Oh Dear Delhi

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Well, we landed in Delhi with much anticipation, looking forward to what was now going to be a very truncated trip to India. For those of you that don’t know, probably by the time you read this we will be home. We have decided that Asia is just too big and, at the moment, too flippin hot to continue on so we decided to cut short this first part of our adventure and return home for the glorious English summer before heading back out next winter to try to see some of the wonderful places we have missed. It is also true that, and surprisingly for Chris, we have really missed our family and friends at home. Unfortunately due to a family bereavement we have had to chop our stay in India down even further, but I think the truth about family being the most important thing is reinforced by a long absence.

So “Delhi Baby”, somewhere Chris swore he’d never return to when he left last time with a nasty bought of “Delhi Belly”, but time has mellowed those thoughts and even he was excited by the prospect of seeing Connaught Place, India Gate and all, again. We’d decided, as it was the end of the trip and it was India, we’d go up market and stay in a 5* hotel and we chose the Park Inn because of its location close to the centre. We arrived quite late, checked in quickly and sank into a lovely, huge soft bed. The next morning it was off out to explore, Chris had been waxing lyrical about CP and it’s cafes & restaurants so, keen to show Lisa, we stepped outside and wow, it was like walking into a furnace. 42 degrees and a searing hot wind literally peeled the skin from our faces. The smell of Delhi immediately assaulted the senses but we soldiered on. Wait a minute, where is CP. To our horror, that lovely oasis in the centre of the city (and for a tourist the best place in Delhi) was being ripped up. The roads were all dug up, the shops, cafes, bars and businesses were all closed, the buildings were being torn down and there were huge manholes, trenches and loose hanging electrical wires everywhere. In short, the whole of the centre of Delhi was a complete building site. Oooops, this could be a long few days now that the ‘tourist bolt hole’ wasn’t available. We found out later that all the building work was being done in advance of October’s Commonwealth Games, but if the progress was anything to go by I’d be gobsmacked if it’s completed in the next 100 days. We’ll see. We tried to explore a bit more, walked through a few markets, whilst trying to avoid the numerous helpful folk wanting to ‘practice’ their English - oh we weren’t falling for that old trick!!!

One of the must see places for a Brit in Delhi is the Imperial Hotel, just to walk inside you get transported back to a bygone age where everything was, well, different. Walking into the lobby you are immediately struck by the calm elegance, the understated beauty makes you forget for a brief period the madness just outside the gates. A walk through the corridors admiring the artwork adorning almost every space is a real treat. We left feeling glad we hadn’t booked in here, we really wouldn’t have wanted to lower the tone of this lovely space with 9 months of travel mess.

On the way back to our hotel we popped into the Jantar Mantar, a curious series of structures that is supposed to measure both time and space very accurately. Built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur, from 1724 onwards, it is a collection of instruments that predict the time and movements of the sun, moon and planets. These aren’t your common garden sundials, these structures are huge, and would be even more impressive had the money from the restoration budget actually paid for any restoration. The main instrument is the 70ft tall Samrat Yantra, or Supreme Instrument, and is a giant triangle that is basically an equal hour sundial. But like the other instruments, such as the Jayaprakash and the Mishra Yantras, which were once used to perform very accurate astrological measurements, most of the interesting bits have worn away and it’s a struggle to admire anything other than the size. Given how little has been spent on the Taj Mahal, we’re not holding too much hope of investment being available any time soon.

That evening we took a stroll through the municipal building site to find a restaurant recommended by Rough Guide, Lonely Planet and a few others. Finally we found the place and after one look through the window and the pots of boiling botulism, dollops of butter chicken adorning the floor and the waiter wiping his hands on his trousers we were persuaded that we were asking for trouble if we believed the guides this time. Finally we found a nice vegetarian restaurant (always the safer option) and attempted to order something which wouldn’t remove the lining from our mouths or stomachs.

Because of our limited time and the heat we had decided to tour the city the next day in a taxi organised by the hotel. By the time we started the journey we had already been informed the price had risen from 1000 to 1200 rupees overnight (quite an inflation rate) and the driver would add 100 rupees on for every hour after 5 we were still out and every Km we did over 80. Fair enough, well we thought it was until he started driving. Luckily the ability of westerners to read and follow a map came in handy as he tried to drive from the northernmost site on our tour to the southernmost then back again. Incredible, why do Asian taxi drivers have to be con artists, have to lie, cheat and steal at every opportunity? We actually would have given the bloke a decent tip had he simply provided us with a service but 10 years ago India was full of corrupt, lying, cheating scam artists, and nothing much seems to have changed now.

Back to the tour, we headed of to the magnificent India Gate, the centre of Delhi, and a magnificent and poignant monument to those Indians who gave their lives, often for Britain, in the numerous conflicts they have been a part of. India Gate is at the heart of the part of Delhi that feels distinctly British, wide promenades and the Rajpath winding on down to the Parliament Building , Government House and the President’s estate. Next we headed off to the Raj Ghat, this was the final resting place of Mahatma Ghandi, the father of the Nation, and very much like his life it is a very simple, calm, serene place that by its very nature forces you to consider life from a different angle. Amazing how a person’s influence can remain long after his passing, but I guess that is the sign of a great man. From here we headed off to the Red Fort, a huge Mughal fort standing on the banks of the River Yamuna, once home to Mughal emperor Shahjahan who moved India’s capital to Delhi. You enter here and you can easily see what it once was, the splendour of days gone by but again when Chris visited 10 years ago your entrance fee was supposed to be paying for the restoration & preservation of the fort, it’s buildings and it’s grounds but, funny old thing, nothing has changed in 10 years except possibly the waistlines of the officials in charge of the project. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a splendid building, not quite up with the Red Fort in Agra, but definitely worth a visit, but it could be so much more. Oh yes, and foreigners have to pay 25 times what the locals pay for entry.

From here we wandered across the road to the Masjid Jamek, when I say wandered we actually took a cycle rickshaw, too good an opportunity not to try out another form of transport, and when we got there the driver told us it was closed for prayers. Oh yes heard that one before, so we paid the 20 pence fare and headed on in before getting told officially that it was closed for prayers - blimey an honest taxi driver. So we walked down the road and hopped into a motorised rickshaw, another tick, but why when we had a taxi, ah that’s because our taxi driver decided that he couldn’t be bothered to find a closer parking space or to come and pick us up at a pre-arranged time - nice.

Onwards, to somewhere we nearly didn’t put on our itinerary because it was a little way out but boy would we have missed a treat. Well actually that is understating it completely because Swaminarayan Akshardham, to give it it’s correct name, is without a doubt the most magnificent building we have seen since Angkor Wat. It’s only a few years old, it opened in 2005 and took only 5 years to construct but it was built using traditional methods and the craftsmanship is phenomenal. Over 11,000 craftsmen were used to build this unbelievable temple. It’s built using traditional techniques and it shows, the carvings are exquisite and the detail amazing. Unfortunately none of the guides or people we spoke to eulogised over this place so we hadn’t left nearly enough time to do it justice. If you come, then allow yourself at least ½ a day to immerse yourself in the beauty and serenity of this modern miracle. At the heart of this Hindu temple is the beautiful Mandir, built without steel, it consists of 234 ornately carved pillars, 9 flamboyant domes and is covered top to bottom with carved details of flora, fauna, dancers, musicians, and deities. The Mandir is a fusion of pink stone and pure white marble, where pink stone symbolizes bhakti in eternal bloom and white marble that of absolute purity and eternal peace. It sits on a plinth of wonderfully carved elephants, reminiscent of Angkor Tom in Cambodia, there are 148 in total and apparently weighs 3000 tonnes. We didn’t have time to see the Hall of Values and the Boat Ride through India’s 10,000 year history but a walk through the Lotus garden, which contains words from notables through the years, engenders a real sense of peace, a lovely feeling. All too soon we had to leave but if we do find ourselves in Delhi again (although Lisa is adamant that she wont be going back), this is the first place we’d head for.

Back in the taxi we headed off to our next destination, or we thought we did, because the taxi driver decided that to waste some time, or use up some more kms, he would go to somewhere we didn’t want to go in completely the opposite direction to where we needed to be. Incredible, what they don’t seem to realise is that westerners can read a map and realise when we are going the wrong way. The fallback of “No Speekie Englissssh” then comes out to play, cheating barstewards!!! Finally we arrived at Qutub Minar, one of the most photographed sights in Delhi.

The Qutub Minar, located in South Delhi, was built by Qutb-ud-din Aibak of the Slave Dynasty, who took possession of Delhi in 1206. It is a fluted red sandstone tower, which tapers up to a height of 72.5 metres and is covered with intricate carvings and verses from the Qur'an. Various guides that we’ve read said it’s an incredible example of the prevalent architecture, others said it look like a chimney straight out of a Stoke brickworks. We thought it was impressive. Qutub-ud-din Aybak began constructing this victory tower as a sign of Muslim domination of Delhi and as a minaret for the muezzin to call the faithful to prayer. However, only the first story was originally completed the upper stories being added later. It’s probably this that’s gives it a certain charm because while the theme is the same the various levels don’t quite gel. The designs on the stalactites supporting the balconies are quite exquisite and it’s easy to understand how it became such an iconic symbol of Delhi.

All too soon we were rushing back to our transport, and nope we didn’t want a quick side trip to his brother’s shop, very cheap cheap mind you, and off to the days last destination the Lotus Temple.

The Lotus temple, also known as the Bahai temple after the Bahá’í faith that it was constructed for, is quite remarkable. Often referred to as Asia’s version of the Sydney Opera House, and you can see why, it’s a large, brilliant white building shaped just like a Lotus flower. It was built in 1986 and is quite beautiful. Set in a large open area of landscaped gardens, offering brief respite from the sights, sounds & smells of Delhi, it does indeed rise from a small hill like a Lotus about to bloom. While the external views are architecturally and aesthetically pleasing, inside is very plain, a large quiet area filled with people either worshiping or sitting in quiet contemplation. Noticeably absent from the temple is any form of deity and that’s unusual in any of the religious sites we’ve visited this trip. Time prevented us getting an answer to why but the simplicity definitely adds something.

That was it, our one day Delhi tour over, well over except for the tortuous drive through rush hour traffic that our driver had engineered now he was on overtime. A last wrong turn and extended diversion meant that no tip was going to be produced. On our arrival back the hotel negotiated the final settlement with the mobile mugger and even being robbed blind couldn’t detract from the wonderful sites Delhi has to offer.

Unfortunately that was pretty much it as, at this point, the Dairy Milk Deficiency really took hold and Lisa spent the next 3 days confined to bed. And not even the thought of the start of World Cup 2010 could lift her. Luckily the GP’s visit meant that she recovered sufficiently to board the Virgin flight back to Blighty.

Our thoughts on India, well, in 10 years since Chris’s last visit nothing much has changed. It’s still corrupt and completely bereft of any sort of hygiene standards. Luckily India has so much more than Delhi to offer visitors but unfortunately Lisa’s few days with the leering men, the incredible heat, the scam artists, the beggars and the botulism inducing eateries meant we probably won’t return to find out. Oh well, given the difficulty of getting a visa to go there we’re not sure India really wants visitors anyway.

So here it is, the end of the beginning so to speak, we are planning to return to Asia and will probably continue this blog if we hear people have enjoyed it. We may also post a highlights and lowlights but that rather depends on how quick real life takes over now that we are back.

Thank you if you have stayed with us and we hope that you’ve enjoyed these ramblings as much as we’ve enjoyed writing them.

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Photos

Ruins
This could easily be Connaught Place

Jantar Mantar
This measures something apparently

TARDIS
Bigger than it looks

India Heart
The centre of Delhi (so our taxi driver kept telling us)

The canopy
but remember the sunscreen

Silence
at Ghandis resting place

Yep it's Red
I fort it might be bigger !!!

Modern Angkor
Truly Stunning
(No camera allowed so this is the only photo of the trip that is not ours)

Qutub Minar
Yep, yet another shot

Lotus Temple
Can you see why?

Summer House
not a bad spot for entertaining

Intricate
The detail has stood the test of time

Another photo
of Delhi best known monument

Comments

[Richard]

Round the World Part II
Roll on Thailand 2011!