Day 21 - A little taste of Delhi

Kerry thought that her Achilles had maybe improved a little over night but one might expect that after 12 hours of rest. We had decided yesterday to visit the Physiotherapist again today and tomorrow to give us the best chance of making a good recovery.

After toast and coffee for breakfast we went down to Reception to make arrangements for the day. Or plan was to do an hour of treatment and then have the driver take us to at least eye-ball some of the well known places, stopping long enough for a quick snap. Off we went at about 11:30am. The traffic the physio was not as bad as yesterday afternoon which was promising. Kerry had her physio treatment. Dr Kumar is very nice and very helpful. She said that she’d be happy to take a call and arrange a local physio in whatever region we’re in, should Kerry need it.

We found our driver where we’d left him and headed for the Red Fort near Old Delhi. Here’s a tip for any of you who might one day come to Delhi. The way to see Delhi is NOT in a private car. The traffic is  horrendous and we spent way too much time at a standstill in gridlock. The best way is the Metro which is mostly as elevated railway. It’s very cheap and reliable and safe (according to Lonely Planet). We didn’t experience but it just could not be worse than a private car. There are many stations across the network which are all serviced by tuk-tuk drivers and cycle rickshaws, all of them more than happy to take you to the attraction you are seeking. A small and worthwhile financial investment if you’re a time-poor traveler. The main attractions actually cover quite a large area. Unfortunately we didn’t have that option as Kerry was unable to walk any distance for fear if undoing all of Dr Kumar’s good work.

The Red Fort is an impressive looking structure, huge in all dimensions. I took a few snaps and then jumped back in the car. Next on the agenda was the India Gate. This is a monument to all Indians lost in battle. It’s not dis-similar the the Arc d’Triomphe in Paris and I guess serves the same purpose. It’s set in a long, narrow geometric garden 4kms long which links the Houses of Parliament and other governmental buildings with said monument. The whole precinct is very nicely laid out with leafy streets, curved roads and numerous roundabouts very large and small. It’s where the seat of power is in India. It really is a world away from what’s outside the bounds of the precinct. Chalk and Cheese. This is not the real India, just as Canberra is not the real Australia. But it was nice to see, nevertheless. We drive by Lodi Park, which was built and enhanced by various Mughal Emperors in the Persian geometric fashion and is full of monuments apparently. One such monument is to one of Emperor's barbers. He was the only man who get that close to the Emperor with a sharp instrument!

This precinct also house many government department buildings such as the the air force head office, the Reserve Bank building, the UN and other embassies, Prime Minister’s residence and the President's. One quirky thing was that it also contained a very large number of multi-storey apartment buildings, set amongst trees and adjoining green spaces, for the public servants who worked in the aforementioned government departments.

We’d both tired of the traffic, which became infinitely worse again once we’d passed the sign advising our exit from the governmental zone. It wasn’t very far back to the hotel but it took and eternity. Back at the hotel we got a room service coffee, relaxed a bit and then headed not very far down the street for dinner at the hotel-owned restaurant. After a very tasty Chicken Tikka and Rogan Josh we left for home. Bugger me, walking back the same chap who harassed us on day one recognised us and picked up from where he left off! The conversation was more convivial this time, but he still tried to convince me to follow him to a friend’s shop to buy something for Kerry for Valentine’s Day.