Day in Delhi

Karl and our driver, Manpreet.

February 8, 2026

The students had a free day to rest up and get ready for a red-eye flight to Japan; but Karl really wanted to see a few things in Delhi. Through Goutam, we hired a driver for a few hours in the morning. He had excellent English, and we learned a lot of things about the city and about the Sikh religion from him. He told us there are five things a Sikh must have (both men and women): 1) uncut hair and beard for men (represents accepting God's will.) He told us he never cuts his hair, and he is growing his beard back. 2) He wore a silver bracelet that represents being bound to God. 3) He uses a wooden comb to comb his hair. It symbolizes grooming both the body and the mind. 4) He told us he wears special undergarments. 5) He has a sword but he keeps it at home. It is to remind him to defend truth. So, there were certainly some interesting similarities. 

Entrance to Humayun's tomb.

First we went to Humayun's tomb, mostly because it was close; but we learned that traffic always trumps distance in Delhi. We also wondered how anything could compare with what we saw in Agra, but this was yet another beautiful UNESCO World Heritage site. Humayun's tomb is the first example in India of the blend of Persian and Indian architecture and also the first use of red sandstone. Humayun was the second Mughal emperor who ruled in the mid-15th century. His kingdom stretched from today's Afghanistan and Pakistan through Northern India. He was the grandfather of Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal.

We walked through it quickly because we had more we wanted to see. We missed having a guide who shared information that made it all come alive. You can see how this was the prototype for the Taj.

India is a photographers dream location from the rich architecture to the colorful people and culture.

We had to pay to enter the grounds but it was very empty. The cupolas in the buildings serve as pigeon coops. And the Black Kites were soaring above the park grounds. I could have stayed, but we moved on.

Karl popped out of the taxi to get a picture of Rashtrapati Bhavan, a government building.

India Gate

Then we made a stop at India Gate. It was built as a war memorial by the British between 1921-1931. It was built to memorialize the deaths of 70,000 - 90,000 Indian soldiers of the British Indian Army who died in the First World War and the Anglo-Afghan War. It was modeled on the Arch de Triomphe. 

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

This is a new statue that can been seen through India Gate. It was erected in 2022 by Modi to honor Bose, an Indian Freedom fighter. It replaced a 1972 statue known as Amar jawan Jyoti, which translates as "Immortal Soldier Flame." Undoubtedly, there was politics involved in the decision to replace the memorial. 

Speaking of Modi, notice the flag on the hood of this car. The driver smiled when he saw me taking the picture! Manpreet, our driver, told us that people who put the BJP's (Modi's political party) flag on their cars can do whatever they want. The police will ignore them. If they do something they shouldn't, there are no consequences. Manpreet, who is not a BJP supporter, said he would NEVER put one on his car or his fleet of cars because of whom it represents.

Street food party.

We had a farewell party at the SIT Center. SIT was the organization that helped coordinate our trip. Their cook made us all sorts of delicious street food.. We had samosas, pani puri, and debeli.

Abid was back from a trip to Dharamsala with a group of students. He gave me a beautiful scarf and Karl some tea and Tibetan prayer flags.

We got to meet Goutam's wife.

We celebrated a student's birthday.

They took us to the airport for our 1:30 am flight. Once we got there, we discovered it was delayed until 2:00 am. It was a five-hour flight to Hong Kong, where we had an hour-and-a-half layover. And then we flew on to Osaka. Pacrim is full of adventures, but it is not very restful.