We made it back to Delhi! We were all pretty tired but went with Anoop (our friend and amazing helper in planning our last week here) to Kingdom of Dreams. We got some delicious food and desserts and had a really fun time relaxing and hanging out. We even ate Paan, it’s a leaf and rolled inside are all interesting ingredients supposed to be good for digestion. We headed back and slept in the next morning for the holiday, Republic Day. We watched the long parade for like 4 hours. Our favorite was seeing all the armed forces march, and watching these amazing women on motorbikes. We relaxed most of the rest of the day and caught up on some sleep.
The following day some of us ventured out to the Lotus Temple (a few people had started to not feel so great so it wasn’t a full party). The Lotus Temple is a Bahai house of worship, meaning it is open to all religions. The gardens surrounding the temple were beautiful, containing lots of greenery as well as Chinese orange trees. Upon reaching the temple we were impressed by the architecture of the building and not surprised that it has won numerous awards for its shape. The inside of the temple was just as beautiful as the outside. People were able to sit down in the marble pews and pray or meditate for however long they wanted. It was so peaceful and one of the quietest places in Delhi we have been to-so peaceful that we didn’t want to leave. Eventually, we made our way back outside and decided to visit the information center where we learned more temples worldwide.
We also visited India Gate. This is along the Rajpath where the Republic Day parade was held. India Gate is a memorial for all of the Indian soldiers. We attempted to visit a few other sites but they were closed due to the holiday weekend. The rest of the day was spent relaxing.
Lotus Temple.
Chinese Orange Trees.
Delhi Gate
The next day we headed to the mall to collect some clean clothes to travel home in as well as get some final souvenirs. We also enjoyed a last night with Nupur, Anoop, and our friends from our rotation here, Riley, Kai, and Anna! Today we are just relaxing and packing, preparing for our long journey home. All in all we really enjoyed India and were surprised how fast time flew by. We are ready to be home, but definitely will remember this time as one of the most adventurous in medical school. Thanks for tuning in everyone! We will catch you back in the States!
-Alli, Lacey, Megan and Steph
Some randome pictures!
