.:: Delhi - Here I Come! ::. Review on New Delhi

My aim here is to familiarize people who have bothered themselves to actually read this review, even after knowing who wrote it, about Delhi's attractions. I have been a little funny (hopefully) here and there, so please laugh ;)

Ansal's Plaza

You stand in front of this huge good looking structure, and you wonder to yourself - 'Alright, Delhi's learning'. You step forward and see oodles of dating couples sitting on the vast expanse of staircases and you smile to yourself. You wipe sweat from your forehead and check your pockets - 'Whew, I bought enough money'. You look at the entrance door, it says 'PUSH'. 'Thank Goodness, I didn't pull and make a fool of myself'. You step inside. Door shuts behind you. You turn around and look. It says 'PUSH' at this end too. But thats unnoticable now. The blast of cold air from the air-conditioner has evaporated the beads of sweat on your sweaty body. You're finally inside Ansal's Plaza.

On your left kids are staring at you through McDonalds and on your right couple of giggly girls are well, giggling. Facing you is an obviously bored doorman doing what he's paid for every 10 seconds. He's the man you need to be good to, if you wish to get inside Shopper's Stop. Two escalators and an elevator connect this floor with the one above. You hope the shopping spree would soon end. It would. AP really doesn't have much you'd wish to buy.

AP's cool as a hangout. Sure, you can hold hands with your sweetheart and roam about in oblivion to your surroundings without much of a problem, however, don't expect to hit shopping heaven. AP has it all - from Archies to Westside. From Marks & Spencers to Shopper's Stop. However, it fails to keep you involved for long. You tend to loose interest in it all after an hour or two.

So the money you just checked outside, you'd just end up taking it all back home.

Delhi Haat

You park your car with little difficulty. You shell our an insignificant 10/- note for an entrance to this much-talked-about Indian handicrafts heaven. Oh damn, you left your girlfriend in the car (duh!). You run out and retrieve her (of course, she's gonna give you a hard time for this, man!). You fish out another insignificant 10/- note. What? They won't let you get inside. But, you just went out to get her, you've paid up already. Damn, these insignificant notes are fast running out. You pay another 10 bucks and finally get in. Whew!

The heat beats up on you. Anyway, you move on, wondering whats in store for you. All around you, you see suits and bedcovers and jewellery and little tit-bits. Hmm, so this is why you came here, eh? As you move on you feel surprised as you see many a food stalls named after the many states of our India. You eagerly check out the menu. Your girlfriend pulls at your sleeve - she sees something she likes and wants to get it - now! Your stomach growls.

Goddamit - why are girls so impatient. You follow her to a shabby stall. She looks open-mouthed, you frown - whats to get excited about? She spends good fifteen minutes bargaining with the man. Eventually, they settle the deal. She smiles at you sweetly and spreads her palm out. You smile and put your hand over hers. She nudges you with her elbow and you realize, she's not being romantic - she wants the money. Hurriedly you fish out the money as he packs the stuff.

You confess you're hungry. Your girlfriend gives you a bad look. A real bad one. You hang around with her another two hours going man to man as she picks up stuff she absolutely loves and you practically empty out your wallet. Exhausted, you sit amidst the flies to eat something. The stall says Maharashtra. You order Pav Bhaji. She orders a coke - nothing else, she's on diet. As you eat it you thank your stars you're a non-vegetarian, at least you won't feel gross if one of the million flies end up in your mouth.

So Dilli Haat is cool for handicrafts. You can get good bargains, but only if you know how to bargain. Your girlfriend ought to love it, but don't bet on it. It is definitely one of the best places to shop, but not good enough to date - in my opinion that is.

GK - M Block Market

You've heard so much about this market that you just can't wait to check it out. Of course, you have a big car (you thought it would help to show off, didn't you?), so you'd have to wait just about half hr before you can get a decent place to park. Okay, today the Gods are blessing you, my friend, you just got parked. You look around.

Nice girl.

Another nice girl.

Damn - thats a nice girl.

What are you - birdwatching? You're here to see the market dude! You give a thumbs up to this place, who thought a market could be so 'hep'? You see Teksons and Buddy Davis and USI and Rio Granade and Bizarre and... lots of other places you don't feel like mentioning, but definitely feel like visiting. Another nice girl.

You waiting to spend good money as these guys bargain good. Especially female clothing. Suddenly you wish you were a girl. Then you don't as you see another good looking chick passing you. You follow her. She stops at a silver trinkets shop. You say hi. She says hi. You ask her where's she from. Before she can reply, there's a tap on your shoulder. You turn around. It's your girlfriend. You forgot - she said she'd be coming to see you! Sorry, your trip to this cool market ends here. You must first get things sorted with your girl.

And by the way, there goes another cool chick.

Palika Bazaar

You enter this Bazaar confused. Someone told you this was electronics heaven. But you see vendors selling belts and bags and various stuff you weren't expecting to see. As you go further, finally a smile lights up your face. That shop looks like a place you can buy some blank CD's. Bingo. He sells you a pack of 10 for Rs.150/- What a deal. Look, the market also has a first floor. What harm in checking that out? You look surprised as you see guys begging for you to step in their shop.

A small guy looks pleadingly at you. Oh, what the heck, how will 10 minutes hurt. You step in. Damn, they lay out before you DVD's of the very latest movies. Also, they give you VCD's and CD's and blank media. 'How much would this cost me' - you ask, pointing at a similar box of cd's you just bought. 'Umm... 120/-', he replies. You buy two.

You realize later, they bargain a great deal. Pirated VCD's and DVD's are pretty damn cheap. You only hope you don't get caught. You step out thanking God for making life so very easy.

Gaffar Market - Karol Bagh

The little parking space was pretty irritating for you, but you've made it. Finally. Shabby shops are scattered all around you and you wonder to yourself, why am I here? Anyway, as you move on, you realize this is the best place in Delhi to get everything cheap and yet, genuine. You name it, they got it. You jump around happily and buy everything in sight. You run out of money, but thats ok, you were born rich.

You soon loose your way. Did I come through the lane from the left or the right? The market it very confusing. You wonder why they dont have guides here. As you move from lane to lane, various odors greet you. Shops are barely big enough to support their own vendors, leave aside the stuff they sell. But, at the end of it all, you know, its been worth it.

So, this is it. The end of my tour. What more do you expect for free, man! I give all the credit for this review to Farrukh - who talked me into writing this. Infact, I've just covered few of the hangouts he mentioned in his review in my style.

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