A Journey Through India's Golden Triangle Part Three: Delhi

Riding in a tuk-tuk in New Delhi.  Visible in the left mirror, me taking a picture with my red camera; on the right, one of my friends takes in the scenery. 

Hello all!

AT last, the thrilling conclusion to this three-part, Indian adventure!

So far, we've marveled at the ever-beautiful Taj Mahal, fixed tires on dusty roads, and ascended to a Maharaja's fort on elephant's back.

At this point in the trip, we were all having a hard time imagining just what else could be in store for us as we traveled to the nation's capital, New Delhi...

 

On the road, again

Never a dull moment:  two colorfully-dressed women catch a ride on a jeep... and can you spot the woman working in the field?

While transits between cities can sometimes be tedious, the landscape between Jaipur and Delhi never ceases to offer up beautiful and interesting scenes...

 

Welcome to New Delhi!

Hundreds and hundreds of cars, seemingly coming out of nowhere, wait in crazy long lines to pay their way into the capital.  

Arriving in Delhi was an unforgettable experience.  While we'd pretty much always been surrounded by people, the traffic at the toll plaza into Delhi was still an overwhelming sight--and that's coming from a native New Yorker!  

 

Sights and sounds 

Beauty and Silence:  The Lotus Temple

Left:  The Lotus Temple up close, with it's reflecting pool;  Top Right:  Two families take in the sunlight on the steps facing the temple and pool;  Bottom Right:  A woman adjusts her sari as she exits the Lotus Temple

The Lotus Temple is one of New Delhi's most famous sights.  Completed in 1986, the building--actually a Baha'i House of Worship--attracts an estimated 4.5 million visitors a year!  It's architecture is based on the lotus, India's national flower.

Three of us decided to make our way up to the temple, in what would prove to be one of the most interesting experiences of the trip.  Entering the building, we were confronted with total and complete silence.

Silence?  In India?  The contrast was surprising, to say the least!

Other Delhi Scenes...

A passerby find himself accidentally in front of my lens in Old Delhi, also known as Shahjahanabad.  Built by Shah Jahan (the man who commissioned the Taj Mahal), Old Delhi is home to many small shops and a large spice market, where you can find just about every delicious flavor Indian cooking has to offer.

Left:  An exhibition showcasing the life and achievements of Mahatma Gandhi, written using both Devanagari (the written system used for Hindi) and English.  The comprehensive display is located in the gardens of his last residence--which, sadly, was also the place of his assassination on January 30, 1947.

Right:  The colorful Laxminarayan Hindu Temple, inaugurated by Gandhi in 1939 in honor of Lakshmi, Hindu goddess of wealth, and her consort Narayana (the Sanskrit name for Vishnu).  No cameras (or shoes!) allowed inside.

The tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun is one of Delhi's most famous attractions.  The beautifully crafted main structure and its surrounding complex--a UNESCO World Heritage site built in 1547--contain around 150 graves of ruling family members.

 

Tastes and Aromas:  Sugar and Spice, and Everything Nice

Here's something I forgot to mention-- I developed a very fat personality in India.  I'm talking capital F to the A to the T.

But it wasn't my fault!  (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

Simply put, Indian food is too delicious!  So what little self control I had built upon in previous months just fell to pieces in front of these amazing dishes: 

Savory...

Paneer Tikka at Khan Cha Cha, a hip, reasonably-priced eatery located at Khan Market, New Delhi.  Just order and pay, then grab your ticket and (im)patiently wait for your delicious order to be up!  

Cutlet, mango punch, whole wheat toast and butter on the train...on the train!

Delicious tandoori chicken, a veggie curry, and naan bread at a bar/restaurant near our hotel.

Lachha Tokri--I don't remember exactly what's in it, but it was super good!

 

Different nuts and spices being sold in Old Delhi... and, being American, we just couldn't resist India's answer to the Big Mac.  Since beef is banned in India, we were able to try this unique chicken "Maharaja Burger" at McDonald's, seasoned with Indian spices!

...and Sweet!

Gulab Jamun--this is something like fried doughnut holes soaked in a fragrant rose-infused honey syrup

 

Assorted sweets and goodies, topped with some sort of edible metallic-looking icing. On the right, kulfi!  Kulfi is a type of really thick and creamy ice cream--this one tasted like coconut and vanilla!

This is what really became my obsession:  Ras Malai!!!

Is that orange-flavored ice cream?  Nope--try saffron (yes, saffron!) ice cream with pistachios, probably one of the most delicious treats of the entire trip!

Snacks for everyone!  A rhesus macaque nibbles some peanuts on a sidewalk in Old Delhi.

 

Reluctantly, Time to Head Home

Sunset, January 27th, 2012, New Delhi = time for us to head on out!

All too quickly, it was time to head to the airport for our flight back:  back to Beijing, back to work, and back to our "regular" lives (as regular as life gets in China, anyway!).

It was a little bit sad to leave, but we knew we brought with us once-in-a-lifetime memories that we will carry for a long time.

This Golden Triangle tour through Agra, Jaipur, and New Delhi is really the perfect introduction for first-timers to India--from the breathtaking Taj Mahal, to the romantic, ochre landscapes of Rajasthan, and the hustle and bustle of the capital, New Delhi, we got to see it all.  Still, India is so huge and so varied that it seems like a place that you just need to keep coming back to in order to truly appreciate and understand it.

So as for my travels to India, I guess it's "namaste" for now... 

 

...but, like Mr. Schwarzenegger, I'll be back!

Want to start your discovery of the Indian Subcontinent?  E-mail us at booking@red.travel and we'll get you on your way!