A Tale Of Two E-Rickshaws

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Abstract

2/resize:fit:800/1*oZXomqDbPo2htF0POICh6A.jpeg"><figcaption>The Metro took us to the mall.</figcaption></figure>A Metro ride took us to a very posh part of town, The DLF Mall of India. The mall has a very different vibe from the “outside.”Inside, we found brands and names we’d only seen in gifts from my sis-in-law and brother from the US. I was impressed, but thanks to the generous gifting from my family, I gave the name brands a miss. My wallet must have sighed with relief.<figure id="3d95"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*dcqGOYO8RcrBGqheGQonkg.jpeg"><figcaption>The posh DLF Mall of India</figcaption></figure>The mall was a whole new world. It felt like I had been transported to a mall in Florida my brother took us to. Seriously, it was kind of disconcerting. I didn’t know there was THIS MUCH money in India to spend on malls and in malls. Shops like Superdry, Brooks Brothers, Sephora, and Starbucks enticed Indians to spend, spend and spend.Inside the mall, it was airconditioned to the gills, but the top floor, which was the only floor where we

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spent any money — we ate lunch here — was as hot as Hades. Cooks and cash counter clerks struggled to keep up with the demand as tempers as well as temperatures rose.<figure id="278e"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*WcfJb85ZShzCe6hxASTcqw.jpeg"><figcaption>The e-rickshaw takes you to the nearest Metro station for Rs. 20 per person. Photo by the author.</figcaption></figure>We exited the mall for our trip to the opposite side of the National Capital Region, Gurgaon, which is in Haryana.I saw these futuristic e-rickshaws and decided to ride to the Metro instead of walking in the heat. We paid by pointing our phones at a QR code, and the driver took us off on a noiseless drive to the nearest Metro station.Delhi is hot, harsh, and very commercial. Nobody has any time for anybody else and everyone is rude unless they have something to sell, which is kind of worse! It was like a splash of very cold water on the face.Come to think of it, the temperature was 108 in the shade… maybe the cold water splash isn’t the best analogy!</article></body>

A New Delhi photo story

An e-rickshaw that we took at night after some vegetable shopping. Photo by the author.

During our Delhi trip, I was taken by the kinds of three-wheelers we see in Delhi. Some run on CNG — compressed natural gas, while others are battery-powered.

This picture is of an e-rickshaw which we took in Ghaziabad. Technically in India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, Ghaziabad borders New Delhi but is considered part of NCR — the National Capital Region.

This is an up-and-coming part of town, with a number of new buildings and flats, and more people than any Westerner could ever imagine. Just give up already. Or wait… think of Disneyland during Thanksgiving Week and multiply by three.

Just kidding! Look at the pictures for the real story of how “crowded” India really is.

The Metro took us to the mall.

A Metro ride took us to a very posh part of town, The DLF Mall of India. The mall has a very different vibe from the “outside.”

Inside, we found brands and names we’d only seen in gifts from my sis-in-law and brother from the US. I was impressed, but thanks to the generous gifting from my family, I gave the name brands a miss. My wallet must have sighed with relief.

The posh DLF Mall of India

The mall was a whole new world. It felt like I had been transported to a mall in Florida my brother took us to. Seriously, it was kind of disconcerting. I didn’t know there was THIS MUCH money in India to spend on malls and in malls. Shops like Superdry, Brooks Brothers, Sephora, and Starbucks enticed Indians to spend, spend and spend.

Inside the mall, it was airconditioned to the gills, but the top floor, which was the only floor where we spent any money — we ate lunch here — was as hot as Hades. Cooks and cash counter clerks struggled to keep up with the demand as tempers as well as temperatures rose.

The e-rickshaw takes you to the nearest Metro station for Rs. 20 per person. Photo by the author.

We exited the mall for our trip to the opposite side of the National Capital Region, Gurgaon, which is in Haryana.

I saw these futuristic e-rickshaws and decided to ride to the Metro instead of walking in the heat. We paid by pointing our phones at a QR code, and the driver took us off on a noiseless drive to the nearest Metro station.

Delhi is hot, harsh, and very commercial. Nobody has any time for anybody else and everyone is rude unless they have something to sell, which is kind of worse! It was like a splash of very cold water on the face.

Come to think of it, the temperature was 108 in the shade… maybe the cold water splash isn’t the best analogy!