Today we woke
up at 2 AM and half-conscientiously began the journey to Delhi.
After canoeing from our guest homes to the mainland, we found that a palm tree
had fallen and was blocking the road. But this didn't stop us; we were soon on
the bus and on our way to the airport.
After a three hour
flight, we walked out into the crisp Delhi air. One thing that took us by
surprise was how grey the sky was. At first it seemed like a dark foggy day,
but then we found out that it was from the pollution in the city.
After the hassle of
finding our luggage, we got onto the bus. For what felt like days, we slowly
crept through the traffic - being passed by bicyclists and even pedestrians - and
finally arrived at our destination two hours later: the Madison Hotel. On the
first floor is the restaurant where we ate a delicious North Indian lunch and
on the second and third floors are our rooms. After settling in, we headed off
to the Baha'i Lotus Temple.
We came in
through the gates and walked down a path leading to the temple. All around us
were beautiful flowers and people from all around the world. But the most
amazing sight was the temple itself. It's no surprise that it took six years to
build because its architecture is so elaborate and unique. It's made of stone
and shaped like a lotus flower. Surrounding it are four pools. Once inside, we
sat down on benches and silently looked around at the interior. We learned that
The Baha'i religion
was founded in the 19th century and has one area of worship in each of the
continents. The Baha' I number is 9 because it is the largest digit and because
it includes all nine major religions.
Afterwards we went to the
market to get our shopping out of the way. The first thing we did was go
into the much anticipated sari fitting room and sat down in front of shelves
filled to the brim with saris of every color you can think of. It was a bit
overwhelming, with dozens of the employees shoving multiple saris in your face
and giving you literally three seconds to decide whether or not you liked it.
It took a while (sorry Jordan) but finally, we purchased 17 saris,
collectively. Some other stores included the bangle, blouse, and bag shops. As
we walked through the market, we were approached by young girls selling jewelry
but we had to turn away.
After hours of shopping and
more traffic jams we went to "Have
More" for dinner, where we had more Northern Indian food. And of course
this included everyone's favorite: naan bread. We finished it off with fennel
mouth fresheners, which have received some distaste from the group.
Once we arrived back at the
hotel, the majority of us went to sleep right away because tomorrow we're going to the Taj Mahal!
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