Surviving the COVID-19 Pandemic (Number 7)

Hunkered Down, But With Places To Go

Today another trip to the frontlines of the war on the coronavirus as some fresh supplies

are required. We have not hunkered down to the point of eating Spam or tinned meat products. There is also that ongoing hunt for hand sanitizer, disinfectany wipes, and toilet paper.

Since we have lived within the protection of the American cocoon, hiding out from the invisible pathogen known as COVID-19 seems quite surreal. Cool temperatures and some rain have driven us back indoors for the past couple of days. Thus, it seems a great time to embark on some dreamlike virtual travel. 

Today, we’re heading back nearly 25 years to visit India.

India Gate
(All India War Memorial)

Delhi

Our flight from London to New Dehli arrived just as it was getting dark. It was a simpler time in regard to security checks and the bureaucratic formalities went smoothly. After securing our bags, we exited to an area with a relatively low ceiling (maybe 12 ft.). Exiting passengers encountered a mass of waiting greeters: family, friends, associates, chauffeurs, taxi drivers, rickshaw drivers, street vendors, etc. The fog of exhaust from their waiting vehicles filled the air beneath that low overhead making the combined mass of heavy air and packed humanity seem like we were walking into thick brown gravy. This may have seemed routine to the average Indian traveler but for us (although, not inexperienced in third world) travel) there was a fantastic rush of romanticism that impacted us immediately.

After arriving at our hotel (don't remember which), we were able to get a ride to the restaurant we had learned about while researching for the trip. Somehow, after a rather sheltered youth, I had discovered Indian food. No doubt this discovery can be tied to my student days and the need to eat cheaply. 

This, however, was a monumental discovery! My love for Indian food was such that I wanted, more than anything, to discover that I must have been Indian in an earlier life. This fantasy was inconsistent with my love of hamburgers though. Nonetheless, many years of travel and opportunity had drawn me to explore all sorts of Indian restaurants wherever I traveled. 

Rodeo

Rodeo

The restaurant that I absolutely had to experience in New Delhi was a Tex-Mex restaurant where the staff dressed in western cowboy garb, including chaps and holstered pistols. Its description in our travel guide was of a place so incongruous to our destination that we just had to see it. Before unpacking, we found ourselves at Rodeo in Connaught Place.

One of the joys of this sort of virtual travel is that we can revisit the places we've been to using Google Maps, Google Earth, and Google Street Views. We can see changes over time and anticipate where our dreams might next lead us. Our research back then was not informed by access to satellite maps and images and not aided by Google Translate. Thank you Google! One prepared, reading and studying for this kind of travel months and years before actually making the plunge. Those were different kinds of adventures.

Mahatma Ghandi

Dehli, like many other major cities in the world, has changed significantly. One of the sights that we wanted to see was the memorial for Mahatma Ghandi, the Raj Ghat.

Today, the memorial is more protected, the flower petals are placed with greater formality, and the surrounding area is more protected. Note the different look in this video than in my photo from more than two decades ago.

A stroll through the nearby Red Fort was another highlight for us. 



Old Delhi

Here is a nice video that simulates our stroll (but someone else's from a couple of decades later).

Rashtrapati Bhavan

During the early 20th century, the British moved their capital from Calcutta (now Kolkata) to New Dehli. Our visit to the Rashtrapati Bhavan (which had been the British Viceroy's palace) was also memorable. The building of this palace was projected to take 4 years to complete. Instead, it took 17 years and the year after it's completion, India gained its independence. There are very few residences for Heads of State that might compare to the magnificence of what is now India's presidential palace. 

Rashtrapati Bhavan

We enjoyed watching the changing of the guard ceremony. Google Street View reveals that today this area has now been paved over.

Taj Mahal

Our visit to Delhi was brief, but fascinating. We needed to include a side trip of about 140 miles south to Agra. Our goal was to visit the Taj Mahal, one of the most magnificent monuments ever built. It was commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan himself. 

Taj Mahal

Our visit to the Taj Mahal went largely unnoticed by the media. We had unfortunately arrived just one week after Yiannis Chryssomallis, known to new age music fans as Yanni. Just terrible timing on our part.