First day in Delhi

We arrived in Delhi last night but by the time we negotiated our way through immigration and customs, exchanged a little currency and took a taxi to our hotel, there was little to be seen beyond the blank of smog. Our hotel is superb, one of the best in Delhi.

We woke early as our body clocks are still adjusting.  After a wonderful breakfast of western and Indian foods, we set off for our first day in Delhi.  Our first stop was at the bank adjacent to the hotel.  The ATM was dry (so are all the others in Delhi) and we could not deposit our old currency into our foreign bank account.

We took a tuk tuk to the Red Fort and entered by the Lahore Gate and through the Chatta Chowk or covered bazaar.  The first major building was the Naubar Khana or Drum House where musicians welcomed dignitaries as the Red Fort was the home of the moguls including the one who built the Taj Mahal.

We saw the Indian War Memorial Museum, reception halls and royal apartments, towers, mosques, palaces and gardens.

                                               

                                        Gail at the Naubar Khana or The Drum Hall

                                                    Gail at the main Audience Hall

                                        Rob at the Red Fort Walls. The moat was once the main river bed.

We headed down the Chandni Chowk that houses a huge spice market, markets for clothes and household goods.  We planned to spend time at the Jama Masjia, the great mosque built by Shah Jehan but not long after we arrived, the call to prayer went out so we continued to Humayun’s tomb  built in 1565.  This was a huge complex of tombs with the main one being the forerunner of the Taj Mahal at Agra.

                                      The walls of the Jama Masjia mosue.

                                      The Isa Khan Tomb. Dating from 1547 AD it predates the Humayuns tonb.

                                                  The tomb of Bu Italma.

                                      

                                     Gail at Humayun's Tomb built in 1565

After a short stop at a market, we went on to the Lodi Gardens, a green oasis in the urban jungle.  This was the oldest architectural site we have seen today and it included tombs, mosques and extensive areas of gardens.  The garden was named after the Lodi dynasty who reigned from 1451 to 1526.

                                      The Bada Gumbad A gateway to the gardens and tombs.

                                                The Bada Gumbad Mosque

                                           The Shish Gumbad showing traces of its original colours.

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                                                               Our transport and driver

Today has been an excellent to the history of India and we will revisit several of the places again tomorrow.