Saturday in Delhi

Today we spent some time walking though Lodi Park, which was beautiful.  It contains several tombs - definitely not something you see in a lot of US parks.  Here are some pics:

Tonight we are going to a Bollywood dancing class, thanks to Divesh - I expect it to be a disaster in the best possible way.

Back In Delhi - Chadni Chowk

Arrived in Delhi yesterday morning and after some sleep headed out to Old Delhi to wander around the maze of lanes, alleys and streets that make up Chadni Chowk market.

If you need to get upstairs to grab a few more items from the shop, these ladders will do:

If you get thirsty, perhaps some lemon water:

The wiring in the market is kind of crazy:

We had lunch at Karim's a 100+ year old restaurant serving Mughal food, and which is just behind the Jama Masjid, the largest Mosque India, which can hold 25,000 devotees in the courtyard.  I didn't go in, as I had been in last year but here are a couple pics of one o the corner minarets:

I opted to forgo a haircut, given that I don't really have any hair-  but here's where I could have had one in the Chadni Chowk:

And here is a video of just a small part of the pedicab ride to the Metro station, which will give youa  sense of the traffic:

Finally, after the craziness of the Old Delhi markets, a beer overlooking Deer Park down in Hauz Khas Village:

National Museum of India

The National Museum has a large number of very cool sculptures, paintings, crafts, weapons, armor, and archaeological items like pots, tools etc dating back thousands of years.  I particularly liked the carvings and statues.  Also, they had a several thousand year-old dead guy:

This incredibly intricate gold vessel contains actual relics from the Buddha himself, given to the Indian Government by the Thai Government.  The glass around the vessel made it hard to get a good picture:

And here are a couple more carvings:

And I will leave you with this guy:

Ahh!

India Gate & Rashtrapati Bhavan

After the Tomb, my driver took me down the Raj Path - a long. straight parkway that runs from the President's house (Rashtrapati Bhavan) down to the India Gate, which celebrates their independence and the founding of the Republic.

Here you can see the dome of the Rashtrapati Bhavan on the back right, behind one of the two large Secretariat buildings that flank the Raj Path:

And here is the President's residence, and a view back down the Raj Path to the India Gate from the Governement buildings:

Humayun's Tomb

First stop today was to see the Humayan's Tomb, which is a World Heritage site, and contains several other structures as well.  Humayun was the second Mughal emperor, and this is apparently where one can find him today.  The first thing to check out is Isa Khan's tomb - he was a noble at the court of Sher Shah's.  Here is your first glimpse through a surrounding wall:

And here is Isa Khan's octagonal tomb itself:

Isa is in the large tomb in the middle, and then there is a close-up of the detailed painting on the ceiling of the dome, followed by some detail on the tomb itself:

Next to the tomb is Isa Khan's Mosque, with a detail shot of an inscription inside followed by a view of the tomb from inside the Mosque:

This is the massive West Gate which leads to Humayun's Tomb:

Once through the West Gate, you are treated to this:

Humayun's tomb is a precursor to the Taj Mahal, and stands 47m high, and contains over 100 graves, making it both impressive and creepy.  Next is a shot of the intricately designed dome above the body of Humayun himself which is, of course, beneath the marble - 7 feet down, I was told:

And here's me, with the help of a friendly tourist:

Next post will focus on The India Gate, President's House, and other Gov't buildings.