Delhi
We can’t say that we extensively toured Delhi as most of our time was spent driving, at the airport or hotel. The city is massive, covered in smokey pollution and not easy to navigate due to its traffic and size. We arrived in Delhi late at night and were to take an early flight to Jaipur so were only a brief rest and then off to the airport in the morning.
We met a dear Indian friend of ours in the airport who was also coming to India and we had planned to travel together for a week. Arriving from the terminal and seeing my first glimpse it looked simply frighting and apocalyptic. Giant orange floodlights reflecting on the thick smokey air as thousands of cars honked and pushed to get a spot by the curb. We had somehow received some sort of certified ticket to insure we were not hosed and were supposed to find our driver in the droves of cars. Somehow, he found us and we headed off to our small hotel. To enter Aerocity where the hotel was located, we went through a checkpoint where the car was checked by several army soldiers, under the hood, sides, trunk and all. The hotel was no different, as we pulled up to the electric fence, to my surprise even more armed guards surrounded the car and checked again thoroughly for bombs, As the large turban wearing Punjabi captain wearing a black trench coat with machine dangling, placed his hands together in prayer position and gave us a deep bow, I knew we were not in Kansas anymore. We rested and headed off to Jaipur in the morning.
We would end up back in Delhi as it is the major hub of North India numerous times and make an effort to explore. Many drivers did not want to be responsible for finding destinations as they can be too difficult to find and there is not current or dependable maps one can use to navigate the megalopolis. . We would later drive through the city and see the slums and giant cities of garbage dumps where children were going to the bathroom out in the open on mountains of filth (an image that would stick with us) and other less than inspiring spectacles. New Delhi is the capital of India, and its largest city. Almost 22 million people call it home, ranking it as the 5th largest city in the world. It also seems to be universally disliked by tourists and Indians alike for its congestion, air quality and general depressing assault on the senses. The slums of Delhi are a national embarrassment with their population of 1.8 million living without the basic amenities of electricity, plumbing, gas and making less than the equivalent of one U.S. dollar a day. Still, it is the major hub of travel through India and a necessity for most North Indian itineraries.
The air is thick
Hotel Ganesha
Statues at the airport
Awesome WC's at the Airport
