Tombs, Temples, and Tourist Traps...

DAY 3:

After a couple days of hanging with friends and locals, Sabrina and I decided to get down to some serious touristing, so we grabbed our guide book and cameras, strapped on our fanny-packs and headed off to Humayun's Tomb.  (editor's note: Hi! It's Sabrina. I edit. I do not wear fanny packs.)

Humayun was the second Mughal Emperor, ruling northern India and what is now Afghanistan and Pakistan in the mid 16th century.  As well as being a great Emperor, reclaiming lost territory and expanding the empire, he must have also been a decent husband, because upon his death, it was his wife who commissioned this magnificent structure.  The Persian style architecture (presumably a result of the Persian style architect) was a first in India at the time of construction, as was the use of red sand stone, but both traits have become intrinsically linked to many of India's most historically famous edifices.  The scale and detail on these structures is breathtaking : the window (photo right) is a lattice structure carved from a single piece of marble, and the brass spike on the top of dome above is in fact 6 meters tall.

 

The rest of the day was spent in a couple of Delhi's most popular shopping districts : Dilli Haat, a bazaar showcasing food and handicrafts from each state of India, where Sabrina bought some beautiful pashmina scarves, and Hauz Khas Village, where we both bought kick-ass leather jackets (sheep skin, not cow hide.  Cows are sacred in Hinduism, so leather and hamburgers are off the menu).  

It was on our way to Dilli Haat where we narrowly avoided a common tourist trap, thanks to Sabrina's keen literacy.  We hopped into an auto-rickshaw and asked to go to Dilli Haat, at which point the driver passed us a business card which read "Delhi Haat" and told us that it was far away.  As well as the spelling difference, we knew that Dilli Haat was quite close.  After some arguing, we eventually cleared up the "misunderstanding" and he took us where we wanted to go. The next day, we would discover that many of these drivers receive gas coupons from the proprietors at Delhi Haat for bringing them tourists.  Furthermore, it is not uncommon for popular tourist sites to have imitators with similar names; it's the Fony televisions of tourist attractions. Nice try, guys.

That night, we headed to the Canadian High Commission (in Commonwealth countries, the Embassy is called the High Commission) and enjoyed dinner with the family of Sabrina's colleague, a welcome departure from the past three days of butter-heavy vegetable-scarce Indian cuisine.  I've never been so happy to see a salad.

DAY 4

On this fateful day, the Hindu god of tourism was full of wrath and vengeance, and he rained fire and brimstone all over our plans.  In preparation for Republic Day,  both the Red Fort (a massive sandstone fortress at the top of Old Delhi) and the Gandhi museum (a museum ... about Gandhi) were closed.  However, we did manage to gain merciful entrance to the breathtaking and aptly named Lotus Temple, a Baha'i house of worship.  

As with all things Baha'i, entry is free of charge, and we spent several meditative minutes in the very large yet very peaceful prayer room, before enjoying the lovely gardens surrounding the temple.

Upon our return home, distraught from somewhat sub-par sight seeing success, our host promised to lift our spirits by taking us to a restaurant which has laid claim to the invention of butter chicken.  While their claim may be debatable, there is no question that this is the best damn butter chicken I have ever had, and it goes without saying that we had A LOT of it.  Keeping with the theme, we went home and lay bloated on Zach's couch.

Stay tuned for Australia day celebrations, a bit more Delhi, and our travels by plane, train, and automobile to some of the other astounding sights which India has to offer.