Old Delhi – India Just Got A Little Bit Better

After a couple of days in New Delhi, we finally met up with our Intrepid tour group. Before leaving for Rajasthan, our first adventure together was Old Delhi.

Now, I did not think that Delhi could get any more interesting but surprisingly it could! In the early morning, we took the metro down to Old Delhi and headed through the streets! As Old Delhi can get super crowded, we got there early while the vendors were still preparing for their day to be able to move freely through the streets and get a good view.

Apparently, people jams are quite common. A situation where no one can move in any direction due to so many people on the roads!

Sounds like my kind of nightmare…I was glad we came early.

So down the street we headed! Camera strapped around my neck, I started taking photographs of everything around me. Old Delhi was like going back in time! All transport of goods was done manually down the streets, not to mention the electrical nightmare of wires filling the sky. I couldn’t snap fast enough!

Now, I know what you are thinking. Only tacky tourists wear their cameras strapped around their necks. Normally, I would totally agree. But I could not deny the functionality of carrying it around my neck. And like I told Kevin, “I am a white girl in the middle of India. I am not fooling anyone anyway!”

 

After walking around for a bit, we stopped for our first cup of Chai since we got to India. It was amazing! I would say I would start drinking Chai in Canada but after seeing them prepare it in India, I don’t think that Canadians know how to do Chai. You definitely can’t find this at Starbucks.

After our walk, we stopped for breakfast at Parawathe Wala. This was a tiny place that has been serving proper paratha from the same location since 1875! We tried one with banana and one with curd (cottage cheese). The banana was out of this world.

Needless to say, we ordered 3 more.

After we were fuelled up on breakfast, we headed to one of the largest mosques in India, Jama Masjid, that can hold up to 25,000 people.

After the mosque, we headed to Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib which is a famous Sikh Temple in the middle of Old Delhi. There, we toured through the temple and the common kitchen where they serve free meals daily.

Notice the sweet saffron bandanas we were required to wear upon entering the temple.

I think we look hardcore.

After the temple, we were back out on our own for the afternoon! So we weaved our way through Old Delhi back to the metro.

Let me say this about the metro in Delhi. It is like a whole new world down there. You go from the chaotic, dirty streets of Delhi into this unbelievably clean and organized place. You could be anywhere in the world down there.

India. A country of contrasts for sure!

Kevin and I headed to explore one more attraction – Qutb Minar – the tallest brick minaret in the world.

The day was a perfect start to our tour. If Delhi was any indication of what India had to offer, we could not wait to see what was to come the next couple of weeks!

To Rajasthan we go!