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Published: December 21st 2006
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Kids Concert and Old Delhi
A couple more day excursions in Delhi, we had a great morning by India Gate, a massive war Memorial to all the indian soldiers killed in various wars, but the real treat was watching a kids concert in a park nearby. We looked at the memorial but could here loud music and assumed it was a wedding, but went to investigate. There was a small open auditorium in a kids park where a band were playing music. The audience was all primary school aged kids all seemingly on school trips, and we were the only whites in the audience, and of course created a bit of a stir. An organser came up to us and said it was an NGO who organise things for 'street kids', the beggars and the kids who come to your car window at junctions trying to sell bits and pieces, or who do a few somorsaults and bang a drum in the hope of a few rupees. Sure enough when you looked closely a proportion of the kids were a bit scruffier than a lot in the audience in their school uniforms. The show however was brilliant, dancing and music,
espiecilly a group of girls who really danced with attitude. It was a real treat to experience. I now wish we had got the name of the organisation (although it was sponsored by Marut Suzuki, and we all had to shout Suzuki (presumably as thanks for the sponsors...)
Next we went to Delhi Old town which was brilliant, busy back streets, another wedding, seemingly the groom on a cart pulled by oxen, through the tny back streets. The cart was tall and ornate, and a guy had to walk buy the side with a big stick with a cross piece on top, his job to move the milions of cables dangling down the midle of the alley ways so the cart could fit through..Shops as usual selling anything and eevrything, but in groups, we explored the jewelry street and the wedding paraphanalia street, and ventured down the odd back alley off a back alley off a back alley....Here was really no hassle, and we didn't cause the stir that we sometimes do. I think people were used to westerners, and were getting about their daily business. Returning to our car, to a parking fine (Arun our driver seemed a bit
embarressed, but actually it was fantastic as the car had been movede to exactly where we came out of a subway, so a 300rp fine was worth it...
Royal Enfield
Ok I like motorbikes....
Famous in the biking world (well famous to some) is the Indian Royal Enfield...Basically years and years ago Motorcycles were made by Royal Enfield under licence in India. Of course in Britain as the Japenese motorcycle took over from the British, Royal Enfield in Britain, went bust, stopped manufacturing etc etc. In India things just carried on, and there is a factory today producing 1950's basically British style single cylinder motorbikes. They are fantastic
Some new ones are exported to Britain, but better still is a man who reconditions them and exports, and I went to visit with ian and his friend Geoff, for a boys afternoon out.
Backstreets full of bike shops, and we saw around his cellar and were shown two 'new' models a 'scrambler' and 'cafe racer' Steve Maqueen, James Dean, and Marlon Brando eat your heart out. Chrome, moe chrome and leather seats...all for wait for it...less than 1000 pounds to Great Britain
Of course the brakes
Which is older ??
The bike or the biker will be crap, the suspension crap, the steering crap, the electrics crap but all that crapness goes up to make one fantastic motorcycle. They also organise trips biking around India...
By the way as it was the same company who made rifles (Enfield) the 350 singles are called 'Bullets'
Sorry getting carried away here..................................
Agra and the Taj Mahal
A 4:30am start, well I suppose this doeasn't class as a holiday, caught the 6:20 train to Agra to go and see the Taj Mahal. We decided to go posh and booked a night in a fancy hotel with a swimming pool (Talitha had been wanting a swim since we arrived in India) and we were picked up at the train station and had a local guide. As Anne said, its not everyday you visit the Taj, so why not.?
Conseqently we arrived worn out, so crashed for a wee while at the hotel, before being picked to visit the Taj. Going the whole tourist hog, we took a horse and carriage from the car park (motorised vehcles being banned from a kilometre from the Taj grounds in an attempt to keep smog down it seems to
work..)
Words cannot really do the building justice, a work of beauty and symetry the vastness and scale meaning the crowds do not really spoil the experience. It was pleasing to see more Indian visitors than westerners, and colourful saris cotrasted beautifully with the white marble, which had the same effect as snow or sea in the sun in giving you sunburn...
The Taj was built by a mogul king (Taj) as a memorial to his wife who died. She must have been some woman.!
The marble it is carved ou of is transluscent and so are some of the semi precious stones which make up the in lays, this was shown to us in the dark inside by torchlight which shone through the rock.
Words don't really do it justice, all I can say is that all the guide books say it is a fantastic as all the guide books say it is...and it is.
We also visited the Red Fort, which had monkeys and a grat view of the Taj in the distance and lots and lots of stunning rooms and collanades and tombs and a huge moat around it which was empty but
Taj Mahal
It is as beautiful as the books say it is...... in its hey day was full of human eating creatures.. It was all a bit of an architectural cultural and archeological blur, and in true Indian fashion, an incredible contrast to the seemingly organised chaos of everyday life here.
After collapsing at the hotel where I hardly had any energy to eat dinner, we decided to have an easier next day. There was a kids club who would entertain Talitha and Ronan for a couple of hours which we took advantage of, realising that we had really been together as a whole family pretty much constantly since leaving Skye. Lazing by the pool for the morning gave us energy to visit Akbars Mausoleum at Sikandra 12 km from Agra. Another beautiful building, this time in peaceful parkland filled with palm trees and grazing antelope. The main tomb itself was situated in a large domed dark room with incredible reverberating acoustics, demonstrated by a guy who keeps an eye on it who shouts hello which booms and echos around the room. His eyes came out on stalks when Anne gave a short burst of a couple of songs...
Another lazy couple of hours at the hotel before a getting
Taj Mahal
From the Red Fort in Agra in evening light the train back, made a little more adventurous by having a puncture on the way to the station, but luckily we had bags of time to change a wheel and catch the train, back to Delhi late that night whee at the train station saw an amazing site of maybe 100 perhaps even 200 people all wrapped up in blankets asleep on the ground tightly packed together. Whether they were waiting for a train, or rickshaw wallas or what I don;t know, but it is amazing how ften at night you come across a bundle of blankets (Incuding one bundled up half way up the steps to the bridge across the tracks in the station...) with someone fast asleep wrapped up inside, but I'd never seen what was basicaly a crowd asleep.
By the time we arrived back to our 'home' in Delhi, I reckon I could have slept on the street...
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Hilary Prall
non-member comment
I can just feel that sunshine!
Hello one and all. Looks like you're seeing some wonderful sights out there and in all that sunshine! Trust all are well now. Christmas here will be freezing fog and lots of disappointed , stressed out travellers - don't know if you've see the Uk news. We'll be joining them tomorrow when we go to visit grandparents. Wishing you all a great Christmas and one I'm sure you'll remember. Cheers! Hilary