Day 74_to_76
The train departs at 11:30. We hope it will be on time. We’ve read that the trains in India may have huge delays; We cross our fingers! We go to the train station like one hour before the departure, we were expecting a bar or a cafe there… nothing, just the platforms and a lot of people sitting or laying on the floor. We are by far the only two occidentals!
The train arrives early, so we can accommodate ourselves, we are sharing a 4 beds space just with another girl. Perfect!!! We spend all the way relaxing, reading and listening music, but we’ve failed in something … we are starving! the only thing we have are some reeeeally bad cookies. The train is comfortable so the way seems shorter.
Finally we arrive to New Delhi, and it’s hard to explain what we see. Moutains of rubbish everywhere, and people living in campsites “along” the rail tracks surrounded by garbage; cows eating trash, children almost naked playing there… I’m not even able to take photos of that. The main station is not what expected… it’s a dirty chaos! We are not having a good start for New Delhi. We manage to go out and we are surrounded by rickshaw drivers. They push you in a way that JUST when you are rude they leave you alone! The hotel is at walking distance, so we don’t need a ride.
On the way to the hotel we feel really uncomfortable, the smell is intense, there are lots of dogs with scabies everywhere, and the heat is suffocating. Finally, we find our hotel’s street. Our face is a poem; if you go to New Delhi NEVER take a hotel near the main train station. It’s a 4 lane street (they convert it in 6 lanes easily), full of noisy traffic, the buildings are old, dirty and decaying. At some point we need to cross this hell of a traffic, we manage to arrive to the central divider of the lanes. We are waiting to cross when a man decides that I’m too slow, so he just pushes me. He makes me fall into the crazy traffic!!!! Luckily nobody runs over me, but I’m scared as hell! WELCOME TO NEW DELHI!
New Delhi had been really overwhelming, we are exhausted, so we decide just to stay at the hotel for the rest of the evening.
We’ll give a second chance to the city, we are here to visit it! So, next day we start with the Red Fort, which is named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone. Some buildings are in fairly-good condition, with their decorative elements undisturbed. In others, the marble inlaid flowers have been removed by looters. Here we have to deal with Ricksahw drivers, “guides” and selfies, loooooooots of selfies.
Then we go to the Chandni Chowk, (Moonlight Square) is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi.
Finally our last stop is at the mosque, as we are tired and the heat is suffocating we decide just to take a look from the outside and go back to the hotel.
Next morning we’ll visit Rashtrapati Bhavan and surroundings, that’s the President of India’s house. Our rickshaw driver leaves us in front of a door of Mughal gardens, but when we try to enter two military officers stop us. It’s forbidden! We have to walk around half an hour to arrive to Rashtrapati Bhavan!
The neighborhood is nice, full of gardens, greenery and monkeys! Finally we arrive to the “modest” house. It’s just a 19,000 m2 with 340 rooms little house. As we approach the house the selfies start… it’s nice if the people ask for them with a smile (that’s the usual), but it’s really creepy having a guy following you filming with the phone in front of your nose, and not talking to you!
On the opposite site of the boulevard there is the India gate, another must visit, so here we go!
