7th February: Mughal mausoleums

After another lovely breakfast at the flat in Haus Khaz, we dragged ourselves out of our home-away-from-home to continue our exploration of Delhi. First stop, after a short and very civilised metro ride, was Safdarjang's Tomb. The 18th century building was slightly bedraggled, and could be characterised not unfairly as the youngest and least beautiful sibling of the great Mughal buildings that decorate northern India, but outside of this context it was an undeniably impressive building. We walked around the outside of the large grounds, which were divided into square after square of rather parched grass (populated by birds, squirrels, and Indian couples seeking some privacy). Finally we entered the tomb, climbing up to peer at the sandstone elaborately inlaid with marble and semi-precious stones. 

Safdarjang's Tomb, away from the crowds

Couples canoodling in the park

Safdarjang's tomb

Marble inlaid with semi-precious stones (only some of which remain)

On our way out we pestered a security guard ("just a quick look") into opening the mosque that was attached to the entrance gate. Our entreaty proved slightly disingenuous, as we slipped out of sight to climb up the stair to the top of the building, from which we had a great view over the top of the mosque and down onto New Delhi. Eventually the guard scurried up to kick us out, and we made our way back to the metro to catch the train up to Connaught Place, scene of our exciting afternoon of cafe-hopping on the way to Chandigarh.

On top of the mosque before being rushed out

Clem had picked out a South Indian place called Saravana Bhavan that was as well-known for its lunchtime queues as for its excellent food. We were quoted a waiting time of twenty minutes by the doorman, but must have been lucky because we ended up with a "shared" table for four after only five minutes. There was just one young Indian guy sitting next to us, who was shy and kept his eyes to himself. The food came quickly - obviously they needed rapid turnover to service the continual queue - and was indeed very good. Lots of little dishes, some quite thin and apparently designed for dipping puris. The placemat had a list of severe franchises, some in London and Paris, and we were happy enough with the food that we wrote down the addresses. On the way out we stopped off at the sweet shop, showing admirable restraint in limiting ourselves to two little balls of sugary goodness.

We walked back up to Connaught Place metro station (officially called Rajiv Chowk, but apparently everyone still uses the British name) to catch the train towards our next stop, the 16th century fort of Purana Qila. The nearest metro was not actually very close at all, so we were left to negotiate with tuk-tuk drivers. As usual our requests to use the meter were ignored, but eventually we agreed on a half-decent rate to take us up to the massive gates of the fort.

Traffic in Delhi; spot the incongruity

Off to the left was a large lake, formed from remnants of the fort's moat, on which small pedaloes meandered under the overcast sky. We carried on through the gate and turned to walk around the fort, with its thick stone walls on our right, and on our left a large meadow dotted with impressive monuments. We passed by an immense two-tiered gate, the upper level leading to a long-disappeared draw-bridge over the moat.

The moat in front of the fort, with pedaloes in the background

The imposing entrance to Purana Qila

The mammoth two-tiered gate

People living beneath the ruined walls

Beautiful flowers in the gardens of Purana Qila

Walking back towards the middle of the fort, we came to the Qila-i-Kuhran Mosque, a beautiful combination of white and black marble with red sandstone. The peace and quiet was disturbed only by the Indian men trying to sneak photos of Clem as she photographed the mosque. From there we passed by the Sher Mandal, named after the Afghan ruler who built the fort, Sher Shah. This was where its founder had his revenge; the man who defeated him, the emperor Hamayun, died from a tumble down the stairs of this octagonal sandstone tower.

Qila-i-Kuhran mosque

Sher Mandal

Appropriately enough, our next stop was Hamayun's Tomb. This was nearby but not close enough to walk, so again we had to haggle with tuk-tuk drivers to get a price that was less than 10 times what they would charge a local. Just as the tuk-tuk driver stopped, however, the rain started to fall. Since we were not equipped for a drenching, and it seemed a shame to see what was apparently "Delhi's most sublime sight" under a dark, sun-starved sky, we decided to save it for another day. We caught another tuk-tuk back to the nearest metro station, refusing his repeated entreaties that we stop off at a shop for ten minutes (which would have halved the cost of the fare).

Since we still had some time before dinner, we stopped off at a nearby mall that Mony had recommended, just to have a look around. This upmarket place had a grocery shop called "Marche" that was very well stocked with western delights, including a lovely brie-in-a-tin that Clem found particularly amusing. We resisted this dubious temptation, paid a quick visit to Marks & Spencer, and grabbed a coffee at Costa. After this little burst of "Home", we headed back to the flat for a quiet night with a takeaway curry.

Yes, it is brrrie in a tin (miam!)