A week of luxury in Delhi...

Steph: We’ve been in India now for over a week and I really don’t know where to start! There’s so much to describe and so much that we’ve done so I’ll try my best to do it all justice in the blog. In Delhi, we’ve been so incredibly lucky to be staying with my old neighbours from Paris, Bridgit and Graham, in their fabulous house with marble floors and air conditioning, a chef and a driver! What luxury! We were made to feel so much at home there, especially as they hosted their very first Indian party the evening after we arrived. It was a wonderful party; the men who Graham works with and their wives (who looked beautiful in their saris - such fabulous colours) all brought gifts for Bridgit: flowers, paintings, vases!

The delicious food - all served in huge golden pots - was cooked by the chef and there were waiters walking around offering people drinks and Indian style hors-d’ouvres. The best thing for us though was to be mixing with so many Indian people on our very first evening.

I sat indoors with the women while the men sat together outside. It was really interesting to see a

first glimpse of the segregation between the sexes and we met some lovely people who advised us on where to visit during our time in India. I also learned a little more about Hinduism and the traditions here, more of which I have found out about since visiting a number of Hindu temples. At 10.30pm everyone left (EVERYONE at once!) and this left the four of us alone to continue the party on strong. We soon turned their living room into a dance floor and even the chef, Anthony, came out to show us his Michael Jackson moves!

On Sunday, needless to say, we were slightly worse for ware and only Graham’s beans on toast could sort us out! We got in a tuk tuk (which Chris was invited to drive!! The driver hastily took back the wheel when Chris overtook a bus!) and went straight to India gate from where we walked to the parliament buildings.

The tuk tuks are like a colony of green and yellow ants dodging, often extremely precariously, through the insane traffic. It’s generally quite cooling though as you sit there with the breeze in your hair and they’re completely shaded with their little yellow roofs. In all honesty though, we’ve been exceptionally lucky to have been invited to use Graham’s driver, ‘Geet, who, in an extremely comfortable air-conditioned car, has driven us around to whichever sights we wanted and added a few places of interest of his own to make our visit to Delhi extra special.

We did our fair share of sight-seeing in Delhi: Humayan’s tomb, the Bahai ’Lotus’ temple where people of all faiths are invited to pray - I loved it here, so calm and peaceful amongst the madness of Delhi. We also explored the Quintar Mintar which is a very ancient and beautiful pillar surrounded by tombs and the Jantar Mantar observatory and sundial built in 1725 which looks more like a modern art style structure - see photo. Finally the Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in the whole of India - it can hold 25000 people in its courtyard - which we caught at an especially poignant time when all the men were leaving after the final prayer of the day.

We visited the famous Red Fort by night where we watched a sound and light show about India’s history. Rather bravely, we took a taxi into Old Delhi after sunset which was apparently especially mental as it was the last week of Ramadan so people were out and about everywhere celebrating and eating after their long day of fasting. Crossing the road was a crazy task - Mum, you would have hated it - and Graham led the way through the cars, buses, tuk tuks and motorbikes (often carrying a whole family! Dad, mum and two children!) as I held my breath and hoped for the best! Strolling around the empty Red Fort at night time was eerie and a very special experience. There were barely any people there and the majority of the fort inside wasn’t lit up at all, making it quite spooky. I especially loved it as my Grandad was based here for a number of years during WW2 when the British used the fort to house their army barracks before India gained independence in 1947. I’d recommend the sound and light show if you’re interested in India’s history, though Bridget wasn’t impressed with what she described as ‘the constant Empire-bashing’.

On another evening, I went with Bridgit and her amazing landlady (more on her in a blog to follow this!) to visit a Muslim shrine outside a mosque in Old Delhi. This was a wonderful experience, especially as it was the last Thursday of Ramadan and so the streets were alive and CRAZY with people. It was lovely to see so many families there paying respects to the shrine, and praying. It was so packed that the men were pouring out of the mosque to pray alongside it. We sat cross-legged on the marble floor outside the shrine (no women allowed inside) for at least an hour and a half soaking up the atmosphere..

Bridgit also took us to an amazing Indian clothes shop, famous in Delhi for its range of styles and colours and also prices: FabIndia! Chris arrived slightly dubious as to what on earth he might be able to buy here but emerged after what Bridgit considered an especially loooong time (AGES after the two of us had finished in the ladies’ section) from the changing room with a rather large selection of garments he wished to purchase! We helped him decide eventually on two pairs of Indian style trousers, one top and what is apparently called a photojournalist’s jacket. I bought two pairs of extremely baggy, long and light trousers. I absolutely LOVE the colours here - India really is full of such beautiful colours. It makes me wonder why we insist on such dull clothes in the West! I congratulate anyone of you reading this blog if you’re not wearing one of our Western favourites: black, grey, brown or beige! Comments welcome…

We’ve eaten really well in Delhi (no Delhi-belly yet, touch wood!), mainly due to Anthony (the chef) but also due to the great and bargainous restaurants here with such a fab selection of food! I LOVE Indian food; it’s something of a favourite with my family and many British families, I’m sure. There’s just so much choice and so many flavours. We’ve stuck generally to the vegetarian options and we’ve tried some wonderful dishes. My favourite so far has to be (can’t remember exact name…alu dak??)… two boiled potatoes stuffed with paneer (Indian cheese), raisins and pistachio nuts, soaked in a tomato, onion and amazingly creamy curry.