We made our way across town to Old Delhi and the Islamic Mosque. This mosque was a local prayer center. The men had to cover their legs and females had to cover all skin. This provided a good opportunity for a picture. Instead of white marble of the Taj Mahal the mosque was constructed from red sandstone. It had an open courtyard which would fill up during prayer hours. The courtyard stone got quite hot in the Indian sun, burning our feet as we walked around. Once again as we lined up the take pictures, locals quickly snapped pictures of our group.
Our next event was easily the highlight for the most of us. We all took a ride through the side streets of Old Delhi on a two person Rikshaw. A Rickshaw is a wagon like carriage attached to a bike, and serves at the equivalent to a taxi in India.
As all of our drivers raced through the busy streets we were exposed to many sights and smells that we were not accustomed to. Overwhelmed with beeping and shouting we momentarily found ourselves stuck in a traffic jam. The end of the Rikshaw ride left us at the gate of the Red Fort.
The Red Fort
This massive royal family fort was constructed in a mere 10 years. The fort lies along the Yamuna River which feed the moat surrounding the fort. Our tour guide has a lot to say about the fort. As we walked along the sweltering heat he explained how much of the fort is still in it original form. We walked through the Archeological Museum before we made our way back to the entrance to participate in more bargaining for souvenirs.
As we made our way to the airport we briefly stopped at Bengali, a local traditional sweets shop. Only Erin and I got off. How in the heck can you pass up a special stop for SWEET TREATS! We were the only non Indian people in the shop, but I felt surprisingly comfortable. Perhaps I feel most at home around sweets HAHA. Our tour guide Karan led the way as he suggested the best sweets to get. I decided to get “Atta Laduo” a compressed spiced sugar and flour ball that resembled the flavors of a peanut butter cookie. The crumbly sweet was slightly crunchy. My next item was “Peda” a dough-like disk shaped with pistachio flavors. There was a odd bitter aftertaste the took some getting used to. My last item was “Gungia” a tart like item with a cinnamon sugar and raisin mixture folded between pastry dough. Thanks to Karan’s direction we were greatly satisfied with the selection.
Arriving at the Delhi airport, strict security measures were enforced to just enter the airport. We said our final goodbyes to India as our plane departed back to Dubai just after 4pm. It was a trip I will never forget!
I hope everyone is doing well, thanks for following me through India, Sean.
No comments:
Post a Comment