Feeling on top of the world after my Bukhara experience, I forced myself to walk out of the luxurious Maurya Sheraton. I deferred to my taxi driver at this point, and he drove me around the President’s house and government buildings. We then drove east toward India’s War Memorial, a large arch in line with the President’s home in much the same the White House and other memorials are laid out in Washington, DC.

My time running low, we headed to Humayun’s Tomb, the precursor to the Taj Mahal. The complex on which it was situated necessitated an hour’s time to wander around. In particular, I appreciated the recent restoration work of the gardens and water channels surrounding the main tomb as I found the vivid green setting beautiful, and pleasantly peaceful.

After touring the tomb, we drove past the Lotus Temple, which was unfortunately closed on Mondays. I asked to be dropped off at Nehru Place, a large shopping area within walking distance of Neil’s house, and which seemed to be focused on computers and electronics. It was a bit rougher around the edges than the similar centers I’d visited in Hong Kong and Chengdu.

As I’ve seen all over the areas I’ve traveled in India, the poor seem to be able to sleep out in the open amidst the grime and crowds. When I was taking that early-morning rickshaw ride to the Amritsar train station a few days ago, I was surprised to see a lot of people simply sleeping on the concrete road medians.

I walked to Neil’s house, though traffic delayed his arrival by more than an hour.  Keen to complete a recently received dare (#12) to eat vindaloo in India, we set off in search of the intensely spicy Goan dish on my last night in the country.

I’ll report on the results soon.

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