Old
Delhi is a raucous cacophony of cars beeping, rickshaw
bicyclists ringing their bells, ear-wax cleaners, dentists
and barbers plying their trade to pedestrians on the street,
children splashing and washing their hair with a hand-pump
on the corner. The narrow alleyways are festooned with
hundreds of electric cables intertwined in a way that makes
you wonder how long they've been there and when they'll
come down. Cows, goats and dogs walk the streets and browse
the shops as if they were patrons. Hawkers and beggars
'request' your assistance. Food vendors roam the streets
with their portable kitchens.
There's a wedding accessories street, a spice street, a kitchen supply street, a fabric
street, a sari street and a flower street, organized in
a city where 'organization' is not often apparent to the
naked eye. And all of it takes place amid a car-bus-bike-rickshaw-pedestrian-scooter
grid-lock in one of the most populated cities in the world.
While the experience of a walk or rickshaw drive through the streets of Old Delhi
is reason enough to come, Delhi has more sights than you could possibly see in
a few days and prioritize you must. There's the Jama Masjid, completed in 1656
AD, and one of the largest mosques in India. Its three sides are covered with
open arched colonnades, each having a lofty tower-like gateway in the center.
The roof is covered with three domes with alternating stripes of black and white
marble, with its upper portion covered with gold. A walk through the fabled Chandni
Chowk (literally, 'Silver Street') is also a nice way to get to know Old Delhi.
It was once the most opulent perfume market of India, but is now a bustling market,
good for hunting down textiles, spices, books, musical instruments, and old and
new silver and gold from jewelers whose forefathers served the emperors ( www.chandnichowk.com).
Just don't try to cross the street; it's like mid-town Manhattan rush-hour traffic
plus cows and rickshaws and minus the traffic-light signal.
Then visit the Red
Fort (closed on Mondays), dating back as far as 1639-48 AD, and built by Emperor
Shah Jahan, who also built the Taj Mahal.. Also known as the Lal Quila, the Red
Fort is the largest of old Delhi's monuments and its thick red sandstone walls
, bulging with turrets and bastions, have withstood the vagaries of time and
nature to impress us with the power and magnificence of the Mughal era. Visit
Raj Ghat where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated following his assassination in 1948.   |
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Our hotel of choice for our arrival was The Imperial ( www.theimperialindia.com),
the entrance lined with twenty-four king palms. The décor is impeccable, studded
with rare collections of 18th and 19th century artwork and its restaurant overlooks
beautifully manicured gardens. It is truly an oasis of calm and elegance in the
middle of a bustling city and has been dubbed by many, the ’museum hotel‘. The
suites are approximately 500 square feet in size, each with mahogany and oak
carvings and splendidly ornate furniture, high-speed wireless internet and two
of the largest and most sophisticated plasma televisions I have ever seen.
We were spoiled mercilessly by our private butler, standard with a luxury suite, who escorted us to breakfast and to the pool as if we had no perception of time and space (a correct analysis given jet-lag). Our physical condition at this point in the trip was a little weary, so I won't say that romance was the first thing on our mind, but it's difficult to be so indulged and not be in the mood for pleasure on every level. When the pillows are made of down, the bedspread of hand-woven silk, and the bathtub is the size of the State of Rhode Island, romance calls whether you're jet-lagged or not – so be sure to nap on the plane.
THE IMPERIAL HOTEL, DELHI
Style Elegant High-Rise
Setting City
Why you'll love it Its acreage and cloistered setting, make it an oasis in the middle of a bustling city
Good to know Butler service is available with the luxury suites
Dining Spice Route restaurant, designed using the principles of Feng Shui, this award-winning restaurant has a temple-like interior, and hand-painted walls, ceilings, and columns.
Address Janpath, New Delhi
Telephone Number +91 11 2334 1234
Fax Number +91 11 2334 2255
Email address luxury@theimperialindia.com
Website www.theimperialindia.com
How to Get There Taxi or private driver from the airport
Tour Guide Mrs. Punam Gulati
Government approved Tourist Guide. Tel +91 111 559 8102, Cell +91
98110 42859 or Email punamgulati@yahoo.com
Greaves Local Agent Vikas Asthana,
4B Jangpura-B Mathura Road,
New Delhi. Tel +91 11 2437 3523 or Email info@greaves-travel.co.in
SHOPPING
Central Cottage Industries
Address Jawahar Vyapar Bhawan,
01 Tolstoy Marg,
New Delhi,
India
Tel +91 11 23321909
Cottage Industries Exposition
Address 16 DCM Building,
Barakhamba Road,
New Delhi (Ground Floor, opposite Bank of America), India
Tel +91 11 26254264
Saga Department Stores
Address B-5 Jangpura Main Mathura Road,
New Delhi, India
Tel +91 11 2437 6981
Website www.sagastores.com
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