A day in Delhi.

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Day fifteen started early, we only had one full day in Delhi and we wanted to see as much as we could so we hopped in a tuk tuk and headed towards the red fort. The area our hotel was in was not the most inviting and I was excited to see some more of India, though my first impressions were of crushing traffic and noise interspersed with flashes of bright fruit, dogs and carts pulled by humped white cows. Arriving at the red fort it looked an imposing sight, all crenelated red walls on the top of a hill but were then informed that it was closed on Mondays so that was all I saw of it. A man offered to show us where the markets were nearby and, like it or not, it seemed he would be our guide for the day. Although I was sceptical at first he turned out to be exactly what we needed and stayed with us all day showing us interesting sights and spots that we would never have found on our own.

First we wandered around the markets, the whole area was crushed full of people and animals and all manner of vehicles from hand carts and rickshaws to motorbikes, chickens sat in cages and shopkeepers called from the doorways of shops offering all sorts of nik naks to us. Our guide took us down a little street which seemed like an oasis of calm, there was a puppy playing around our feet and a bright blue studded iron door which he invited us to try and open - it was extremely heavy! Apparently those buildings had been there for hundreds of years, since everything else around had just been jungle, and the door was so hefty to keep leopards and tigers out.

He also took us through the spice markets, it smelled amazing and everywhere you looked there were sacks overflowing with colourful spices. At one point we must have passed the chilli sellers and I could not stop sneezing! He took us up a dingy flight of stairs and out onto the roof of the building, we got a great view of the city - well, as far as we could see through the ever present smog anyway. It struck me that Delhi seemed older again than the other cities we've visited, all the hustle and bustle seemed more permanent and ingrained into the architecture.

Our last stop was a little tailors shop, we tried on sari's and instantly fell in love with them - I opted for red with embroidery and little silver bits all over it. Alice's mum offered to buy one for each of us, and the tailor took our measurements and we left with a promise of a delivery to our hotel that evening. Delhi was an exhausting place and we decided to head back to the hotel for a rest. I think the sheer amount of sights to constantly process was more exhausting than the walking itself! I also came across my first Kathiawari horse; a breed I've always been fascinated with for their unique curled ears, and all the history they've been a part of.

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Photos

Side streets in Delhi.
The electrics are about as convoluted as the roads!

Look at those ears!
A Kathiawari horse - this one was a police horse named Prince.