We walked out of the Zafar Mahal and into the residential area around the park. The lanes were very narrow with 3-4 story apartment looking building. Most of the first floors were shops and businesses. The open sewer/drain ran between the road and the buildings. I was waiting for Joshua to fall into the sewer when we stopped to check the guide book. I thought I saw chunks of stuff float by, but I didn't smell anything too bad. Chickens were crammed into tight cages outside of markets. Space on the road was very limited. Motorcycles and cars could barely avoid the obstacles in the road: Cockroaches, cows, goats, dogs. Most of the lanes were just barely wide enough for one car. Here, like most of the area, the roads were not designed with people in mind. Even though that's how most people get around. It seemed as if many of the locals were surprised to see any westerners - this area isn't on the tourist route.
The surrounding park was not remotely equivalent to a park.... and I'm not being a picky American. We passed a large garbage dump with a family of pigs eating out of it. I think these were wild pigs. They didn't have leashes or ID tags; nor were they penned or tied to a tree.
However, there should have been some historical buildings along here. And we found one. The Madhi Masjid looked to be a nice and clean place to visit. But. It was closed. That didn't stop 2 guys that pulled up on a motorcycle and hopped the fence to get a few pictures. I didn't want to do that with the kids.
In the end, I realized that we could have reached some of the Heritage site relics had we turned the other way out of Qutb. You never know. We could have, or most likely would have, encountered the same or worse. Luck would have it, though, that we would end up back on the very busy Anuvart Marg. AND in front of the the Metro stop....... we still had to cross the road. You could do this by making a run for the center divider when the traffic cleared, and then crossing the other side. Not so easy with Julia in my arms.... and every hair on my body was raised and tingling as if I had just finished a ride on a roller coaster. Some things you look back on and say - "That was really stupid". But, you don't have a chance everyday to experience India. And this is the best way to do it.
Just for fun we took a tuk-tuk from the Race Course Metro back to the
embassy compound with all six on board. After a light lunch we took Joshua Bowling ! The compound has a very nice 4 lane alley. A group for kids having a birthday party took up 2 lanes and were all over the place. Julia took a long nap. I drank an espresso from the cafe. Josh and I played 3 games.This is still Day2........
We finished the night off with dinner at a local restaurant. It is known that you can't trust the locally made food. The fear is the dreaded Delhi Belly. No not a Bollywood movie - it's described as a DISASTROUS result of contaminated food and water. THE Bane of worldwide travelers. And it's no surprise. Things here are just not very clean. And if you do clean with water, the water is usually the problematic source of your discomfort... I won't describe it anymore.
Okay, Seriously, you are surrounded with all of this great looking street food that you can't eat. You may be in the hottest most humid day of the year, but you can't drink the water... you can't even trust a closed plastic Avian water bottle. Fresh fruit and Veggies purchased at a market HAS to be soaked in a bleach solution (MUST be Chlorox) BEFORE being placed in the refrigerator.
So, naturally, the embassy has a list of "tried and trusted" local restaurants. The night was a bit cool and overcast. The restaurant was a short walk to where the post office and shoe wallah was, and the cool night was refreshing. It was around 7ish and all of the shops were still open and thriving. We went to the Moti Mahal, a very clean and pleasant place. Not too overly "Indian" in decor. Not huge, nor small. A few cozy tables, but not cramped. We just had enough time to order pea palao, mutton biryani, chicken murg (curry) and chciken tikka masala with garlic naan. Everything was delicious and appropriately spiced. Not too much hot pepper, salt, or masala. The tikka was in a thick sauce with a generous proportion of lemon - I could never replicate something this good.
The kids were falling asleep at the table. The food brightened them up, but the day was too long for them to enjoy dinner.
And it was a good choice for a restaurant ..... meaning no one got sick !
