paharganj

the opoponax · Mar 9th, 2008, 01:12

I picked Paharganj this time because I knew it would be cheap and that there would be dozens of options for me to look at on the spot. Without having ever been in Delhi before and not knowing how to navigate the city at all.

The Lonely Planet also is sort of to blame (in general, not on my part) -- they make most of the other potential areas sound like a bad deal. They specifically state that Old Delhi is not safe for women travelers (WRONG, unless the atmosphere really changes late at night). They list all of two options in Majnu Ka Tilla. Karol Bagh is only mentioned as a neighborhood where sketchy hotel touts will try to take you, with the implication that it's to be avoided. I don't think anything in the budget range is mentioned for South Delhi (though as a first-time visitor I wouldn't opt to stay there, anyway, since it's much less central). The only legit option according to LP, aside from Paharganj, looks to be Connaught Place, where there are fewer budget rooms and more proper midrange hotels.

So I definitely see why so many people pick that part of town even though it is distinctly lacking in charm.

PeakXV · Mar 9th, 2008, 01:37

It's only the concentration of foreigners that makes you feel as if you've just entered some western neo-hippy cafe district - that renders the whole experience so odd & unimportant. The rest of the chaos, congestion & smog is a little over the top but not to much different than many Indian
urban settings.

the opoponax · Mar 9th, 2008, 01:42

I swear there's a whole culture of foreign backpackers who deliberately plan their trip so as to be surrounded by white people for as much of the time as humanly possible. I wonder if these folks even realize that they're doing this?

freenote · Mar 9th, 2008, 09:09

So what? If that's what they want to do i see no harm in it ,in fact meeting people from other countries is one of my reasons for travelling .Also i have done the touristy thing and taken quite a few photo's of the area ,and the vast majority of people in those photo's are Indian .It's a good staging point ,handy for transport and cheap ,no problem

the opoponax · Mar 9th, 2008, 22:40

Freenote, no I guess there's nothing wrong with consciously picking areas where there are a lot of white people. It's just something I've noticed, and something the guidebooks really play to.

And you're right, of course, that it's never a straight-up segregated experience.

It was just something I noticed, mainly after talking to disgruntled white folks who didn't like Indian food, didn't go anywhere that wasn't on the banana pancake circuit, would always single out a place known for western tourists as "the most beautiful place, you HAVE to go there!" (almost always Rishikesh, Manali, Auroville, or somewhere in Goa.) A lot of them also weren't having a very good time, got sick a lot, complained a lot. I just wondered if they would be having the same experience if they occasionally got out of banana pancake land.

PeakXV · Mar 9th, 2008, 23:00

Is it fair to say that we all don't 'see' the same things in our Indian travels? If I 'see' more than a few backpackers concentrated in one area - then I immediately think that I've wandered off the Indian trail to a discounted, LP-touted parallel version of that same country. Yes - it's a myopic, phobic biased feeling that fails to see the wisdom in sourcing the cheapest accommodations possible only at the sacrifice of personal space, & good oxygen. But some of us love to watch these travellers, meet-up with them, share experiences, and may even feel good about that safety-in-numbers thing happening. Ain't nothing wrong with that!

Pancakes!? With the exception of the odd coconut pancake in Goa, I can say that I've never been offered or even been aware of a pancake, let alone a Banana pancake when in India or where I would've gone to find one(until now) - that's a shame because I do love pancakes.

the opoponax · Mar 9th, 2008, 23:12

Anytime I would descend into what I started thinking of as "Thorn Tree Land", I would notice that almost half the menu would be devoted to all the different pancake options.

I ordered pancakes exactly once, in my favorite Goan beach shack. After faithfully having either bhaji pao or parantha and curd every other day I was there, I'll have you know! I got the vaguely Indian counterpart to traditional crepes with lemon and sugar - mosambi and that lovely chunkily granulated sugar that sometimes comes after a meal with the saunf. It was heavenly, to be perfectly honest.

But for the most part I preferred to avoid such places, and had whatever the locally popular breakfast was.

bijapuri · Mar 9th, 2008, 23:30

yet another "Real India" has been tagged- THORNISTAN!
Paharganj is its imperial capital

BTW, can we retire Paharganj as a topic? it's been posted to death

freenote · Mar 10th, 2008, 00:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by bijapuri

yet another "Real India" has been tagged- THORNISTAN!
Paharganj is its imperial capital

BTW, can we retire Paharganj as a topic? it's been posted to death

Yep...last time it came up Karol Bagh won by a butterscotch milkshake.............

PeakXV · Mar 10th, 2008, 00:15

This time it's PeeGanj by a Banana flatcake.

anubisgrau · Mar 10th, 2008, 00:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by the opoponax

I picked Paharganj this time because I knew it would be cheap and that there would be dozens of options for me to look at on the spot. Without having ever been in Delhi before and not knowing how to navigate the city at all.

The Lonely Planet also is sort of to blame (in general, not on my part) -- they make most of the other potential areas sound like a bad deal. They specifically state that Old Delhi is not safe for women travelers (WRONG, unless the atmosphere really changes late at night). They list all of two options in Majnu Ka Tilla. Karol Bagh is only mentioned as a neighborhood where sketchy hotel touts will try to take you, with the implication that it's to be avoided. I don't think anything in the budget range is mentioned for South Delhi (though as a first-time visitor I wouldn't opt to stay there, anyway, since it's much less central). The only legit option according to LP, aside from Paharganj, looks to be Connaught Place, where there are fewer budget rooms and more proper midrange hotels.

So I definitely see why so many people pick that part of town even though it is distinctly lacking in charm.

a very usual LP BS. i picked up karol bhag this time instead of usual paharganj and couldn't believe how better the area is. first of all it's a real india, no westerners, no hippies, etc. it's much cleaner and even the air is less poluted due to less rickshaw presence (i passed paharganj one evening in such a thick layer of smog i forgot it still exists in india). and due to new fantastic delhi metro it's perfect for sightseeing, in 4 mins you are at connaught place and in 10 at jama masjid.

no more PG for me.

camelgirl · Mar 10th, 2008, 01:07

Not sure why I want to add to this thread as everything that could possibly be said has been...but still want to add my 2 rps

I started my first trip Delhi with 3 days at the YMCA tourist hotel on Nov. 1975. Seemed the height of luxury after my overland bus trip. Then moved to Paharganj into an unbelieveably cheap tiny, damp, dank room with a bus friend for about 3 more days before heading to Nepal overland.

I never stayed in Paharganj again and never will. We've been to Delhi at least a dozen times and we try different places. Last year tried Karol Bagh for the first time. Loved it and using the metro was fantastic.

Also went back to Paharganj for the first time in 33 years and didn't recognize it as it has spread out so much & got so crowded, noisy & intense.

Jupiter · Mar 11th, 2008, 00:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by camelgirl

Then moved to Paharganj into an unbelieveably cheap tiny, damp, dank room with a bus friend for about 3 more days before heading to Nepal overland.

As can be seen, usually impressions get formed because of one room where most of us end up being!

Point is Paharganj has rooms that begin at the lower end at Rs. 200/- a day to may be Rs 2500/- a day at the highest end!

And if one spends Rs. 500/- a day after looking around a bit........he / she will never complain about the room....the resultant experience......and the overall impact will be positive!

Anyway....usually it is something like each to his own. Having spent reasonable amount of time in London as well as obscure cities of Ukraine and Russia like Odessa, Murmansk etc., give me the latter any day! Most would ofcourse opt for London!

Jupiter · Mar 11th, 2008, 00:44

And I don't know why Metro gets projected as some sort of USP of Karolbagh.

From dilapidated Imperial Cinema Hall in Paharganj, it is some 120 metre walk to Rama Krishna Marg Metro Station. Infact, the next Station is the big Rajiv Gandhi Terminal of Connaught Place!

SO Metro connects Paharganj just as much, if not better!

the opoponax · Mar 11th, 2008, 00:50

Imperial Cinema is on the far end of Main Bazaar, though. If you're staying over at the busier end, then yeah, Karol Bagh might be more convenient to the metro.

Wish I'd known there was a stop there, though -- I stayed right opposite Imperial Cinema and wasted way too much money on rickshaws!

Mar 9th, 2008, 01:37	#32
PeakXV Naan.tering Nabob Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Abode of Glooscap Posts: 4,512	It's only the concentration of foreigners that makes you feel as if you've just entered some western neo-hippy cafe district - that renders the whole experience so odd & unimportant. The rest of the chaos, congestion & smog is a little over the top but not to much different than many Indian urban settings. __________________ What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes Don't go to India ~ Pre-trip Warnings & Misconceptions?

Mar 9th, 2008, 23:30	#38
bijapuri laid traps for troubadours Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Priustan Posts: 2,602	yet another "Real India" has been tagged- THORNISTAN! Paharganj is its imperial capital BTW, can we retire Paharganj as a topic? it's been posted to death __________________ Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential. Barack Obama lookit me!!!: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bijapuri/ Utube fuzzy logic: http://youtube.com/profile_videos?user=bijapuri&p =r

Mar 10th, 2008, 01:07	#42
camelgirl 10 year Visa okee dokee Join Date: May 2005 Location: Swannanoa NC usa Posts: 1,099	Not sure why I want to add to this thread as everything that could possibly be said has been...but still want to add my 2 rps I started my first trip Delhi with 3 days at the YMCA tourist hotel on Nov. 1975. Seemed the height of luxury after my overland bus trip. Then moved to Paharganj into an unbelieveably cheap tiny, damp, dank room with a bus friend for about 3 more days before heading to Nepal overland. I never stayed in Paharganj again and never will. We've been to Delhi at least a dozen times and we try different places. Last year tried Karol Bagh for the first time. Loved it and using the metro was fantastic. Also went back to Paharganj for the first time in 33 years and didn't recognize it as it has spread out so much & got so crowded, noisy & intense. __________________ My selected India photos http://www.indiamike.com/photopost/s...r/7030/cat/500

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Mar 9th, 2008, 01:12	#31
the opoponax Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Brooklyn, via New Orleans Posts: 1,052	I picked Paharganj this time because I knew it would be cheap and that there would be dozens of options for me to look at on the spot. Without having ever been in Delhi before and not knowing how to navigate the city at all. The Lonely Planet also is sort of to blame (in general, not on my part) -- they make most of the other potential areas sound like a bad deal. They specifically state that Old Delhi is not safe for women travelers (WRONG, unless the atmosphere really changes late at night). They list all of two options in Majnu Ka Tilla. Karol Bagh is only mentioned as a neighborhood where sketchy hotel touts will try to take you, with the implication that it's to be avoided. I don't think anything in the budget range is mentioned for South Delhi (though as a first-time visitor I wouldn't opt to stay there, anyway, since it's much less central). The only legit option according to LP, aside from Paharganj, looks to be Connaught Place, where there are fewer budget rooms and more proper midrange hotels. So I definitely see why so many people pick that part of town even though it is distinctly lacking in charm.

Mar 9th, 2008, 01:42	#33
the opoponax Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Brooklyn, via New Orleans Posts: 1,052	I swear there's a whole culture of foreign backpackers who deliberately plan their trip so as to be surrounded by white people for as much of the time as humanly possible. I wonder if these folks even realize that they're doing this?

Mar 9th, 2008, 09:09	#34
freenote senior member refused Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: cornwall UK Posts: 1,599	So what? If that's what they want to do i see no harm in it ,in fact meeting people from other countries is one of my reasons for travelling .Also i have done the touristy thing and taken quite a few photo's of the area ,and the vast majority of people in those photo's are Indian .It's a good staging point ,handy for transport and cheap ,no problem

Mar 9th, 2008, 22:40	#35
the opoponax Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Brooklyn, via New Orleans Posts: 1,052	Freenote, no I guess there's nothing wrong with consciously picking areas where there are a lot of white people. It's just something I've noticed, and something the guidebooks really play to. And you're right, of course, that it's never a straight-up segregated experience. It was just something I noticed, mainly after talking to disgruntled white folks who didn't like Indian food, didn't go anywhere that wasn't on the banana pancake circuit, would always single out a place known for western tourists as "the most beautiful place, you HAVE to go there!" (almost always Rishikesh, Manali, Auroville, or somewhere in Goa.) A lot of them also weren't having a very good time, got sick a lot, complained a lot. I just wondered if they would be having the same experience if they occasionally got out of banana pancake land.

Mar 9th, 2008, 23:00	#36
PeakXV Naan.tering Nabob Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Abode of Glooscap Posts: 4,512	Is it fair to say that we all don't 'see' the same things in our Indian travels? If I 'see' more than a few backpackers concentrated in one area - then I immediately think that I've wandered off the Indian trail to a discounted, LP-touted parallel version of that same country. Yes - it's a myopic, phobic biased feeling that fails to see the wisdom in sourcing the cheapest accommodations possible only at the sacrifice of personal space, & good oxygen. But some of us love to watch these travellers, meet-up with them, share experiences, and may even feel good about that safety-in-numbers thing happening. Ain't nothing wrong with that! Pancakes!? With the exception of the odd coconut pancake in Goa, I can say that I've never been offered or even been aware of a pancake, let alone a Banana pancake when in India or where I would've gone to find one(until now) - that's a shame because I do love pancakes.

Mar 9th, 2008, 23:12	#37
the opoponax Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Brooklyn, via New Orleans Posts: 1,052	Anytime I would descend into what I started thinking of as "Thorn Tree Land", I would notice that almost half the menu would be devoted to all the different pancake options. I ordered pancakes exactly once, in my favorite Goan beach shack. After faithfully having either bhaji pao or parantha and curd every other day I was there, I'll have you know! I got the vaguely Indian counterpart to traditional crepes with lemon and sugar - mosambi and that lovely chunkily granulated sugar that sometimes comes after a meal with the saunf. It was heavenly, to be perfectly honest. But for the most part I preferred to avoid such places, and had whatever the locally popular breakfast was.

Mar 10th, 2008, 00:15	#40
PeakXV Naan.tering Nabob Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Abode of Glooscap Posts: 4,512	This time it's PeeGanj by a Banana flatcake.

Mar 11th, 2008, 00:44	#44
Jupiter Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Moscow Posts: 39	And I don't know why Metro gets projected as some sort of USP of Karolbagh. From dilapidated Imperial Cinema Hall in Paharganj, it is some 120 metre walk to Rama Krishna Marg Metro Station. Infact, the next Station is the big Rajiv Gandhi Terminal of Connaught Place! SO Metro connects Paharganj just as much, if not better!

Mar 11th, 2008, 00:50	#45
the opoponax Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Brooklyn, via New Orleans Posts: 1,052	Imperial Cinema is on the far end of Main Bazaar, though. If you're staying over at the busier end, then yeah, Karol Bagh might be more convenient to the metro. Wish I'd known there was a stop there, though -- I stayed right opposite Imperial Cinema and wasted way too much money on rickshaws!

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