Delhi Things to Do Tips by smirnofforiginal

Kotla Firoz Shah

The citadel of Firozabad was the 5th city of Delhi. Emperor Firoz Shah Tughlaq built Firozabad and its citadel in 1354.

Once a beautiful palace little remains here now. A pparently a lot of the remains were used in the construction of otherbuilding around Delhi.

The ticket office is to the left as you face the entrance (mind your head on the low entrance gate!).
There is a fee for photography - this was one place that I objected paying for my camera as I was rather untaken with the grum py man on the entrance and was unimpressed with the ruins - I did not feel they warranted an additional cost!

Directions: Located near the famous Feroz Shah Kotla Cricket Stadium, off Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg.

Day trip - Agra (& Sikandra)

From Delhi it is entirely possible to do a trip to Agra and back. And, in a day i is possible to see the Agra Fort and the Taj Mahal.

You can either take a train or hire a car and a driver.
If you do the latter (car) you can easily stop off atSikandra at Akbar's Tomb en route to Agra. If you go by train you will need either a taxi or rickshaw to take you to Sinkandra from Agra.

Memorial to Gandhi Raj Ghat Review

It is a very quiet, peaceful place to visit; a place, perhaps, for reflection.

In the centre of well maintained gardens is the memorial - a slab of black marble which marks the spot of his cremation following his assasination (1948).

Around the sides of the garden are quotes and thoughts, engraved in a variety of languages.

You must remove your shoes before you proceed into the ground of the memorial. There is a small kiosk where you can leave your shoes (and pay). Alternatively on the right there are racks where you can place them for free. I took my chances and placed my stinky, old walking boots on the racks... as I had thought, nobody wanted them and they were there to greet me when I left!

just like heaven Jantar Mantar Review

Delhi's Jantar Manter is the earlist of the five observatories Maharaja Jai Singh II built. It was constructed in 1725 and has stood the test of time to continue platting the course of things up above. The structures are a brilliant orange/red an, unlike the twin Jantar Mantar in Jaipur you can climb the steps and get up really close and personal to the structures here.

A very peaceful, strange and worthwhile setting to visit.

Hazrat Nizam-Ud-Din Dargah

Here is the mausoleum of the Sufi saint Nizam-ud-din Chishti and a few other tombs too.
I came with my children to hear the sufis sing (it is meant to be really rather wonderful). However we ended up leaving just as he sufis arrived which was a pity but my youngest son felt very uncomfortable and worried.... to get the the mausoleum you have to wander down some tangled enclosed alleys and they were lined with beggars and cripples, all reaching out to us and when we got to the middle of it all we did feel a little alien and out of place although nobody really seemed to mind our presence. It was hot and all our travel weary senses were on overload - it was a rather raw experience for our first night in Delhi. I wish we could have heard them.

The suffis sing around sunset.

India Gate India Gate Review

The 42m tall arch is a tribute to the Indian soldiers who died in WWI (90,000), in the Northwest Frontier ops & the 1919 Anglo-Afghan War.

Directions: Rajpath's eastern end

Gandhi Smriti

Admission is free.
Photography is (apparently) prohibited but I did not know this and nobody challenged the camera that dangled around my neck.

What I did not realise when I was here was that Gandhi spent the last 144 days of his life here and the small pavillion marks the actual place where was shot.
The museum is comprehensive and contain Gandhi posessions

sublime serenity Humayun Tomb Review

My favourite site in Delhi and in my top ten of India - Humayun's Tomb.
Built in the 16th century (early Mughal) by the senior wife of the 2nd Mughal emperor; Humayun. The wife, Haji Begum, was Persian thus the style of archecture here.
It is not just Humayun's Tomb that can be found here - there are several (including his barber!).

The buildings are exquisite, the (extensive) grounds are a delight to walk around and it is easy to get away from other visitors.
There is a café within the grounds.

It was Rs250 entrance fee which was about Rs240 more than the Indian entrance fee!!!!

the largest mosque in the country! Jami Masjid Review

Jama Masjid towers over Delhi and has room to hold 25,000 people. It was built between 1644 & 1658. It's two minarets are 40m tall, it has several gates, a tower on each corner, is incredibly beautiful and teaming with beggars and child hawkers who will latch onto you should you opt for walking in the shade of the arches as opposed to burning your feet and melting under the Indian sun which unrelentlessly pounds the enormous courtyard.
As this is a mosque you must remove your shoes - ensure you have some small change for the man who will "look" after them for you. If you are lucky he will actually cover them with a cloth so that the sun doesn't bake them. You must aslo be (ladies) adequately covered... and this is where I got into an arguement (and won!). I had my own enormous shawl that was capable of covering me from head to foot and back up again but the man on the gate was absolutely determined that because I was a tourist I should be forced to pay to wear the tourist cloak!
As with everywhere you pay to get in (children nder 12 are free) and you must also pay for your camera to accompany you (well worth it!). Inside you can pay an extra Rs50 to climb the southern minaret (I was unaware of this at the time but apparently women HAVE to be accompanied by a man!). The climb up is exhausting, very hot and an extremely tight squeeze when bumping into groups of people who are on their way down! There were too many people at the top which is only a small area and, all in all, it was not really worth it although there were very good views of the courtyard and of Delhi with the Red Fort in the background.

Lal Qila Red Fort Review

This incredibly impressive fort was constructed between 1638 and 1648. The walls are a whopping 2kms in length and tower 18m over the river and a staggering 33m over the city! It is a Mughal fort but Shah Jahan never quite managed to get the capital to Delhi from Agra because of household problems (namely his son throwing him into prison!)

You enter the fort (costs 250INR, children under 12 are free) through the Lahore Gate, imaginatively called thus because it faces Lahore, Pakistan. This leads you to Chatta Chowk which is a rather uninspiring touristy bazaar.

There are plenty of (wonderful) buildings within the fort (including the Diwan-i-Khas which has a (Persian) inscription "if there is a paradise on the earth - this is it. this is it. this is it" and were it not for the rather more 'exotic' style of archetecture, one could, within the grounds, almost be forgiven for thinking they were strolling around an English country garden!