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<\/p>\nIndia:\u00a0 Part II<\/p>\n
As my flight approached Delhi, India, the thoughts in my head began racing back to 2004 when I experienced culture shock for the first time. Being nervous, I was optimistic as I had a couple things in my favor that I didn\u2019t have 20 years prior.\u00a0 That being technology with our phones and apps, and my experience over the past 20 years traveling to quite a few countries.\u00a0 I took comfort in that as the plane landed and pulled up to the gate.<\/p>\n
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The last time I exited the Delhi Airport I was instantly mobbed by a crowd of taxi drivers pulling at my luggage and quoting me absurd prices for a ride to the hotel.\u00a0 This time was much different, and although there were Ubers, I chose to hire a taxi from the government taxi stand.\u00a0 Other than a few obvious scams I was not bothered by anyone at all.\u00a0 It was quite a refreshing change, and after a 45-minute ride I was dropped off at my hotel where I could relax and slowly take in Delhi in a way I was not allowed to 20 years ago.<\/p>\n
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With memories still lingering from my previous experience in this country I knew that the best way to overcome them was to embrace the culture, not shy away from it. For my first day in India I would take a local bus.\u00a0 This would not only force me to get over these haunting feelings from the past but enable me to gain my confidence in the most effective way possible. The bus was crowded, but not too overwhelming.\u00a0 It was a 30-cent ride versus a $3 Uber.<\/p>\n
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With my renewed confidence in my ability to navigate through this beautiful but chaotic city, the following day I chose to take the subway to Iqbal Motors<\/a>, the company we were renting our Royal Enfield Himalayans from.\u00a0 The train was a bit more crowded than the bus.\u00a0 To the point when I finally found the correct subway (on my third try, but hey I was learning so I went easy on myself) I really had to squeeze into the subway car.\u00a0 It was a tight fit but not that bad, until the doors opened at the next stop.\u00a0 Not fully paying attention the next thing I knew I was thrown about 15 feet from the train and was well onto the platform before I realized I had to fight crowds to make it back onto the train prior to it leaving. Not wanting that to happen again I fought my way to the center of the car and faced towards the doors that would open for my stop.\u00a0 Now it was my turn. As soon as the doors opened I crouched down into a sort of rugby scrum stance and pushed with all my might in order to exit the car.\u00a0 Success! I was out and just a few blocks from Iqbal Motors.<\/p>\n I was excited to finally meet Iqbal at his shop and check out our new 2025 Royal Enfield Himalayans. The bikes were beautiful and the communication over the previous two months with Iqbal on fine tuning our needs for gear, schedules, and overall itinerary made an otherwise challenging rental easy.\u00a0 I knew we made the right decision as soon as I met him. I cannot say enough good things about Iqbal and his motorcycle rental company.<\/p>\n Upon saddling up on the Himalayan and taking the bike out for a short blast I instantly understood why this was the chosen motorcycle for India.\u00a0 All my apprehensions and anxiety about this trip melted away as I zipped through traffic in Delhi.\u00a0 I was officially excited and ready to spend the next three weeks (or longer) on my new steed. \u00a0\u00a0My friends were set to arrive in two days and I was ready to begin this motorcycle adventure through the crowded, yet mystical country of India.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/20250203_091334-600.jpg\")
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