Namaste friends and family. This blog is about my journey in India. The capital of India is New Delhi, where I lived for 6 weeks with my husband. To be honest, the thought about going to India was out of my mind but life is full with surprises, my husband got an assignment at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. Well, heck yeah like the wise man said seize the opportunity and we did and I’m glad we did! Got to check off one of our bucket list items. Taj Mahal is one of the seven wonder of the world. WOW!!!!
We landed and checked in at the most marvelous hotel in town, The Leela Palace New Delhi. Truthfully, The Leela Palace is the most luxurious and exquisite hotel imaginable. Living life day and night for 6 weeks in this glamorous hotel was like floating in the clouds. Their services, restaurants, bar, and spa are just impeccable, especially the hospitality and the hotel staff made us feel extraordinary and that was the best part of all.
One of the bonus parts of the trip was when my father came to visit and stayed at the Leela with us. I was beyond happy that I could spend father and daughter time and get closer to him before I move back to Bangkok to help continue his business realm next year. It was a magical time and we all went on a little adventure to the highlight sites of New Delhi including a day trip to Agra city to visit one of Mughal’s architectural icons, the Taj Mahal.
My perspective about Delhi is quite close to the Lonely Planet’s.......
Delhi is a city where you can go from Old Delhi, where laborers haul sacks of spices and jewelers weigh gold on dusty scales, to modern New Delhi, with its colonial-era parliament buildings and penchant for high tea. Then on to the future: Gurgaon, a satellite city of sky scraping offices and glitzy malls. This pulsating metropolis has a bigger population than Australia, and is one of the world's most polluted cities. It’s a city that has been repeatedly ravaged and reborn, with vestiges of lost empires in almost every neighborhood. But the one thing that Lonely Planet didn’t mention is the madness of the chaotic traffic in Delhi. It’s like 3 cars and 2 bikes try to fit in one lane at the same time. The rules of the road don't exist and the horns are going every second and it drives me nuts. I hate comparing things but this made me appreciate growing up in Bangkok.
On the morning of July 28, 2017, our butler delivered a gift to us from a former famous tennis player and Hollywood actor, Vijay Amritraj. I couldn't believe myself that Randall and I got a chance to chat with him. He was so nice and shared his career path with us from a tennis player to becoming a successful business man with both a winery and as an actor in Hollywood. Amazing and down to earth gentleman.
Next, I'll be back with my post about the magical weekend experience of living in the Palace life and the mix of vibrant colors and architecture and rich history in Jaipur, the Pink City.
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