Hauz Khas

This is a little corner of South Delhi well worth exploring. It is tucked away and mercifully preserved. Its history is what appeals to me. You wander through forested parts as it was perhaps in those days and you come across a Moghul tomb, resplendent with its dome and beautiful arched doorways. Inside lies the tomb of Firuz a really progressive leader who wanted to promote learning. On the top of his tomb and to signify it is a male tomb, a stone pen holder. For women it is a slate. The obvious comes shockingly to mind, their lives are clean slates upon which men dictate!
Hauz Khas means “royal tank” and while it was excavated during Alauddin Khilji‘s reign (1296-1316) in the second city of Delhi it was Firuz Shah Tughlaq (1351-88) of the Tughlaq dynasty who re–excavated the silted tank and cleared the clogged inlet channels. Firuz Shah built the Madrasa (Islamic School of Learning) which became a very important centre of learning, the small Mosque, a tomb for himself and six domed pavilions in its precincts. You can wander through the park and enjoy these ruins which are well enough preserved to give you an accurate picture of what life must have been like all those years ago for the young scholars who came here to learn.


During his rule he abolished many taxes, changed the laws on capital punishment, introduced regulations in administration and discouraged lavish living styles. He is credited with a large number of public works, 50 dams for irrigation across rivers, 40 mosques, 30 colleges, 100 carvansarais, 100 hospitals, 100 public baths, 150 bridges. Firuz died at the age of ninety- not a bad age for a leader in those days. Walking through the Madrassa you have a real sense of how inspirational a place it must have been, a real centre of learning and culture. The tank is now much lower, smaller and perhaps greener than all those years ago but the young couples who stroll around its edge and who sit among the ruins, as well as the countless birds that perch on the trees and in the nooks of the ancient buildings think it is a little paradise in itself.

The preferred way to travel India style

This blog is dedicated to all my animal mad friends, Ronnie, Ginny, Marie-Claude,Helen Lacy, Laurel, Debbie, Jennifer G, Tina, Christine, Auntie Anna, Ninimou and Aspa who would get a kick about what I saw on the streets of Delhi today. We were travelling into Delhi and saw them and then completely by chance and several hours later we saw them on our return journey. THE way to travel India style.

Oh God is my Hindi that bad ?

Was at a reception last week and had just finished dinner so I turned to one of the waiters, there were a few of them on hand, and said :

“Can I have a glass of water please”

He looked blank so I repeated it a bit more slowly this time.

“Can… I…. have…. a glass of water please”
His face was puzzled incomprehension.
So I thought perhaps his English is not good and I said eagerly.
“Pani please?”
His face lit up and off he went.

A whole five minutes later he was back carrying a little plate with a teaspoon on it and the smallest pot of ….honey ! 

You could have knocked me over! Is my Hindi that bad !!

Pani – honey ??

I put the honey pot in my bag, and couldn’t stop smiling all the way home.

Truly a Mezze

Driving into Delhi today and the car slowed up by some traffic lights.

On the left some shops, a high pavement as you often find here and an alleyway.
Coming down the alleyway a middle aged woman in a sari holding a wire framed box.
She got to the pavement and I could see something was stuck inside the box and she was trying to shake it loose. She fiddled with her finger and prised it loose.
She opened the little box and literally shook it out onto the pavement. A mouse fell out. 
Almost before it hit the pavement a crow swept down from a tree and took it.
Christmas for crows ?!

Guru Nanak's 541 st Birthday today

In the summer I wrote a piece on the Golden Temple and the way Sikhs flock to this place of pilgrimage. Their Guru is Guru Nanak and today is his Birthday. The word Nanak means "Fire"  and he brought fire/ light to his followers. He was totally non secterian and when asked about his caste he answered " My caste is the caste of wood and fire."

Guru Nanak was a reformer. He attacked corruption in society. He strongly protested against formalism and ritualism. He carried the message of peace and of love for everybody. He was very liberal in his views. He did not observe the rules of caste. He tried his level best to remove the superstitions of the people. He preached purity, justice, goodness and the love of God.He said "There are no Hindus and no Muslims. There is only one brotherhood of humanity.

Nanak has given a beautiful summary of his teachings in one of his hymns as follows:—

Love the saints of every faith:

Put away thy pride.

Remember the essence of religion

Is meekness and sympathy,

Not fine clothes,

Not the Yogi’s garb and ashes,

Not the blowing of the horns,

Not the shaven head,

Not long prayers,

Not recitations and torturings,

Not the ascetic way,

But a life of goodness and purity,

Amid the world’s temptations.

A small step for MM and all that jazz

While not earth shattering it was an important milestone.
Yesterday for the first time I drove on the Delhi roads. Yes, I acknowledge it was Sunday and the streets were quiet but we negotiated the Mandy Road, the bicycles and the carts, the trucks and the people and reached our destination without any serious mishaps. On the way home I turned to my son and with a new found confidence said fancy going anywhere else?


“Yes” he said laughingly “Connaught place!”

Half Marathon in Delhi today

Sometime ago I mentioned that Indians and Greeks are not the keenest on sports but this seems to be rapidly changing. The Greeks brought the Marathon to the world and the good people of Delhi nearly 8,000 of them are going to be out on the streets today to run the half marathon which is attracting a great deal of interest and media attention.
It is being sponsored by Kingfisher, one of the local beers here and Airtel, a mobile phone company and on Saturday I was invited to a wonderful pre marathon party where we were treated to a great fashion show of sportswear with a number of sporting celebs like Cathy Freeman and athletes from Kenya and Ethiopia (all here to compete) taking to the cat walk to strut their stuff. This was followed by a sumptuous dinner and dancing – not particularly good for those who want to get into shape as it really was tempting and delicious but we did our little bit on the dance floor.


Delhi does not do things in half measures, well except for this half marathon. Delhi wallahs love any excuse to party. There must have been three parties going on simultaneously at this hotel and if you were really adept you could probably go from one to another. You chances of winning the Marathon however would be woefully reduced.


Go out there and support the runners today. Last year the event raised 1.6 Crore for charity.