Adventures in India, Part 1 -- Delhi, First Impressions

Our first experience of India was the Delhi airport, a thoroughly modern facility where we met our tour guide, passed through the seemingly endless lines at immigration and customs and security and finally boarded a bus for transport to our hotel.

These hands hovered over our heads as we entered the first of a series of checkpoints. I was told that the gestures carry specific meanings, but nobody knew just what they meant.

At the hotel we were met by lovely young women who hung flower garlands around our necks and placed red dots on our foreheads.

The first shock of the unfamiliar came as we were driven from the airport to the hotel. Traffic in India is more chaotic than I have seen anywhere else we have traveled -- much worse. Everyone seems to be playing "chicken" with everyone else and, as our tour guide put it, all drivers assume that they are immortal and trust to "destiny". He also introduced us to the drivers' mantra: "All vehicles shall be driven in accordince with the maxim -- to slow is to falter, to brake is to fail, to stop is defeat". It sounded pretty accurate to me.The yellow and green golf-cart sized cars are everywhere. They are cabs that run on natural gas and the colors indicate that they are "green" vehicles.

A second shock was to see very young children begging on the street. Sometimes they feigned disability, as this kid did. Shortly after I took this picture he jumped to his feet and scampered off to the side of the road. For some reason this bothered me more than I thought it would.

A young couple on their motorcycle. Note the tiny tot sandwiched between them.

Trucks, autos, and buses share the road with all manner of things, like these camels. At least they were not obstructing traffic..., this time.

Pedicabs or rickshaws are quite popular in Indian cities. You see them carrying people and all matter of goods, and of course they obstruct traffic everywhere they go.

When we arrived in Delhi it was near the end of Ramadan, a time when Muslims severely restrict their diet. The end of Ramadan is marked by Eid al Fitr, a day of feasting and religious observance. The main streets were clogged with goatherds who brought their animals into the city where they were sold to be sacrificed and eaten on that holiday.

Yeah, traffic in Delhi was pretty much of a mess, although worse was to come.

Adventures in India, Part 2 -- The World Reflecting Mosque

We continued through the increasingly crowded streets of Delhi until in the distance we saw an onion dome that dominated the local landscape.

As we approached it became ever more impressive and exotic.

Leaving the bus we climbed a long set of stairs and at the top were told to take off our shoes. OK!

We were then allowed to enter the sacred precinct of the Jami Masjid Mosque, the "World-Reflecting Mosque" built in the seventeenth century by Shah Jahan [the emperor who built the Taj Mahal]. It is the largest and most famous mosque in India.

These are prayer rugs laid out in the courtyard for the faithful. The place is huge, with a maximum capacity of 85,000 people.

The mosque seems to be home to nearly as many pigeons. Suddenly taking off our shoes didn't seem like such a good idea.

Here we are looking across the courtyard at the main structure. Gorgeous, isn't it?

Turning around, we could look down on old Delhi where a local market was crowded with shoppers. Ramadan was coming to an end and people were stocking up for a feast.

More of the market below. All you can see are the vendors' tents.

And a view of Delhi's famous "Red Fort", its lineaments somewhat obscured in the distance by an ever-present smog. Yes, India is polluted, much like China.

These blue lines in the courtyard designate an area set aside for "severely afflicted" worshipers, at least that's what I was told.

Inside the main building, only a few people were praying.

But the architecture was stunning. Just look at these fluted arches!

Looking across the courtyard at the southern or "King's" gate. Through it the emperor and his family could enter the mosque undisturbed and would sit in the central balcony during services.

We saw a lot of this sort of thing everywhere we went -- people just lying down and sleeping in a public place during the middle of the day.

As we left the mosque we passed these girls sitting outside the East Gate. They make a pretty picture, don't they.

Then it was down into the mean streets and byways of Old Delhi for our next unique experience -- a rickshaw ride.

Adventures in India, Part 3 -- The Streets of Old Delhi

After departing the mosque we descended to the street below and boarded pedicabs for a tour of Old Delhi. Here we see pedicabs lined up ready to get started.

At first all was confusion as drivers hustled around to find riders, but I expected that things would clear up once we got underway.

At first it seemed that my assumption was right as we made good progress through narrow, but passable streets.

But soon the streets began to narrow and become more congested and our progress slowed.

And the streets got narrower...,

And more congested...,

And even narrower...,

And more congested...,

But finally our drivers fought through to relatively wide streets and we finished our tour in good time. In my next post I'll show you some of what we saw on our way.

Adventures in India, Part 4 -- Street Sights

Thing seen as we rode around Delhi old town.

Goats for sale.

There was a strong police presence.

Public bathing -- not something you see very often.

Barbershop

I saw a recent article to the effect that Western superstores like Walmart are trying to get permission to expand into India. So far the government is pretty much resisting them. Although they would significantly lower the cost of food to consumers, they would also put these street vendors out of business, and tens of millions of small entrepreneurs make a powerful protectionist lobby.

A cobbler repairing shoes on the street.

These tiny stores tend to specialize. Instead of a large auto parts store, you will find dozens of small shops each selling different parts. This guy is specializing in hub caps.

An electrician's nightmare.

Adventures in India, Part 5 -- India Gate

Continuing our tour of Delhi and its environ. Our first stop was at the Ghandi memorial, located in a park along the banks of the Yamuna River. Many other Indian leaders are memorialized there, including Nehru and Indira Ghandi, but it is Mohandas Ghandi's memorial that attracts hordes of visitors.
 

A public drinking fountain near the park entrance. It was a hot day, but even so I would never drink there. "She Who Must Not Be Named" was particularly repulsed by the unsanitary conditions that seemed to prevail everywhere.

A group of schoolgirls had their picture taken with one of our party. Everywhere we went children were friendly, smiling and waving, and often running up to shake our hands. Our Program Manager said that in many cases we were the first "white people" they had ever seen.

The memorial itself. In keeping with Ghandi's public image it is a model of simplicity.

There were a lot of school groups in the crowd, but they were less interested in seeing the great man's shrine than in goofing off on the grounds.

Then it was on to India's National Memorial -- India Gate.

This cupola, designed by Sir Edwin Luytens, stands near the Gate. It once held a statue of King George V, but now it stands empty, a tribute to India's independence from Britain.

Here is the gate itself. Also designed by Luytens it was inspired by the French Arc de Triomphe. It was originally constructed in the 1930's as a war memorial, but since independence has become a tribute to the nation.

A permanent guard stands beneath the arch of the memorial.

And this is what they are guarding -- India's version of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Then it was on to our next, and final for the day, destination -- the Lotus Temple.

Again as we entered the grounds we passed a public drinking station.

And here it is -- the Lotus Temple, a Bahai Place of Worship open to visitors of all faiths. Like most other places of worship in India there is a requirement that visitors remove their shoes. "She Who Must Not Be Named" was now in full revolt and refused to enter the place. So, after taking a few pictures we returned to the air conditioned bus and waited for the tour members to reassemble.

Fusion At Its Best

Check this out -- Miles Davis, Carlos Santana, Robben Ford, and Bobby Mintzer on sax jammin in Giant's Stadium. Cool!