søndag 31. oktober 2010

Day 3 in India

Dear readers!
I used my last day here in India, to visit a very famous and special place. I have visited the president’s house! Here is a picture of an illuminated “Rashtrapati Bhawan” at night. Rashtrapati Bhawan is the name of the building, meaning presidential house/building.  

Some facts for you guys:

-     -   It is the largest residence for any state leader of the world
-     -   It covers an area of 130 hectares, and the floor area is roughly 18.580 square meters
-       - The most popular tourist attractions are the several gardens
-     -   Designed by Edwin Lutyens for the Viceroy of India
-       - Started building in 1913, finished in 1929

The picture to the right is a picture of “The Butterfly Garden”. It got the name because of all the butterflies visiting the different flowers at summertime.
I read the online newspaper of India today, “Times of India”, and I noticed an interesting fact; India is ranked 88th on the World Prosperity Index, due to poor healthcare and education systems. I guess that India is not a land I would like to live in.

That was my day! Tomorrow I will be going home, so this is my last blog entry about India. I hope you guys thought my trip was interesting! Goodbye J

fredag 29. oktober 2010

Day two in New Delhi

Dear readers!
As I said yesterday, I will post some facts that I find interesting for you to see.
As you may know, India is located in Asia, or to be more precise, in South Asia, right beside Pakistan. Today we have been sightseeing, and I have also read some facts about India’s climate. Since I am only going to be in New Delhi, I will only experience one of the climate zones in India, and that is the subtropical. The summers here, are very hot, and the winters are cool. The lowest average temperature in India is 18.0 degrees, and that is in the alpine areas up north.

India has tropical areas, as well as completely arid areas and alpines.
For those of you who like history, India can be very exciting! There are proven that Homo Sapiens settled in India for 75.000 years ago. As you probably knew, India was colonized by many European countries, during the 16th century, like Portugal, the Netherlands and France. And by 1856 they were under British rule. India’s struggle for independence from Great Britain is an important incidence in India’s history.
During the 20th century the opposition against the British Colony grew, therefore they didn’t want to be under British rule. Mahatma Ghandi was one of the leaders in India’s fight for independence, something he is well known for. He was an Indian statesman born the 2nd of October in 1869, and died on the 30th of January 1948. But he wasn’t like other activist. The special thing about Ghandi was that he didn’t use violence to reach his goals, and he will be known for his nonviolent methods for many, many more years. 
The 15th of August 1947 India finally got their independence, and today India is the world’s largest democracy.

But now it’s time for me to go to bed. Tomorrow I will be searching for some famous and sought places and tourist attractions. Good night!

Day one in New Delhi

Dear readers!

 My flight to New Delhi, the capital of India, went well, even though it took a long time. It is good to be a place with a climate significantly warmer than Trondheim. I arrived at Indira Gandhi, which is the name of the airport, at three pm. Since I want to use as little money as possible, I took the bus straight to the hotel. I decided that I wanted to stay in the centre of New Delhi, because in that way, I will have everything near me. The name of the hotel is “Hotel Tara Palace”, and it is great so far, including free breakfast tomorrow!

I used this day to pack out, and get to know the hotel and some of the area. I was so pleased and exhausted when I arrived my room, so I jumped in the bed and took a nap for an hour. After a very relaxing hour, I went out to “experience India”. Today was a very hot day, so a lot of the time was used on pauses and drinking water! I have seen that the religion is a big part of the inhabitant’s everyday life, and the culture of India. Even though India’s main religion is Hinduism, all the big religions are practiced here. Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, you name it! I find Hinduism a bit interesting, because of their high number of gods, and exciting stories.
File:Flag of India.svgI added a picture of India’s flag. I learned today that the first flag of India were saffron (symbolizing Hindus), green (symbolizing the Muslims) and the wheel in the middle were to symbolize that the Indians fabricated their own clothing. After they got free from Britain in 1947, they changed the meaning of all the colors, and even the little wheel. The change had to be done because the flag had to be including all the parties and communities. The saffron is now a symbol of the leaders who have to be disinterested, the green symbolizes their relation to the soil and plant life, the white symbolizes light, and a path to guide their conduct. The wheel of law is meant to symbolize the dynamism of a peaceful change.

In addition to my so far fantastic day, I have exercised yoga. Yoga is a part of Buddhism and Hinduism, and it is kind of an alternate relaxing exercise. You sit in a position that suits you, and you are supposed to think of nothing, and unite with your soul. It is practiced to gain control of your soul and body, and I can really recommend it for you who have not tried it! To just let go of all thoughts and stress, and just blend with the air is a magnificent feeling.

I do also have to mention the fantastic meal I ate tonight! It was Tikka Masala, a famous Indian curry-dish with chicken. I can truly say that I am looking forward to more culinary experiences! Indian food is famous for their seasoning, especially their use of curry. That would be most of my day, and I’m in love so far. For tomorrow night, I am going to gather some interesting facts! Perhaps I will do that by doing some sightseeing. Good night J