Delhi Diary Day 6
A calm relaxing day! Usual start to the day with some extra admin. Laundry sorted and taxi booked for the airport on Tuesday morning.
On my walk through the park I noticed something which has previously somehow escaped my attention, and that is there are a LOT of EXTREMELY BIG bats. They are called Indian Flying Foxes, and roosting (?) like this they look about the size of a carrier bag.
I then took the Metro in the direction of Gurdwara Bangla Sahib where after putting a handkerchief on my head and my shoes in my bag, I went to check out the Sarovar, a pool off to the side of the temple with holy healing properties.
No photos on the inside but it’s pretty impressive. This is from wikipedia and gives the general idea:
It was a very relaxing and calming space. I did a lap of the pool and nearly went arse over tit with wet feet on the sheer marble. Inside the building there is a hall with a central throne / service area. There was a service going on with some nice music in the middle and then people such as me milling around the edges.
I took a tuktuk to the next temple of the day about 1.5km away, the Laxminarayan Temple, built by an industrialist in 1930s and opened by the Mahatama.
Another photograph free zone but I took some pictures from the outside.
The faithful work their way round the complex in a clockwise fashion stopping to pay their respects and leave floral tributes as they go. It’s a tranquil place to walk around and the Hindu polytheistic temples have a different atmosphere to the monotheistic places of worship I’ve visited this week which carry with them a similar atmosphere that binds them. I stopped for a snack at stall outside the temple. I couldn’t tell you what it was, and it was not the thing I was attempting to order. I can tell you It cost 15 rupees and came with some dal and a stuffed bready dumpling thing and it was pretty good.
I followed it up with a big samosa at my next stop, Connaught Place.
I was at the Rajiv Chowk metro station changing lines so I thought I would have a quick look round CP. There’s a lot of Westernish shops, brands and cafes and a surprising amount of shoe cleaners, but nothing much that interested me.
Back to the apartment for an afternoon off my feet, writing a few cards and catching up on sport.
