Delhi has been continuously inhabited since the 6th century BCE. That’s a lot of history, and you see it in all the sights that are littered throughout the city. It has a population of over 11 million people, and you definitely see that too. This is the capital of India and India’s second largest city, after Mumbai. The city is divided into two main parts, Old and New Delhi. Both are worth exploring and contrast each other perfectly. Old Delhi is very chaotic with Tuk-Tuk and rickshaw drivers constantly honking and trying to give you a ride to wherever they see fit. New Delhi is slightly less chaotic and more structured, they both have countless monuments and many historic sites to visit.
My journey in India began at Indira Ghandi International Airport. I decided to take the train into town, and the train from the airport was actually quite nice. Only 4 stops and about 22 minutes later I was at the New Delhi Metro Station across the street from the New Delhi Railway Station. This was exactly where I wanted to be because my hotel was only about 1/4 of a km from there I just wanted to walk. I was immediately approached by Tuk-Tuk drivers offering to take me to my hotel, I kept saying no, I just want to walk but these guys don’t take no for an answer. One of them tried to tell me they knew of a better hotel to take me to, another one tried to tell me that due to protests of an upcoming election I needed a special permit to travel to the part of town my hotel was in. None of this was true. I kept trying to use the GPS on my phone but every time Id take it out someone would get really pushy and tell me that I’d better be careful or someone would steal my phone. I eventually found the correct route to walk and a man stopped me in plain clothes claiming to be a police officer saying that I would have to stop and turn around without the proper permit. When I asked to see his ID it looked like a fake ID from the 90’s that said noting about police, I knew he was trying to scam me. At this point it was just me, this phony police man, and 5 Tuk-Tuk drivers all trying to take me to some hotel in New Delhi they probably got a cut from when my hotel I had a reservation at was in Old Delhi. I told them I’d call my hotel and see what they had to say about all this special permit business. The hotel told me that all these men were indeed full of shit and not to listen to any of them, so I said my peace and carried on without stopping for anyone else.
The next day I was ready to see some of the sights. I realized they had Uber in India and this was great because there’s no discussion or possibility for the driver to scam you and it’s super cheap! I pretty much took Uber all over the city. I should also mention that against my better judgement and the advice of others, my first visit to India was in July. This is near the end of the monsoon season but it’s still pretty overcast and rainy. The worst part is the heat and humidity. Ugh, it was no joke, it was truly brutal. First place I went was Jama Masjid. The Jama Mosque is one of the largest mosques in India and it’s pretty incredible. It was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in 1656. We at Endless Roads Travel do love Islamic architecture and this mosque is definitely up there with some of the beautiful mosques you can find in Esfahan (Iran), or Samarkand (Uzbekistan).
The next place I went was the Chandni Chowk area of Old Delhi. This is a large shopping area selling everything you can imagine. It’s very busy and one of the oldest markets in Old Delhi. It’s a great place to walk around and get lost in. Chandni Chowk is also very close to Red Fort, the next place I stopped at.
Red Fort was incredible to see. This was the home of the emperors of the Mughal dynasty for over 200 years. The Fort was built by the 5th Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as his place for the capital Shahjahanabad. This is the same emperor that was responsible for Jama Masjid and many more incredible buildings scattered around India. It’s considered to represent the pen-ultimate of Mughal creativity. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2017.
The Red Fort complex was designed by Ustad Ahmad Lahouri, the same architect that designed the Taj Mahal. It was commissioned in 1638 after the emperor decided to shift his capital from Agra to Delhi.
Shah Jahan did not live out his last days here, his disloyal son imprisoned him in Agra Fort for the last 10 years of his life. In 1857 the British took over the fort and forced the last Mughal Emperor into exile in Burma (Myanmar). They destroyed most of the original buildings and gardens replacing them with barracks for the colonial army.
The next place I went was the Ghandi Smitri and Mahatma Ghandi Memorial. This is a beautiful museum of the former residence of Mahatma Ghandi and place of his unfortunate assassination in 1948. You can stroll through the gardens where he spent so much of his time and also see the room he stayed in left exactly as how he kept it. The man’s legacy is archived in stories and photographs throughout the museum. He was called the “Father of the Nation.”
A short walk away is the Raj Ghat, a beautiful park that has the spot where he was cremated.
By this point I had spent the last 5 hours or so completely drenched in sweat and damn near suffering from heat stroke. It was time to go back to my hotel to take a shower. I wasn’t done yet though.
The next place I went was Humayun’s Tomb. This gorgeous mausoleum of white marble and sandstone was originally designed as a prototype to the Taj Mahal. It’s quite a nice mix of Persian and Mughal design. It was built in the mid 16th century as a memorial to Humayun’s widow but also contains the tomb of Isa Khan, the architect of the Taj Mahal. This is another one of Delhi’s beautiful UNESCO World Heritage sites.
The surrounding garden’s also contain the tomb of the emperor’s favorite barber. Although it’s hard to pick and choose with so many historic sites, this is definitely a place worth checking out when visiting Delhi.
The next place I went was Qutub Minar. This is India’s tallest minaret, it was built in the 12th century. The minaret is ringed with intricately carved verses of the Koran. It’s made out of sandstone, marble and red sandstone. It’s 5 stories and 70 meter high. This minaret is incredible! Apparently enough for UNESCO to make it a World Heritage Site.
The last place I went before returning to my hotel was the iconic India Gate. This incredible stone arch was built in memorial to Indian soldiers killed in World War I. An eternal flame burns beneath the arch and the walls are inscribed with the 90,000 soldiers who died in the war. The night I was there they had the colors of the Indian flag shining on the arch and street was full of people.
Although the weather was way too hot and humid for me and I may have lost my patience a few times with pushy Tuk-Tuk drivers and would be guides, I still had an interesting experience in Delhi. In hindsight I may have to visit again. This was the end of my visit in Delhi, I had a train to catch at 6:00 am to Agra, to see the Taj Mahal. India was country 102/197.
Leave a Reply