Out And About...

First of all, a Happy Dusshera to every one!!!

Its a good time to be in Delhi during festivals. The city celebrates all festivals with equal vigour, be it Diwali, Eid, Baisakhi, Christmas or even Chhatt. The city reverberates with excitement, and yesterday (Ramnavmi) was not different. Me and my friends visited CR Park to visit the pandals there. Looked like there was a pandal for each block, and people were visiting every one of them. What was welcome there was the orderliness, as they patiently stood in the queue to be frisked and to be admitted. Once inside, there was the HUGE protima (thats how the Bengalis say it) of Durga maa, with every body praying and taking pictures. But unlike in the temples, where there is a tussle to kneel before the God, people were a little more patient there. Perhaps it was the festive mood, people were in a mela, so they were in their mela moods. Unexpectedly, I met our old cab driver, a mad sardar named Daljeet. We chatted a little, made enquiries, it felt nice.
From there, the plan was to head to Kalibari (the fact that I was with my Kharagpur born and bred friend and my Assamese friend and his wife had a lot to do with our visiting all the Durga puja pandals), but it was cut short as we passed by the Bangla Sahib and I remarked that I had never been there. Turns out neither had they, and so the plan was detoured to Bangla Sahib, and it was a good detour.
Bangla Sahib is a must visit for everyone. Right in the middle of the chaotic city, the place still exudes calm. The sight of the huge mass of people going silently to the Gurdwara was quite welcome, as was the sight of people voluntarily scrubbing the floors and offering water and also manning the shoe stall of the Gurudwara. Once inside, people moved silently in devotion, without minding the others. The thirty minutes we spent there were peaceful.
Next up was the inevitable trip to purani Dilli. Eid was over, and it was back to business as usual there. But even without the festivities, the place is a magnet for me. It love to just stroll in the narrow lanes there, windows shopping. This time around, I finally tasted tandoori chicken from the place where it was invented, Moti Mahal restaurant. Again, the ambiance of the place is a little old world, and the prices are steep, but a visit to the place is still worth a visit once. The dish in question was not bad at all. In fact, it was quite good, the meat was tender, the spices spread evenly, though I thought that the taste was geared more towards western tastes (read, not spicy enough).
Yesterday was a realization for me that Delhi is a varied city. Theres lots to see and visit in this city. Its which aspect of the city that suits you. For me, it definately the historical ones. The sight of Purana Qila excites me, even though I have been there many times, I want to visit Hymayun's Tomb one more time, search out the Hazrat Nizamuddin Dargah and also the tomb of Mirza Ghalib.