'Dilli' doo-do!!

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Woah, what a mad place....

My plane arrived 15 minutes early in to Delhi, and I was through and out the other side with my bag within 30 minutes- Joe met me at the gates and well, I can confirm that you do not get arrested if seen kissing in a public place! :-) He had a taxi waiting outside, and we headed straight for the hotel, but which time we had both completely melted in the 40-something degree heat.

Delhi is a total mad place, so noisy, dusty, but no where near the smell that I had been expecting.. though I'm told that I was lucky to arrive the day after bin-day and that the day before it had made Joe gag!! Its just completely manic, cows wandering the streets, sensory over-load with smells (food and other) as well as plenty of colour... and the NOISE! ...people shouting to sell you things; drinks, bags, fans, "Where do you come from?/ Near London?/When did you arrive?/Will you sign this petition?" Autorickshaws, flying past and the sound of constant tooting of horns!

Being very excited and having recovered from my flight I woke up at about 6am (ish).. and annoyed Joe out of bed and on the back of an Autorickshaw to go and see the Red Fort. I had read somewhere that it was open from sunrise to sun set, so thought it would be a great opportunity to see it before the temperature got too high.. It was a crazy experience to be watching the city wake up, particluarly the street people, rising from their resting place on the pavements, or standing on the side of the road having their morning pee. How lucky we are...

Red Fort was pretty empty when we got there, the bizarre wasn't open yet and there was just the occassional Indian tourists, making the most of the morning breeze. Inside the fort walls there is usually a highly recommended bizarre, with chai shops, and a number of internal buildings, with bathhouse and museum.. didn't manage to get in to many of these, but did see some chipmunck type creature's messing about by one of the buildings, and playing under a fig tree... leaving there we were fought over by the next crowd of rickshaw drivers before heading back..

We spend a couple of days in Delhi, taking things pretty slow as the heat dictates, sitting in rooftop cafe's, drinking plenty of masala chai and watching the streets below. The children all go out on the roofs in the early evening, and across the roofs you can see them flying their kites above the skyline.. There is also loads of red kite-type of bird (but not red) that circle overhead throughout the day.. and the cows - there is plenty of cows!!

We walked back to Pahraganj from Connaught Place on our last day there, and got caught in a massive downpour - at first it was so refreshing, and the local rickshaw drivers were laughing at these strange English people, loving the rain... but I must admit, after we had reached the opposite end of the Pahraganj to our hotel, and my skirt was completely polka-dotted in poo, I wasn't quite so amused!! Seeked refuge in a covered rooftop cafe, and watched the centre of the Pahraganj get flooded, then caught the bus to take us north... but that is the next installment...

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Photos

View from our rooftop cafe
slightly less cows than usual here.. but you get the idea.