We started a very jet lagged day after breakfast at the hotel by driving to Hauz Khas Village. This is a great place to walk around. It has shops, one of Delhi's great art galleries, restaurants and a historic area of ancient buildings overlooking a lake and green area. We enjoy HKV as it fondly called and always go to there.
For us one of the joys of our travel to India is when our driver Vijay invites us to his house for lunch. We are totally out of the tourist bubble, experiencing what real Indian life is like. They live in a very small apartment, where one room serves as the bedroom, living room and only room other than a small kitchen. His wife Sunita is a great cook and we loved the food. The thing about Indian food is the sauce and the gravy with the chicken was super flavored with garlic and onions. The potatoes and peas were exceptional. They know I love Gobi (Cauliflower), and each time we eat at their house they make it in a different fashion. This one was a hit! It was a real treat to join them for lunch. The small colony where they live is extremely friendly and all of the neighbors came out smiling to see the guests from afar. The colony is surrounded by some of the biggest, richest homes in Delhi.
There is quite a contrast between the walled homes with armed guards and the cheerfulness of Vijay's colony.
After lunch we returned to the Imperial to take a pack some luggage that we gave to Vijay. He is driving to Udaipur, while we will be flying there to meet him. It made sense to send some luggage with him, rather than schlep it through the airport.
Today was Lohri. This is a great festive day in India, especially the Punjab where it originated. Lohri is celebrated to denote the last of the coldest days of winter. A giant bonfire is erected and soon after the sun goes down the people dance and sing as the fire burns. The only music is the beating of drums and and the voices of the people singing their traditional Punjabi songs. It is joyous and fun.
The Imperial Hotel has a storied history and was originally by a Punjabi family. During the terrible riots experienced in Delhi after the assassination of Indira Gandhi, it sheltered Sikhs from slaughter. The hotel goes all out to celebrate the Lohri festival with free food and a bonfire in the garden where the entire staff shows up to dance. Everyone has fun, after the staff has danced for a while they go into the area where the hotel guests have been watching the festivities and good-naturely drag the guests on to the lawn to dance with them around the fire. I who can't dance was encouraged by the moment and the wine to join in.
You can see my feeble (yet happy) attempt here.
Cathy is the better dancer in our family.
After all of the celebrations and dancing we went to the bar where I had a martini and Cathy wine. We had an interesting conversation with some of the guests and proceeded to eat a surprisingly good Indian dinner at the hotel. The tandoori chicken was delicious and the vegetables were in a great sauce. As I think of it now while writing this blog, I realize we had basically the same lunch and dinner, chicken served with rice and vegetables, yet they were each prepared in a completely different style and both lunch and dinner were delicious.
When we finished dinner we returned to the room, where I, jet lagged fell asleep at 9:30 only to wake up at 1pm. I HATE JET LAG!
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| Ogaan |
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| Historic Hauz Kaus |
There is quite a contrast between the walled homes with armed guards and the cheerfulness of Vijay's colony.
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| Gobi (Cauliflower), Chicken, Vegetables |
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| Vijay and Sunita in their home |
Today was Lohri. This is a great festive day in India, especially the Punjab where it originated. Lohri is celebrated to denote the last of the coldest days of winter. A giant bonfire is erected and soon after the sun goes down the people dance and sing as the fire burns. The only music is the beating of drums and and the voices of the people singing their traditional Punjabi songs. It is joyous and fun.
The Imperial Hotel has a storied history and was originally by a Punjabi family. During the terrible riots experienced in Delhi after the assassination of Indira Gandhi, it sheltered Sikhs from slaughter. The hotel goes all out to celebrate the Lohri festival with free food and a bonfire in the garden where the entire staff shows up to dance. Everyone has fun, after the staff has danced for a while they go into the area where the hotel guests have been watching the festivities and good-naturely drag the guests on to the lawn to dance with them around the fire. I who can't dance was encouraged by the moment and the wine to join in.
You can see my feeble (yet happy) attempt here.
Cathy is the better dancer in our family.
After all of the celebrations and dancing we went to the bar where I had a martini and Cathy wine. We had an interesting conversation with some of the guests and proceeded to eat a surprisingly good Indian dinner at the hotel. The tandoori chicken was delicious and the vegetables were in a great sauce. As I think of it now while writing this blog, I realize we had basically the same lunch and dinner, chicken served with rice and vegetables, yet they were each prepared in a completely different style and both lunch and dinner were delicious.
When we finished dinner we returned to the room, where I, jet lagged fell asleep at 9:30 only to wake up at 1pm. I HATE JET LAG!
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