Day 297 : Last day in Delhi

Got the metro and an auto to South Delhi to go to go to a cooking class and a lady called Jyoti's house. There was us two and an American guy. It was an intense 4 hours of Indian cookery although more like a demonstration than actually cooking ourselves although this was a good way to fit more in and we’ll just have to practice at home. Had lots of good food to eat and definitely learnt some stuff.

Took the metro back to Khan market for Will to try on his suit – the trousers and waistcoat are perfect but jacket not very slim cut. Left the shop then after thinking about it went back and persuaded them to sort it out even though we had to be on the plane in that night.

Went home then again back to Khan market Will tried the jacket it was altered but he’s still not totally happy but it looks really nice. Gave up with the rickshaws and took another metro journey home.

Note:
The hotel is completely wonky at first we thought we were tired as we walked up the stairs but then realised that each floor and the stairs is completely unlevel and wonky! It’s like Fun House!
Shopping especially in the malls is a pain – you have to go through security scanner and serached then every time you go into a shop you either have to hand your bag in or have it cable tied up!

Behaviour on the metro: The metro in new, clean and modern. Even it is always bust there is always room especially in the middle of the carriage but everyone squashes up buy the door and it’s like a race / rugby scrum when you get on and off even when it’s not busy! Each time I’ve been in que to get on I’ve had full grown, middle aged men in smart business suits scrambling and pushing past me to get onto a half empty carriage as if his life depended on it! What’s that about!

Taxi booked for 1.30 am all packed up! Can’t beleive it!

Day 296 : National museum / cinema

Will had his sunglasses case stolen from his rucksack while waiting to cross the road outside our hotel – luckily he was wearing his sunglasses. Got the metro to the national museum. Walked across Rajpath where the parliament buildings are.

The museum has some really funky animal sculptures from 6000 B.C. Had tea in the canteen then took the metro to West Delhi to see what the shopping malls looked like. Normal malls but a lot of the shops too expensive for us. Most shops seem to have more staff than customers and it's really off-putting being followed by a horde of shop staff! Went to see "Houseful 2", a Bollywood film. The plot was a little hard to follow (being in Hindi and all) and the films are very long but I enjoyed the songs, dancing and costumes.

Walked back from the metro via the “backpacker” area - really horrible and skanky. Had dinner in the sweetshop / restaurant opposite our hotel – a very nice dosa.

I do find the juxtaposition of rich and poor in India odd. Like today walking across a bit of wasteland between 2 malls there are street kids who hang around (out of reach from the door guards) near these malls that have shops like Hugo Boss and Lacoste. Or you see a flash business man on his phone on a cycle rickshaw. Or very expensive 4x4's driving around old men pulling massively heavy carts. It must be weird being middle class and having a life much like my own but being surrounded by people who's lives are unimaginable to me. I think I have been surprised by how well fed and the animals are and that most people seem to have food (food seems to be everywhere - like on the floor and in the piles of rubbish), but still there are a lot of poor people surrounded by a lot of rich!

Day 295 : Delhi by cycle

Got up at 5 and took an auto rickshaw to Old Delhi to our guide from the Dutch company Delhi by Cycle. Met some nice people on the tour. Had no helmets Dutch style.

We cycled down butcher street (a mainly Muslim area) – it’s the first time (apart from the odd chicken) that I’ve seen meat and carcasses around (buffalo and goat) – gross! The entrance to the metro station in the centre of Old Delhi is funny because it’s surrounded by donkeys, pack horses and general Indian chaos that could be from any era (apart from the motorbikes).

We cycled through the wholesale spice market and walked up to a rooftop to see the view. The chilli dust in the air made our eyes water and I was retching because I was coughing so much!

Got completely soaked in the rain – even got a bit chilly until I dried out (it’s been 35 degrees here but has now cooled down a bit). Went through some posh suburbs and had a chai stop. Went past the Red Fort, the Jama Masjid and a Sikh and Jain temple.

Had brunch in a long established canteen that serves goat curry (only tried the tiniest bit of meat as didn’t fancy it that much) and roti type bread. The cycle tour was really enjoyable and we finished in one piece.
Went back to Khan bazaar for Will’s suit fitting we think it’s gonna be ok – we pick it up on friday. Went to McDonalds (for research purposes off course, we were curious), they have a lot of veg options, had a veg burger it was OK.

Had a dosa and chai room service dinner.

Day 294 : Delhi Markets

Got up late and had breakfast at the grubby rooftop cafe in our hotel. Good view over Delhi but very smoggy. Spent a bit of time organising other activities for the week – a cycle tour tomorrow and cookery class on Friday.

Took the Metro out to Dilli Haat, a handcraft market in South Delhi with the usual fare of textiles, miniature paintings and carvings. Ate momos in a cafe there – reminded us of Darjeeling - and bought a few presents. After this we headed to the nearby Sarojini Nagar where there are lots of shops selling western-style clothes and an export surplus market. We threw out a lot of clothes before we came away and they are very cheap here so Loulou bought a bought some jeans and tops.

Flagging a bit after all the markets so went for coffee in Connaught Place – the “centre” of New Delhi. We expected it to be quite smart but it seemed to be mostly a building site and lots of scruffy shops.

As we came out of the Metro to come home we were engulfed by a massive dust / thunder storm – you could hardy see more than 20m because of the dust and 2 minutes later we were running through heavy rain and an incredible lightening storm to get back to the hotel! I think it’s the heaviest rain we’ve seen since Memphis. Hopefully it’ll clear up for our cycle tour tomorrow morning…

Day 293 : Agra to New Delhi

Left the lovely home stay – the mother gave me a big hug and said “come back with your children”. Got an auto to the station and caught our last Indian train! It was 30 minutes delayed making our total delay time over 13 train journeys (equal to a week of travel) 35 minutes!

Got a taxi transfer to our hotel north of Pahar Ganj on a dusty, busy side street. Hotel is relatively nice - a typical Indian style hotel. Delhi seems quite modern it has pavements and the like.

Took an auto to Khan market which is weird its in an okish area but then has shops like in Covent garden. Will got measured for a suit (got a few weddings to go to!) and parted with some cash and now we hope it will turn out ok! Had some food in the turtle cafe – a bookshop cafe that serves nice western style cafe food.

Tried to get a metro home but struggled to get back from the station (we went to the wrong one for a start) plus no one’s heard of our hotel so trying to get an auto or cycle rickshaw was hard and we tried walking but went the wrong way. Finally got a cycle rickshaw who we then had an argument with over the agreed price.

Finally got home! The hotel seem very keen to sell us beer - we had a couple of Kingfishers (extra strong!) which we felt we deserved after the stress of getting home.

Day 292 : Agra fort

Not up too early today, had breakfast then took an auto to Agra fort (built in by the same guy who built the stuff in Fatehpur Sikri). Had an audio guide and wandered around the red fort and marble palace.

Walked along the road to the Jama Masjid (Friday Mosque) and wandered around the bazaars – lots of shoe, marble and material shops - nothing for us really.

Agra is weird. The bazaars around the fort and the Taj are mainly normal and and not touristy - you don’t really see many tourists around. I’m not sure if it’s just low season or if most people arrive in coaches and don’t walk around.

Took an auto back home. Almost hit a young cow that ran into the road but just managed to avoid it (it had a lovely pink beaded necklace on – the cows here are very fashionable).

Had a nice lunch. In the past few weeks our food bill has gone up. We used to be able to get a full meal and drinks for 2 in a restaurant for just under £1 now we are spending at least £3. A masala dosa (potato curry in a pancake thing with dips, chutneys etc and a soup) in the south is about 30p now it’s £1.

Went to the roof top cafe to have a last evening drink with the view of the Taj. Watched some kite fighting over the rooftops saw a few kites get cut loose – one loose kite flew right over our heads!

Walked home via a roundabout we have been past at least 5 times – the same bull stands in the middle of it everyday – we took a video. Saw another coal-fired iron on the street.

Day 291 : The Taj Mahal

Up at 5 and walked to the Taj entry gate. Queued for a bit then got in with the first crowds. You go through a very impressive gateway then get the full view of the beautiful Taj Mahal. Had a wander around.

Got back home had breakfast, chilled out. Got a cycle rickshaw to Sadar bazaar had lunch then tried to wander around the shops and stalls (although we couldn’t find many) Will bought some everyday shoes. Still both bit under the weather won’t do much this evening.