Dehli Vacations
Posted by adminThe circular shopping arcade of Connaught Place (properly Rajiv Chowk) forms the heart of modern Delhi. The colonnaded corridors were built for the British to shop in style. Concentric roads create an inner, middle and outer circle lined with shops, restaurants, street stalls and cinemas. The underground Palika Bazaar on the Outer Circle has tiny shops overflowing with tourist tat and touts. The tourist theme continues to the north, with the backpackers’ ghetto of Paharganj Bazaar, opposite New Delhi Railway Station, which offers cheap food and accommodation, and colourful shops: most of which is best avoided. To the west, Baba Kharak Singh Marg has a row of State Government Emporia where regional handicrafts are sold at regulated prices. Also here is the popular Coffee Home cafe. Opposite is Hanuman Mandir, a temple dedicated to the monkey god Hanuman, much revered by wrestlers. At the end of this road, to the left, rises the golden dome of Bangla Sahib Gurudwara, the city’s principle Sikh Temple. Going southwest along Sansad Marg (Parliament Street) is the red sandstone Jantar Mantar, an open-air observatory built by Maharaja Jai Singh of Jaipur (open sunrise to sunset), a focal point for political protests. To the south, Janpath is popular for its street stalls, Tibetan market, women from western India peddling embroidered fabrics and the huge Central Cottage Industries Emporium (CCE), which offers a glimpse of the wide range of handicrafts available in India.
Kasturba Gandhi Marg leads southeast to India Gate past the cultural centres of the UK and the US, which have good libraries and reading rooms in addition to cultural programmes. To the southeast, Barakhamba (Twelve Pillar) Road leads to the cultural circle with Rabindra Kala Sangam, Triveni Theatre and cafe, and various auditoria hosting regular performances of dance, music and theatre.
The area around India Gate formed the British administrative centre of Delhi with the local “Champs Elysees” of Rajpath surrounded by lawns and shady trees, water channels and fountains. India Gate, a 42-metre (138-ft) high archway, was built by Lutyens at the eastern end in 1931 to honor Indian soldiers who died during World War I and on the Northwest Frontier.
Rashtrapati Bhavan O the presidential residence (former Viceregal Lodge), can be seen at the western end of Rajpath with the circular Sansad Bhavan (Parliament House) nearby. Flanking the approach to Rashtrapati Bhavan are the North and South Block Secretariats, housing the Ministries of Finance and Home Affairs, and Ministries of Foreign Affairs respectively. At the eastern end of Rajpath (by India Gate) are two magnificent residences, Hyderabad House and Baroda House, built for the two most powerful rulers of the so-called princely states of British India. Beyond India Gate lies the National Stadium.
