Going to Delhi

Last week I had to travel to Delhi to get a piece of paper notarized by the US embassy.  We didn't have enough time to book train tickets (they are booked up for a month or so), so I had to go alone by plane. This brought several concerns to my and Passang’s minds – how do I find a good place to stay and how do I get around Delhi by myself not knowing the language or taxi system?  But we couldn't afford two plane tickets, so I had to go by myself.

One of the wonderful things about the culture here is how eager and willing people are to help each other – especially when it’s a family member.  It turns out that one of Passang’s cousins (actually the cousin of our sister-in-law), Anna, has a sister-in-law who works in Delhi.  Anna’s sister-in-law, Sarala, was so excited to help, but she was worried that the room she could get me would not be up to my American standards.  Passang assured her that I would be ok; I could live in whatever accommodations she could get for me (we hoped!).   Sarala actually works in a guest house in Delhi that is run by the Sikkim government.  She was able to get me an inexpensive room in her guest house and told me that I should be able to get a taxi from the airport to her guest house where she would be waiting for me.  It was such a huge relief to know I had accommodations and someone waiting for me when I arrived!

The temperature when I arrived in Delhi was 41°C – about 106°F!  Sarala was waiting for me at the guest house. It was so nice!  Way better than I was expecting!  My room was very nice and even had AC!!! 

 This is the guest house that I stayed in - Sewa Bhawan

Here is my room

Sarala arranged a taxi to take me to the US embassy.  Getting my “No Objection Letter” notarized was super quick and easy, especially since I got to go in the US Citizen Line.  There were hundreds of other people waiting outside and in the non-US citizen line, and I got to pass them all up!

This piece of paper is the reason I had to go to Delhi

After getting my letter notarized, I still had a day and a half to explore the city.  There are tuktuks all over the place, so it’s actually really easy to get from place to place.  You just have to make sure that they don’t cheat you on the taxi fare!

Here I am riding in a tuktuk!

Across the street from the US Embassy is another Sikkim Guest house called the New Sikkim House.

It's REALLY nice :)

They were selling these red pandas dressed up in traditional dresses.

Here's the Sherpa and Lepcha.

Then I went shopping in this nice shopping center.

And I had a snack at McDonald's!

Tastes just like McDonalds in the US!  The McFlurry was SO nice :)

The next day I went to see the Indira Gandhi Memorial

Indira Gandhi was prime minister in India for 15 years.  

She was assassinated one day as she was leaving her house.  

The memorial is in the house that she was living in when she was killed.

This is the sari she was wearing when she was killed

Her study was filled from floor to ceiling with books

These are pictures of her daughter-in-law, Sonia Gandhi, who was born in Italy but moved to India when she married Indira Gandhi's son.  It's kind of cool to see that another relationship between an Indian and foreigner is so important to the history of India.  

Sonia Gandhi has served an important role in Indian politics for many years.

This is the path that Indira Gandhi was walking when she was assassinated.  

It's now covered in crystal and glass.

I also visited the India Gate which was built in 1931 to commemorate the 90,000 Indian soldiers who were killed in World War I.

All in all it was a really great trip, but I am SO happy to be back home in Sikkim with Passang and our family.