Originally written on 2015-10-29
It is 7:30 in the morning and the sky here is a blue smog across the city, but there is blue sky above it through some holes.
We started the day with a tour of Old Delhi, visiting the Jama Mosque built by the Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan, in 1656. The Mughal's were conquerors from Persia, that ruled India for about 300 years, although the Mughal's followed Islam, they did not force Islam on conquered people but resolved to find a balance between religions through a just administration. The best known of the Mughal's is Shah Jahan, the third Mughal Emperor of India, who during his reign constructed many of the heritage sites that remain in India today.
The Jama Mosque is one of the largest in India and can accommodate 25,000 in the inner courtyard and welcomes visitors of all religions. Religion in India is a mix of a multitude of faiths that all coexist with little ill feeling towards each other. All seem to celebrate the other religious holidays, customs and food choices. It seems like only the media and the politicians have problems with religions.
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Then we were off for an exciting bicycle rickshaw ride through the narrow lanes of the old Delhi streets and markets. We went to the rickshaw stand and the rickshaw operators are all pre-selected for their ability and honesty by the tour company. So we jump in the rickshaw and off we go, weaving down a two lane street, past pedestrians, hawkers, donkey carts, ox carts, other rickshaws, camel carts, horse carts, delivery trucks, bicycles, motorcycles, cars, all the while meeting the same coming the other way plus the 30 or so sacred cows on every street!
Did I mention that Delhi has 16 million people, it seemed to me that about 10 percent were on the 5 or 6 blocks we navigated! It was mind boggling, exhilarating and fun. With absolute cooperation, road rage is not a factor, if there is a traffic jam, every one gets involved, the car in front, the car behind, the pedestrians, the drivers, and after a few minutes of every one expressing the best way to resolve it, resolution happens and away we go for another block or so, then we go through it all again.
The side walks are lined with shops selling everything imaginable, one block of textiles and wedding shops, a whole a block of electronics, then half a block of shoes, then men's shirts, well you get the idea.
Did I mention that Delhi has 16 million people, it seemed to me that about 10 percent were on the 5 or 6 blocks we navigated! It was mind boggling, exhilarating and fun. With absolute cooperation, road rage is not a factor, if there is a traffic jam, every one gets involved, the car in front, the car behind, the pedestrians, the drivers, and after a few minutes of every one expressing the best way to resolve it, resolution happens and away we go for another block or so, then we go through it all again.
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The side walks are lined with shops selling everything imaginable, one block of textiles and wedding shops, a whole a block of electronics, then half a block of shoes, then men's shirts, well you get the idea.
Then we visited Shah Humayun's tomb, the second Mughal Emperor of India. The tomb was built by Humayun's widow between 14 and 20 years after his death. It is quite a large site and contains the tombs of about 150 of the Mughal Dynasty family. It is believed that the tomb cost about 1.5 million rupees to build which in 1569 was a lot of money and is an impressive reminder of the Mughal dynasty.
Our planned visit to the house of Mahatma Gandhi was cancelled due to a religious holiday of some type, our guide was not really sure what it was, but said that India can have a religious holiday of some 365 days a year!
We just took a bus tour of Old and New Delhi, past all the embassies, Indian Gate and presidential palace.
Delhi actually has a lot of trees and green and park space. Along the rivers there are small plots of land that people farm and it looks like the people are maybe squatters and farming the land. We seen lots of monkeys, the usual mangy dogs, 4 police horses and only a few cows and one water buffalo pulling a load in Old Delhi. We have a nice tour bus to travel in and a gorgeous hotel to stay in but it would be a different story if we were relying on finding accommodation and public transportation - people appear to be on top of one another or falling out of buses and trains.
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Delhi actually has a lot of trees and green and park space. Along the rivers there are small plots of land that people farm and it looks like the people are maybe squatters and farming the land. We seen lots of monkeys, the usual mangy dogs, 4 police horses and only a few cows and one water buffalo pulling a load in Old Delhi. We have a nice tour bus to travel in and a gorgeous hotel to stay in but it would be a different story if we were relying on finding accommodation and public transportation - people appear to be on top of one another or falling out of buses and trains.
We did see a couple snake charmers playing to their cobras. The Cobras are defanged, so harmless, but they are aggressive. Both times I watched the Cobra strike the handlers arms, but they wear large voluminous sleeves and probably left no marks at all. One charmer cuffed his cobra while the other one just put the basket lid back on for a second or two. Anything to make a rupee!
Loreen's blond hair does get lots of stares and some of the younger girls like to get their pictures taken with her, all good fun.
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