Our first experience in Delhi was a good primer for what we were in for over the next two days as we explored the city. Unfortunately, it wasn't a calming or particularly friendly experience. After landing at the airport, we made our way to the pre-paid taxi stand to arrange transport to our hotel. The stand operator told our driver where to go, but once we got reasonably close he decided to pull the cab over, against our persistent requests and gestures, unload our bags and hand us over to his "friend" who would "show us our hotel, just around the corner." We were a mile away and literally forced out of the cab we had already paid for. This scam may have worked in the days before Google Maps, but since we can follow our progress on our phones neither of us were fooled. It was very annoying that we weren't taken to our hotel, but more so that we had to fend off the cab driver's "friend" who was trying to book us a tour, then find another tuk tuk to take us the final mile.

Anyway, two hours after leaving the airport we arrived at our hotel. We settled in, calmed down over a late lunch and planned out how to spend the next two days in Delhi.

We decided to split the sightseeing into two days: on Wednesday we'd see Old Delhi, on Thursday we'd see New Delhi. Our hotel helped us arrange a cab for both days to drive us around (to our proper destinations this time!) and we set off to explore Old Delhi.

Old Delhi

Jama Masjid

Our first stop was the Jama Masjid, or large mosque. This is the best known mosque in Delhi and, as the name would suggest, the largest mosque in India - 25,000 people can worship here when it's packed to full capacity! The mosque was built by the same emperor who built the Taj Mahal, which is why there are so many architectural similarities.

Sarah wasn't modest enough in pants and a t-shirt so they clad her in a tablecloth-like tunic. Apparently our western-ness still shines through though because we were stared at and photographed throughout the temple.

There is a half sun at the crest of the main archway - one of the many unique features of this mosque.

We climbed up one of the towers to get a different perspective on the whole area.

Red Fort

The simplicity of the names of the Jama Masjid and the Red Fort didn't really leave us guessing at what to anticipate. As expected, the Red Fort is a huge walled structure with many smaller buildings within its walls. It was also built by the same emperor who built the Jama Masjid so we noticed a few more similarities as we walked through.

We came across some very cool architecture inside the fort - hard to imagine creating so much detail so long ago.

Divan-i-Khas, a place where the emperor would entertain guests.

Raj Ghat

After a beak for lunch at Fresc Co - good Mediterranean dishes, a much needed change from Indian food - we drove to Raj Ghat, a meticulously manicured park with a monument to Gandhi. It wasn't as crowded as the other two sights we saw this morning so we took advantage of the open space and strolled around for about an hour.

A view of the grounds surrounding Raj Ghat.

India Gate

Next, our driver took us to the India Gate. The name also kind of gives this one away - it is a giant gate that looks similar to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Also similar to the Arc, the India Gate is a war memorial and displays the names of all the Indian soldiers who died in World War I (82,000 of them).

Because it is such a popular tourist site, there were large crowds of hecklers ready to try to convince us to part with our money. The most aggressive of whom managed to pin a paper Indian flag on my shirt sleeve before I noticed, then demanded payment. I tried to remove the flag and shake my head no but she grabbed my hand and said "donation" and pointed to both of us. I reluctantly paid rather than putting up a fight and prolonging the confrontation.

We saw so many other tourists strike this pose, we figured our trip would not be complete without Sarah posing for a similar shot! (Seriously though, we don't know why this is a thing.)

The Empty Canopy, as it's known, is just to the east of the Gate.

Bangla Sahib

Our last stop of the day was at Bangla Sahib, a Sikh temple. This was my favorite place we went today for two reasons: we got to witness a Sikh ceremony that was in progress inside and the grounds are beautiful. Plus, as an added bonus, we had to cover our heads to get in so I looked particularly like a pirate (or maybe a biker).

New Delhi

Lodi Gardens

On Thursday we were greeted by a new cab driver at 9am and set out to explore the other half of Delhi. Our first stop was Lodi Gardens, home to several prominent tombs and about five hundred chipmunks. Like the Raj Ghat yesterday, the grounds within the Lodi Gardens are very well maintained and it was early enough that we were able to stroll around casually without running into too many people - a very enjoyable start to the day!

The Bada Gumbad Complex - the first thing you see when walking into the gardens.

Sarah especially loved the pop of blue tile.

Sheesh Gumbad in the foreground; Bada Gumbad in the background. Not pictured: the scurry of chipmunks at our feet. (Yes, that is in fact what you call a group of chipmunks, according to the Internet.) — Sheesh Gumbad in the foreground; Bada Gumbad in the background. Not pictured: the scurry of chipmunks at our feet. (Yes, that is in fact what you call a group of chipmunks, according to the Internet.)

Qutab Minar

After the Lodi Gardens, we went to the village of Hauz Khas for lunch and to walk around the shops there for an hour or so. The small streets are filled with boutiques (which Sarah loved, obviously) and it has a very different feel than the rest of Delhi so far. Glad we stopped by.

Rested and ready to see more sights, we headed to Qutab Minar next. A minar is usually synonymous with what I'd call the tower of a mosque (like what we climbed up yesterday). But the Qutab Minar is just a tall, freestanding tower - not part of a mosque (though much taller than any minar you'd find as part of a mosque). The whole complex is quite impressive and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

The columns of some of the ruins had incredibly detailed carvings in them.

Different perspective on the Qutab Minar.

Lotus Temple

Next stop: Sydney Harbor. Not really, but at first glance you'd believe the Lotus Temple was actually the Sydney Opera House. The Lotus Temple is a Bahá'í House of Worship. Neither of us had heard of the Bahá'í faith before but the tour guides explained it as a pretty universally accepting, peaceful religion, which sounded okay to us. We were led into the temple and encouraged to sit and pray for a few minutes - we both sat there quietly but our take-away was more along the lines of "Wouldn't this be an awesome wedding venue?!" rather than the spiritual enlightenment they'd hoped for.

Humayun's Tomb

Sarah had done some research - as always - about where to find the best place to watch the sunset. Her search led us to Humayun's Tomb so we timed the day to end here. The Tomb, and the others surrounding it, were also designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993 so we weren't surprised when we saw the spectacular buildings. Definitely was the right choice to watch the sunset here!

Hamayun's Tomb. An incredible sight - and one the distinctly reminded me of the palace in Aladdin. Am I crazy?

We made friends with some British tourists and they were kind enough to take our picture in front of the tomb.

We watched the sun go down at Isa Khan Tomb, just outside the Humayun Tomb complex.

We had such a great time at Hymayun's Tomb. We should've called it a day once the sun had set. Instead, we were feeling adventurous and went to Nizamuddin, a Muslim temple across the street. We'd read a few reviews that suggested it could be a bit dodgy, but that the experience (particularly the singing celebration on Thursdays, which we were just in time for) was worth it. Dodgy was an understatement: we were harangued immediately, relentlessly and aggressively by every type of vendor imaginable, throngs of beggars and "guides" offering to help us. When we finally reached the temple, we were forced into a substantial "donation" and it took only five minutes for a me to get pickpocketed and Sarah to get molested. (Fortunately I left my wallet in the car and only had a little cash on me.) Very frustrated and angry, we returned to our hotel to cheer ourselves up the best way we could in Delhi: with a heaping portion of butter chicken and naan.

We've had an interesting time in Delhi over the last two and a half days. On one hand, we saw some beautiful sights and can absolutely understand why tourists (from India and elsewhere) flock here. On the other hand, we had a couple of very bad - and honestly, frightening - experiences that will leave a negative mark on our impression of the city. We're determined to focus on the good memories though...and if necessary eat more butter chicken tomorrow to keep the good vibes going!