At Manchester airport we spent ages in queues for security, passport control and the rest. Jordan was an epic security check. We had to wait for a phone call to ensure that our binoculars were allowed – this was as we were leaving the country which seemed a little late to me. Dubai by comparison, was wonderfully easy and quick. The airport is right in the middle of the city – so just a 5-minute transfer. No queues at all. Easy checks. The flight was great. Air India do not have a great reputation but it worked well for us. The food was excellent and a glass of champagne for breakfast made it feel like a celebration. Delhi airport was reasonably painless and just like that we were in India.
First thing that struck us was the pollution. On the day we arrived the Air Quality Index (AQI) was over 400. By comparison, 50 is the usual limit for clean air. You could see the misty pall of smog hanging everywhere. Since then, the smog has not cleared. The day after we arrived there was cloud seeding. Several aircraft flew over the city spraying silver iodide in an attempt to create rain to the clear the air. I thought this was quite exciting. Sadly, it did not work. There was not enough moisture in the clouds. Published opinions varied from “worth a try” to “waste of money”.
We had a day tour of Delhi. First stop was the Jama Masjid mosque in Old Delhi. Diane had to wear a grey robe despite being perfectly modestly dressed. She was not impressed by this. We both had to take our shoes off. This despite the dog and pigeon dropping all over the floor. We bought some lightweight slippers but mine were too small and kept falling off. The mosque was built in 1650 and is still the largest mosque in India. British rule began in 1803 when they repaired and renovated the building. However, British opinion changed, after the revolt of 1857, which was blamed on the Muslims. Many mosques in Delhi were razed. The Jama Masjid was spared but was pressed into use as barracks. The Masjid was returned to the Muslims in 1862. It was protected as a religious space but was used for political rallies right up until the Partition of India in 1947. Today it is Delhi’s primary mosque and has a largely congregational function.
Next was the Red Fort, also known as Lal Qila, an historic Mughal fort also located in Old Delhi. Unfortunately, I was having trouble understanding our guide. He spoke English but quickly and with a strong accent. Without extreme concentration, I could not follow him at all. So, I cannot say too much about the Red Fort. From here we clambered onto a rickshaw and set off to explore Old Delhi. This was fun and interesting. The place is a chaotic mix of colours, people, rickshaws and vendors. We were guided into a spice shop where we politely listened to the sales pitch and left.
We visited a Skih Temple. Diane had to wear a robe. I had to wear a head scarf and we both needed to take our socks and shoes off. What is it with religion and dressing up? The temple was very impressive in that there was a lot of gold. No photographs allowed. We walked round an altar where a holy man was sat cross legged in front of a book. Round the back I spotted a man counting a large quantity of cash. He also had a credit card machine. Business seems to be good for the Sikhs. Next up was Raj Ghat. The place where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated. It is marked by a plain marble box which is empty although an eternal flame burns at one end. I settled on taking a photograph at distance rather than taking my shoes off yet again. Then we were supposed to see a panoramic view of the government buildings along the Raj Path and the imposing India Gate. The smog put paid to this. In fact, we could barely see the India Gate at all.
Lunch was great. We are vegetarian and we like spicey food. India, at least so far, has proved very obliging in both these respects. Wonderful, tasty vegetarian food everywhere. Next stop the inevitable carpet shop. Original, handmade, artisan, unbelievable value. The pitch remains the same. This one was genuinely selling carpets. Very nice silk on silk with intricate patterns. No space for it in our 23 kg suitcases though.
Final stop was the Qutb Minar complex. Built in 1200, the Qutb Minar is the tallest minaret in the world built of bricks. The whole area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and tells an ancient story of temples, vanity projects, changing religions and aliens. Beginning with the Qutb Minar tower, numerous emperors and rulers, including the British, have added their bit. The first mosque in Delhi was built here at the same time as the tower. Some years later the site had become a Hindu temple as seen by some remarkable carved pillars. Then there were Muslims again who defaced the pillars. Literally, images of faces are not allowed in mosques, so they cut the faces off the carvings. No way to treat a god. A summary of the history is beyond me because I find it confusing and couldn’t understand our guide. There is an iron column there weighing in at over 6 tons with origins going back 400 AD. Erich von Däniken (Chariot of the Gods, 1970) cited the absence of corrosion on the Delhi pillar as proof of aliens. Science has disproved this but it is still interesting.
We changed hotels in Delhi so that we could have a couple of days in the rather grand Leela Palace. The room was lovely and the bathroom borderline outrageous. It included a television that could be watched while you had a bath. Opposite our room was a large building site where they were working 24 hours a day. Bit noisy. But the real problem was the pollution. Put us right off going outside. I amused myself by taking photographs from the top floor. I tried to capture the pollution. And the Black Kites that wheeled around the building occasionally. There were also some pigeons but nobody is impressed by a picture of a pigeon. We had a couple of short walks and spotted some monkeys living by the road.
