India

 

Day 1, Sunday - We departed ATL for India via a 3-hour layover in Paris. Both legs were about 8.5 hours long. The one to Delhi seemed a lot, lot longer though. The food was terrible. Sunrise before landing in Paris.

Day 2, Monday - Arrive in New Delhi. Welcome to India!  We arrived at 1am in the energetic capital city of New Delhi.  We weren't energetic after all that travel, and we had to get up at 6am for a full day of activity with Gate1. Delhi is the 3rd largest city in the world with a population of 18 million city and 33 million metro area. At the airport.

Sunrise from our hotel. The 2nd in 24 hours.

Day 3, Tuesday - Old & New Delhi City  

The day began with a visit to Humayun's Tomb, which is set in stunning gardens and is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. He was the 2nd Moghul Emperor of India. UAV photo!

While at the Tomb, we went on a Cyclo tour, called Rickshaw here, along the lanes of Chandni Chowk, once the imperial avenue of Mughal royalty. It was a great ride through the narrow streets of a large market area next to the Tomb. 

Almost every city in Asia has them. These are the worst we have seen. No electrician can possibly fix anything here.

Lots of colorful stores along the ride.

A lot of work done by hand.

Back at the tomb.

Symbol of cosmic energy on the entrance.

We continued to the walled city of Old Delhi, founded by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. Apparently, Old Delhi is new Delhi and New Delhi is old Delhi based on recent construction.

The wall is 2200 years old.

Tuk Tuk here, Tuk Tuk there, Tuk Tuk everywhere.

We traveled along the winding streets to Jama Mosque, the largest and best-known mosque in India. India has the 2nd largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia. Pakistan is third.

 

Cathy is styling. Zach was wearing the same thing.

After lunch, on to New Delhi with airy boulevards, lush parks and gardens. We 1st drove past the imposing British built, India Gate War Memorial to Indian and British soldiers, the Parliament House and the Presidential Palace.  

Their version of the DC Mall 

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Lots of artwork in tunnels.

 

Obelisk was built by Alexander the Great. 

We then toured Gandhi Smriti, the official residence of Mahatma Gandhi, where he spent the last 144 days of his life. It is now a museum. 

The footsteps are his last ones to the place he was assassinated.

Where he lived his last days 144 days.

After that we visited the largest Sikh Temple in India. It was an amazing community. They have been feeding people every day for over 300 years. Currently, they feed over 30k people a day.

We had costumes, pants and headgear and bare feet for this Temple.

 

Volunteers at work in kitchen.

View from our hotel room that evening.

Day 4, Wednesday - Travel to Jaipur, India's Pink City 

On the road from Delhi to Jaipur, the gateway to the desert state of Rajasthan. Getting out of Delhi is a challenge.

Making more roads.

Typical traffic leaving Delhi.

Lots of farmland needed to feed all the 1.4 billion people in India.

The start of the foothills.

There are many of these towers in the area. They use the straw from the wheat fields to burn the fires to make bricks in these towers.

Truck pulled in front right when I snapped.

They are everywhere on the sides of the roads, the sacred cows.

A colorful trailer.

This is a load of wheat straw to fuel the brick furnace fires.

Indian Goddesses.

Arriving in Jaipur area.

New Mosque being built.

On top of a mountain.

Never know what we will find in a market. This one was pretty dirty.

Arriving at our hotel in Jaipur. 

Day 5, Thursday - Amber Fort, Jaipur 

On the way to spectacular Amber Fort, a stunning fusion of Mughal and Rajput styles, we drove past Jaipur's stucco buildings lining the wide streets to understand why it is nicknamed the "Pink City." The city was painted its unique color in 1876 to celebrate the visit of the Prince of Wales. 

A viewpoint for the Amber Fort.

We ascended the hill to the ramparts of the Fort by jeep.

We arrived at the entrance.

 From here, we took in the panoramic views of Jaipur's original city walls and the lake below.

Monkeys and the bat cave.

These steps are steep to slow down invaders.

After the Fort, we viewed and untypically bought handicrafts at a store, offering premium quality handmade carpets, textiles, pashminas, paintings and woodwork. 

After lunch we toured the well-preserved 18th century Jantar Mantar Observatory, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II. 

Cancer and Virgo.

More city walls from inside the Observatory.

Later, the tour continued to the opulent City Palace, former royal residence, now a grand museum with an extraordinary collection of paintings and costumes.

Cathy and "her" matching Morris Oxford. 

Interesting tree.

Pidgeon fountain.

750-pound silver vases made for the visit from the Prince of Wales.

Tonight's dinner was highlighted by the exotic flavors of Indian cuisine at a local restaurant, while we were entertained by performers in traditional attire. We were not fans of Indian food.

They like puppet shows in India.

Day 6, Friday - Travel to Agra via Abhaneri

We departed Jaipur for the small ancient village of Abhaneri in northern Rajasthan. Some pictures on the way.

Cows and camels.

Upon arrival, we went to the Chand Baori, an architectural jewel. It is one of the largest step wells in India, fortified on all sides and one of our favorite sites in India. This unique idea was conceived by the early natives to work as a water reservoir. It is located adjacent to a temple dedicated to Harshat Mata, goddess of joy and happiness.  

A Phallus Temple.

The temple dedicated to Harshat Mata had mostly been destroyed. Parts have been restored.

On our way to lunch riding on dirt roads

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These are piles of cow pies. They are used for cooking and heating.

Pie providers.

Our greeter at lunch.

Our Tour Manager, Davinder, (he was great) used me as the model to demonstrate to the group how to put on a turban. By the way, it is 5 meters long.

We rarely get a hotel welcome like this.

DAY 7, Saturday - Taj Mahal 

We had another memorable day visiting the astonishing Taj Mahal, built by Emperor Shah Jahan as a mausoleum for his beloved Queen.

Greeted by monkeys.

The Taj is perhaps, the most perfect architectural monument in the world. It was built of white marble and semi-precious stones over a 22-year period by 2000 workers. It was completed in 1648 and is considered to be the finest example of Mughal architecture in the world.  

There are two identical temples on each side.

All the tile work is mosaic inlay.

Yamuna River. 

Afterwards, we stopped at a handicraft gallery and showroom displaying a unique collection of sculptures, and intricate inlaid marble work. We watched a demonstration of the workmanship that goes into the process of marble carvings, filigree and stone inlay.

In the afternoon, we toured the red sandstone Agra Fort, with its incredible maze of walled courtyards, mosques and lavish private chambers reflecting the grandeur of the Mughal Empire. The perimeter wall is 2.5 kilometers around.

The Pearl Mosque outside the walls.

The Taj Mahal from the Agra Fort.

The emperor who built the Taj, was imprisoned by his son in this tower at the Fort for 8 years, where he could only look at what he had built.

Another view of the Pearl Mosque.

Next, we went to the Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah which was built of the finest Indian marble embellished with mosaics and inlay of semiprecious stones. 

After that, if it wasn't enough for the day already, we went to the Baby Taj.

This tower, similar on both ends, was built to operate the irrigation system on the Yamuna River.

At dinner we had belly dancers for entertainment.

Day 8, Sunday - Travel Back to New Delhi

Lots of sights on the road back to Delhi.

This is a car racetrack.

Lots of new building going up. Not nearly enough to house all the impoverished homeless people.

Founders of India democracy monuments.

En route to Delhi we stopped for some photos at the graceful sandstone Qutub Minar Victory Tower, the world's tallest brick minaret, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was built in 1198 and is 72.5 meters tall.

At the hotel, we went out for a walk in Aerocity.

We had an Indian beer and wine there. The entire time we have been in India the wine stores have been closed due to a religious festival😕.

Day 9 - Depart India for Nepal

We departed early morning for our flight to Katmandu.