It was so weird for me to take the place of the seasoned India visitor, as Dave was a first-timer to the country, too. It was really fun to watch him get excited about all the things I had seen over the past three days. Traffic was amazing, so he didn't get the full experience there, but he definitely will tomorrow!
Our first stop in Delhi was Qutab Minar. I really don't know what to expect in Delhi, but luckily Dave had a guidebook, so we were able to read up on the area. Qutab Minar is among the tallest and famous towers in the world and is a great masterpiece of Mughal architecture. Who knew?
Once we had our fill, we found our driver (whom we had nicknamed "the Captain") and headed to Bahá'i Temple (the Lotus Temple). Once we realized we would need to remove our shoes to enter the building, we decided to turn around. However, the main fascination people have with this building is it's architecture and our little trip did not disappoint. We again searched for the Captain and headed on our way.
Next up, Humayan's Tomb. This consisted of some beautiful architecture and some lovely tombs in addition to Humayan's. First we walked toward the tomb and mosque of Isa Khan where we met an old Indian man (with two teeth, I might add) who insisted on giving us a short history lesson. In exchange for Rs. 20 of course. I first tried to hand him the Rs. 3 change I had, but he actually said "that's too small" to me. haha. Then Dave and I walked around the perimeter wall to snap some photos. After this, we headed towards the tomb, trying to read placards and figure out the significance of it all. Soon we realized we were starving and headed back to find the Captain.
We made a quick trip to see the India Gate then we explained that we wanted to go to Connaught Place to find some lunch. Well, the Captain didn't speak English very well at all, so I think he just heard "lunch" in that sentence. He drove around for a while and finally pulled up to some dodgy looking restaurant on the side of the road. We figured out the miscommunication and tried to start signing to him that we wanted to go eat in CP. Then I just picked a random hotel out of Dave's guide book, because I knew that a restaurant in there would be safe and delicious. Finally, we managed to convince him that we wanted to eat at the Janpath Hotel. He dropped us off and we asked him to return in an hour. Food at the Janpath was delicious! This was Dave's first taste of Indian food ever, so I'm glad we went somewhere a bit nicer. I had some amazing South Indian food that consisted of a semi-spicy coconut sauce, jumbo prawns, rice, and butter garlic naan. I seriously could eat naan all day, every day.
Dave had his mind set that he would find this random wrestling match at the "old wrestling grounds" in Old Delhi. Apparently, his guide book says this match occurs every Sunday at 4:00pm. Well, we realized after the last trip that the Captain wasn't so great with English, so explaining to him that we wanted to go to a wrestling match really wasn't in the cards. Instead, he dropped us off at the Red Fort and we attempted to find the way ourselves. Dave was convinced that once we were inside the Red Fort gates, we could walk around the fort to find the wrestling grounds. Of course, this required us to trespass, which he convinced me was okay until someone told us it was not. Well, within five minutes, someone told us it was not okay and we had to turn around. Instead we just decided to head to the fort, though Dave did ask everyone he saw if they knew about the wrestling.
Have I mentioned how disgusting some of the public restrooms are in India? Apparently it is very natural for a woman to just squat over a hole in the ground, then splash water on themselves to clean, and then pour a bucket of water o the ground to wash away the urine. The first time I experienced this at the Red Fort in Agra, I thought I was going to hurl. I was walking so slowly and carefully so as not to allow and "water" to splash on me. Ew ew ew!
Anyway, as you enter the fort, you must first walk through the Chatta Chowk Bazzar, which was rather interesting and colorful. Next you enter a large open area with a great building ahead. Past that building, there are what's left of the palace rooms of Shah Jahan and his wives. This place seemed almost more popular for locals than Taj or anywhere else in Agra. I have never had so many people starting at me (we were probably the only white-skinned people in the entire fort). Dave and I sat to read our guide and people just walked by starting, sometimes stopping to say "hello" which was shocking to me. Finally, a family stopped near us (no one has any idea what "personal space" means around here) and started talking in Hindi and looking over our shoulders at the guide we were reading. Then the son started speaking to us in very broken English. We answered and the parents emphatically nodded and smiled, clearly very proud that their son was speaking in English to Americans. Then three young children came up and asked if they could take a picture of us. I burst out laughing and we posed for them. For some reason, the mother and father of the English-speaking boy wanted me to take a picture of them. With my camera. Haha. Then I insisted that the children pose with me (clearly, the family that was obsessed with us—by the way, not remotely related to these children—decided to join in). I don't know what was going on, but everyone wanted to speak with us. Some man even held up his baby to us and tried to get us to kiss her cheek and hold her. I was beyond amused and Dave could not stop laughing at my shocked expression. I wanted to stay there all day and see what people would do next.
At this point, Dave was about to fall over and die from exhaustion. We headed out and started hunting for the Captain, who was no where to be found. In the meantime, we made friends with a rickshaw driver named Ackbar, who gave Dave his number and insisted we return next weekend and call him to drive us around. Outside was a little hectic. On Sundays there are lots of markets o the street (book market, thief's market, etc.) and people were staring and it was getting darker. Apparently the phone number we had for the Captain was wrong, so we were a little concerned. Eventually the Captain spotted us and requested we cross the busy street to him. I don't think I can express in words the sheer terror you feel when trying to cross a street in India. No one follows traffic laws. The speed, make up their own lanes, cut each other off, etc. People don't even wait for open spaces in the road. They just cross. We found an open spot and made a run for it. Safely in the car, we head home for the evening. Dave passed out in the front seat and I watched as little children came up to know on my window at every stoplight in Delhi, begging for money and crying. It's necessary to harden your heart in a city like this, but man is it difficult. The children are adorable and it's so tough knowing that your $1 (Rs. 93) is so much for them.
Nidhi's promised em some good shopping locales after work this week. Can't wait to start spending. These rupees are burning a whole in my pocket!
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