Delhi Day 2- Red Fort

Also know as "the day we were supposed to go to Agra, on the nice train" and also as "the day the Taj Mahal is closed." But due to the later (seriously, thank god for Kunal's friends knowing this fact!), we did not hop the train to Agra and instead spent another lovely day being utterly overwhelmed and entertained by the sights, smells and massive craziness that is Delhi.

With our handy "Top 10 Delhi" book in hand, we left the comfort of our super fantastic hotel room to check off more boxes on the to-do list. First at bat for the day was a trip to the Red Fort.

On the way, we saw this band. Unfortunately they were apparently "taking 5" a long 5, because we never ended up hearing or seeing them again. Darn. But they get an A+ for their snazzy costimes. 

Oh the ubiquitous yellow Delhi policy barricade. You know there is something good nearby when you start to see these multiplying in the street. There is a strong correlation between the number of barricades and the general coolness of the sight you are about to visit. 

So, I know its a bit hard to tell in this picture (thanks Delhi haze, you continued to be awesome for my picture taking) but I promise its red, very very red. 

You may have noticed that there don't end up on being too many pictures of me in this blog. This is partially because the camera's belong to me, and I am usually the one holding them (fair enough) but is also because while my husband is a very talented individual in many aspects, photographic stylings do not seem to be one of them. Take the following picture as evidence. I took the picture above of him, and liked how it turned out with him in the foreground and the whole facade of the fort there in the back- its not artsy by any means, but its a good snapshot. So I asked him to take the same picture of me. Figured my Mom might like to see that I was also in India with him. I even went so far as to focus and zoom the camera on him, then try to trade places with him so he could duplicate the shot. You tell me how it turned out.....

Take 1. Not quite the perspective I was hoping for. 

Take 2. Still not the same. 

Take 3. OK, this one is the closest, but no fort in the background. 

Sigh. It was just not meant to be. So despite the fact that I do not feature prominently in the pictures, I promise I was there. And it was great. And my memories of being there will have to be enough given the scant photographic evidence to back it up. 

One of the funniest/best things about the major sights is that 1) you have to go through security to enter- always nice to feel extra safe and 2) there were separate lines for men and women. Now the later doesn't really impress me very much generally- getting a pat down from a stranger doesn't really become more enjoyable because the person getting the free feel is of the same sex as me, but I did enjoy that there was never a line in the women's line and always a line for men. 

Another funny fact about the security screening, which you really go through everywhere, even entering our hotel every time, is that as a lady you are given your grope behind a curtained area. The verdict is still out on whether I like my privacy being invaded more behind the privacy of a screen (again, unwanted touching is still touching right?) but it was at least an interesting cultural difference. And despite being someone who has a particular aversion to bodily contact with strangers, it was nice to know that there was security. And after getting a VERY thorough pat down at the airport on our way out (I mean, really really thorough *cringe*) I will never complain about the PG-13 rated patting that goes on by our friendly TSA agents in the US. 

See, I told you it was really red. 

Dave, no doubt checking "Top 10" to make sure we are on track. He was an excellent tour guide. 

The fort complex is home to lots and lots of really lovely buildings. This one, with all its columns, was my favorite. Don't ask me how long I stood in the same position to try to get a picture with out all the crowds in it. And I still managed to get somebody lingering in the background- but hey, its better than nothing. 

Not all of the red fort is actually red, like this white bit here. 

While trying to take this picture of Dave, in the same style as the picture before in front of the front, to use as a teaching moment and see if I could help him recreate the picture with me in it.... we noticed an Indian family sneaking closer and closer to us. And by "us" I really mean me. And by sneaking, I mean taking pictures of me with their cell phones and gawking. The gawking led to this: 

The first of my pictures with my adoring fans in Delhi. Seriously, I may not feature prominently in my own photographic memories of this trip, but I certainly am going to be a big part of these people's family albums. 3 generations and the large blond freak lady. Its tough to be famous. 

I am all about giving credit where credit is due- and this picture proves that Dave was starting to get the hang of the whole picture taking thing. Bravo, I appreciated the effort. 

Love the bright colors. Love it. 

If I didn't feel really awkward about taking people's pictures with our their express permission there would be lots more pictures of how beautiful the women were and how exquisite a sari looks. There is something about the lovely draping and the fanciful pleats combined with the bright colors and intricate designs or beading work that just makes a sari a thing of magic in my eyes. They just scream glamour to me. Sigh- hoping to have an opportunity to wear one some day (and a friend to help me put it on!)

One thing we found really interesting about all these fantastic old buildings is the way the British re-purposed them during their colonial reign. I suppose they arrived and found these neat old structures and thought "why would I build all new buildings, when I can just use these beautiful old ones" and then also went about building some mis-matched looking colonial buildings on the same land. 

The result is as above... an ancient "pleasure parlor" (unclear what that means, the "Top 10" book didn't elaborate) right in front of a gigantic colonial administration building. There were lots of great tidbits about British officers who decided to re-purpose old Mughal era buildings for country houses! At the Agra Fort, one of the officers who was residing there had himself buried in one of the courtyards! So you've got this amazing Indo-Persian courtyard, and then this doofy British tomb in the middle. Funny, and sort of sad. Oh the vestiges of colonialism- you can see'em everywhere. 

More of my adoring fans. These gents pretty much represent the demographic which most found me to be an important part of their visit to the Red Fort. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am an epic star in the 10-year-olds-on-a-school-fieldtrip-crowd. Blonde American girl = major attraction at the fort. 

An additional comment on Indian school boys, and actually, Indian men generally, is that they have no qualms about a little hand-holding and touching between 'bros. K. had told me that Indian boys were far more likely than American boys to be touchy with each other, and boy was he correct. Everywhere you go there are boys, young and old, walking down the street with linked pinkies, arms around each other's shoulders. I support it- ain't nothing wrong with a little friendly man-touching. 

Red Fort was a trip. Certainly an entertaining introduction to the world of "Old Delhi." Little did we know that compared to what laid ahead for us on the market streets of Old Delhi, my paparazzi-ridden trip through the Red Fort would be a cake walk!