Have you ever seen a tuc tuc?

Delhi, how can I sum it up? Crazy, noisy, polluted, litter, busy, amazing, vibrant, fun, hot; an experience!

Within a 40 minute drive from the airport to our hostel we quickly realised what we had let ourselves in for. We saw monkeys, stray dogs and cows on pavements, poverty at levels we have never witnessed, litter and lots of it, and traffic more congested than anywhere we have ever been. However, despite the volume of traffic, it seems to move, and relatively quickly. This is because there are no rules on the road and I mean this quite literally, our driver told us so. If you want to get past someone, you toot or you simply veer towards them. Imagine a two lane wide road, then three cars within the width of this, a tuc tuc and a motorcycle weaving in and out, and then add in a few bikes and some pedestrians trying to cross and you will get a picture of what it is like.

At first it was very scary, but we quickly got used to it and I think we have stayed calm because strangely, they do. It puts us Brits and our road rage to shame.

Our hostel was in the Main Bazaar in New Delhi. It is down one of the many lanes and although very simple, it is clean and has Air Conditioning which is a must in this heat! The streets around it are as busy as everywhere else, you really need to be on your guard not to get knocked down by a moped or rickshaw. At night they come even more alive with street vendors selling anything and everything you would want. The colours and the smells of the food are amazing. That is until you walk past a random urinal at the side of the alley! Although to be fair, these are few and far between. We were shocked to see cows roaming the streets in amongst all of this, but we were told they are sacred here so the people like to have them. I think we have seen about 15 different ones in this area. The vast number of stray dogs is also quite frightening but they seem to be calm and non threatening, still we take a wide berth when we can.

Yesterday we went to Old Delhi and to the markets. This is exactly how we had imagined India to be. The markets were incredible. We didn't think the streets could get much busier, but of course they did. Tuc tucs are everywhere and we found ourselves being asked if we would like a ride in one every few minutes! We saw the electrical, optical, shoe, cloth, saree and spice market. Each as bustling as the next. The colours were vibrant and fun and the smell of the spice market was overpowering at points, but our favourite part. There were huge bowls and sacks of cumin, cinnamon barks, turmeric, lotus flower, pepper corns and mustard seeds - the list goes on and there were so many we didn't know. The smells of the teas were beautiful. I wish I could have bought some, but so early into our trip I know I would have regretted it. The vendors must have recognised our interest as one of them asked me and then Beedie to sit on his knee for a photo, it was very amusing and of course attracted a lot of stares!

The heat in Delhi has been pretty extreme but thankfully it isn't humid so we are coping. However, everywhere we walk is slow and lots of time is spent in the shade, as well as a lot of water. It is just too hot to be out in and you certainly would not dream of sunbathing.

We have been surprised at the number of families wanting pictures with us. It is quite surreal and makes you feel like a celebrity. Beeds had on his Team GB top so maybe they did think he was a famous athlete or perhaps they have just never seen skin, which is nearly blue, due to my paleness.

We ended up booking a driver for two weeks. This certainly was not our original plan as we wanted to train and bus it places, but due to our lack of research and planning we did not realise that you have to book trains three weeks in advance. Who would have thought public transport would be so busy in a country of over 1 billion! Anyway, lesson learned. We are now paying at the top of our budget when we hoped India would be one of the cheapest countries. However, our driver, Sandi, is great. He looks out for us, gives us tips and advice and has been taking us to all the great monuments in Delhi. He is only 23 and his chat about growing up in India is very interesting. He described himself as a 'careful' driver. This of course still involves the usual Mario Kart styled manoeuvres and pulling over without indicating at the side of roads to show us famous buildings.

So far we are doing ok with the Delhi belly. I suspect we are the usual cautious 'just arrived in country' tourists right now. However, I am not sure if it will last as the street food just looks so tasty. At the moment we have stuck to food within buildings, I avoid using the word restaurant, as I don't think anyone in the UK would call them this.

All in all, Delhi has been an experience. We are not sure we would go back in a hurry, but we would recommend it for a short visit, or a flight stop over. It certainly isn't for the feint hearted, but if you can see past the litter and many other somewhat disturbing sights, it really is an amazing place with nice people, beautiful buildings and enclosed walled monuments. The tranquility and near cleanliness of these certainly contrasts the rest of the city!




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Location:Delhi