Delhi, India: Past & Progress

The last stop on our whirlwind tour through India was the city of Delhi.

Delhi was recently modernized for the 2010 Commonwealth Games — the city developed new transit, cleaned up the roads, and did tons of building.

The taxis are known as “Tuk-Tuks”, and they are powered by Clean Natural Gas (CNG):

It was a shock to the system for us to arrive in Delhi.  We flew into town, and all spent a good few minutes exclaiming about the cleanliness of the airport washrooms when we landed!  It was such a treat to have such modern facilities after all of our adventures (that being said, I must admit that I did enjoy learning to squat in small town facilities – and if you’re wondering, it’s a LOT easier with a skirt).

Our hotel was ultra-modern:

And the hotel breakfasts looked like this:

Oh yes, as much fun as I had in the rest of our trip, I knew I’d enjoy Delhi after seeing all that gorgeous fruit (the black speckled one with hot pink edges is dragon fruit), the flaky paratha, the idlis and sambar, the uttapam (savoury pancakes), and the vada (savoury fried lentil doughnut for the win)!

They had a juice bar (mango/guava anyone?), perfect black tea, and “breakfast shots” (this one was coconut-flavoured and spicy!):

And as soon as we were spoiled by modern amenities (Rainfall shower heads!  Pure luxury!), we were back out into historic India, looking at old forts:

The most beautiful mosque I’ve ever seen:

Humayan’s Tomb, which inspired the design behind the Taj Mahal:

And the ruins at Qutub Minar:

And for modern contrast, the emotionally-moving site where Gandhi was cremated:

Along with just a little bit of shopping — we “window shopped” at the hand-knotted carpet shop (gorgeous but not in our budget!):

And I got to show off my sari from our silk adventures in Varanasi:

On our second last night in Delhi, we had our farewell dinner for the tour at the Indian Accent Restaurant (they also have a blog). I was concerned when we walked into the ultra-modern setting and saw the “fusion” menu — it was beautiful, but it didn’t feel terribly Indian to me… (I tend to prefer traditional meals from the culture I’m visiting when I’m traveling)

Well, the meal put all my fears at ease. As a vegetarian, I was offered a vegetarian tasting menu (YAY!), and I think I got some jealous looks from the non-veg folks in our group!

Blue cheese naan (possibly the best thing I’ve ever put into my mouth):

An amuse-bouche with pomegranate seeds and my favourite cilantro-mint chutney:

Kashiphal & Coconut Shorba (Pumpkin & coconut soup):

Paneer & waterchestnut chaat (snacks), with crispy garlic and pomelo — this was the best dish of the night; it was a great new spin on aloo chaat papri (potatoes, crispy crackers, chickpeas, yogurt, mint & coriander chutney & tamarind chutney):

My favourite lentils, Daal makhani (black lentils with cream):

Homemade paneer lasagna, smoked eggplant & peas with goji berry makhani:

Tadka (oil-fried) vegetables, baby spinach roasted sesame salan (green chilli & nut stew):

Khajur gud payasam (date rice pudding), roast coconut mousse, mixed berry chaat (snack):

To me, Delhi was the perfect blend of historical and modern.  In that way, it actually reminded me a lot of Rome!  I can’t wait to get back to do some more exploring… in the meantime, I think I’m inspired to have some kitchen adventures!