Day 1 - Old Delhi - Juma Masjid and Red Fort

A narrow stair leads up amidst the shops selling car parts. At the top is the neat but small reception of New Palace Hotel. The room is shady as we expected. With two beds, there's just enough space to walk. A small television sits in one corner. The painting of a flower hangs from the dull green wall alongside a colorful clock. The tiny bathroom is neat enough. From downstairs come the unmistakable honking of vehicles from the street choked with traffic. Outside the balcony, the massive Juma Masjid rises up.

Yeh dilli hai mere yaar...Welcome to Delhi-6

There's a quaint romanticism to Old Delhi. Once you enter this place, you are no longer in the swanky capital city, with its huge buildings and skyscrapers. Life moves slowly here - thanks to the narrow congested roads. People still are in a hurry, as evident from the incessant honking of vehicles to keep the ones in front moving. Cars, rickshaws, cycles, bikes, men and goats - everyone's taken to the roads here. Shops joust for place along the roadside. Glancing up, you can see electric wires crisscrossing - reminding one of that famous mail about Kirchhoff's Law not being applicable to Indian cities.

Tucked into one of the alleys that spawn off these streets, is the famous Karim's Hotel - so famous that it is housed in four different rooms, all across the alley - and still, you have to wait for space. The effect of having a mention in Lonely Planet was evident, as there were an equal number of foreigners and locals. Our experience of a biryani was not really good - both because of the large quantity and because of a just-about-pleasant quality of the dish. The seekh kebabs were, however, quite tender and spicy.

Gate Number 1 of the Juma Masjid stands right opposite to this street. There is one of those wooden contraptions that pass by the name of a metal detector. As expected, it never beeped. As we headed in with our shoes in hand, a gentleman stopped us, pointing to my camera and a notice stuck up there - each camera ticket cost 200 bucks. That was a first in India for me - not the presence of a ticket, but the fact that it costs up to 200 bucks.

The interior was majestic! On the left rose up the magnificent facade of the huge mosque. A vast courtyard stretched in front with three gates at its three sides. A small pond adorned the middle of the square. Children were running around, sometimes creating ripples in the water with their hands, young girls in anarkali-esque costumes were coyly posing for photos, and foreigners in their polka-dot attire were going gaga everywhere. One of them even posed before the Masjid, folding her hands in a namaste sign. With me being busy tinkering my camera, (as always) SS was everyone's favourite choice for having their photos clicked with their own cameras. From the steps leading down from Gate 2, looking eastwards, it is difficult to miss the massive walls of the Red Fort.

"We'll have dinner at the Red Fort", i pointed out to SS.

"Yeah, sure", he said.

"You'll get Lal Quila Basmati Rice there...", I beamed.

For a moment he was silent. "Saala! Pakadke maaroonga tereko!" SS retorted back.

It was almost 5 when we reached the Red Fort. The sound and light show was scheduled only for 8:30. After much deliberation, we decided to skip it. There was a massive security check to get in to the Red Fort. For the first time, that wooden metal detector thingie worked - as i discovered when the guy behind me, a little overanxious to get in, pushed me into it (an act for which he got more than a mouthful from the security guard). However, the guard at the baggage checking point was lax. He never even bothered to have a look at the tripod inside my bag.

At the Diwan-I-Am, we were invaded by a horde of Tamilian tourists, who wanted to be everywhere at the same time. Photography was turning out to be difficult, added to the fact that i was prohibited from using the tripod. After a few shots in the dark, we moved on towards the backside, where is situated the majestic Rang Mahal, the Diwan-i-Khas and other splendid structures. The hordes were moving quite slowly, making photography even more difficult, but at the same time, giving enlightening information from guides and all-knowing parents. One mother pointed to the Khas Mahal, informing her son about how some badshah had built the place. She was not sure which badshah, but it was the guy who was featured in "Jodhaa-Akbar".

A group of foreigners were staring at the magnificent marble arches of the Diwan-I-Khas.

"Look at the marble slab in the middle," said the guide, "that is where the beautiful peacock throne used to be".

"Oh! where is it now?" asked one of the ladies.

"That is not here anymore. It was plundered by Nadir Shah!" replied the guide, "You should read the paper."

I'll check the paper tomorrow for any news on Nadir Shah plundering Delhi.

The Tandoori Kebabs that we had in Karim's at night were good. Shetty confessed that he had eaten better ones. I have a lack of experience in this matter.

Pic of the day: Afternoon break