January --grand finale

For me, the highlight of the month (on the 30th) was a heritage walk through Old Delhi's famed Chandni Chowk street, led by the very famous and erudite Sohail Hashmi. His fascinating narrative on just a short stretch of the street had to be heard to be believed......he brought to life the background and history of landmarks like the Jain Mandir, Gauri Mandir (outside which he showed us the offerings made to Lord Shiva and the significance of each), Sis Ganj Gurudwara, Begum Sumro's palace, Khazanchi ki haveli (enroute to which we feasted on the famous samosas of the Jalebiwala!) the Anglican church, and finally the fountain opposite the Sunehri masjid. Every inch of Old Delhi is steeped in history and culture, and few can do justice to it as Mr.Hashmi (and another great historian Swapna Liddle) can. (I will post on some of the latter's walks from earlier years)