The people!
OH GOD!
So MANY PEOPLE!
They're everywhere! It never stops!
Welcome to New Delhi. Truly a city that never sleeps. And I mean never! Vegas has got nothing on this place.
My hostel sits on a service road beside a fairly busy main road. The honking never stops.
Ever. Never stops.
You get used to it after a bit but it also makes me miss my boring, fairly quiet street in Edmonton. And I live downtown Edmonton, in the ghetto, where there's a fight outside on a weekly basis and the police re no strangers. That should tell you something.
I also miss my dog.
Moving on!!
New Delhi is an interesting experience and vastly different then Kashmir and even Agra. That's where The Taj Mahal is located, remember? That's ok, I barely remember it as well.
Went for a walk along Chandni Chowk, yesterdaym a very old and famous market here. And there were people! Everywhere! Crushing you!
I visited the oldest spice market in Chandni Chowk. It was established in 1917, nearly 100 years old and it's quite famous. Bought some spices, as that's what one does at a spice market. Mmmm, spices. The man helping me showed me some photos of famous people who had gone there, including Dan Brown. ( The novelist....DaVinci Code.... ). I grabbed some delicious street food and decided I needed to get out of there. There was a small window of time that I could handle the crush of people until I needed to go, NOW!
Then, I took the metro. Even more of a crush of people. It never ends!!!!
Today I made a new friend, Holly from England. Holly and I went on adventures together, including buying saris and spending more money then we should. We saw a few monuments and spent a bit of time in the Sikh temple, Bangla Sahib. I have a facination with religions and religious rituals. I sat through a Sikh prayer, along with chanting and drums
The chanting and the carpeted floors always seem to bring an instant calm to me, something I needed after a few busy, people filled days. I sat and I closed my eyes and allowed the chanting and the noise to quiet my mind.
Then there were drums!!! Loud, booming drums which punctuated parts of what the Guru was chanting and saying. It loved every moment of it and would have stayed for hours had I not been with others. The prayers last all day, beginning at 4 am and going until 11 pm. Each Guru takes a 2 hour 'shift' of praying and chanting. The gathered members chant along. I wish I could have known what was being said. I have decided to do some research on Sikhism.
Oh, and Sikh men are really quite attractive and bearded, always bearded. See a trend here????
Note to self: Being an atheist does not mean you can't enjoy religious rituals such as chanting.
This temple serves three meals a day to whomever would like or need it and there appear to be many in the area that need that.
We also met a random man in the metro who became a seudo guide for us during the day. I was waiting for the hammer to fall, for him to ask us to buy something. But he didn't. It was a wonderful day filled with wonderful people.
And a lot of walking.
And I'm tired.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
OH GOD!
So MANY PEOPLE!
They're everywhere! It never stops!
Welcome to New Delhi. Truly a city that never sleeps. And I mean never! Vegas has got nothing on this place.
My hostel sits on a service road beside a fairly busy main road. The honking never stops.
 |
| My hotel address. Makes perfect sense. |
Ever. Never stops.
You get used to it after a bit but it also makes me miss my boring, fairly quiet street in Edmonton. And I live downtown Edmonton, in the ghetto, where there's a fight outside on a weekly basis and the police re no strangers. That should tell you something.
I also miss my dog.
Moving on!!
New Delhi is an interesting experience and vastly different then Kashmir and even Agra. That's where The Taj Mahal is located, remember? That's ok, I barely remember it as well.
Went for a walk along Chandni Chowk, yesterdaym a very old and famous market here. And there were people! Everywhere! Crushing you!
 |
| Chandni Chowk during a quiet moment..... |
 |
| This guy, he's spicey. |
Then, I took the metro. Even more of a crush of people. It never ends!!!!
Today I made a new friend, Holly from England. Holly and I went on adventures together, including buying saris and spending more money then we should. We saw a few monuments and spent a bit of time in the Sikh temple, Bangla Sahib. I have a facination with religions and religious rituals. I sat through a Sikh prayer, along with chanting and drums
The chanting and the carpeted floors always seem to bring an instant calm to me, something I needed after a few busy, people filled days. I sat and I closed my eyes and allowed the chanting and the noise to quiet my mind.
Then there were drums!!! Loud, booming drums which punctuated parts of what the Guru was chanting and saying. It loved every moment of it and would have stayed for hours had I not been with others. The prayers last all day, beginning at 4 am and going until 11 pm. Each Guru takes a 2 hour 'shift' of praying and chanting. The gathered members chant along. I wish I could have known what was being said. I have decided to do some research on Sikhism.
Oh, and Sikh men are really quite attractive and bearded, always bearded. See a trend here????
Note to self: Being an atheist does not mean you can't enjoy religious rituals such as chanting.
 |
| Gooooold. Inside Bagla Sahib Temple. |
We also met a random man in the metro who became a seudo guide for us during the day. I was waiting for the hammer to fall, for him to ask us to buy something. But he didn't. It was a wonderful day filled with wonderful people.
And a lot of walking.
And I'm tired.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
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