How to explain Delhi? There’s New Delhi, the capital of modern India. Then there is Old Delhi, too, with its ancient Red Fort and the Moonlight Square market area with its labyrithine streets. There are parts of New Delhi that are older than anything in Old Delhi—confused yet?

Delhi is a mess, and I mean that in a most affectionate way. 22 million inhabitants co-exist in a dense and heavily polluted metro area. While we were there the air quality never got better than “very poor.” Lucky for us, it also never got worse. Our hotel posted air quality data in the lobby, one set for the air outside, another for the air in your room.

Our guide in Delhi was a jewel who patiently took us through a collection of sites that were curated to introduce us to both the history and the complex present of India. Our first morning was an introduction to Hinduism, starting with a visit to the Birla Mandir, a temple dedicated to the Hindu god, Vishnu, the Preserver. At the Hindu temple we joined Hindu worshippers and other visitors in offering gifts to the gods and asking for their blessings. The small temple was built by the wealthy Birla family in the 1930’s when India was still a part of the British Empire.

Sikhism is one of several major religions that were born within Hinduism. Sikhs wear turbans and sport facial hair. They also carry knives. Okay, those are only the men. The women were indistinguishable from the Hindus.  We visited Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, the largest Sikh temple in Delhi. In addition to the white marble temple itself and the large pond of holy water,  there is a large kitchen and dining hall where a core of temple staff lead a corps of volunteers to prepare meals for anyone who comes and wants to eat. They serve 3 meals a day,  seven days a week—up to 10,000 people a day! It was an impressive sight, starting with the orderliness of the hungry, who wait quietly to enter, then proceed when invited in to form long rows and sit, lotus-style, until served. Then there was the humility of the servers and the sense of happiness that pervades the whole scene. I found it wonderful and inspiring. 

The religious diversity here in Delhi, in fact throughout India, is amazing. While Hinduism has the largest number of followers, there are significant, distinct religions that originated in Hinduism, including Sikhism, Jainism and, of course, Buddhism, about which I will have more to say after we have visited its home, Varanasi. There are Christian and Jewish minorities as well. The largest non-Hindu religion is Islam, which was imposed upon the Indians in wave after wave of invading conquerors, from Persia and Afghanistan in the west and Moguls from Central Asia.  Despite the constant friction with its neighbor on the west, Pakistan, fueled by the Chinese and other outside players, in the streets of Delhi, everyone seems to get along harmoniously.

An evening walking tour in the lanes of Old Delhi was a revelatory introduction to the chaos of Indian cities. The sheer press of humanity is shocking. Living in such close quarters, the locals display little sense of personal space or privacy. To the human flow, add in wandering cows, held sacred here, along with stray dogs and the occasional monkey, and you get a rushing torrent that pulls you along involuntarily. On the evening of our walk, we encountered a large and extremely noisy parade honoring the Hindu God Shiva, the Destroyer, whose annual holiday was to be celebrated in the coming days.

Delhi was the capital of India under British rule and there are many fine buildings and grounds that were designed and laid out for the Crown by the English architects Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker. The key buildings in the main square built by the British today house the India government. From this great square extends a park-like avenue, the Path, which terminates a mile and a half later at its eastern end at the India Gate, designed by Lutyens to commemorate the 70,000 Indians who lost their lives fighting for Britain in the First World War.

Delhi had been a capital as early as the twelfth century. Mughal Emperors moved their capital to Agra until the fifth Mughal Emperor moved it back to Delhi in the seventeenth century. This Emperor, Shah Jahan, was the greatest builder in India’s history, perhaps the world’s. In Delhi, one can visit the Red Fort, a massive fortified city that is the largest historical structure remaining here. Across from the fort, Shah Jahan also built the impressive Jama Masjid, one of India’s largest mosques. Each of these requires many thousands of laborers and skilled craftsmen.  In addition to these giant undertakings in Delhi, Shah Jahan also built a modest mausoleum in Agra to house the remains of his favorite wife. That is the Taj Mahal which we will visit in a few days.

There is much worthwhile to see in Delhi, both new and old. The airport is modern and efficient. The city’s streets and highways are congested and free-form. Lanes are no more than a vague concept, and horn-blowing is incessant. Our hotel, the Taj Palace, proved a welcome retreat from the chaos. It is situated inside the peaceful and green diplomatic enclave. Its facilities, service and food were all exceptional.

One thing we learned in Delhi was that touring in India requires removing ones shoes quite often. Sometimes socks as well. You’ve been warned, pack accordingly.

Edited to add: a more in depth post about the intricacies of the hotels in India here.