Sightseeing in Delhi: The Lotus Temple and the Qutub Minar

The Lotus Temple

Gaby* and I visited the Lotus Temple one Saturday afternoon after work. From the clinic we ambled to Nehru Place, a crowded shopping center, and from there decided to check out the Lotus Temple that Geetika had told us about. After wandering through a gorgeous park, we found the Kalkaji Mandir, the Lotus Temple.
The Lotus Temple is a temple of the Baha'i faith. I know very little about Baha'i, even after going through the Temple's information center, but what was clear was that it was religion focused on inclusion. Gaby and I managed to come in time to catch a prayer service, and the service included readings from the Bible, the Qu'ran, the Baghvad Gita and a separate Baha'i prayer.
The temple itself was stunning. From the outside, it looks like the Sydney Opera House closed in on itself. The whole thing is constructed from marble. Inside, it was filled with wooden pews underneath arching marble ceilings. (Unfortunately, photography was not allowed inside the temple.) You were required to remove your shoes before approaching the temple, and absolute silence was requested upon entry. It was the quietest place I have been since coming to India. After spending some time submerged in the temple's tranquility, Gaby and I sat by one of the blue pools surrounding the temple and submerged our feet in the clear, cold water.

The Qutub Minar

The Qutub Minar is one of Delhi's older attractions. It is a giant tower surrounded by Mughal ruins in the south of Delhi, a few metro stops from where I live. The 237-foot tower was constructed in the 1100s by the Mughal ruler Qutub-ud-din Aibak and is covered in inscriptions from the Qu'ran. The sheer height of the tower was quite impressive, and the other sandstone ruins were fun to explore. Several times Gaby and I were stopped for photos, and at one point a man handed me his baby and asked to take a picture of us. Such is a day in the life of a white tourist in India.

*It recently came to my attention that I have been misspelling Gaby's name with an extra "b". Sorry Gabs!