Delhi travel guide

New Delhi is the capital of India. This neighboring country with the second largest population in the world is also an ancient country with thousands of years of civilization. There are a group of imaginative people living here. India's religion and caste system have always attracted much attention. It is precisely because of the mystery and strangeness of India that it attracts a large number of tourists to visit. Here, I want to share with you the travel precautions and detailed travel strategies in New Delhi.

Notes on Tourism in New Delhi

Be sure to bring enough cash when you go out. This can prevent an emergency from needing money. Visitors need to keep their ID cards and spare credit cards separately.

Indian prices are generally high, so there is room for bargaining. This is also an instinct and basic common sense. Indians will get used to it and start killing from 30% to 50% according to different situations in different places. After the transaction, pay attention to take the goods first and then pay;

Food safety in India is the same as that in China. Be sure to pay attention to hygiene when eating. Diarrhea is a frequent occurrence, and even top hotels can't guarantee the safety of food and drinking water. Many people who go to India to work or travel have bitter experiences, so don't have the mentality of "believing in evil" and trying, so as to ensure their physical and mental health.

Guests must arrive at the international airport 3 hours before the plane takes off and at the domestic airport 2 hours before the plane takes off. The government prohibits taking photos at international and domestic airports;

Head: Indians shake their heads in agreement and nod their heads in disapproval, which means no;

When visiting a mosque, you should observe the habit of taking off your shoes. Don't take pictures in temples, especially in places where bodies are burned;

Please buy mineral water to drink. Some hotel rooms provide 1-2 bottles of free mineral water, and travel agencies also provide 1 bottle of mineral water every day. Smoking is prohibited in public places;

When Indians meet, they say "Namaste" or "Namaste" means congratulations and tribute. You can use it when you meet or break up, regardless of time or gender, and the honorific words also say so. But it is polite to repeat it twice. Of course, not really. Some places or cities, or people influenced by western culture, express themselves in English, while others express themselves in their own dialects.

Avoid going out alone at night. Please remember to bring your travel documents, cash, traveler's checks, credit cards, air tickets, cameras and other valuables. Stay with you carefully. Don't put them in your suitcase or leave them in your car, hotel room or public place. In the hotel, valuables can be stored in the safe at the reception desk. Please take the receipt. When you leave the room, you should lock the door and luggage, and the door key can be kept by the reception desk to avoid losing it;

When an elder or someone shows extra respect or entreaty, they should touch their feet first, that is, bend down and touch their toes with their right hand, and then touch their heads with the same hand, indicating that their heads are in contact with their feet. At this time, the other party touches the saluter and the other party's head with their hands to show their return. Help-seekers even kneel on the ground, touch each other's feet with both hands and touch each other's toes with their foreheads;

Indians have the habit of being left-handed, and never use their right hand, even after washing with water. Therefore, the left hand is considered unclean;

When eating, if you add vegetables or vegetables to each other (Indians). Be sure to use a pair of unused chopsticks, and never use the one you are still using. If so, people will think that they are eating your leftovers.

In India, in order to avoid some actions that may cause misunderstanding, it is best for couples not to hold hands in public places, and of course avoid hugging. Ladies should not wear sleeveless T-shirts or revealing clothes, and don't cross their legs. Indians usually cross their arms and nod their heads. At this time, they can reply with the same action. In addition, be careful not to use your left hand, and don't step on food or people on the ground. Take off your shoes before entering the house, and never point your feet at local people or idols.

If you choose to stay in an economy hotel in India, don't forget your sleeping bag! Although these hotels are cheap, the rooms are usually unsatisfactory, and the sheets and quilts are not necessarily clean. Some hotels even only provide a tent on the roof and need to bring sleeping bags.

Never go to travel agencies to book tickets, they will cheat tourists out of their money, and it is impossible to buy train tickets for foreigners. If the remaining amount of the train ticket you want to buy shows "waitinglist", the ticket has been sold out. At this time, you can buy the reserved tickets at the foreigner ticket booth at the railway station, which may be more than 90%. When buying tickets at the train station, if it is the waitinglist's turn, you need to go to the train station two hours in advance to confirm whether there are any tickets left. For the safety of luggage, lock the luggage with the chain of the luggage rack after getting on the bus. India's railway stations have neither checked tickets nor reported stations, so you need to pay attention to the arrival information of trains so as not to miss the station.

There is a train pass in New Delhi called INDRAILPASS, which is an ordinary ticket with unlimited number of rides, and the ride time ranges from half a day to 90 days. There is a special international tourism bureau in the railway station, on the second floor of the station (in India, people speak English as a British idiom, and the second floor is called the first floor). Visitors are advised not to go to the reservation office in the south of the station. Here, you need to show proof of exchange or buy tickets in dollars.

Delhi time is 2.5 hours later than Beijing time.

New Delhi has a tropical monsoon climate, which is influenced by northeast wind in winter and southwest wind in summer. The climate is mild, and the best travel time is February, March, September and November. A year is divided into cool season (October to March), hot season (April to June) and rainy season (July to September). The average temperature is about 14 degrees in cool season and 38 degrees in hot season.

Beware of beggars, even beggars. If they ask you for charity or money, be sure to be careful with your wallet. Don't think that you can be generous to the point of not taking precautions in India.

Don't trust the so-called "tourist information center" of New Delhi Railway Station. In fact, these organizations are not regular tourism bureaus, but tourist organizations that kill customers.

It is best to book hotels and air tickets in advance, so that the trip will not be too hasty. Buses in Delhi are prone to traffic jams, flights and hotels are prone to temporary adjustments and changes, and Indians are inefficient, so it is very important to arrange the itinerary in advance.

New Delhi travel guide

For many people, including me before, I thought that life in front of me was a struggle and poetry in the distance was poetry, so I embarked on a long journey again and again.

Gradually, I understood a truth:-there are poems everywhere, which have nothing to do with distance; However, some people muddle through and make poems, while others are stuck in the mire and can't find their own rhythm.

Many years later, I recalled my first experience in India, that unprepared short stay, and once in the distance, I really managed to escape. The sour and gorgeous rhythm of New Delhi is very powerful.

New Delhi for the first time

I huddled outside the New Delhi airport, shivering. Looking at the mobile phone, it has been three hours outside the airport at 3: 30 in the morning. January in New Delhi is colder than I expected. Although I checked in advance that the temperature at night will not be lower than 10 degrees, the bone-eating cold wind reminds me from time to time that I still underestimate the subtropical winter, which is thirsty, tired and hungry, and the nights are long.

The original plan was to find a hotel in or near the airport, rest for one night, and then take a taxi to the reserved hotel the next day. But when I left the customs, I found that there was no hotel at the airport. After running a few laps, I want to try my luck.

I only blame myself for taking everything for granted.

After leaving the airport, the guards never let me in again. Later, I learned that because India is chaotic and there have been some explosions, the airport security measures are particularly strict. No one else is allowed to enter the airport lobby unless there is a departure certificate for that day.

It's dark and bleak outside, which makes people feel a little creepy. A glass wall and a road more than 10 meters wide isolate the brightness of the terminal building. India's capital is far from the expected prosperity, caste system and the gap between the rich and the poor. These huge social propositions come so directly that people are caught off guard.

March courageously along the overpass, the front is dark, at first glance, I saw a huge empty room, crowded with people. White cloth tightly wraps their uneven bodies from head to toe, just like a morgue, where the bodies rest in peace and there is a chill in the air.

I can only lean against the glass of the terminal and spend the night with the security of the gun in the guard's hand.

At six o'clock, it's dawn. Women are wearing bright saris, men are holding hands, and the airport is bustling. Curiosity immediately put an end to fatigue, fear and panic, and with a cup of fragrant Martha teh tarik, all nerves became sensitive to sight, hearing and smell.

The thick smog turned the strong sunshine in the morning into orange smog, and there was a thick curry smell in the too beautiful halo.

Two gorgeous traps

I know nothing about India except the Taj Mahal.

A man came to New Delhi Railway Station, wanted to buy a train ticket to visit the Taj Mahal in Agra, and went back and forth the same day.

Heaven and hell at the same time-standing in the square in front of the train station, I suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness about this familiar phrase. Noisy crowd, harsh roar, gorgeous colors, sour smell, garbage everywhere, every sense of the body has never been so violently stirred, accompanied by great excitement and dizziness, while reluctantly resisting, while trying to explore the stimulation of the senses, can not tell whether it is love or hate.

The station is extremely simple, with a small three-story cement building, a steel pipe overpass and an unpretentious cement square. It is hard to imagine that this is the largest railway station in India, the capital railway station of a country with the most crowded and largest railway network in the world, 650,000 kilometers of tracks and 7,500 railway stations. But this is India. How can we judge by common sense? Its vastness lies in countless people of all kinds, who lie, sit, stand, stumble, hesitate, run and stumble, gather from every inch of this country and dissipate in every unknown corner.

I don't know how to buy a ticket; I didn't know there was no English at the station; I didn't know there was a special "foreigner" window; I didn't know this was "the most dangerous railway station in the world"; I didn't see any other tourists, and I didn't read an online manual called "The Encyclopedia of Indian Deception".

A middle-aged man dressed neatly in a 3354 suit, tie, leather shoes and shiny hair walked in front of him, giving people a sense of trust in this shabby, noisy and dangerous railway station.

"Are you lost?"

Although my accent still smells of curry, my lost English, which is much better than that of the locals, has given me something to rely on, so I described my demands.

After some conversation, every doubt was resolved by his polite "Don't worry, sir", and I gradually learned that "tickets here are not sold to non-Indians, so I should go to Connors House (next to the government), where there is a ticket office specially set up for foreigners".

Then, he kindly called me a sudden bus and told me to be careful of liars. Sudden bus drivers will usually kill you when they see that you are a tourist. He knew the driver and agreed on the price, which was affordable and reliable, 80 rupees.

Kangle building is really high. This white marble house is only 10 minutes away from the railway station. Starbucks and McDonald's are familiar worlds to me, but both are guarded by guards with guns. The Sikh driver wearing a headscarf pointed to the building that said, "There, my friend, come".

The room was neat and clean, and the aroma masked the looming curry smell. A couple with blond hair and blue eyes are negotiating with the staff at the counter. The accent should be Australian. Two American couples are sitting on the sofa next to them, eagerly talking about the excitement and senses of india tourism.

Soon, a staff member came out, the same suit and tie, the same gentleness, the same glamour and neatness. He handed me a cup of milk tea, said "Welcome to India" in more standard English than the men in the train station, and then led me to my desk.

After telling him when I was going to Agra, he turned on the computer professionally, entered the information and told me, "I'm very sorry, all the tickets to Agra were sold out that day." Then, before I could answer, I heard the familiar sentence "Don't worry, sir".

The sound of the mouse and keyboard came and went, and he repeatedly turned the computer upside down. His serious attitude makes me feel a little guilty. After a few minutes, he sincerely told me that he had checked it three times and there were no tickets until the weekend. I told him that I would leave India at the weekend. He kept saying "I'm sorry" until I asked him if there was any other way to go to Agra and return the same day.

"I can arrange a taxi service for you!" There is a strange excitement in the tone. Leave at 5 o'clock that day and come back at 8 o'clock in the evening. 10000 rupees, I'll give you a discount of 9000. Almost 1000 RMB. I am touched, so expensive!

After a boring morning of torture, I lost my patience. I thought I might never come to India again. I didn't want to miss one of the best preserved seven wonders of the world, so I reluctantly agreed.

After paying the money and copying the proof, everything seemed normal, but in the end, you didn't give me any proof, just kept repeating the sentence "Don't worry, Sir". Finally, at my insistence, I was given a note with my phone number printed on it and the time and place to pick up the car scrawled.

The more I think about it, the more strange it is. I walked forward at will, but suddenly I found Sikorsky following me all the time, constantly improving on "hint, hint". I was really impatient and gave a 100-dollar bill away. Suddenly, I reacted and got caught!

All this, of course, is an elaborate trap, from the train station, to the driver, to the travel agency, to the website. This is a classic scam that can't be classic. I have been written by countless travelers in the forums of major travel websites, and I can only blame myself for being ignorant and unprepared. Fortunately, I found it in time and informed my Indian partner. Through the phone call on that note, although it was several times more expensive than the train ticket and several times more expensive than the taxi, they at least ensured that the trip of the Taj Mahal was carried out as scheduled and returned on the same day.

It is said that if there is no telephone, the scam will continue, and they will arrange for me to spend the night in Agra on the pretext of broken cars, continue to earn more money, and then. Then I don't know. That was close, that was close.

Saving the world, the Taj Mahal and everything else is another story. A few days later, an honest and lovely old man picked me up at five in the morning and told me all the way about the sadness of Indian history as a history of aggression and how he was persecuted by religion. From his sincere vicissitudes of life, I confirmed that he is a kind person and we are all victims of exploitation, so I opened my heart and talked with him all the way.

Later, he showed me a notebook in which many tourists wrote to him. Some of them are Chinese, full of gratitude and sincerity.

His name is Billu, and I still have his business card.

Three endless lingering feelings

The Sikh driver's hypocritical and cunning face lingered, and in an instant I lost my trust and became hostile to all the drivers who suddenly appeared.

In order to find the subway station as soon as possible, I went to an underground passage and found a short, thin and ragged man with a dirty cloth in one hand and an old wooden box in the other, asking me if I wanted to shine my shoes. I'm not interested. I just want to get rid of it. I said no and quickened my pace.

Half an hour later, in the third underpass, I was sweating profusely, but he still followed closely, repeating the same posture and saying the same thing.

Endless lingering-,experienced a dead tie.

"How much is it?" I finally asked impatiently.

"10 rupees"

Ok, it's cheap, just wipe it. He took out tools, a brush, a tube of white cream and dirty cloth. He squatted in front of me, rubbing and praising me for wearing Air Force One for two years.

I was playing with my mobile phone casually, and I didn't want to take a reason, but suddenly I had a strange feeling on my feet, not like shining shoes. Looking down, he was sewing the sole with a needle and thread.

"What the fuck are you doing?" I was angry and shocked.

"It's good for your shoes," he said, and his hand didn't stop.

"Stop, just wipe!" I threw away his needle and thread and gave him 10 rupees.

He shook his head and said it was 1020 without answering.

I'm confused and at a loss.

He said, one shoe 10 yuan, two shoes 20 yuan, one shoe 500 yuan, two shoes 1000 yuan. I was angry and funny. I have never seen such a brazen person.

Finally, I gave 520, because he only sewed one shoe, and there was no dispute, no bargaining, no resistance. When I first arrived in India, I was uneasy because I was ignorant and in the underpass. What if he has a partner? What if he keeps pestering me? I am a coward.

At the moment of giving money, more than 10 children appeared out of nowhere. Everyone was holding inferior toys and handicrafts and shouting for me to buy them. I ignored anyone, clutching my wallet and mobile phone, and walked to the subway station.

In hindsight, apart from being cheated and a little scary, it was quite interesting. I don't know whether he succeeded or failed when he earned 520 yuan. He probably never dreamed of what 520 yuan meant in China. If he goes home and gives the money to his wife intact, it will be regarded as a Chinese-style Indian love show, that is, to make a modest contribution to the urgent rise of Indian women's rights and once again spread the cultural cause of the motherland.

Four-sided goodwill

The sunshine is warm, the breeze is slow, and the dry weather of about 20 degrees brings long-lost laziness. Compared with the noise of the railway station in the old city yesterday, it is already very pleasant. Green lawns, neat gardens, colonial buildings, children flying kites, people sitting on the lawn for a picnic, all of a sudden they seem to have returned to England.

Even in the wind, it seems to have the fragrance of grass, and the sour taste of curry is at arm's length. My defense has been blown away by the wind and dissipated.

When taking pictures on the lawn, a man my age came all the way to greet me, wearing a shirt and jeans, full of vigor and enthusiasm.

I nodded and ignored-. After the first day, I learned one thing:-Don't talk to strangers.

The young man ran over and introduced himself while following me.

"My name is xxx (I forgot my name). I am studying in a university in New Delhi, majoring in Hindu astrology. I am a devout believer. What's your name? Where are you from? How many days will you stay here? What's your plan? Where are you going? I can take you there. "

I made up my own information in a perfunctory way, only telling him that I was going to the Lotus Temple, because it was far away, and he probably wouldn't follow me all the time.

"Closed today. There are many scenic spots around here. Have you been there? "

Then he listed them one by one, some of which I had never heard of, but most of which I read in travel books, and I really wanted to go. With a tentative attitude, I asked him to introduce a few. His explanation is vivid, and there is no deviation from what is said in the book and what is written in the travel notes.

Then, he helped me set the route, called a car, bargained, paid all the fares, explained all the scenic spots to me, and told me the best angle for taking pictures. He was more dedicated than a professional tour guide. After chatting with him for a while, I became wary. Although he did provide me with a lot of convenience and saved me a lot of trouble, excessive enthusiasm still made me nervous. I want to get rid of it but I can't talk, so I'm not good at refusing.

Several hours passed and I didn't notice anything unusual. Besides talking, he is particularly keen on the topic of "driving", how many girls he has slept with, how many women from different countries he has tasted, what posture he likes best and so on. All kinds of indescribable details are described in his foaming at the mouth. Seeing that I ignored him, he said that Hinduism is a religion that advocates pleasure, and the pleasure of sexual intercourse is God's best gift, even a necessary responsibility. I don't have much sense of disobedience when I think of the sex temple built by Kejulaho more than 1000 years ago and the famous Indian love sutra.

Explain, he said, why don't I take you to a famous temple? I panicked and asked him what temple he had. "Lakeshi Miinala Yan Temple", he said, and took out his mobile phone to show me the photos. This is another painting I saw in a book, and I agreed. Passing by a tea shop, I was told that there was the best tea in India. I was asked to go in and have a look. I have no interest in tea. I turned around, only thought it was expensive, and came out. Without saying anything, he continued to walk towards the temple.

I didn't understand a word of the explanation of Lakshminarayan Temple. Later, I found on the Internet that this is a temple dedicated to the lucky goddess of wealth and her husband Nryana. It was founded in 1622, rebuilt in 1933-39 and unveiled by Mahatma Gandhi. At that time, Mahatma Gandhi offered conditions for people of all castes to enter, and the entrants were not limited to Hindus.

Breaking the racial system, it worships one of the most important Hindu gods (Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma are the three highest Hindu gods), and Lekes Mi Nryana Temple is the most popular temple in New Delhi. This young man is very devout, and every god worships and donates there, especially in Rati, the god of sex. He stayed the longest and donated hundreds of rupees.

Then he started asking me what I wanted to buy. I told him that I wanted to buy postcards. Soon after, a man came to the courtyard of the temple and told me that he had postcards of 200 rupees each. I didn't think too much about rupees. I just think that as long as it ends in rupees, it can't be too expensive. Plus, the young man kept fanning the flames and said it was cheap, so I bought 15 pieces at a time, 3,000 rupees. After paying the money, the man left in a hurry.

Suddenly, I felt as if I had been cheated by more than 33.3543 million yuan and bought 15 postcards, each of which cost more than 20 yuan. This is more expensive than Britain. The more I think about it, the more wrong it is, and I vaguely feel that it is another collusion scam.

All gratitude and trust for this young man have vanished.

I said, "It's getting late. Colleagues asked me to go back and meet them. "

He said, "Tell me where you live and I'll take you there."

I said, "It's far away, in the south of the city. I take the subway myself. "

He asked me the name of the station, and I told him the truth about the Green Park and that there were more than a dozen people waiting for me.

The next scene touched my heart.

He told me to wait, because he had joked about the Indian oil before. He called his friends and asked them to bring me Indian oil. I quickly stopped him from calling to signal that I really had to go. I looked around for a bus that suddenly appeared and came as soon as possible, but the street was very quiet.

Then he asked me for my contact information and mobile phone number. I said I don't remember, facebook, skype, China. I said I didn't have an account. He suddenly said, then you must use WeChat! I was shocked. I didn't expect WeChat to be so global in 2014. I said I don't need that either. I used a Chinese-only platform called Kaixin.com to tell him about kaixin001.com.

Finally, he asked me what my plans were for the evening. I said that I would stay in the Green Park with my colleagues, and they had plans. He told me that if I was bored, I could go to him and take me to India for a massage. Gave me a note with his name, Facebook and phone number on it. When I asked him for a massage, he gave me a meaningful smile and said in fluent Indian English, "You will get a happy ending". A sick face.

A sudden car passed by, and I jumped on it without asking, and left without looking back.

After returning to the hotel, I checked online and found that the Lotus Temple was not closed that day.

This is probably the strangest experience of my life. To this day, I am not sure what kind of liar he is. From the perspective of pure profit, he doesn't need to be so enthusiastic, and there is no need to have follow-up contact with me. Check on facebook, the head portrait is real. He may be an opportunistic liar, mainly to make friends. If he can cheat, cheat-a Hindu will never have a high sense of morality.

Finally, I sent the 20 postcards through the Indian post office, and they didn't arrive three years later.

postscript

The profound experience of being cheated is not because of the loss of money, but because of the insult of IQ, mixed with fear, anxiety, shame and anger.

Three years later, those strong feelings have been diluted by time, and all that remains is the story itself, which is not good or bad, but interesting.

Poetry is probably the moment when the value judgment is pulled away, showing the most authentic state. In that indescribable intuitive feeling, all the experiences are filled with our deepest souls. The journey of 3354 is a poetic and muddled journey.

Lotus Temple in the morning, ancient pagodas in the evening, Humayun Mausoleum in the rain, Red Fort in the sun, remote Tibetan refugee camps.

-regain my courage and self-confidence. On the third day, I crossed the whole New Delhi alone. Faced with countless new scams, I went to all the scenic spots I wanted to visit and saw all the posturing and poetry in New Delhi.

New Delhi is the capital of India. This neighboring country with the second largest population in the world is also an ancient country with thousands of years of civilization history. There are a group of imaginative people living here. India's religion and caste system have always attracted much attention. It is precisely because of India's mystery and strangeness that it attracts a large number of tourists to visit. Here, I will share with you the travel precautions and detailed travel strategies of New Delhi.

Notes on Tourism in New Delhi

Be sure to bring enough cash when you go out. This can prevent emergencies from needing money. Visitors need to keep their ID cards and spare credit cards separately.

Indian prices are generally very high, and there is room for bargaining. This is also an instinct and basic common sense. Indians will get used to it, and they will start to kill from 30% to 50% according to different local conditions. After the transaction, pay attention to taking the goods first and then paying;

Food safety in India is as good as that in China. We must pay attention to hygiene when eating. Diarrhea is a frequent occurrence, and even top hotels may not guarantee the safety of food and drinking water. Many people who go to India to work or travel have bitter experiences, so don't have the mentality of "not believing in evil" and trying to ensure physical and mental health. ;

Guests must arrive at the international airport 3 hours before the plane takes off and at the domestic airport 2 hours before the plane takes off. The government strictly forbids taking photos at international and domestic airports.

Head: Indians shake their heads to show their approval, while NOdding their heads means disagreement, which means no;

You should observe the custom of taking off your shoes when visiting a mosque. No photos should be taken in temples, especially in places where corpses are burned;

Please buy mineral water for drinking water. Some hotels provide 1-2 bottles of free mineral water in their rooms, and travel agencies also provide 1 bottle of mineral water every day. Smoking is prohibited in public places;

When Indians meet, they say "Namoskar" or "Namosdai", which means congratulations and tribute. It can be used at any time, regardless of sex, when meeting or breaking up, and the gift giver also says this. But I have to repeat it twice to show my courtesy. Of course, it's not entirely true. Some places or cities, or people influenced by western culture, use English to express them, while others use their own dialects to express them.

Avoid going out alone at night. Please remember to take valuables with you carefully, such as travel documents, cash, traveler's checks, credit cards, air tickets, cameras, etc. Do not keep them in the trunk or leave them in cars, hotel rooms or public places. In the hotel, you can deposit your valuables in the safe at the reception desk, and please get back the receipt. When leaving the room, the door and luggage should be locked, and the door key can be kept by the reception desk to avoid loss;

If you show extra respect or entreaty to an elder or someone, touch your feet, that is, bend down and touch the toes of the elder with your right hand first, and then touch your head with the same hand to show that your head is in contact with the feet of the elder. At this time, the other person touches the head of the saluter and receiver with his hand to show his return. Those who ask for something even kneel on the ground, touch each other's feet with both hands and touch each other's toes with their foreheads;

Indians have a living habit. Even when washing with water, they should use their left hand and never their right hand. Therefore, the left hand is considered unclean;

During the meal, if you add rice and vegetables to the other person (Indian). Be sure to use an unused pair of chopsticks, and never use the one you are still using. If so, it will be considered as asking people to eat your leftovers.

In India, to avoid some actions that may cause misunderstanding, it is best for couples not to hold hands in public places. Of course, hugs should be avoided. Ladies should not wear sleeveless T-shirts or clothes that are too revealing, and do not cross their legs. Indians generally cross their arms and nod their heads to show their greetings. At this time, they can reply in the same way. In addition, be careful not to use your left hand, and don't cross food or people on the ground. Take off your shoes before entering the house, and never point your feet at the locals or idols.

If you choose to stay in an economical hotel in India, don't forget your sleeping bag! Although these hotels are cheap, the rooms are usually unsatisfactory, and the sheets and quilts may not be clean. Some hotels even provide a tent on the roof, so it is necessary to bring a sleeping bag.

Never book tickets at travel agencies, they will cheat tourists, and it is impossible to buy train tickets reserved for foreigners. If "waitinglist" is displayed on the ticket balance of the train ticket you want to buy, it means that the ticket has been sold out. At this time, you can buy reserved tickets at the foreigner ticket booth of the railway station, and more than 90% of them may be available. If it is the waitinglist when you buy tickets at the train station, you need to go to the train station two hours in advance to confirm whether there are any tickets left. For the safety of luggage, lock the luggage with the chain of the luggage rack after getting on the bus. India's railway station has neither checked in nor reported the station, so you should pay attention to the arrival information of the train to avoid missing the station.

There is a train pass in New Delhi called INDRAILPASS, which is a regular ticket with unlimited number of rides ranging from half a day to 90 days. The railway station has a special International Tourist Bureau, which is on the second floor of the station (in India, people speak English as a British idiom, and the second floor is called the first floor). Visitors are advised not to go to the Reservation office in the south of the station. Here, you are required to show the exchange certificate, or buy tickets in US dollars.

Delhi time in India is 2.5 hours later than Beijing time.

New Delhi has a tropical monsoon climate, which is influenced by northeast wind in winter and southwest wind in summer. The climate is mild, and the best time for traveling is February, March, September and November. A year is divided into cool season (October to March), hot season (April to June) and rainy season (July to September). The average temperature in cool season is about 14 degrees, and the average temperature in hot season is about 38 degrees.

Beware of beggars and even dervishes. If they approach you for alms or money, be sure to take care of your wallet. Don't think that you can be so generous in India that you don't pay attention to your defense.

Don't trust the so-called "tourist information center" in New Delhi Railway Station. In fact, these institutions are not regular tourist offices, but tourist agencies that kill customers.

It is best to book hotels and air tickets in advance, so that the trip will not be too hasty. Buses in Delhi are prone to traffic jams, flights and hotels are prone to temporary adjustments and changes, and Indians are not efficient in office, so it is very important to arrange the itinerary in advance.

New Delhi travel guide

For many people, including me, I think that life in front of me is to live in peace, and poetry is in the distance, so I embarked on a long journey again and again.

Gradually, I realized a truth-there are poems everywhere, regardless of the distance; It's just that some people turn you into a poem, while others are always stuck in the mud and can't find the rhythm.

Many years later, I recalled my first experience in India. I really lived in a distant place for that unprepared short stay, and the sour and gorgeous rhyme of New Delhi was powerful.

Meet new Delhi for the first time

I curled up outside the New Delhi airport, shivering. I looked at my mobile phone. At 3: 30 in the morning, I had been outside the airport for three hours. New Delhi in January is colder than I expected. Although the temperature at night is not lower than 10 degrees in advance, the bone-eroding cold wind reminds me from time to time that I still underestimate this subtropical winter. I am thirsty, tired, hungry and the night is long.

The original plan was to find a hotel in or near the airport, rest for one night, and then take a taxi to the booked hotel the next day. But after going out of the customs, I found that there was no hotel at all in the airport. After several turns, I wanted to go out and try my luck.

I only blame myself for taking everything for granted.

When I left the airport, the guards never let me in again. Later, I learned that because India is chaotic and there have been some explosions, the airport security measures are particularly strict. Unless there is a certificate of departure on the same day, all other people are not allowed to enter the airport lobby.

Outside, it was dark, and it was a little creepy. A glass wall and a road more than ten meters wide isolate the splendor of the terminal building. The Indian capital is far less prosperous than expected. The caste system and the gap between the rich and the poor are so direct that people are unprepared.

Courageously walk along the overpass, the front is dark. At a glance, I can see that the huge empty room is full of people, and the white cloth tightly wraps their bony bodies from head to toe, just like the mortuary where the remains are buried. At the moment, there is a chill, plus those inherent images of India-rape, explosion, trafficking, and never dare to move forward again.

I can only lean against the glass of the terminal building and spend the night with the security given by the guns in the hands of the guards.

At six o'clock, it was dawn, women were wearing bright saris, men were holding hands, and the airport gate was bustling. Curiosity immediately banned tiredness, fear and panic, plus a cup of fragrant Martha teh tarik, and all nerves became sensitive.

The dense smog turned the strong morning sun into an orange haze, and in the too beautiful halo, it was filled with a strong curry flavor.

Two gorgeous traps

I know nothing about India except the Taj Mahal.

I came to New Delhi Railway Station alone, and I want to buy a train ticket to Agra to see the Taj Mahal, and return on the same day.

"Heaven while hell"-Standing in the square in front of the railway station, I suddenly felt a sense of dejection for this familiar sentence. The noisy crowd, the harsh roar, the gorgeous colors, the sour smell, the garbage everywhere, every sense of the body has never been so forcefully provoked, and it is accompanied by a great sense of excitement and dizziness. While reluctantly resisting, it is trying to feel the stimulation of that sense, and it is impossible to tell whether it is love or hate.

The station is extremely simple, a small three-story cement building, a steel bridge and an unadorned cement square. It is hard to imagine that this is the largest railway station in India, the capital railway station of a country with the most crowded and largest railway network in the world, 650,000 kilometers of tracks and 7,500 railway stations. But this is India, how can we judge it with common sense? Its vastness lies in countless people of all kinds, who lie, sit, stand, stumble, hesitate, run and stumble, gather from every inch of this country and dissipate in every unknown corner.

I don't know how to buy a ticket; I didn't know there was no English at the station; I didn't know that "foreigners" had special windows; I didn't know this was "the most dangerous railway station in the world"; I didn't see any other tourists, and I didn't read an online manual called "The Encyclopedia of Indian Deception".

The middle-aged man with neat clothes-suit, tie, leather shoes and shiny and neat hair-came face to face, giving people a feeling of trust in this dilapidated, noisy and dangerous railway station.

“Are you lost?”

Although my accent still smells like curry, my English, which is much better than the local people, makes me lose my dependence, so I will explain my demands.

After some conversation, every question was resolved by his polite "don't worry, sir", and I gradually realized that "tickets are not sold to non-Indians here, and I should go to Connaught House (next to the government), where there is a ticket office specially set up for foreigners".

Then, he "kindly" helped me to call a tuk-tuk car and told me to be careful of swindlers. Tuk-tuk drivers usually kill you when they see you as a tourist. He knew the driver and agreed on the price, which was affordable and reliable, 80 rupees.

Connaught House is really tall. The white marble house is very different from the railway station 10 minutes away. Starbucks and McDonald's are the world I am familiar with, but they are all guarded by guards with guns. The Sikh driver with a headscarf pointed to the building with Indian Tourist Centre written in front and said, "there, my friend, come".

The room is neat and clean, and the aroma masks the looming curry smell. A blonde couple on the counter is negotiating with the staff, and the accent should be from Australia. Two pairs of Americans sat on the sofa next to them, eagerly talking about india tourism's excitement and senses.

Soon, a staff member came out, the same suit and tie, the same elegant and neat. He handed me a cup of milk tea, said "welcome to India" in more standard English than the man at the railway station, and then led me to my desk.

After telling him when I was going to Agra, he professionally turned on the computer, entered the information, and then told me, "I am very sorry, but all tickets to Agra are sold out on that day". Then, before I could respond, it was the familiar "don't worry, sir".

The sound of the mouse and the sound of the keyboard kept coming and going. He turned the computer upside down repeatedly, and his serious attitude made me feel a little guilty. Ten minutes later, he sincerely told me that he had checked it three times and there were no tickets until the weekend. I told him that I would leave India at the weekend. He kept "sorry" until I asked him if there was any other way to go to Agra and go back and forth the same day.

"I can arrange a special car service for you!" There was a strange excitement in the tone. Go back and forth on the same day, leave at 5 o'clock and come back at 8 o'clock in the evening, 10 thousand rupees, give you a discount, 9,000 yuan. Almost 1,000 yuan, I touched it in my heart, so expensive!

After a morning of fussy tossing, I lost my patience. I thought that I might never have a chance to come to India again, and I didn't want to miss one of the best preserved seven wonders of the world, so I reluctantly agreed.

Paying money and copying documents, everything seems normal, but in the end, I was not given any documents, just kept repeating the phrase "don't worry sir". Finally, at my insistence, I was given a note with a phone number printed on it and the time and place to pick up the car scrawled.

When things were finished, the more I thought about it, the more suspicious I felt. I walked forward at will, but suddenly I found Sikorsky following me all the time, constantly comparing "tip, tip". I was really impatient. I gave a 100-dollar bill and sent it away. I suddenly reacted and got caught!

Of course, all this is a well-designed trap. From the train station, to the driver, to the travel agency and to the website, this is a classic scam that can't be classic. It has been written by countless travelers in the forums of major travel websites, and they can only blame themselves for their ignorance and unprepared. Fortunately, I noticed it in time, and informed the Indian partners. Through the phone call on that note, although it cost dozens of times more than the train ticket and several times more than the taxi, they at least ensured that the trip of the Taj Mahal was carried out as scheduled and returned on the same day.

It is said that without that phone call, the scam will continue, and they will arrange for me to spend the night in Agra on the pretext of car failure, continue to extract more money, and then. . . Then I don't know. . . That was close, that was close.

Saving the day, the Taj Mahal and so on are another story. A few days later, an honest and lovely old man picked me up at five in the morning, telling me all the way that Indian history is a sad history of aggression and how he was persecuted by religion. From his sincere and vicissitudes of life, I confirmed that he was a kind person and we were all victims of exploitation, so I opened my heart and talked with him all the way.

Later, he showed me a book, which recorded what many tourists wrote to him. Some of them were in Chinese, full of gratitude and sincere feelings.

His name is Billu, and I still have his business card.

Three endless lingering

Sikh drivers are hypocritical and cunning, and for a time I lost trust in all the sudden drivers and was full of hostility.

Trying to find the subway station as soon as possible, I came to an underpass and found a ragged, short and thin man with a dirty cloth in one hand and an old wooden box in the other, asking me if I wanted to shine my shoes. I'm not interested at all, I just want to get rid of it, and while saying No, I quickened my pace.

Half an hour later, it was the third underpass, and I was sweating like a pig, but he still followed, repeating the same posture and words.

That endless lingering-I experienced a dead-end beating.

“How much?” I finally asked impatiently

“10 Rupees”

It's so cheap, just wipe it. He spread out the tools, a brush, a tube of white paste and the dirty cloth, and squatted in front of me, boasting that I had worn Air Force 1 for two years while wiping it.

I casually played with my mobile phone and didn't want to take a reason, but suddenly I had a strange feeling on my feet, not like cleaning my shoes. Looking down, he was sewing the sole with a needle and thread.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I was angry and shocked.

"This is very good for you shoes," he said, without stopping his hand.

“Stop，only wipe!” I got rid of his needle and thread and threw him 10 rupees.

He shook his head, didn't answer, and said it was 1020.

I'm confused and at a loss.

He said, shoeshine is ten dollars for one, twenty dollars for two, 500 dollars for sewing shoes and 1000 dollars for two. I was angry and funny when I heard it. I have never seen anyone so brazen.

Finally, I gave 520, because he only sewed one shoe, without arguing, bargaining or resisting. When I first arrived in India, because of ignorance and being in the underpass, I felt uneasy-what if he had a partner? What if he keeps pestering me? I'm afraid.

At the moment of giving money, more than 10 children appeared out of nowhere, each with inferior toys and handicrafts in his hand, shouting for me to buy. I never talked to anyone again, clutching my wallet and mobile phone until I walked to the subway station.

In hindsight, apart from being cheated and being scared, it was quite interesting. I don't know whether earning 520 is a success or a failure for him. He probably never dreamed of what 520 means in China. If he goes home and gives the money to his wife intact, it will be a Chinese show of love in India, which will make a modest contribution to the urgent rise of women's rights in India and spread the cultural undertakings of the motherland.

The goodwill of four masks

The sunshine is warm, the breeze is gentle, and the dry weather around 20 degrees brings a long-lost laziness. Compared with the noise of the railway station in the old city yesterday, it is very pleasant. The green lawn, neat gardens, colonial buildings, children flying kites, people sitting on the lawn for a picnic, and suddenly it is like returning to England.

Even the wind seems to have added a fragrance of grass, and the sour taste of curry is close at hand, and my vigilance is swept away by the wind and dissipated.

Taking pictures on the lawn, a man about my age came all the way to greet me, wearing a shirt and jeans, a pair of vibrant clothes and full of enthusiasm.

I nodded my head and ignored it-after the first day, I learned one thing-don't talk to strangers.

The young man came running and introduced himself while following me.

"My name is xxx (I have forgotten my name). I am studying in a university in New Delhi, majoring in Hindu astrology. I am a devout believer. What's your name? Where are you from? How many days will you come? What are your plans? Where do you want to go? I can take you there. . 。”

I perfunctorily fabricated information about myself and only told him that I was going to the Lotus Temple, because it was far away, and he probably wouldn't follow me all the time.

"It's closed today. There are many scenic spots near here. Did you go?"

Then he listed them one by one, some of which I had never heard of, but most of which I saw in travel books and wanted to go. With a tentative attitude, I asked him to introduce a few of them. He talked eloquently and vividly, and there was no deviation from what was said in the book and what was written in the travel notes.

Then, he helped me to make a route, call a bus for me, help me bargain, help me pay all the fares, explain all the scenic spots to me, and tell me the best angle for taking pictures, which is more conscientious than a professional tour guide. While chatting with him one build what did not build, I was wary-although he did provide me with a lot of convenience and save me a lot of trouble, the excessive enthusiasm still made me nervous. I want to get rid of it but I can't speak. I'm too bad at refusing.

A few hours later, I didn't notice anything unusual, except that in the conversation, he was particularly keen on the topic of "driving", how many girls he slept with, how many women from different countries he tasted, what posture he liked best, etc., and his mouth was full of unspeakable details. See I don't take a reason, he said that their Hinduism is a religion that advocates pleasure, and the happiness of sex is the best gift from God, even a necessary responsibility. I think about the sex temple built by Kejulaho more than 1000 years ago, and I think about the famous Indian love sutra, so there is not much sense of disobedience.

Explaining, he said, why don't I take you to a famous temple? I was a little wary and asked him what temple. "Lakshminarayan Temple", he said, and took out his mobile phone to show me photos, another picture I had seen in a book. I agreed. On the way, I passed a tea shop and was told that there was the best tea in India. I was asked to go in and have a look. I was not interested in tea, so I turned around, only thought it was expensive, and came out. He didn't say anything and went on to the temple.

I didn't understand a word of Lakshminarayan Temple's explanation. Later, I found out on the Internet that it was a temple dedicated to the goddess of wealth, Lucky Goddess, and her husband, Nryana (Vishnu). It was built in 1622 and rebuilt in 1933-39, and was unveiled by Mahatma Gandhi. At that time, Mahatma Gandhi proposed that people of all castes could enter, and those who entered were not limited to Hindus.

Breaking the racial system and offering sacrifices to one of the most important Hindu gods (Vishnu, together with Shiva and Brahma, constitutes the three highest Hindu gods), Lekshmi Nryana Temple is the most popular temple in New Delhi. The young man is very devout, and every god worships and donates, especially in Rati, the god of sex, where he stayed for the longest time and donated hundreds of rupees.

Then he began to ask me what I wanted to buy. I told him that I wanted to buy postcards. Soon after, a man came to the courtyard of the temple and told me that he had postcards for 200 rupees each. I didn't think too much about rupees, only that anything ending in rupees was not much more expensive. In addition, the young man kept fanning the flames and said that it was very cheap. I bought 15 pieces at one go, at 3,000 rupees. After paying the money, the man left in a hurry.

Suddenly, I came to my senses and felt as if I had been cheated again-I bought 15 postcards for more than 300 yuan, one for more than 20 yuan, which is even more expensive than that in Britain. The more I think about it, the more wrong it is, and I vaguely feel that it is another collusion scam.

All gratitude and trust for the young man dropped to zero.

I said, "It's getting late, and my colleagues asked me to go back and meet them."

He said, "You tell me where you live and I'll take you there."

I said, "it's far away, in the south of the city. I take the subway myself."

He asked me the name of the station, and I told him exactly Greenpark, and told him that a dozen people were waiting for me.

The next scene touched my heart.

He told me to wait because I joked about the Indian oil before. He called his friends and asked them to bring me the Indian oil. . . I quickly stopped him from calling to signal that he really wanted to go, and looked around looking forward to a sudden car coming as soon as possible, but the street was unusually quiet.

Then he asked me for my contact information and mobile phone number. I said I don't remember, facebook, skype, and I said I didn't have an account. Suddenly he said, then you must use wechat! I was shocked. I didn't think that WeChat would be so globally drawn in 2014. I said that I didn't need it either. I used a Chinese-only platform called Kaixin.com and told him about kaixin001.com.

Finally, he asked me what I had planned for the evening, and I said I would stay in Greenpark with my colleagues. They had plans. He told me that if I was bored, I could find him and take me to experience the massage in India. And gave me a note with his name, facebook and phone number. I asked him what he did, and he gave me a profound smile and said in fluent Indian English, "you will get a happy ending". A perverted face

A chug car passed by, jumped on it without asking me, and left without looking back.

After returning to the hotel, I found on the Internet that the Lotus Temple was not closed that day.

This is probably the strangest experience in my life. Until today, I am not sure what kind of liar he is. From the perspective of pure interests, he generally does not need to be so enthusiastic, and there is no need to have follow-up contact with me. Looking up on facebook, if there is a person, the avatar is also real. He may be an opportunistic liar, mainly for the purpose of making friends. If he can cheat, cheat by the way-Hindus have never had a high sense of morality.

Finally, I sent the 20 postcards through India Post Office, and none of them arrived after three years.

postscript

The experience of being cheated is profound, not because of how much money you lost, but because your IQ was insulted, mixed with fear, anxiety, shame and anger.

Three years later, those strong emotions have long been diluted by time, leaving only the face of the story itself, not good or bad, just interesting.

Poetry is probably the moment when the value judgment is pulled away, showing the most authentic state. In that unspeakable intuitive feeling, all experiences are filled with our deepest soul-travel, which is a journey of poetry and further progress.

Lotus Temple in the morning, Guttbuta at dusk, Hu Mayong Mausoleum in the rain, Hongbao in the sun, and remote Tibetan refugee camps.

-Picking up courage and self-confidence, I crossed the whole New Delhi alone on the third day, faced with numerous new scams, went to all the scenic spots I wanted to visit, and saw all the poetry and poetry in New Delhi.