Sights, camera, action!

For my last day in Delhi, I decided to take in a few more sights. On my list were the Lodhi Gardens, Humayun's Tomb and the Lotus Temple. So I woke up, ordered a car for 2 hours and asked my driver to plan the best route based on the three sights I chose.

My driver informed me that it would be impossible to see all three sights in two hours, so we were off to Humayun's Tomb and the Lotus Temple. Humayun's Tomb is referred to as the "pre-cursor of the Taj Mahal" because it incorporates some of the same Persian-inspired architectural elements as the Taj Mahal and because it pre-dates the Taj.

I arrived relatively early in the day and found that the entrance was blocked by cameras, lights and an Indian starlet with curlers in her hair and heavy makeup. Apparently, a Bollywood movie was being filmed, and according to my driver, it was a comedy. We made our way through the chaos and I was deposited at the tomb's entrance.

There were only a handful of people at the tomb so it was a very pleasant way to spend an hour. The gardens are expansive and the tomb is quite majestic. The entire complex was peaceful, green and clean - it was strange to think that this tranquil oasis was within the madness and the dirt of Delhi.

As I made my way through the monument, the complex started to fill up with tourists so I exited and asked my driver to take me to the Lotus Temple. We made our way through Delhi traffic and he pulled into the parking lot, where I instructed him to return to the hotel because I would walk back when I was finished (it's a mere 15 minute walk from my hotel). He was flabbergasted and asked me several times if I was absolutely sure that I didn't want him to wait. I insisted, signed his card and was on my way.

One of my co-workers remarked that there is a Lotus Temple in Sydney, but I think she meant the Opera House. The buildings do resemble each other, but the symmetry of the Lotus Temple makes it particularly beautiful in my eyes. I walked up to the temple and reached the point where the guards asked me to remove my shoes and leave my bag. Since it was not exactly a bag check, but instead was a pile of shoes and belongings, I declined and snapped a picture before turning around.