Our hostel was in south Delhi, which is a more upmarket area than Parhaganj, the area near New Delhi station where backpackers have traditionally stayed. The Delhi metro has opened up more potential options for accommodation as it makes it easier to move around the transport hubs of the city. We had considered staying in Aero city, but when we found K-house hostel we compromised. I am glad we did as I think Aero city would have been like staying near a big airport anywhere in the world. Our room in K-house had a good strong shower (for India) and a sitting area. There were dorm rooms as well as doubles, the communal areas were well set up and the staff were efficient. They provided a substantial breakfast which we ate on the rooftop terrace, spotting birds of prey (possibly eagles?) swooping through the greenery of south Delhi.

The pollution in Delhi is in the ‘dangerous for health’ category and we were glad we were only staying a couple of days. Apparently it has improved from previous years, which is thought to be due to the government restrictions on diwali fireworks. I found an interesting New York Times article: ‘Who gets to breathe clean air in New Delhi’ (can be found by googling) reflecting on the inequalities within the city. My experience in India has made me reflect on how much I take for granted in the UK, down to the air that I breathe!

We braved the pollution for a day to visit the Qutab Minar; I have wanted to see this site for a long time. It is on the world heritage list and was built between 1199 and 1220. The Qutab Minar that gives the site its name is a huge tower that stands in the centre of the complex. As so often in India, Hindu and Muslim histories are intertwined and contested, with the Qutab Minar being built using demolished Hindu and Jain temples. A much more ancient but less impressive looking Hindu/Jain iron pillar is also present on the site and the current labelling of the towers is a bit obfuscatory reflecting the ongoing tensions. I recommend William Dalrymple’s book ‘City of Djinns’ for anybody interested in Delhi.

Iron pillar

Tim found out that it was previously possible to climb to the top of the Qutab Minar but this was stopped when it became a favourite suicide spot. It was still possible to climb part of the way up until a power cut in 1981 caused mass panic and a stampede that killed 300 – 400 people. These days the tower can only be admired from the outside.

After refreshing ourselves at a trendy and pricey coffee bar we headed for the Lodhi Gardens. These contain Mughal tombs with intricate carvings which are fascinating to wander around. We met two young men just finishing their year 12 studies who are hoping to move to Italy for further study there (one to study engineering and one to study medicine). They were keen to explain a bit about the Muslim religion to us. We were very impressed with their attitude and ambition. They were well aware of the advantages of living in a European city and I could not help but wondered how many talented young people like this we are losing in the UK due to Brexit and under investment in universities.

That evening we visited Khan Market shopping area which I enjoyed and Tim tolerated. We ate burgers in another upmarket restaurant frequented by hip young Delhi-ites.

I had tried to organise this trip to avoid flying if at all possible. We changed our plans at the start and spent longer in Uttarakhand, cancelling our overnight train tickets from Lucknow to NJP, the railway gateway to Darjeeling and Sikkim because the weather was so bad in Sikkim at that time. It proved impossible to obtain alternative railway tickets so we decided to go for a flight rather than travel by bus for two days. It was a short hop of just over an hour from Delhi terminal three to Bagdogra airport, where we got a taxi to Siliguri. Siliguri is a heavily polluted chaotic West Bengal city, that is a transport hub for Kolkata in one direction and the hills in the other. Our hotel was passable but we were glad that we were heading to Gangtok in Sikkim the next day…