The DILLI HAAT provides the ambience of a traditional Rural Haat or village market, but one suited for more contemporary needs. Here one sees a synthesis of crafts, food and cultural activity. DILLI HAAT transports you to the magical world of Indian art and heritage presented through a fascinating panorama of craft, cuisine and cultural activities. The word Haat refers to a weekly market in rural, semiurban and sometimes even urban India. While the village haat is mobile, flexible arrangement, here it is crafts persons who are mobile.
The DILLI HAAT boasts of nearly 200 craft stalls selling native, utilitarian and ethnic products from all over the country. The Food and Craft Bazar is a treasure house of Indian culture, handicrafts and ethnic cuisine. A unique bazaar, in the heart of the city, it displays the richness of Indian culture on a permanent basis. It is a place where one can unwind in the evening and relish a wide variety of cuisine without paying the exhorbitant rates. Step inside the complex for an altogether delightful experience for either buying inimitable ethnic wares, savouring the delicacies of different states or by simply relaxing in the evening with friends and your family.
Delhi Haat is the place where you can find the food of most of the Indian States. Come stimulate your appetite in a typical ambience. Savour specialties of different states. The Makki Ki Roti and Sarson Ka Sag of Punjab; Momos from Sikkim; Chowmein from Mizoram; Dal - Bati Choorma from Rajasthan; Shrikhand, Pao-Bhaji and Puram Poli of Maharashtra; Maher Jhol from Bengal; Wazwan, the ceremonial Kashmiri feast; Idli, Dosa and Uttapam of South Indian and Sadya, the traditional feast of Kerala, all are available under one roof.
City Centre (Connaught Place)
Named after the Duke of Connaught, a member of the British royal family and now recently renamed Rajiv Chowk, 'CP' was intended to be the shopping arcade of the 'new' capital of Lutyen's Delhi in the mid 1930's, and is located right in the heart of Delhi; it is her epicenter, designed as a set of concentric circles. CP is an architectural splendor with its colossal white old colonial style buildings.
Famous For: The most popular of the radial roads leading off from City Centre is Janpatha treasure trove for shoppers, especially bargain hunters there are scores of Tibetan stalls and other shops selling all manner of craft item, handcraft, curios, besides a few book stall and snack joints, ethnic wear, kohlapuri chappals, Rajasthani paintings and brassware another absolute treat for the shopper is the government run Central Cottege Industries Emporium where you are offered a wide and rare collection of Indian artifacts from different corners of the country. Another place to visit is the underground Palika Bazaar an air-conditioned underground shopping centre with stalls of ready-to-wear, costume, jewellery, accessories, books and a lot of odds and ends.
Weekend Cultural Activities/Special Destinations
QUTAB MINARQutab Minar is a soaring, 73 m-high tower of victory, built in 1193 by Qutab-ud-din Aibak immediately after the defeat of Delhi's last Hindu kingdom. The tower has five distinct storeys, each marked by a projecting balcony and tapers from a 15 m diameter at the base to just 2.5 m at the top. The first three storeys are made of red sandstone; the fourth and fifth storeys are of marble and sandstone. At the foot of the tower is the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, the first mosque to be built in India. An inscription over its eastern gate provocatively informs that it was built with material obtained from demolishing '27 Hindu temples'. A 7 m-high iron pillar stands in the courtyard of the mosque. It is said that if you can encircle it with your hands while standing with your back to it your wish will be fulfilled.
The origins of Qutab Minar are shrouded in controversy. Some believe it was erected as a tower of victory to signify the beginning of the Muslim rule in India. Others say it served as a minaret to the muezzins to call the faithful to prayer. No one can, however, dispute that the tower is not only one of the finest monuments in India, but also in the world. Qutab-ud-din Aibak, the first Muslim ruler of Delhi, commenced the construction of the Qutab Minar in 1200 AD, but could only finish the basement. His successor, Iltutmush, added three more storeys, and in 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlak constructed the fifth and the last storey.
HUMAYUN’S TOMBNear the crossing of Mahura road and Lodhi road, this magnificent garden tomb is the first substantial example of Mughal architecture in India. It was buit in 1565 A.D.nine years after the death of Humayun, by his senior widow Bega Begam. Inside the walled enclosure the most notable feature are the garden squares (chaharbagh) with pathways water channels, centrally located well proportional mausoleum topped by double.
THE BAHAI TEMPLEEast of Nehru place, this temple is built in the shape of a lotus flower and is the last of seven Major Bahai's temples built around the world. Completed in 1986 it is set among the lust landscaped gardens. The structure is made up of pure white marble The architect Furiburz Sabha chose the lotus as the symbol common to Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Islam. Adherents of any faith are free to visit the temple and pray or meditate. Around the blooming petals there are nine pools of water, which light up, in natural light. It looks spectacular at dusk when it is flood lit.
BIRLA MANDIR Laxmi Narayan Temple, also known as Birla Mandir , is one of Delhi's major temples and a major tourist attraction. Built by the industrialst G.D. Birla in 1938, this beautiful temple is located in the west of Connaught Place.
The temple is dedicated to Laxmi (the goddess of prosperity) and Narayana (The preserver). The temple was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi on condition that people of all castes be allowed to enter the temple.
JAMA MASJIDThis great mosque of Old Delhi is the largest in India, with a courtyard capable of holding 25,000 devotees. It was begun in 1644 and ended up being the final architectural extravagance of Shah Jahan, the Mughal emperor who built the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort.
The highly decorative mosque has three great gates, four towers and two 40 m-high minarets constructed of strips of red sandstone and white marble. Travellers can hire robes at the northern gate. This may be the only time you get to dress like a local without feeling like an outsider , so make the most of it.
INDIA GATEAt the centre of New Delhi stands the 42 m high India Gate, an "Arc-de-Triomphe" like archway in the middle of a crossroad. Almost similar to its French counterpart, it commemorates the 70,000 Indian soldiers who lost their lives fighting for the British Army during the World War I. The memorial bears the names of more than 13,516 British and Indian soldiers killed in the Northwestern Frontier in the Afghan war of 1919.
The foundation stone of India Gate was laid by His Royal Highness, the Duke of Connaught in 1921 and it was designed by Edwin Lutyens. The monument was dedicated to the nation 10 years later by the then Viceroy, Lord Irwin. Another memorial, Amar Jawan Jyoti was added much later, after India got its independence. The eternal flame burns day and night under the arch to remind the nation of soldiers who laid down their lives in the Indo-Pakistan War of December 1971.
RED FORTThe red sandstone walls of the massive Red Fort (Lal Qila) rise 33-m above the clamour of Old Delhi as a reminder of the magnificent power and pomp of the Mughal emperors. The walls, built in 1638, were designed to keep out invaders, now they mainly keep out the noise and confusion of the city. The main gate, Lahore Gate, is one of the emotional and symbolic focal points of the modern Indian nation and attracts a major crowd each Independence Day.
THE PARLIAMENT HOUSEThe Parliament house is a circular colonnaded building. It also houses ministerial offices, numerous committee rooms and an excellent library as well. Conceived in the Imperial Style, the Parliament House consists of an open verandah with 144 columns
THE TAJ MAHALTaj Mahal of India - "the epitome of love", "a monument of immeasurable beauty". The beauty of this magnificent monument is such that it is beyond the scope of words. The thoughts that come into the mind while watching the Taj Mahal of Agra is not just its phenomenal beauty, but the immense love which was the reason behind its construction. Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan got this monument constructed in the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, with whom he fell in love at the first sight. The very first sight of the Taj Mahal, the epitome of love and romance leaves one mesmerized.
Standing majestically on the banks of River Yamuna, the Taj Mahal is synonymous with love and romance. It is believed that the name "Taj Mahal" was derived from the name of Shah Jahan’s wife Mumtaz Mahal an means "Crown Palace". The purity of the white marble, the exquisite ornamentation, precious gemstones used and its picturesque location, all make Taj Mahal travel gain a place amongst the most popular ones.
AGRA FORTSituated on the bank of river Yamuna, the Agra Fort today, stands as a citadel of the past that has witnessed centuries slip by. Built in red stone, the Agra fort stretches almost two kilometres on the bank of the Yamuna. A huge wall that stands 69 ft in height encircles the crescent shaped fort. With only two main gates built to enter the fort, the impregnable stature of the fort becomes amply clear. The two gates are named the Delhi gate and the Amar Singh Gate.
Once inside the Agra Fort, one comes across a number of mosques and palaces, most of them are built in white marble and red stone during the rein of Akbar, Jehangir and Shah Jahan. At one point of time in the 16th century, the fort used to house a small city.
