Delhi in a Day (15th - 17th Dec 07)

After getting off the train (after 2 nights) in Delhi the legs took a while to get moving, but once the touts closed in, the legs remember how to walk fast.

We decided to give the backpacker area a miss and stayed in the Tibetan area of Delhi. This is a truly amazing place. It is called the Tibetan Refugee Colony and it is a tight amalgamation of buildings. There are narrow lanes that weave between the buildings and around every corner is small markets and shops. It is like being in Tibet. There are 'Free Tibet' flags and 'boycott the olympics' posters not to mention the mandatory Dalai Lama pictures.

We only had 2 nights in Delhi before heading to Agra to see the Taj so we planned our day to the max. We spent the morning in Old Delhi which is a chaotic part of town with dirty streets, busy markets and street vendors on every corner. But this is where lots of sights from the Mughal era are located. We first went to the Red Fort then to a huge mosque called Jama Masjid.

The Red Fort


The chaos of Old Delhi

(notice the goats on the right)

It was then time to head to New Delhi on the super clean and efficient Delhi metro system. This metro puts New Zealand to shame that they cant even get their act together to organise a metro system in Auckland. The metro is only half completed, but still at present makes travel around the city much easier.

In New Delhi (which was built by the British) we spent a while in Connaught Place, which is a lot of roads designed in concentric circles around a park. We then visited the Supreme Court Museum to learn about the history of India's independent judiciary. A few cases of interest were highlighted such as the case against the 2 Sikh bodyguards who killed Indira Gandhi, a former Indian Prime Minister.

It was interesting checking out New Delhi to compare the broad, clean streets with what we saw in the morning in the chaotic Old Delhi.

We then visited the inspiring Mahatma Gandhi museum. This great museum, albeit pretty run down, documented Gandhi's life, from his days fighting (non violently) for Indians in South Africa to his work gaining independence for India. On display were some great photographs and even the robe he wore when he was killed as well as one of the bullets that killed him. Of special note was the story of how he marched 400km to a beach to make salt in retaliation to the British policy that no Indians could make their own salt and had to buy it (at high prices) from the British.

Overall Delhi had a great feel to it, a mix of chaos and a new modern vibe. Now we head to the mighty Taj Mahal!

Local kids playing Cricket in Delhi