It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God (Matt.19:24).
If this really is the case, then the contents of my bowels over the past few days will see salvation far earlier than that camel. *It happened: I was hit by Delhi Belly. Surviving on a diet of electrolytes and Marie Gold biscuits, I'm finally ready to tackle real food again. Whether I'm fit to tackle Indian food is another matter.It hasn't helped that I've been having a mare finding a place to live. Up until yesterday I had found a couple of flats on the other side of the city, but they would have been a bit of a pain to commute from. The best located flat was occupied by French party animals who are seemingly out every night. "Do you like party?" they enquired. I said 'Yes…', although my Mark Corrigan inner monologue was quick to add "…but not every single night. Like Danny Glover says in every single Lethal Weapon film "I'm getting too old for this s***"). Yesterday, however, was a revelation.The first flat I saw during the day is in the same area as the French Libertines. The room is small, but clean, and everything's included - rates, satellite TV (which I won't use, but it's nice to have), laundry. Hell, the guy will even let me make long distance phone calls for free. It's definitely a good place. His wife's from Heald Green - what are the chances of that!? But then in the evening, I got the feeling only a guest at the Ambassador's reception would experience after the Ferrero Rochers were wheeled out. A flat in the embassy region of Delhi. Polished stone everywhere. Huge bedroom - large enough to fit a living room suite and a double bed. My own big private bathroom. 32-inch TV, sound system, air con throughout, great flatmate. And the price? No rent. No rates. Only have to pay for my use of the maid (No, not like that you dirty people). It's a palace and I want it to be my palace. Waiting to hear back from the person living there. Ideally she wanted a girl sharing. I may have to play the 'metrosexual' card yet. If needs be, I'll do a Tootsie.Work-wise I haven't really done much. I've finished the second draft of a brochure promoting the company's range of recycled paper. Still waiting for feedback. On the 22nd, we celebrated World Earth Day (you may have seen the cartoon advertising it on the Google Search Engine). The event was held in Dilli Haat, are touristy market where you can buy a range of craft items and eat food from every area of India. Despite the fact the event was held in the late afternoon, it was hot, and I couldn't down the drinks fast enough. One tip: salted lassi is neither refreshing or nice. Don't let people convince you otherwise. We were joined by a bunch of school groups, each having created climate change placards to show off to the people around them and the state's Chief Minister was also putting in an appearance. All of us were wearing specially printed t-shirts and caps for the day, the latter I begrudgingly wore. I'm not a hat person, especially a white cap with a red peak. I don't want to look ill. I'm A1. I'm all clear.In the end, it was a bit of a fiasco. The Chief Minister was a no show, however the Secretary for the Environment did appear in her place. The most disturbing thing was the lack of heart shown by some of the kids. I should've known something was up when they refused to clap for the live band they'd brought in. I thought they were just showing good taste - soft rock's not my thing either. But when they left to go home, the amount of litter that was strewn across the rows of seats was pretty disgusting. You could tell this was nothing more than a school project to some of them. I felt a little downhearted. Then a girl interrupted the band to stand on the stage, grab the mic and point out all the rubbish. How they had to take the message on-board and live it, not just do it for the sake of it. That was good and inspiring. I did feel a little embarrassed because I didn't get up there and say something. Still, would they take notice of a foreigner? It might have been seen to be a little inappropriate. My second inspiring moment was to hear the head of DA speak to a group of visiting students about the company and his own history. Dr Ashok Khosla is a nuclear physicist by profession, president of the Club of Rome, and was one of the first people to work on climate change back in the 1960s and was also one of the first to set up an enterprise to promote social entrepreneurs in the 1980s. He taught Al Gore about Climate Change when Al was just a student. He's worked on three different continents. And he sounds a little bit like Brain from Pinky and the Brain.I doubt he's trying to take over the world, but he probably could if he set his mind to it.