Out and about in Dilli

We have been Delhi-seeing, and I am very impressed with what I have experienced. The phrase "steeped in history" takes on an entirely new meaning in Delhi. I'm fairly sure they coined the phrase after visiting this city. I've lived or extensively visited all the major Indian cities and there is no other Indian city which has so much to offer (Calcutta may come a distant second and Hyderabad, which is the one city I know nothing about could be a close contender from what I hear).

We have been to Akshardham, ISCKON temple, Red Fort, Humayun's tomb, Lodhi Gardens, India Gate, Chandni Chowk, Hauz Khas and the Ba'h'ai temple. I love that Ads is now reaching that age when there are so many more teachable moments. We can point out intricate carvings on the marble walls of the Red fort and know that he'll appreciate it. We can show him the warm hues of the red sandstone as the setting sun strikes Humayun's tomb and know that he can see beauty in that sight. We can explore the crumbling structures in Lodhi gardens and witness his dim understanding that these were buildings built hundreds of years ago and real people actually lived in (and are buried in) them.

And the food!! This weekend, we went to a very hip fine-dining place in South Delhi. The reason we went there is that S had eaten there with his office crowd and he said we simply HAVE to try the paneer in that joint. It was the whitest, softest, creamiest, most-melt-in-the-mouth paneer I have ever had the good fortune to eat. It was not cottage cheese, it was ambrosia. The next day, we were in Paranthewali gali in Chandni Chowk where we could not decide whether it was the tomato and bhindi paranthas, or the boondi laddoo or the aloo tikki which was the best. The last couple of weekends have been a feast for the eyes as well as the mouth!

Enough gushing. I wanted to upload a few photos from our jaunts; but blogger is acting weird today. Seems to think I don't have a license to display my own photos! Anyway here's one of Ads in front of Humayun's tomb. Our American was miffed that we were taking him to a "rusty" place for dinner in Chandni Chowk - he wanted to go to someplace with "decoration". That is Ads-speak for a hole-in-the-wall joint as opposed to a regular restaurant.