New Delhi. With a city that has so much culture and history, it's not uncommon to see a new modern glass building sitting right next to a tomb built in the 1700s. For our second full day in India, Aradhana and Adi had arranged for their cousin Nitasha to take us around sightseeing.
Our first stop was at Dilli Haat, which is a food and crafts market with stalls representing each state of India. The different states of India are all culturally different, so Dilli Haat was built to showcase the different crafts and food that can be found in India. We picked up some souvenirs, although Aradhana wouldn't let us buy any pashminas because you never know if it's real or not. We were definitely fortunate to have been traveling with locals who were able to haggle for us in Hindi - I'm sure we would've paid 10x more if we tried to haggle on our own.
(1. decorative hangings, 2. big cow at the front of Dilli Haat, 3. various clothing, 4. bangles, 5. kevin and I in front of colorful cloths)
Our first tomb on our tour of New Delhi was the Safdarjung Tomb which was built in 1754. (We were actually looking for Humayun's tomb but got lost, oh well!) The Safdarjung tomb is said to represent the last phase of Mughal style of architecture. Nestled in the busy streets of Delhi, it is surrounded by a beautiful garden, and apparently at the very top of the tomb is the Archeological Survey of India.
We then headed over to the Delhi Gymkhana for lunch. It is one of the oldest clubs in India, and the membership is so selective that the wait list can be 20-30 years. The club is primarily a sports facility, but they also have restaurants and food stalls in the courtyard. We were told we weren't allowed in the club at all, but could sit in the courtyard to eat because Kevin didn't have on proper shoes nor a collared shirt. There were several food stalls outside, including Chinese, BBQ, Thai and even hot dogs. There are also a couple of stalls for ice cream. The ice cream in India is surprisingly different from what we have in the States. It is so much creamier and definitely a lot richer. Probably because they don't use pasteurized milk.
Following lunch, we headed over to the government district of town, where we saw the President's house along with some congressional buildings. On one end of this main strip is the President's house, and on the other is India Gate. It reminded me a lot of the DC Mall, with two significant buildings/monuments at opposite ends of each other. This area of town is supposedly one of the most prestigious and sought after areas to live in. A lot of the property in here is government owned and is lent to you if you hold a high government position. India Gate itself is a monument to all those who fought for India. At first, it was built for those who lost their lives during WWI, but after India's independence from British rule, it is now also a monument to the Unknown Soldiers. There are also three flags present to represent the different armed forces: army, air force and navy.
We eventually found our way to Humayan's tomb, which was built by Humayan's wife for him in the 1500s. It was the first tomb to use red sand stone and marble, and it is said that the Taj Mahal was greatly influenced by its design. This tomb was absolutely gorgeous, although by this time, we were trying extremely hard to appreciate it as it was hot, humid, and we were all tired from the heat. The main chamber housed Humayan's cenotaph and was serene and quiet (unlike in the Taj). The tomb also shows a strong Islamic influence in its architecture, even down to his cenotaph, where his head is placed facing north, and his face is turned sideways to face Mecca.
(1. door at Safdarjung's tomb, 2. Humayan's tomb, 3. details at Humayan's tomb, 4. at India Gate, 5. Safdarjung's tomb, 5. gate outside President's house)
Following a much needed nap, we then headed back to Rustam's house for another wedding festivity. I'm not too sure what the significance of this night was, but there was a lot of singing and performances from friends and family.
No comments:
Post a Comment