Food everywhere but chose carefully

Delhi is a wild collection of sights, sounds, tastes, experiences. I'm finding it a little hard to get my thoughts into order as each moment things change around me and I am drawn to another sensation. So a few pics of street food of various qualities but equal interest and ingenuity.

 Posh fruit vendor at Connaught Place - the tourist trap. Interesting though the gooseberries presented in a ball on an orange. This is how they are sold everywhere.

 This guy was making what we know as Bhargi mix (might have the spelling wrong) fresh for each customer with their choice of ingredients from a huge range of raw ingredients. This was a fairly upmarket and clean version, they vary down to a guy with an old timber barrow with a few small bags of about 6 ingredients - often outside railway stations and at the edges of markets.

All the US fast food is here including Maccas, Pizza Hut, Subway. They all have modified menus mostly for the predominantly vegetarian population. KFC and the others are expensive compared to local food. And as western food seen as aspirational. Hence KFC delivery

 This was a food stall/kitchen serving free meals. It looked really good and it took us a while to work out why the queue was so long with particularly poor looking people. Delhi's version of a food kitchen. There was another around the corner. After our visit to the temple today we think these kitchens are run by the faithful as part of their striving to earn a better life next time around.

Detail of one of the bulk food preparation happening in the street (literally)

 One of the tiny traders selling corn cobbs cooked on a small wood fire. You can also buy freshly roasted peanuts, baked sweet potato, popcorn all cooked on these tiny wood fires - often on a portable table. Everyone uses wood to cook. Even the chai tea men with a tiny fire under their tea pot.

Murray's first dinner in an Indian Family Restaurant (Reminds me of the Kuchia in Czech Republic, but nothing really to compare in Cairns - a food hall maybe...) He had a Big Thalli which comprises a number of wheat based carbohydrates that you scoop up various bean and chic pea based dahls with. Murray is coping surprisingly well with the vegetariean diet. He finished his meal with a warm milk infused with saffron, cashews and sugar - saw the name on a sign today but couldn't write it down. Will get the name for later. Glorious, particularly on a cold night.

I had the tikka plate. Looked better in real life. Hot and spicy with so much variety. Mushrooms, tomatos, bean curd (or it might have been a haloumi style cheese) mint and chilli, potato stuffed with cottage cheese - all picked up with naan. Yummy :)

Everyone is born with a horn in their hand

We visited a temple today and it rained. The two guys drying the floor tiles riding their squeegee machines (like at the tennis) had HORNS :) Can't even go to a temple for peace and quiet. Actually it was much quieter at Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple and Gardens. It has free entry which makes it very accessible to the locals of all economic status. It is out next to the 2010 Commonwealth Games Village (all derelict) but was built in 2005 by the organisation that manages this faith. I'm still a bit unsure as to whether this Guru is one of the Hindu Gods or another separate religion. They seem to do a lot of good works in medicine, education, social justice and welfare. No photos were allowed which is disappointing as it is a beautiful place. It's a religious theme park - like visiting a Christian Cathedral but with interpretive attractions - light shows, dioramas, flume ride through Indian history, food court, souvenir shop, etc.BUT all run by volunteers contributing to the communication of their faith. Every surface is entirely covered in intricate carvings. There is a relief of elephants completely surrounding the base of the temple explaining their role throughout time in religion, work, family and nature. This faith's primary goal is to find spontaneous happiness through non violence including being vegetarians.

Thought I'd post a pic from one of the train stations where we change between lines. Hard to catch in stills but it still gives an idea of the volume of humans...

Overwhelming but exciting

Got here! The noise, aromas and sheer volume of people is hard to explain. Delhi is home to 17million of India's billion residents. Life never stops. Christmas Day there were people everywhere... 7am same... midnight same same, only different. And when I say people everywhere - personal space is very small. We learned very quickly to get into the slip stream of the locals when crossing roads and dodge between the traffic. And there is a Women's Carriage on each train so we can choose not to get squashed - you only get caught once in with the men - and learn there are some advantages to being female :) Poor Murray has to cuddle 50,000 other blokes in the normal carriages where there is no space between passengers - the train platform staff just push more in and more in till it is a solid block of bodies (interesting note here - no BO, they might be poor but they don't smell)

It's 9.30pm Boxing Day night and I can hear dozens of different senarios outside our window. Horns honking; people talking, laughing, yelling; bicycle bells tinging; deep male voices punctuated by the odd young boy; motor bike engines, something heavy being dropped (twice); more honking - motor bikes, cars, trucks, bicycles; I can't understand the words of the voices but the intent is clear.

Countdown to departure

Summer Solstice and a Full Moon. Auspicious characteristics for the first blog of my latest adventure. The trip has been planned and paid for months ago and I've ignored India until now... (except for following of Rick Stein's India documentary on ABC recently) Suddenly I'm 3 sleeps from departure and haven't even dug the backpack out of the store room. I did make sure my vaccinations are up to date and had that pesky gall bladder removed. I suppose that indicates my unconscious mind is looking out for me, even if my conscious is still dealing with the everyday issues of making sure the business still exists when I return ;)

So, I'm off on my first big travel adventure with a travel partner, and as per usual, I don't do things by half. My travel partner is also my significant other, husband Murray. Having retired the solo life, it's time for me to learn the beauty of sharing my travel experiences. And I do look forward to being able to double the impact of the scenery, smells and tastes of this wide world by sharing them with another.

We leave on Christmas Eve morning. Bright and early 7am departure from Cairns International Airport. Via Brisbane and Hong Kong, we arrive in New Delhi India at midnight Christmas Eve. I fully expect to see Santa and his raindeers through the window of our jumbo jet flying across the sky with us. We will touch down back in Oz after just over 6 weeks exploring India and head straight back to our normal lives. Monday 10 February marks the start of our 2014 business year.

If you choose to follow my adventures this time, welcome aboard and thank you for choosing to travel with me :)