South Asia '08, part eight:
The first day in New Delhi
For the sake of strict continuity, one ought to go back to part five, which saw us on our way from Gaya to Delhi on the Mahabodhi Express...
Our train arrived in the early, early morning on January 26. We wearily ran the gauntlet of touts and taxi drivers outside of the station (even at 5 a.m.!), and soon enough we arrived at our hotel in Paharganj. The hotel staff was asleep on the floor in front of reception, so we had to be careful not to step on anyone (who'd already been awakened by our arrival).
We went to sleep ourselves, and then ventured out into the city around noon. My Lady Friend hadn't known that we were going to arrive in Delhi on Republic Day, which meant that many sites were going to be closed. This complicated what we'd be able to see (and when) because our trip to Agra and the Taj Mahal was scheduled for the next day, Sunday, and many sites are always closed on Mondays. Our departure to Kolkata was set for Tuesday.
After a lunch of dosa near the hotel, we took an autorickshaw to the area near India Gate and the government houses. The Republic Day military parade had passed through several hours earlier. From there, we walked for several kilometers to Gandhi Smriti, the memorial to Mahatma Gandhi at the site of his assassination in 1948. We'd been told (though someone else disagreed) that site would be open. Once we arrived, we were told it was closed... even though there were people inside. My Lady Friend wondered if a bit of baksheesh might have gotten us entry. Oh well...
From Gandhi Smriti, we walked northeast to Connaught Place, one of the major business and entertainment districts in New Delhi. As we got close, men on the sidewalk or passing taxi drivers tried to stop us and say that the road ahead was closed because of the parade, and that we'd have to go another way (perhaps into their shop). After two weeks in India and Nepal (and remembering Lonely Planet's advisory about the "pestilential" presence of touts at CP), I simply continued to walk... and found an open and busy road. There wasn't so much that was open, of course, but we were just looking for places to go to later. And I wanted to see the Jantar Mantar observatory, which was beyond anything I'd imagined, both in size and complexity.
Part seven...Part nine
Our train arrived in the early, early morning on January 26. We wearily ran the gauntlet of touts and taxi drivers outside of the station (even at 5 a.m.!), and soon enough we arrived at our hotel in Paharganj. The hotel staff was asleep on the floor in front of reception, so we had to be careful not to step on anyone (who'd already been awakened by our arrival).
We went to sleep ourselves, and then ventured out into the city around noon. My Lady Friend hadn't known that we were going to arrive in Delhi on Republic Day, which meant that many sites were going to be closed. This complicated what we'd be able to see (and when) because our trip to Agra and the Taj Mahal was scheduled for the next day, Sunday, and many sites are always closed on Mondays. Our departure to Kolkata was set for Tuesday.
After a lunch of dosa near the hotel, we took an autorickshaw to the area near India Gate and the government houses. The Republic Day military parade had passed through several hours earlier. From there, we walked for several kilometers to Gandhi Smriti, the memorial to Mahatma Gandhi at the site of his assassination in 1948. We'd been told (though someone else disagreed) that site would be open. Once we arrived, we were told it was closed... even though there were people inside. My Lady Friend wondered if a bit of baksheesh might have gotten us entry. Oh well...
From Gandhi Smriti, we walked northeast to Connaught Place, one of the major business and entertainment districts in New Delhi. As we got close, men on the sidewalk or passing taxi drivers tried to stop us and say that the road ahead was closed because of the parade, and that we'd have to go another way (perhaps into their shop). After two weeks in India and Nepal (and remembering Lonely Planet's advisory about the "pestilential" presence of touts at CP), I simply continued to walk... and found an open and busy road. There wasn't so much that was open, of course, but we were just looking for places to go to later. And I wanted to see the Jantar Mantar observatory, which was beyond anything I'd imagined, both in size and complexity.
Part seven...Part nine
South Asia '08, part eight:
The first day in New Delhi
mr damon, 09:49
1 Comments:
Wow, what a fascinating complex. The space must have been incredible to explore.
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