More from Delhi

We visited a number of must-see sights in Delhi.  Our rickshaw ride from Chandni Chowk took us to two of them. First we stopped by the Shahi Jama Masjid (Mosque). It was constructed from 1650-1656.

Here is the entrance to the mosque grounds

Adjacent to and built somewhat in to the plaza structure of the mosque is this health care facility.

Women are required to put on a neck-to-toe cover ups when entering the mosque grounds. These cover-ups are provided free of charge.

 I pose for a photo, taken by me.

The plaza around the mosque can hold some 20,000 people.

More photos taken around the mosque.

The grounds of the mosque afford a great view of Delhi's Red Fort, an immense complex nearby, and the second stop on our rickshaw ride.

This nice couple approached us with their camera on the steps leading to the mosque. We thought they wanted us to take a picture of them. But, no, they wanted a photo with Kathie and me.  We were glad to oblige.  I asked if I could take a picture of Kathie with them. A number of other people wanted their pictures taken with us as we toured Delhi. I guess we looked like celebrities, or not.

After we toured the mosque, we re-boarded our rickshaw and headed to the Red Fort.

We will tell you about our visit to the Red Fort, and other sites in Delhi and Agra, in upcoming posts. (There is also a Red Fort in Agra, which we visited as well.)

But, before that, Kathie wants to let you know about our more recent visit to Mijas, Spain, where we visited a chocolate factory - and where you can custom make your own chocolate bars!  Our post on Mijas, and our Willy Wonka experience, is next.

Out and About In Delhi

While the highlight of our trip to India was certainly our visit to the Taj Mahal in Agra, we also spent two days exploring Delhi.  We visited some of the must-see sights, of course, but I was most fascinated by just observing the mass of people who navigated the congested, noisy streets of Delhi.

Vehicles of every description clog the roads and we wondered how anyone can get anywhere. Somehow, it all works. The way to see Delhi is to hire a guide and a taxi driver.

Our guide was Ajay, a nephew of a colleague of friend Tony. Here we pose with Ajay in Connaught Place, one of Delhi's largest and most important commercial centers. It is known simply as "CP" to the locals.

Ajay works with a start-up company most of the time and freelances as a tour guide some of the time. If you go to Delhi to sightsee, let us know and we will connect you with Ajay.

Our driver in Delhi was Jaswinder Singh. In broken English he told us all about his family and his life.  His brother Amrik is also a taxi driver.

We drove by they U.S Embassy in Delhi.  I was told this guy was yelling at us not to take any pictures.

  You can see almost anything driving around Delhi; goats wearing sweaters, for instance.

Three-wheeled auto rickshaws in Connaught Place are ready for passengers.

We exchanged money here. It was a hole-in-the-wall, but it offered the best rate in town. At the adjacent store Arrow shirts are offered at 40 percent off. Or, buy 2 and get 2 free!

Where to eat safely is always a concern and guide Ajay assured us he would take us only to establishments where food safety was not an issue.  He first took us to Wenger's at CP.  At Wenger's Ajay picked up savory meat pies sold on the left side of the shop and Kathie shopped for pastries and sweets on the right. The chicken an mutton pies were my favorites. Kathie's favorite was mango pudding.

Many travelers who eat unfamiliar food in foreign places end up with Traveler's Diarrhea, or "TD" as it's called by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  Friend Dr. Dave cited information from the CDC suggesting that travelers each take two Pepto-Bismol tablets four times daily to reduce the incidence of TD.  The active ingredient in Pepto-Bismol, bismuth subsalicylate, apparently soaks up toxins in food, or something.

For more information than you will every want to know about TD, visit TD Prevention.  This may actually help when you visit some exotic place in the future.

One of the first places we visited in Delhi was the Ugrasen ki Baoli, a cistern built in the 10th century and rebuilt in the 14th century.

Few tourists visit Ugrasen ki Baoli. It's mainly a hangout for students.

Ghost sightings have been reported here. Haunted India ranked Ugrasen ki Baoli as the 10th most haunted place in India.

Next we visited Chandni Chowk, a market area dating back to the 17th century. It was established by Shah Jahan, the same guy who built the Taj Mahal, the iconic white marble mausoleum constructed over a period of 22 years to assuage the grief he felt when his third wife died giving birth to their 14th child.

Many people get around Chandni Chowk by bicycle powered rickshaws.  Here Kathie has just boarded for our ride.

These rickshaws are two-seaters, at best, so we chartered a second rickshaw for guide Ajay.

Almost any commodity can be seen transported through the streets of Delhi. People push grapes on carts.

Others peddle canisters of what looks like propane.

This load was too heavy to peddle and required the efforts of two men to move.

This guy managed to transport his stuff solo.

A motorcyclist gives chickens a ride.  These may have been chicken tikka later that day.

Food and almost everything else is sold everywhere.

Fresh fruit and vegetables seem to be available on almost every street.

Street scenes like this are common.

No store, no cart, no problem.  Just set up shop on any vacant piece of ground.

Businesses operate everywhere.  Helpful to us, most signs are in English.  You can shop at this combination dairy and department store. At the shop on the right, you can win a trip to Australia for four buddies, or buy potato chips.

We watched people. People watched us.

People are in motion every whichaway.

The chaos in the streets is compounded by major construction projects to expand the Delhi Metro.

Healthy-looking stray dogs lounge and snooze everywhere. There is a plan to round up strays and train them as guard dogs.

Cows also roam the streets.

This one hugged the edge of the road, apparently knowing that slower traffic should bear right.

Upcoming posts:  More from Delhi; Agra is More Than the Taj Mahal; Making Chocolate in Mijas; Dining in Benahavis; Sherry Tasting in Spain

Dan and Kathie Check Off Major Bucket List Item

A funny thing happened on our way to Spain

Kathie and I are headed to Spain to spend three weeks at our timeshare trade in Marbella on the Costa del Sol, about an hour's drive east of Gibraltar. Believe it or not, the most economical way for us to fly to Spain was by traveling through Delhi, India. And, you can't visit Delhi without arranging at least a day trip to Agra to see the Taj Mahal, which we did.

The Taj Mahal was a major bucket list destination for us.

The Taj Mahal is mostly white marble with beautiful inlays and carvings all over.

Some more views of the Taj.

This was one of our first views of the Taj Mahal as it popped out of the haze when we drove up to it.

Visitors enter the Taj Mahal grounds through this gate.

A view of the entry gate from the Taj Mahal.

Want to learn about the purpose and history of the Taj Mahal?
Visit http://www.history.com/topics/taj-mahal or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taj_Mahal