Delhi     

Delhi is the capital of India consisting of Old and New Delhi with over 11 million inhabitants, hellish traffic and rapid growth. For our full day sightseeing tour we booked a driver with a guide. At first we stopped at the two new attractions.
The Lotus Temple as a symbol of faith, is open for all believers of different religions of the world. The opulent Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple, is a fascinating masterpiece of carving and sculpture. Unfortunately it is forbidden to take any photos or videos of it.

(lick for large image!)

Now we went on to the Red Fort here has nothing changed, the fort is just great with its red sandstone walls, the marble palaces, audience halls and beautifully presented gardens. There are also many Indian tourists which use the parks as Pic Nic places. We also enjoyed the wonderful silence of this lovely place.

Actually we wanted to walk through the narrow alleys of Old Delhi, but our guide didn’t allow it, because we would hopelessly lost our way here. So we took a rickshaw through the throng. Close closer, closest, who has fear of contact, should not take this tour. For us it was just exotic, fascinating noisy, chaotic, and a really interesting experience for all our senses, India pure!

Our trip finished near the largest mosque in India, we had already visited in detail in our former visit, and therefore we made only a short stop here before going to New Delhi.

New Delhi is the place of the central government with the appropriate administrative buildings. Here is a big contrast to Old Delhi, it is neither close nor loud. There's broad tree -lined boulevards, colonial architecture, shopping malls and all so pretty west and clean.
We got out near the India Gate and strolled through the gardens to the War Memorial. It was a very relaxing, beautiful atmosphere.
The gate itself is also very impressive but we liked it much more to be in the midst of the people.

more photos from Delhi 2012