Day 2 - Delhi
We met our tour group in the evening yesterday. There are 15 people in total between the ages of 20 and 30. I always love guessing the nationalities of my fellow travellers, so here's the breakdown:
- 2 Canadians (Jill and I)
- 1 guy from Switzerland
- 1 guy from Denmark
- 2 girls from Russia
- 1 American girl
- 3 Swedish girls
- 4 British girls, 1 British guy
So far we are all getting along very well. Everyone is personable, friendly and fun.
After meeting everyone at the restaurant and having many beers we caught up on our sleep.
New Delhi is the capital city of India and is a city of 16 million.
Up bright and early for a 7:45 departure, we hopped on the surprisingly modern metro and zipped off to the Chandni Chowk bazar district. From there we went to the largest mosque in India, Jana Masjid. The girls all had to wear Velcro moo-moo dresses and be escorted by men in certain parts of the mosque or face lewd comments and harassment. The three guys on the trip have to do that somewhat often.
We could see the Red Fort from the mosque but have to visit it on the way home through Delhi. From the mosque, we went through the wedding market to the Jain houses. Jainism is a small and very prosperous religious group in India. There houses are large, elaborate and beautifully decorated.
After Jain houses, we wove through the tiny, crowded market streets to a Sikh temple, Gurudwara, where we learned about the faith and about the good works and progressive thinking the community has shared in India.
Hopping the metro again, we went back to the hotel to gather our things and start the 14-hour train ride to Bikaneer. Before we left the hotel, we were told the train was 1.5 hours late already. With the delay, Jill decided to visit an Internet cafe in the area. Unfortunately, the taxis arrived at the scheduled time and our guide had planned on departing at the scheduled time as well. So away I ran in search of Jill at a computer in a maze of shops in a city of millions before we both missed the taxis and the trains. Fortunately, we had found a good cafe we liked the day before and Jill patronized their establishment again. We made the taxis on time, had a crazy ride to the station (our driver hit a guy on a bike), and arrived to find the train was leaving on time. Good thing we didn't wait!
We checked in through security to find that it was delayed. So we hung out in MacDonalds for 1.5 hours. There were a few baboons chilling in the station with us as we headed to the platform. There we were told the train was another 1.5 hours late. This was not a pleasant waiting spot as the toilets on the train just empty right onto the tracks... Just as our guide and the Russian girls were going to leave for a smoke, the train pulled up. Just 2 hours late instead of three. Rushing into the deluxe AA sleeper cars, we were off to Bikaner.
Although the cars were filthy, the squat toilets weren't that bad. The platform bed was kind of comfy and the chai was hot and plentiful. The only downsides were the EPIC snoring from the car beside us and the many disruptions from people opening the curtains.
Despite leaving two hours late, we arrived in Bikaner only one hour late. I don't know how...
- 2 Canadians (Jill and I)
- 1 guy from Switzerland
- 1 guy from Denmark
- 2 girls from Russia
- 1 American girl
- 3 Swedish girls
- 4 British girls, 1 British guy
So far we are all getting along very well. Everyone is personable, friendly and fun.
After meeting everyone at the restaurant and having many beers we caught up on our sleep.
New Delhi is the capital city of India and is a city of 16 million.
Up bright and early for a 7:45 departure, we hopped on the surprisingly modern metro and zipped off to the Chandni Chowk bazar district. From there we went to the largest mosque in India, Jana Masjid. The girls all had to wear Velcro moo-moo dresses and be escorted by men in certain parts of the mosque or face lewd comments and harassment. The three guys on the trip have to do that somewhat often.
We could see the Red Fort from the mosque but have to visit it on the way home through Delhi. From the mosque, we went through the wedding market to the Jain houses. Jainism is a small and very prosperous religious group in India. There houses are large, elaborate and beautifully decorated.
Hopping the metro again, we went back to the hotel to gather our things and start the 14-hour train ride to Bikaneer. Before we left the hotel, we were told the train was 1.5 hours late already. With the delay, Jill decided to visit an Internet cafe in the area. Unfortunately, the taxis arrived at the scheduled time and our guide had planned on departing at the scheduled time as well. So away I ran in search of Jill at a computer in a maze of shops in a city of millions before we both missed the taxis and the trains. Fortunately, we had found a good cafe we liked the day before and Jill patronized their establishment again. We made the taxis on time, had a crazy ride to the station (our driver hit a guy on a bike), and arrived to find the train was leaving on time. Good thing we didn't wait!
We checked in through security to find that it was delayed. So we hung out in MacDonalds for 1.5 hours. There were a few baboons chilling in the station with us as we headed to the platform. There we were told the train was another 1.5 hours late. This was not a pleasant waiting spot as the toilets on the train just empty right onto the tracks... Just as our guide and the Russian girls were going to leave for a smoke, the train pulled up. Just 2 hours late instead of three. Rushing into the deluxe AA sleeper cars, we were off to Bikaner.
Although the cars were filthy, the squat toilets weren't that bad. The platform bed was kind of comfy and the chai was hot and plentiful. The only downsides were the EPIC snoring from the car beside us and the many disruptions from people opening the curtains.
Despite leaving two hours late, we arrived in Bikaner only one hour late. I don't know how...
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