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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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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