All of Delhi

Hey all.

I'M EXHAUSTED! Two of the four things that we chose to do today were an equidistant 60 minute ride from each other and where everything else is. So we went to Jantar Mantar (a giant sundial [think 3 story building kinda big] and other building-sized instruments to measure calendar days and when eclipses should come made in early 1700's) and Laxmi Narayan Birla Mandir (a huge Hindu temple). Then a 60 minute ride in a rickshaw (think covered moped that comfortably sits 2 in the back - we sat 3 uncomfortably) to Qutb Minar (ruins of the first mosque in India and the minar (think of a cooler and smaller Washington Monument) which is still in tact and a pure iron thing [apparently no one knows how they got the thing so pure of iron as they did not have the tools that we now do - but really, it was just an iron thing jetting out of the ground]). Then a 60 minute uncomfortable rickshaw ride to the Baha'i Lotus Temple. This was AMAZING! It's a gigantic building in the shape of lotus flower. And, of all the temples I've been to so far, this one was by far the most peaceful. Absolutely fantastic. This experience was only hindered by the trip home afterwards. Apparently, the rickshaws outside this temple like to screw over the whiteys by asking way too much money and making you stop along the way at shopping centers (they get a gas card if they drop off whiteys). So we did a lot of haggling, yelled/spoke sternly to a few of them, got a little worried that we pissed all of them off, then couldn't find one to take us home. But just as we were about to go back and apologize, a nice rickshaw came along. Thank goodness we still have our pride in tact. :) That was a joke: please laugh. Then 60 minutes home and here I am.

Oh, and have you heard about the traffic here??? It's absolutely crazy! Apparently they are supposed to drive on the left side, and most of the time they do, but sometimes they don't actually care. Running red lights is also something to be expected. We have decided that when we get in a rickshaw, we just need to go limp and actively not worry about the traffic headed right for us - nothing we can do about it once we're in the tangled mess they call traffic.

Anyway, to give you a quick overview of the last few days:
We saw Old Delhi - really crowded, more than anywhere else
We toured the Red Fort - huge; made of red sandstone in the mid-1600's
We went to Humayun's Tomb - also huge; built in mid-1500's for the second Mughal emperor
Went to the Lodi garden - absolutely beautiful and huge garden with tombs scattered in it

That's all I can think of. I saw an elephant on the highway, face painted. I saw a billboard of Bear Grills (I don't even care enough to find out if that's how you spell his name) of the show Man Vs. Wild (this sentence was added for Kimber's benefit - everyone else can disregard).

I'm going to Jaipur tomorrow where the 3-day wedding will begin tomorrow night. I'll be sleeping in a palace and not paying for it - so that's kinda cool. The groom might come in on an elephant (or horse or camel).

Alright - I'm going to go now. I'm hot and tired and hungry, but we're waiting on Anil's friend to come in to the hostel any minute.

Tootles.