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Our Arrival in Delhi
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Good Friday 14th April 2006
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| Home Page | Ranthambore | Jaipur | Agra | Delhi-departure | Goa |
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Our first view of Delhi was as blurred as this from the bus as we transferred from the airport to The Oberoi Maidens Hotel in Old Delhi (Click here for hotel web site). Raj Mathur our Kuoni host, guide, escort and new friend is a wonderful source of information, knowledge, humour and daily surprises! He forged a very happy T.E.A.M. who shared this experience - Together Everyone Achieves More. Especially he shared with us his concept of Destiny for which we are very grateful. |
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| Anne on the hotel balcony wearing her welcome garland. |
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Les
similarly attired but with his hat to protect a bald head from the hot sun shining from a beautiful clear blue sky. |
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| Our
first visit was to the gardens of
Birla House where Mahatma Gandhi walked his last steps before his
assassination in January 1948.
The white, palatial house of the business dynasty, Birla, stands just a couple of kilometres from Connaught Place, a well-known tourist attraction in the greenest area of Delhi. This is the place where Gandhi spent the last 144 dramatic days of his life. The museum in the building reflects his life and death. Visitors follow the footprints of his last walk across the park to where he was murdered. Here visitors go barefoot and silent |
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It
is very apparent from what we saw and learned from Raj that Gandhi had a
huge influence on India as it became an independent nation from British colonialism.
He has huge regard and reputation for this. |
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| In the pavilion, where he said Friday prayers, on the wall is this amazing mosaic of Gandhi featuring an image of him, his life and works. |
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Anne said many times we were "walking in her Father's footsteps as he had worked for over ten years in India in the 1920/30s for The East India Company. This now an Empty Canopy next to India Gate but it used to have a statue of King George V underneath which he must have seen. The statue
was removed soon after India attained independence in 1948 and |
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| India
Gate
The majestic arch designed by Lutyens houses the Amar Jawan Jyoti - Eternal Flame honouring the soldiers lost in World War 1. |
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Under the impressive and elegant India Gate is this amazing carving. | ||||
| Another Lutyens masterpiece - Parliament House |
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Anne working out at the end of our first day where at the hotel our happy but slightly weary group of twenty shared a simple snack and a little cool refreshment. | ||||
| Sunset from the hotel balcony after a wonderful day. |
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