india, oct 06, part 2

arriving in kashmir
on a drizzly afternoon
serene dal lake
sits besides the mountains
their peaks blurred by grey mist
its dark waters
littered with fanciful houseboats
and choked with lotus plants
while shikaras quietly flow by

a quiet beauty
uglified
by soldiers
by guardposts
by army trucks
by checkpoints
everywhere

a country torn apart
by the militants’ bombs
by the army’s bullets
killing innocents
thousands have died
and many are still dying
the poor live in tatters
with scarce work, food, money

the children still smile
the children still laugh
the shadow of death remains
they just want their
country back
they just want to play
with no fear

india,oct 06, part 1

landing in delhi
on a hot and dusty afternoon
the smog filled the air
the sky could not be seen
the streets were clogged full
of cars, scooters, rickshaws
and creaky buses from days gone
all fighting, honking to get ahead

human masses were everywhere
rubbish lined the streets
roadside carts dished out rice and dhall
bones-sticking-out cows ambled along
connaught place bustled
with the young and trendy
in mcdonalds, kfc, cafes
feasting on vege burgers
chandhi chowk was
a mess of traffic, people, cows
and the temples filled with the faithfuls
and the fried pakoras in oil-filled woks
and the lime juice carts
and the sellers hawking stuff
and the rickshaw drivers that took you nowhere
but emporiums where they could get a commission
the metro zoomed, clean and slick
an underground of peace
karol bagh was bright and neon-lighty
with indian delis, pizza hut, mcdonalds
and budget hotels
and well-fed ladies in sarees streamed
into shops, stockful with clothes
and wedding jewelry

street dwellers
poor, forgotten, abandoned
slept, ate, drank on roadsides
their young ones
palms stretched out
pestering, but faces smiling

india
at first glance
is a shock
a shock of rich and poor
a shock of dirty and clean
a shock of packed roads
a shock of cows and humanity
a shock of dhall and vege burgers
a shock of little ones, homeless