Itinerary


ITINERARY

Wed/Thurs, Feb 20/21 Travel to Delhi arriving Feb 21st
                                             Airport Transfers
                                             Overnight Feb 21st – OBEROI NEW DELHI
Fri, Feb 22                            Breakfast – OBEROI NEW DELHI
Visit to World Health Organization
                                             Group lunch
                                             Visit to Rotary PolioPlus offices
                                             Afternoon Deli sightseeing
                                             Dinner on your own
                                             Overnight – OBEROI NEW DELHI
Sat, Feb 23                           Breakfast – OBEROI NEW DELHI
Travel to Chandigarh
         Packed lunch
         Dinner & overnight – Chandigarh Rotary family home stay
Sun, Feb 24                 NID Booth Day
                                             Group lunch with media interaction
                                             Afternoon sightseeing
         Dinner & overnight – Chandigarh Rotary family home stay
Mon, Feb 25               NID Mop-up Day
                                             Group lunch at Rotary Vocational Training Center
                                             Visits to Chandigarh Rotary Club projects
                                             Chandigarh Rotary Club meeting
         Dinner & overnight – Chandigarh Rotary family home stay
Tues, Feb 26                NID Mop-up Day
         Lunch & afternoon sightseeing & shopping with Rotary families
         Gala group dinner
         Overnight – Chandigarh Rotary family home stay
Wed, Feb 27               Travel to Delhi
                                             Visit to Ambala Rotary Club projects en route
                                             Delhi shopping
         Dinner on your own
         Overnight – OBEROI NEW DELHI
Thurs, Feb 28              New Dehhi
                                             Breakfast – OBEROI NEW DELHI
         Visit to Akshay Pratishthan School
        Group lunch
        Visit to St. Stephen's Hospital - Polio Corrective Ward
       Afternoon Delhi sightseeing
       Rickshaw ride in Chandni Chowk
       Dinner on your own
       Overnight – OBEROI NEW DELHI
Fri, Mar 1                  Agra        
                                           Breakfast – OBEROI NEW DELHI
       Travel to Agra
       Packed lunch
       Afternoon sightseeing visit to Agra Red Fort
       Optional Agra shopping
       Celebratory group dinner at AMARVILAS
Sat, Mar 2                 New Delhi      
                                            Sunrise visit to Taj Mahal
                                            Brunch - Amarvilas
                                            Mid-day hotel checkout & departures
                                            Travel to Delhi OR depart from Agra for post-NID activities
Airport transfers
                                            Dinner on your own
                                            Late PM departures for home
Sun, Mar 3                          Early AM departures for home


These are some of the places we are planning to visit as time allows on our trip.  All monument fees and still camera fees are included:

DELHI:
Jama Masjid



Jama Masjid of Delhi is the largest mosque in India. The Jama Masjid stands across the road in front of the Red Fort. Built between 1644 and 1658, Jama Masjid is one of the last architectural works of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. The spacious courtyard of the Jama Masjid holds thousands of faithful. Jama Masjid is located on a mound in the heart of the old city and projects beautifully into the Old-Delhi skyline. Jama Masjid Mosque was built in red sandstone and marble by more than 5000 artisans. Originally called the Masjid-i-Jahan-Numa, or "mosque commanding view of the world", the Jama Masjid stands at the center of the erstwhile capital city of the Mughals, Shahjahanbad. 


  

Rickshaw Ride in Chandni Chowk
The rickshaw ride at Chandni Chowk in Old Delhi is a popular activity in the city among international tourists. The exhilarating ride in cycle rickshaw takes you through hot, dusty and crowded Chandni Chowk Bazaar to offer eye-popping views of Old Delhi and its effervescent culture.  The trip transports you back to the days of Mughal Empire with the shops huddle together on both sides of the narrow labyrinthine streets and alleys. Workshops of craftsmen, jewelers, eateries, sweet shops, and brand stores offer modernistic shopping pleasures in chaotic bazaars from medieval era. Hotels, Shiv Temple, Sunehri Masjid, Sisganj Gurudwara, and churches find spaces in between and add to the colorfulness of the crowded market area.


India Gate

The India Gate is the national monument of India. Situated in the heart of New Delhi, it was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. The monument is inspired by Arc de Triomphe located in Paris, which in turn is inspired by the Roman Arch of Titus.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India_Gate

Qutab Minar






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 the condition that people of all
castes will be allowed to enter the temple.


Dilli Haat



The craftsmen who are registered with D.C.Handicrafts are the ones who are eligible to find a place here. The stalls selling handicrafts are allotted on a rotational basis to craftsmen who come from all corners of the vast & varied land of India at nominal payment for a period of 15 Days. This ensures that visitors get to buy authentic wares at prices that have not been inflated by high maintenance costs.


Humayun’s Tomb



After wandering in wilderness for 25 years, Humayun reoccupied Delhi in the year 1555 AD but he was not destined to rule any longer and died barely six months of his arrival, from a fall in his library, Sher Mandal. Humayun's tomb was built by his widow, Hajji Begum around 1565 AD. The Taj Mahal and many other Mughal buildings are said to have been inspired from Humayun's tomb. Humayun's tomb is one of the world heritage sites. The tomb of Humayun is based on Islamic paradise gardens. This type of garden is known as a Charbagh and is based on a grid system. The square garden is divided into four large squares and separated by causeways and channels with each square again divided into smaller squares.  http://www.delhitourism.gov.in/delhitourism/tourist_place/humayun_tomb.jsp


Red Fort – Old Delhi



The 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 on each Independence Day.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Fort



AGRA:
Agra Red Fort



Near the gardens of the Taj Mahal stands the important 16th-century Mughal monument known as the Red Fort of Agra. This powerful fortress of red sandstone encompasses, within its 2.5-km-long enclosure walls, the imperial city of the Mughal rulers. It comprises many fairy-tale palaces, such as the Jahangir Palace and the Khas Mahal, built by Shah Jahan; audience halls, such as the Diwan-i-Khas; and two very beautiful mosques.  Emperor Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal, was imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb in Agra Fort, from which he had a view of the building erected for his deceased wife. Shah Jahan is said to have died in the Musamman Burj, a tower with a beautiful marble balcony.  http://agrafort.gov.in/

Taj Mahal



Famous as one of the wonders, the Taj Mahal at Agra, India, is epitome of true love. Taj Mahal was built by the famous Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaj Mahal. The architectural beauty and magnificence of the Taj Mahal has never been surpassed. The Taj Mahal is said to be the most beautiful monument built by the Mughal rulers and it represents the zenith of the Mughal architecture. Built entirely of white marbles, the beauty of the Taj Mahal is beyond description. The beauty of the Taj Mahal has been aptly summarized by the famous English poet, Sir Edwin Arnold, as "Not a piece of architecture, as other buildings are, but the proud passions of an emperor's love wrought in living stones."  http://tajmahal.gov.in/