Monday, February 05, 2007

Old Delhi

Monday, 1002pm

Some friends came over a little after 10 this morning to watch Kiran for several hours, which gave us the opportunity to visit India Gate and Old Delhi. This area is north of where we are, and is insanely crowded. Not many Westerners visit the area, as it's a much poorer and conservative area. At times, I felt as though I were in a zoo, since we four definitely got lots of looks!
Street in Old Delhi
We ate lunch at Karim's, which is a restaurant praised by Westerners and Indians alike. It lived up to it's reputation! Our intention was to immediately visit the largest mosque in India, but because of the call to prayer, our plans were delayed. Instead, we walked around the busy streets of Old Delhi, taking in the sight, sounds, and very distinct smells.

Kelley and Jonathan at the mosque
Eventually, we made our way to Jama Masjid Mosque. It's a beautiful structure. Upon entering the mosque, we had to remove our shoes, meaning we walked around either barefoot or with socks. As women, Kelley and I needed to cover our heads. We were able to march up the minarets and take in views of the entire city. It really was a neat experience!

Jama Masjid Mosque
Tomorrow we are leaving very early in the morning and heading to Agra and Jaipur. We'll be back in a few days! Hasta luego!



1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Dave eat Salata? Don't be crazy, Brett; Treebeards is the wave of the future.

The pictures are AMAZING- can't wait to see the ones from Agra. India has definitely skyrocketed on my list of places to visit :) Merritt, I hope Brett is buying you many of those gorgeous scarves and saris!

How were the turkey sandwiches at Karim's?

-Tracy