Vacation Travel India

South of Rashtrapati Bhavan is Teen Murti Bhavan (open Tues-Sun 10am-3pm; free), which houses the Jawarharlal Nehru Memorial Museum in the prime minister’s former residence. Nehru’s study, sitting room and bedroom have been preserved and there is a very detailed exhibition of the history of the Independence struggle. The modesty of the interiors reflects well on one of India’s greatest leaders.

The story of the Nehru/Gandhi dynasty is continued at the Indira Gandhi Memorial Museum (open Tues-Sun 9.30am-5pm; free) at 1 Safdarjang Road. This bungalow was her residence and the place where she was killed by her bodyguards. Blood stains are still visible at the spot in the gardens. Inside you can see her study and her wedding sari, woven by Nehru. Close by, on Tees January Marg, is the site of another political assassination, the Gandhi Smriti (open Tues-Sun 9am-5.30pm), museum and memorial, in the house of the industrialist G.D. Birla. In the garden, the place where Mahatma Gandhi was shot in 1948 is marked by a simple memorial.

Southeast of India Gate is the National Gallery of Modern Art O (open Tues-Sun 10am-5pm; free), in the former Delhi home of Jaipur’s royal family. Its permanent collection includes 1930s paintings by Jamini Roy and Nandalal Bose and 18th-century Indian landscapes by Thomas and William Daniell. The ground floor is devoted to contemporary Indian artists. The National Museum (open Tues-Sun 10am-5pm; entrance fee) south of Raj-path on Janpath, is noted for its Indian sculpture and jewellery collections, Chola bronzes and a Buddhist gallery, including a carved Buddhist gateway from Sanchi. Especially good, on the second floor, is the Verrier Elwin collection of Adivasi art, from northeastern, central and southern Indian states.

Southwest of Rajpath is Chanakyapuri, the diplomatic enclave where the majority of foreign missions and embassies are located. The Rail Museum (open Oct-Mar 9.30am-5pm, Apr-Sept 9.30am-7.30pm), just off Shanti Path, is worth a visit. There are some interesting period coaches and a large array of steam engines, including the huge Garratt, built in 1930 in Manchester; there is also an unusual working steam monorail. Nearby is the Santushti Complex (opposite the Ashoka Hotel), with shops of Indian designers and the pleasant Basil and Thyme restaurant.

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The 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.

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Around Lodi Gardens

South of India Gate lie most of the sites of the former cities of Delhi and many good shopping areas, such as Khan Market, which has good bookshops and up-market stores selling everything for the house, including fresh flowers. A short walk southwest along Subramania Road brings you to the beautiful Lodi Gardens (open sunrise to sunset), with fascinating tombs set in well-maintained lawns lined with rows of flowerbeds, immense trees, a bridge and walkways.

Old Delhi

The peaceful 18th-century Qudsia Gardens, near the Inter-State Bus Terminal (ISBT) and Kashmiri Gate, mark the southern boundary of British Delhi (which was strung out to the east of the Northern Ridge) with its cantonment bungalows and administrative buildings of the Civil Lines © and the University campus. South of the gardens lies Mughal Shahjahanabad, Delhi’s seventh city, with the spectacular Lai Qila (Red Fort) facing Chandni Chowk (meaning moonlit or silver crossroads), once the central avenue of an ancient bazaar that is still an important commercial centre.

Each side street around Chandni Chowk has its own specialty: silver and gold at Dariba Kalan, wedding paraphernalia and theatrical props at Kinari Bazaar, silk saris, copper and brassware and a fascinating wholesale spice market (with dry fruit and nuts from Kabul) at Naya Bazaar. On Main Street is Digambara Temple, the oldest Jain Temple in Delhi, and the Bird Hospital, where injured birds are nursed back to health.

The Sisganj Gurudwara (Sikh temple), Sunehri Masjid (Golden Mosque), and Fatehpuri Masjid (1650) are some of the sites crowded between stalls selling a jumble of wares, street photographers using ancient cameras, and hawkers and touts. The famous sweetmeat shop of Ghantewala, established in 1790, is worth a visit. Specialities include sohn halva and sohn papri (caramelised sweets made with clarified butter). South of Central Road, follow Dariba Kalan to the massive red sandstone and white marble Jama Masjid (Friday Mosque), the focal point for Delhi’s Muslims. Commissioned by Shah Jahan in 1644, the mosque can hold 20,000 people in its huge courtyard, in the centre of which is a tank used for ritual ablutions. The mosque and fort, opposite each other, were integral to the complex plan of the walled city.

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South Delhi

Hauz Khas Village, poised at the edge of a 14th-century water reservoir, and madrasa and tomb of Feroze Shah Tughlaq, is south along Aurobindo Marg from Lodi Gardens. Although the village has been transformed into an enclave of expensive boutiques, art galleries (particularly good is the Village Gallery which has a wide selection of modern and contemporary Indian art), and restaurants, it still retains much of its greenery and charm. Traditional dance performances are sometimes held here in the evenings.

Monuments dot the area: the ruins of Siri Fort, now very overgrown and difficult to see, stand near the Asian Games Village complex to the east (open only to members). Southwards on Aurobindo Marg, past the Outer Ring Road and Aurobindo Ashram, stands Qutb Minar Complex (open sunrise to sunset; entrance fee). This remarkable 72-metre (278-ft) high tower, engraved with verses from the Koran, was built in the 13th century by Qutb-ud-Din-Aibak, the first Muslim sultan of Delhi, to celebrate his victory over the Hindu kings. In the grounds, Aibak’s Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque is believed to be the oldest in India, built using parts of demolished Hindu and Jain temples. In the mosque courtyard is a 4th-century iron pillar, remarkable for having never shown any sign of corrosion. The ruins of Lai Kot, Delhi’s first city, are also in this area.

Other historic sites dot Mehrauli Village to the west amid a labyrinth of old Indian bazaars. Further west on Gurgaon Road the tombs of Jamali Kamali, noted for their coloured ceilings, and a giant statue of Mahavira face each other. Turn south again to see the spectacular modern temples and ashram complexes of Chattarpur. These offer courses in yoga, naturotherapy, color therapy, pyramid power and more traditional religious studies.

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The capital of India presents a captivating combination of ancient and modern. As a major cultural centre, Delhi offers a glimpse of the diversity of the country’s many states.

Delhi is the political and administrative centre of the world’s largest democracy. It has a population of more than 13.7 million and covers 1,500 sq km (579 sq miles). Presenting a curious mixture of old and new, this sprawling city has two main parts, Old Delhi (former Shahjahanabad) and New Delhi (the former British capital), consisting of ancient villages and sites that have been engulfed by newer residential areas (colonies). The city struggles to cope with the effects of expansion - pollution, traffic congestion, shortages of water and power, continual construction - and an extreme climate. Recent positive moves include the conversion of all public transport from diesel to compressed natural gas, and the opening of the first stages of a metro system. There are three lines, which are constantly expanding - visit www.delhimetrorail.com to check their progress. Line 1 runs from Shahdara across the Yamuna to Kashmiri Gate before heading north to Rithala. Line 2, of more use to visitors, runs from Vishwa Vidyalaya in the north, crossing line 1 at Kashmiri Gate, before running down to the Central Secretariat via Connaught Place. Line 3 runs from Barakhamba to Dwarka.

Ancient cities of Delhi

Strategically located between the Aravalli hills and the Yamuna river, Delhi has been the site of more than a dozen cities. It is named after an earlier settlement, “Dillika”. The first of the cities was Indraprastha, legendary capital of the Pan-davas, epic heroes of the Mahabharata. Recent excavations at Purana Qila (Old Fort) date the settlement to between the 1st century BC and the 4th century AD.

The next documented city was Lai Kot, founded in the 8th century AD by Tomara Rajputs. It was captured and renamed Qila Rai Pithora by the Chauhan Rajputs in the 12th century. Later it was occupied by the Slave King Qutb-ud-din, who founded the Delhi Sultanate and began construction of the Qutb Minar. The monuments and ruins from this era stand in and around the Qutb Minar complex in South Delhi. The ruins of Siri, a capital established by the Turkish Ala-ud-Din Khilji, can be seen around Hauz Khas colony. In 1320 Ghias-ud-Din Tughlaq moved to his fortress city of Tugh-laqabad, east of Qutb Minar. His tomb, overrun by monkeys, stands across the road from the ruins.

Ferozabad, once the richest city in the world, was founded in 1351 by his successor, Feroz Shah Tughlaq, on the banks of the River Yamuna. The ruins of his palace and other monuments are situated in Feroz Shah Kotla, south of the memorials on the Ring Road.

They were followed by the Sayyids and the Lodis, whose tombs stand in Lodi Gardens, south of India Gate. Their defeat by the Central Asian invader Babur, in the 16th century, marked the end of the Delhi Sultanate and the dawn of the Mughal Empire. Din-Panah fort (Purana Qila) was built above the Yamuna River by Babur’s son, the studious Humayun, who was forced to flee by Sher Shah, an Afghan invader. Sher Shah began constructing his new capital of Shergarh, but Humayun won back Delhi in 1555 only to die a few months later when he fell down his library stairs. Akbar, Humayun’s son, moved his capital to Agra. His grandson, Shah Jahan, builder of the Taj Mahal, returned to Delhi in 1638 to build the glorious Shahjahanabad. This walled capital, bound by 14 gates, included most of Old Delhi, Jama Masjid (Friday Mosque), the bazaars around Chandni Chowk and Lai Qila (Red Fort) from where he ruled his empire. Successive invasions from Persia reduced the power of the Mughals until the British took over Delhi in the 19th century.

In 1911, during the visit of King George V, Delhi was declared the capital of the British Empire in India. The present city of New Delhi, designed by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker, was completed by 1931.

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On the banks of the Yamuna

Eastward, behind the Red Fort, the Ring Road along the River Yamuna is connected by three bridges to the Trans-Yamuna residential areas. On the river bank from Red Fort south to ITO Bridge are the cremation grounds, now memorial parks dedicated to national leaders such as Nehru, Lai Bahadur Shastri, Indira and Rajiv Gandhi. The biggest complex here is Rajghat where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated, and there are two museums dedicated to him here. Gandhi Darshan (open Tues-Sun 10am-5pm; free) has a good collection of paintings and photos, and charts the history of the Satyagraha (non-violence) movement. Close by is Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya (open Fri-Wed 9.30am-5.30pm; free), which houses a display of Gandhi’s personal belongings and has a library of recordings of his speeches.

Further south is Pragati Maidan - a huge exhibition complex - site of the Appu Ghar entertainment park. The adjoining Crafts Museum (open Tues-Sun 10am-5pm; entrance fee) has demonstrations by regional craftsmen, huts built in regional styles and a good crafts shop. The fascinating exhibition galleries have displays of Adivasi art, woodcarving and textiles. There are bhuta figures from Karnataka, brightly decorated Naga objects from the northeast and some wonderful bronzes from Orissa. The textile galleries are superb - the collections run to over 22,000 objects - as well as some astounding, especially the Kashmiri, examples of embroidery. There are also weaving demonstrations.

Facing its entrance stand the ramparts of the Purana Qila (open sunrise to sunset; entrance fee; daily “Light and Sound Show”), with panoramic views of the city. The fort was built by Afghan ruler Sher Shah Suri (1540-45) and was taken over by Mughal Emperor Humayun when he regained the throne in 1555-56. Its Qila-e-Kunha-Masjid is the best preserved Lodi mosque in Delhi. The Sher Mandal pavilion, library and a lake (once part of the moat) surround the fort.

Delhi Zoo is next door. Indian zoos are particularly depressing, resembling concentration and torture camps rather than, at best, places to breed endangered species. The zoo shares a border with the wealthy Sunder Nagar colony, with a market famous for antique/reproduction shops and sweet stalls.

Mathura Road leads to Humayun’s Tomb (open sunrise to sunset; entrance fee). Set in beautiful gardens, the red sandstone monument is the finest Mughal building in Delhi and the prototype for the Taj Mahal. It was commissioned by Humayun’s senior widow, Bega Begum, and completed in 1565. Also in the grounds are the remains of the octagonal tomb of Isa Khan. To the north, easily visible from the gardens, is the modern Damdama Sahib Gurudwara.

Close by is the shrine, or dargah, of the Sufi saint of the Chisti order, Sheikh Nizamuddin Aulia (1236-1325), after whom the surrounding colonies are named. The dargah is a haven of peace in this busy Muslim area; the tomb of the saint is in a pavilion with beautiful marble screens (note: women are not allowed in the tomb itself). Also buried here are the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah (1719-48) and the saint’s disciple and poet Amir Khusrau.

South of Nizamuddin, the modern white marble, lotus-shaped Baha’i Lotus Temple (open Apr-Sept Tues-Sun 9am-7pm, Oct-Mar Tues-Sun 9.30am- 5.30pm; free) stands on Kalkaji Hill. This was completed in 1986 as a pilgrimage site for the Baha’i sect. Visitors must walk barefoot. Nearby, the colony markets (M & N Block) of Greater Kailash offer good shopping and restaurants.

South, on the Mehrauli-Badarpur road, the 14th-century ruins of Tughlaqabad Fort (open sunrise to sunset) and Adilabad, Delhi’s third city, dominate the landscape. Remains of ramparts, water-storage tanks and subterranean passages can be explored, but this area can be dangerous to visit alone.

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North India covers a great swathe of South Asia, seducing travelers with its infinite contrasts.

In the cities of North India boisterous crowds jostle past and newcomers attract plenty of stares. Colors and voices are loud. So are the sound systems of the temples and the mosques. The place can be fascinating and infuriating in turn.

The landscape goes to extremes - sand dunes in the Thar desert compete with glaciers glittering on distant peaks. Craggy Himalayan provinces loom over the plains, and the roads are under constant repair from the onslaught of monsoon rains or searing temperatures. Colonial cities are still slightly haunted by memories of the Sepoy Uprising and the Nawabs. Gung-ho adventure tourists try to tame the rapids of snowmelt rivers while pilgrims seek the source of the Ganga. At Varanasi a multitude swirls away the ashes of its dead in the green waters where blind river dolphins swim like torpedoes.

There are people milling everywhere. Uttar Pradesh (UP), the most populous state, is right in the middle of what is known as the Cow Belt. This is not particularly a cattle-raising zone (though you may often see stolid black water buffalo lolling on the wayside). It is the heartland of the Holy Cow, the conservative Hindu stronghold, as well as being a bastion of Muslim culture.

Punjab, closer to Pakistan, is home to proud Sikhs and prosperous Jat farmers. Radiating around Ladakh and in high Himalayan valleys, refugee Tibetan communities maintain their rituals and traditional dress. India’s elite enrols its children in up-country boarding schools, well away from the distractions of the city.

Despite satellite TV, North India resists an overwhelming sameness. Delhi is grand with monuments and its buzz as the seat of government, as well as its mosques or bazaars. Rajasthan provides a spectacle of camels, veiled women and enormous turbans. Polo is played on elephant-back while peacocks flutter the eyes in their tails.

Jammu and Kashmir’s heartbreaking beauty is defined by lakes, orchards and snowy peaks, while Agra is home to the Taj Mahal, one of the world’s great monuments to love.

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