Back to Delhi

Today was another major transport day. We left Dharamsala in the morning for the 90km trip to Amb Andaura train station. Here we changed into one of the fastest (where tracks allow for that) and most modern trains on offer in India, the New Delhi Vande Bharat Express, covering the 412km in about five and a half hours – and in relative comfort.

We arrived in Delhi in the evening during a massive monsoon downpour – and streets turning into swimming pools.

Back to India

And here we are – travel continues – I am off to India today.

When I did my trip to Darjeeling, Sikkim, and Bhutan last year, several people in my group recommended to check out Ladakh – which is, what I am doing now. So, this trip will bring me back into the Himalaya region – and back to (likely) slightly different flavors of Tibetan Buddhism (and very different flavors of Buddhism compared to what I have seen in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia earlier in the year).

This trip started in Delhi, where we arrived in the middle of the night. The first day was a sightseeing day in Delhi. We kicked it off in Old Delhi around the big mosque – Jama Masjid – to then venture out into the small market side streets around Chawri Bazar and some first street food.

From here it was on to the Rajghat Memorial at the place where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated. After a stop at the India Gate we ended up at Gurdwara Bangla Sahib – a big Sikh temple with a golden dome and a pool of water. Similar to my last visit here in 2014 we also checked out the kitchen, which produces ten thousands of meals daily for the temple’s visitors.