a Muslim extremist group that has also been responsible for several other blasts throughout the country. I had been to most of the places where the bombs were planted only a day before. Being so close to an incident of terrorism was a new experience for me, and one I hope to not repeat. However, this incident was barely mentioned in the international press, which made me aware of how much in the world we will never know about because it is not deemed newsworthy enough, even if that event resulted in the loss of many lives. Another part of me is happy that this situation was not made into a huge deal by the international press because that is only providing more legitimacy to the group and creating more of the atmosphere of terror that such groups and acts are meant to foster. Luckily, all of the other bombs that had been planted in the city were defused, including a bomb that had been planted at a children’s play area. While this incident showed me hatred in its crudest form, India overall has only shown me hospitality in its purest form.My time in India is drawing to a close. Tomorrow I fly to Chennai to spend three days in southern India before flying to Singapore. India has elicited a variety of emotions in me, from frustration and anger to extreme joy and happiness and every feeling in between. After nearly two months in India, I have come to a greater understanding of the culture and people, and even had the opportunity to see some amazing places along the way (like the Taj Mahal!) I know that India has definitely left an impression on me, and as I continue on my travels, I will draw upon the lessons about freedom and life that I have learned here.
As told by Stephanie