5:12 pm

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  Delhi, India
Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Went to the tourist office to learn the best way to get to Agra. They directed me to the International Tourist Booking Office at the New Delhi Train Station. The genteman at the tourist office was very helpful. When I asked him why there were so many tourism agencies pretending to be the "official" one, he told me that the government was corrupt and that they wouldn't do anything to prevent it.

Took the metro to the New Delhi Train Station. Despite all the LP warnings about this area, no tout go in my way. The way to the booking office was well labeled. The easiest way was to get the Shatabdi express at 6.15am. for a bit less than $8. Other options included a 5am train and a 7.15am one that departed from stations further away from where I was staying. In part because I was concerned about my backpack being stolen, went with the more expensive/convenient choice. The staff here was exveent too.

It was shocking to walk around this run-down main train station, especially after having seen the Secretariat Area. However, the station was well-organized with digital boards and the announcements were in English.

At noon, visited Gurdwara Bangla Sahib, a Sikh temple built on the site where the 8th Guru spent several months in the 17th Century. Its architectural features were not that different from the Mugha features of the Jama Masjid. However, these features were combined in a unique way. For instance, there was a golden domed tower at the center of the main rectangular building.

It wasn't much of a challenge to identify the Sikh men, since they had a thick beard and covered heads. On the other hand, the ladies didn't look much different from Hindu women. Reminiscent of the Muslim abulation, the Sikhs cleansed themselves with water before entering the temple. Moreover, they bought tickets in order to receove a blessing in the form of a nutritious, brown paste placed on a large, green leaf.

Inside the temple, there was a tomb covered with blue velvet and gold. The worshippers had gatheres around the tomb and were listening to the spiritual music played by 3 Sikh musicians. Just like many other religions, social service has an integra; part on the Sikh religion. At the basement of the pavement, the poor had been arranged into rows o have their ritualistic lunch.

On the way in, I had to cover my head with an orange bandana. As I was dropping it off at the tourist relations office, I had an interesting encounter. The Sikh in charge of the office gave an interesting answer to my question about the conversion procedure. "The Sikh religion does not believe in conversion." he told me. "What are you going to convert to? As long as you believe in one God... It is a state of mind. All religions are one and the same. Therefore,  conversion is redundant. In addition, conversion is synonomous with conflict. When there is compeition for adherents, conflict inevitably follows."

Had a large glass of fresh, mixed fruit juice, just aeounf

I'm giving up. It's impossible to write on this computer as keyboard characters have been scrached off and the electricity keeps going out. A hint about 5:12pm... It had to do with Ghandiji.

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