In Delhi

I was delighted to see how well Margi seems. The morning of my arrival she had just had chemo #5 (she promises to post to the blog about this soon), which went smoothly. She was bright-eyed and luminous, just as she has always been. And not even skinny! She's been eating well, and is normal weight.

In Delhi she stays in her room to rest and recuperate, and it's obviously good for her to do that here. It's true what I've been told: Delhi is hot, dusty and crowded. But I've had kind guides (Jennifer and Carolyn) to take me places the last two days. Jennifer flew home night before last. I was very happy to meet her.

This evening Margi and I depart on the night train to the town at the foot of the Himalayas where the train ends. When we get there tomorrow morning, there will be a taxi (already arranged) to take us up to Dharamsala. For the first few days we'll stay at the home of her friend Angus, then transfer to a guesthouse in the town. I'm looking forward to pine forest inhabited by monkeys, cooler weather, and natural beauty at Angus's. Carolyn leaves Delhi in a couple of days to visit friends at a monastery. We'll see her again around June 8, when we return to Delhi.

I've actually enjoyed - in a hot, sweaty kind of way - seeing some of Delhi, experiencing several autorickshaw rides (the drivers truly do believe they're immortal, and it's best for the passengers to adopt the same attitude), visiting the Red Fort and the Rajgat, being viewed myself as a tourist attraction (Indians kept sidling up at the Rajgat and asking to take pictures of themselves with me - something about my height, gray hair and fierce face, I guess), and having some wonderful Indian food. Most of all, it's great to see how far Margi has come since the diagnosis.