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Delhi Those who look beyond the squalor that envelops much of the city, the thundering traffic, the acrid smog and the constant demands of the hustlers will find delights at every turn – historical, architectural, floral and culinary – quite apart from the vivid colour, eastern eccentricity and restless vibrancy that give Delhi its spirit.

Gandhi Memorial Museum Adjacent to Raj Ghat is the Gandhi Memorial Musuem, where the visitor can see a fascinating display of photographs illustrating the Mahatma’s life and death. There is a large collection of Gandhi memorabilia, from toothpicks to spinning wheels, via the clothes he was supposedly wearing at his assassination. Among the bons mots about Gandhi, which are inscribed on the walls, is G.B. Shaw’s reflection that the Mahatma’s murder ‘shows how dangerous it is to be too good’.

Raj Ghat The ghats – steps leading down to the water – mark the cremation sites of the leaders and freedom fighters of India. Nowadays, they are situated in a landscaped park, complete with ornamental lake. The most popular, Raj Ghat, is a simple square platform of black marble, where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated, after his assassination in 1948. Pilgrims come to touch the petal-strewn platform (samadhi) with reverence and emotion and, every Friday evening and on the anniversaries of his birth and death (2 October and 30 January), prayers are held in remembrance. Nearby are memorials to Indira Gandhi and to her son, Rajiv, both of whom were assassinated.

Lodhi Gardens An oasis of shaded calm, the Lodhi Gardens are a popular and relaxing place in which to escape the heat and clamour of Delhi. The gardens are extensive and boast a fine collection of tropical shrubs and trees. There is even a formal rose garden. There are also a number of monuments of the Lodhi Sultanate (1451-1526), including the Shish Gumbad, the Bara Gumbad and the Tomb of Mohammed Shah, all fine specimens of the Lodhi style. Transport: Metro Bir-Hakeim; RER Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel. Opening hours: Daily 0930-2300 (Sep-mid Jun); daily 0900-0000 (mid-Jun-Aug).

National Railway Museum This is a small museum of railway memorabilia, including the skull of an elephant killed when it collided with a mail train in Bengal, in 1894. But the principal glory of the National Railway Museum is the open-air display of old steam locomotives and rolling stock. Particularly interesting are the ‘special’ carriages belonging to British and Indian grandees, such as the Viceregal dining car, the Maharaja of Mysore's personal train, which comprised both sleeping and day compartments, and the Gaekwar of Baroda’s Saloon, with its ornate gold and enamel ceiling. Also on display is the last steam engine to see service on the Indian railways – as recently as 1995 – and the first electric-powered engine to do so – as long ago as the 1930s.

Haus Khaz Haus Khaz boasts an impressive collection of ruins, the most important of which are the Tomb of Feroz Shah (died 1388) and the neighbouring – and contemporary – madrasa (college). It was originally the site of the 50-hectare (125-acre) reservoir built by Aladdin (died 1316) to supply his citadel. Haus Khaz Village houses a number of trendy boutiques, galleries and restaurants.

Lal Quila (Red Fort) The Red Fort’s massive curtain wall and battlements dominate the skyline of Old Delhi. Inside, the bastions – built, like the nearby Jama Masjid, by Shah Jehan – are an array of exquisite 17th-century Mughal buildings, which provided the living quarters for the Emperor, his courtiers and family. The flawless balance and proportion of these buildings, as well as the intricate decoration, is wonderful to behold and in complete contrast to the military might of the fort itself. Sadly, the water conduits that would once have cooled the dwellings and gardens are now dry. The Lahore Gate, on the west side of the fort, was a potent symbol in the fight for Independence and is still regarded as a shrine of the Republic.

Jama Masjid Jama Masjid is India’s largest mosque and is one of the masterpieces of the Mughal’s greatest builder, Shah Jehan. A huge courtyard, bounded by an arcade and pierced with three gates, lies in front of the prayer hall, which achieves serenity and peace from the perfect harmony of its arches, domes and spaces. The courtyard, which can accommodate 25,000 worshippers, is dominated by two red-and-white-striped sandstone minarets, 70m (230ft) tall. The energetic visitors who climb the 122 narrow steps to the top will be rewarded with a magnificent view of Delhi, smog and all. Shorts and short-sleeved shirts are not permitted – wraps can be borrowed.

Qutb Minar The Qutb Minar is an immense tower, started at the end of the 12th century, to commemorate the Muslim conquest of Delhi. Standing 72.5m (238ft) tall, it is built of fluted red sandstone and decorated with calligraphy representing verses from the Koran. The top two levels are faced in white marble. The Minar rises above a site that is home to the oldest extant Islamic monuments in India. There is the Ala-i-Darwaza, complete with horseshoe-shaped arches, lotus-leaf squinches and elaborate geometric patterns. Next to that, stands the Quwwat-ul-Islam, the first mosque to be built in India. So anxious were the new rulers of Delhi to erect a mosque, they shamelessly pilfered 27 Hindu and Jain temples for building materials. Many of pillars that surround the courtyard are carved with Hindu iconography, which is curiously at odds with the Islamic calligraphy of the Muslim prayer screens. Incongruously, in the centre of the mosque, stands the fourth-century Iron Pillar, bearing inscriptions from the Gupta period. Beyond the mosque is the intricately carved Iltutmish's Tomb.

Rashtrapati Bhavan Rajpath runs between the Secretariat Buildings and India Arch, the war memorial designed by Lutyens, in 1921. Rajpath is a formal conception, lined with trees, fountains and pools, intended by its architects, Lutyens and Baker, as the epicentre of British India. The Secretariat Buildings combine monumental classical and oriental detail and, while not beautiful, are certainly an imposing statement of colonial power. Rashtrapati Bhavan is an immense palace, supposedly larger than Versailles, which was built as the residence of the Viceroy and is now the official home of the President of India. Every Saturday morning (0935-1015), guards parade before the iron grille gates. While the apartments are private, the gardens are open to the public every year in February/March.

Chandni Chowk The bazaars that surround Chandni Chowk, in Old Delhi, offer a colourful, heaving and pungent slice of Delhi life, with shops and stalls displaying a spectacular array of goods, from fish and poultry to ‘second-hand’ goods, gemstones and gold, garlands, turbans, tinsel and spare car parts. They are an unmissable part of any visit to the city. Chawris Bazaar became notorious in the 19th century, for its dancing girls who beckoned to men below from the arched windows and balconies of the huge mansions that once lined the street. Today, the mansions have made way for shops specialising in copper and brass Buddhas, Vishnus and Krishnas.

Humayun’s Tomb Often seen merely as a forerunner of the Taj Mahal, Humayun's Tomb is, in its own right, a stunning example of the Mughal architectural style, combining dome, mausoleum and plinth in perfect proportion. The Tomb is set in a square garden designed along Persian lines, shaded and geometric, crisscrossed with waterways and paths. In the grounds, there are some other monuments, including the Tomb of Isa Khan.

Purana Qila Humayun’s 16th-century Delhi had at its centre the fortress of Purana Qila, which reputedly stands on the site of Indraprastha, the city of the Pandavas in the Mahabharata. Of the buildings that survive today, the Qila-i-Kuhna Masjid was constructed in 1541, by Sher Shah, and represents a successful fusion of the Islamic and Hindu styles. The Sher Mandal is an octagonal observatory and library. The north gate, Talaqi-Darwaza, has been partially rebuilt and gives an impression of how formidable the fortifications would have been in their heyday. The chattri surmounting the west (entrance) gate commands a fine view of New Delhi.There is a small museum just inside the south gate.

Baha’i Temple Otherwise known as the Lotus Temple, the modern Baha’i Temple has often been compared to the Sydney Opera House. Giant white petals of Rajasthani Macrana marble open out from nine pools and walkways in the shape of an unfolding lotus, symbolising the nine spiritual paths of the Baha’i faith. Inside, the central hall rises to a height of over 30m (98ft), without the visible support of any columns. Visitors should take their shoes off before entering.

Tughluqabad The immense and brutal fortifications of Tughluqabad are an impressive monument to the militarism of the Tughluqs, an antidote to any idea that the Delhi Sultans were merely effete builders of mosques and palaces. Nowadays, the only living things that visitors are likely to see at the vast, barren, sun-scorched site are goats, donkeys and the occasional archaeologist, although in the 14th century, the citadel, the third city of Delhi, was the Sultan’s capital. Below the walls is the forbidding tomb of Ghiyas-ud-din Tughluq, the builder of Tughluqabad. It is approached from a causeway that crosses a lake, now dry. From the high point of the citadel there is a sweeping panorama of southern Delhi.

Suraj Kund Also in Haryana, the ruins of Suraj Kund are just 16km (ten miles) from the outskirts of Delhi, a journey of about half an hour by taxi. Its tenth-century amphitheatre is the only great Hindu shrine left intact by invading Muslims. The shrine is surrounded by tranquil parklands and a small artificial boating lake and is a popular Sunday lunch picnic destination for middle-class Indian families.

Taj Mahal The radiance of early morning is one of the best times to first glimpse the flawless proportions of the Taj Mahal, built entirely out of marble, by Shah Jahan, to serve as a mausoleum for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The complex consists of five main elements – the Darwaza or main gateway, the Bageecha or garden, the Masjid or mosque, the Naqqar Khana or resthouse and the Rauza or the Taj Mahal mausoleum. The actual tomb is situated inside. Most impressive are the four tall minarets (40m/131ft high) at the corners of the structure, the majestic dome in the middle and the black and white chessboard marble floor. The Taj Mahal is open Saturday-Thursday from dawn to dusk and admission costs Rs750 for foreigners (Rs250 for the ASI ticket and Rs500 levied by the municipality of Agra).

Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary Situated in the neighbouring state of Haryana, it takes about 50 minutes by taxi to get to Sultanpur, 47km (29.5 miles) from Delhi. The small lake and marshland is best visited between November and February when migratory birds, including the greater flamingo, bare-headed and Brahminy ducks from Tibet, flock to the sanctuary.

Culture The premier performing arts institute is Sangeet Natak Akademi, Firoz Shah Road, while the arts complex of Triveni Kala Sangam, Tansen Marg, contains two galleries devoted to fine art and an open-air and an indoor theatre, as well as a sculpture park and bookshop. Among the ranks of Delhi's ‘chaterati’, the India International Centre, 40 Lodhi Estate, is a political icon and post-Independence institution. The capital’s premier cultural centre, it organises seminars, lectures, music and dance recitals, as well as screening films on all aspects of Indian culture and environment. Nearby is the huge and recently built Indian Habitat Centre, junction of Lodhi Road and Max Mueller Marg, which offers a lively and interesting programme of drama and lectures. Most of the cultural centres host concerts and exhibitions, as well as screening films in English or their native language. These include, on Kasturba Gandhi Marg, the German cultural centre Max Mueller Bhavan, the British Council, and the American Centre, at D13 NDSE Part II, the Alliance Francaise, on Golf Links, the Italian Culture Centre, and, on Firoz Shah Road, the Japan Cultural Centre and the Russian Cultural Centre, which houses the Eisenstein Film Club.

Theatre Delhi is well provided with innovative theatres and the area just to the north of India Gate is home to a number of these, including the Kamani Theatre, on Copernicus Marg. The Abhimanch, Bahawalpur House, stages an exciting programme of theatre, dance and films through the year.

Music Delhi’s concert halls tend to be busy more or less year round, with the Delhi Symphony Orchestra performing at the Kamani Auditorium, Copernicus Marg and the FICCI Auditorium, Tansen Marg. Hindustani music is by far the most popular, closely followed by Karnatic music. Some of Delhi’s open-air venues, such as the majestically lit Qutb Minar (see Key Attractions), provide a dramatic backdrop for select performances. The Delhi Music Society is based at Nayaya Marg, Chanakyapuri.

Dance Lovers of dance are well catered for in Delhi, seeing as a rich mix of classical – including Kathak, Bharatnatyam and Kathakali – folk and tribal dance, as well as ballet is performed at various auditoria throughout the year. Hauz Khas, Delhi-Mehrauli Road, is a good spot to join well-heeled Delhiites, as they sit back over a meal or a drink while taking in an open-air dance or music performance. The India International Centre, 40 Lodhi Estate, and Triveni Theatre, 205 Tansen Marg, are both popular venues for regular, professional dance shows.

Film Cinema is by far the most popular form of entertainment in India – it has been suggested that 23 million Indians watch a film every day. The glitzy love stories and action movies of Bollywood attract huge audiences and their stars are national figures. There is any number of cinemas in Delhi, some showing only films in Hindi, some only in English and some in both languages. English-language films are shown, among many others, at the Ritz, Kasmiri Gate, and the Chanakya, Chanakapuri. The movie that is closest to Delhi’s beating heart is the immensely popular Monsoon Wedding (2001), which was set in the city. The busy marketplaces of Delhi punctuated director Mira Nair’s beautiful celluloid weaving of character, place and drama.

Cultural events India’s calendar of festivals draws upon the nation’s Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Sikh, Parsi, Buddhist and Christian communities, with a sprinkling of non-religious festivals thrown in for good measure. Most will be celebrated to some extent, somewhere in Delhi. Republic Day, a week of celebration kicks off on 26 January, with a military parade along Rajpath. A guard of honour stands to attention at Raj Ghat on Martyr’s Day, 30 January, to commemorate the anniversary of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. Spring exuberance erupts on the day after the full moon in early March, during Holi, when people running through the streets bombard each other and stray tourists with brightly coloured powder and water, to celebrate good harvests and fertility of the land. Often an occasion for indulging in a drink or two too many. The Raslila is performed across India recreating the life of Krishna on the anniversary of his birth, Janmasthami, which falls in August/September. The city celebrates most ostentatiously at Lakshmi Narayan Mandir. Diwali (Deepavali), the most pan-Indian of Hindu festivals – coinciding with the onset of the Hindu and Jain new year – symbolises the victory of righteousness and the lifting of spiritual darkness by commemorating Lord Rama’s return to his kingdom, Ayodhya, after his 14-year exile. In 2002, Diwali falls on 4 November and is preceded by five days of celebrations. (Dates are calculated according to the Hindu calendar, which varies against the Gregorian calendar.).

Nightlife Delhi has a long way to go to compete with Mumbai as the capital of Indian nightlife. In Delhi, it is notoriously difficult to obtain an alcohol licence and many of the swishest watering holes and nightclubs are in the five-star international hotels – with prices to match. Apart from these hotels, the watering holes of Delhi are concentrated around Connaught Place, with various outposts in the more prosperous southern suburbs. Wine in Delhi is expensive and frequently of indifferent quality – those who wish to drink would be well advised to stick to beer, spirits or cocktails. Although there is no minimum drinking age, the minimum purchasing age in India is 18 years. The price of a beer while out and about in Delhi can vary considerably, depending on the venue, however, averages out to approximately Rs200. There are no casinos in Delhi as gambling in India – except on the racecourse – is illegal.

Bars Anyone who has been to Delhi returns to tell stories about the Rodeo bar, A-Block, Connaught Place, because of the mock saddle seats at the bar and its Indian waiters dressed, quite preposterously, as cowboys. The Pegasus bar, L-Block, Connaught Place, is the most convincing attempt in Delhi to replicate an English pub. The Maurya Sheraton, Diplomatic Enclave, has a lively bar behind the lobby of the hotel, with a golfing theme, while Henri’s at the top of the Meridien Hotel, Windsor Place, offers a fine panorama of the city. The celebrated Cavalry Bar, in the Oberoi Maidan Hotel, Civil Lines, is a relic of the Raj and will appeal to those who like bars to be simple yet smart. Rick’s, situated in the Taj Mahal Hotel, 1 Mansingh Road, has recently been refurbished in a swish modernist style and offers live music to boot. In Defence Colony Market there is a new and deafeningly noisy bar above the restaurant, Gola. Vasant Vihar boasts a TGI Fridays – very popular with hip young Delhiites – and the Golden Dragon, both situated in C-Block, Market. Expresso bars are increasingly popular and can be found in many areas of the city. The Barista chain is the most widely established.

Clubs There are about half a dozen discos that have become regular haunts of elite Delhiites. Most are in the luxury hotels and many of them operate a couples-only policy, as well as a dress code. One of the most popular is CJ’s, at Le Meridien, Windsor Place. The recently opened RPM, above Lazeez Affaire restaurant, Shopping Centre, Malcha Marg, Chanakypuri, has a vibrant atmosphere and is popular among younger, well-heeled Delhiites. Annabelles, at the Inter-Continental, Barakhamba Avenue, Connaught Place, and Wheels, at the Ambassador, Sujan Singh Park, both have an enthusiastic following.

Shopping Silks, gemstones, carpets, antique furniture, spices ... the warehouses and emporia of Delhi are filled with a treasure trove of goods from the far corners of the Indian subcontinent. The intrepid will head for the chowks and alleyways of Old Delhi, while the more cautious will stick to the well-trodden round of Connaught Place and the state government handicrafts emporia on Baba Kharak Sing Marg, with perhaps an excursion in the direction of Hauz Khas Village and South Extension market. There is any number of shops selling carpets in Delhi but the visitor would be well advised to exercise caution, by confining himself to the reputable, fixed-price, non-commission establishments. All the carpets at Saga, on Mathura Road, come with a Central Silk Board guarantee. Delhi’s markets come crammed with goods, people and smells. The magnificent bazaars of Chandni Chowk are open daily and piled high with gold, nuts, spices, silks, carpets and perfume and are worth visiting for the spectacle alone. Sunder Nagar Market, off Mathura Road, is open Monday-Saturday and is a good place to search for antiques and jewellery, as well as boasting a huge variety of other knick-knacks and artefacts spilling out of the shops. One of Delhi's most prestigious markets and a regular haunt of the city’s ex-pats, is Khan Market, just south of India Gate, open Tuesday-Sunday. There are a number of excellent bookshops here. The wholesale Spice Market, on Khari Baoli, in the Old City, is where, for centuries, the culinary traditions of North Asia, China, Persia and the Middle East have worked their influence on local cuisine.

Sport In India, cricket reigns supreme and is played everywhere, from smart cricket clubs to the grassy spaces of New Delhi and street corners. The national side is followed with a devotion that borders on the fanatic. India is a consistently strong team, ably doing battle with its mighty Antipodean, South African and UK rivals. Other popular Indian games include kabbadi, a team sport combining the characteristics of wrestling and rugby, and kho kho, an evolved game of catch and hockey, in which the Indians regularly produce sides that challenge the best in the world. More mundanely, there are facilities in Delhi catering to the city’s elite, for a good selection of sports, including gyms, tennis, golf and swimming.

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