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I work as a salesman in a private company. Let me tell you how I reach there daily. I wake up early in the morning and get ready for office at 9 a.m. My office is located at Naya Bazar which is just close to Lahori Gate Chowk near Khari Baoli in old Delhi. Khari Baoli comes after old Delhi Railway station and Fatepuri while coming from East of Delhi. The most famous place of delhi, Chandni Chowk, is located just opposite to old Delhi Railway Station. So Chandni Chowk, Khari Baoli, Fatepuri, old Delhi Railway station and Lahori Gate Chowk are areas just near to my office in Naya bazar. My residence is at Vivek Vihar which is located almost at the U.P border in East Delhi. U.P or Utter Pradesh is the state in North-East of India.There is a small Railway Station for Vivek Vihar. The trains coming from East of India to reach old Delhi Railway Station passes through Vihar Vihar, as Vivek Vihar comes in between the way just after Sahibabad and Ghaziabad which are located in the state of Utter Pradesh.Though all the trains does not stop at Vivek Vihar Railway Station but there are certain local trains coming from Aligarh(a city in Utter Pradesh) side which do stop at Vivek Vihar Railway station.And these are the trains which are meant for me as I have to reach Sadar Bazar Railway Station with the help of these trains.Sadar Bazar Railway Station is just nearer to Naya Bazar.Sadar Bazar Railway Station lies in between old delhi Railway Station and New delhi Railway Station while we move from East of Delhi to West.So there are daily local trains run by Goverment of India,Northern Railway,for daily passengers from East to West of Delhi. After Vivek Vihar comes the Station, Delhi Shahdra.Its Delhi Shadra or Delhi Shahdra I am not confirmed.Delhi Shahdra is the horrible place where all the rush get into the train.Shahdra people are most famous for playing cards in the train.Though many other passengers from other stations also play cards in the train,but Shahdra passengers have good reputation as card players in local trains.And as such there is no any law or boundation, from ministry of Indian Railway Department, which could prevent them doing so.They in a way disturb a lot to fellow passengers by covering the extra space in the train.They take extra space to sit and relax on the floor while playing the cards.Some of the young boys deal in money while playing the cards. Since Delhi Shahdra is the last station before old Delhi Railway Station there is maximum rush when the train is on the way in between Delhi Shahdra and old Delhi railway station.The destination of maximum number of passengers in the train is for old delhi.50% of the local passengers are down to old delhi railway station while others have to continue their journey to reach other stations like sadar bazar,new delhi,tilak bridge,Shivaji Bridge,Faridabad,Palwal and Mathura.Local trains are mostly up to Mathura,though some local trains move back to Ghaziabad from Tilak Bridge through another way passing through Anand Vihar.Anand Vihar is also close to Vivek vihar.Many trains moving towards East India, like to the state of Assam,Bengal,Bihar,UP etc, passes through Anand Vihar Railway Station instead of Vivek Vihar.Next to Anand Vihar is Ghaziabad railway station. The great Yamuna river comes in between the Shahdra railway station and old delhi railway station.The train has to run on tracks on the Yamuna bridge to cross the Yamuna river.You can find lot of people throwing money coins into the Yamuna river.They do this as they have a lot of respect towards the famous Yamuna river which originates from religious place like Yamunotri and Gangotri.You can also watch the famous Red Fort(Lal Quila) of Delhi,when the train just crosses the Yamuna Bridge.While moving towards old Delhi the train often takes a rest before the signal pole which is just near to Red Fort or Lal Quila.The trains often stop there due to non-signal to cross the way.At that point, near Red Fort, many people take a jump from the train as they have to reach the places like Lajpai Rai market,Jama Masjid,Dariyaganj and Bhagirath place which are nearby to Lal Quila. Lajpat Rai Market near Red fort is a market for dealers and retailers of electronic goods like CD player,DVD player,Blank CD-R,cds,blank CD-RW,movie cds,audio and video cds,mobile accessories,mobiles,second hand mobile phones or cell phones,watches,batteries,tape recorder,walk mans,internal and external body parts of all audio speakers,mobile covers,speakers,video games,games cds,watches,torches,calculators,sound boxes and you can also find there services providers of all kinds of electronic goods as already mentioned above.You can also find there all kinds of electronic goods imported mostly from China and Taiwan.Mostly the products or goods sold at lajpat Rai market are without warrante or guarantee.And you can lose your money unless you are careful enough to check the goods and test them before buying.People selling goods on footpath are almost cheating people by offering waste products at cheap rates. Bhagirath place or palace is famous for Electricity goods like fans,tubes,bulbs,bulb holders,wires of all sizes,lamps,china tubes,adjust fans,switches,electricity boards and metres,shoulders,wire pumps,motors,fan regulators,tube chalks,starters, etc.This is a complete whole sale market for electrical goods.People from different cities of India visit these places to buy all they want in wholesale.Delhi is the centre for cheapest goods in India with lot of importers. Daryaganj in Delhi is a place famous for musical instruments like tabla,guitar,harmonium,piano,sitar vadan,Dholak,Veena etc.You can find here quality imported instruments from countries like Romania,Australia,Newzealand,USA,China,Indonesia,Pakistan,England,Singapore,Hongkong,Dubai etc.Daryaganj is also famous for its Cinema Hall named "Golcha".You can find a lot of public rush there daily to watch the latest released movies.The road in front of Golcha Cinema reach to Old Delhi gate.Income Tax(ITO) office is also very close to old Delhi Gate.You can also find the reliance world web aside the Darayaganj main road.Juice corners are very popular there. Jama Masjid,a place of worship for Muslims, in front of Red Fort is most famous place for Muslims and there is a market called Meena market near Jama Mashjid for ladies items.And there is a big market for carpets,threads,clothes etc behind the Jama Masjid.Almost all the shops near and around Jama Masjid are owned by Muslim people and they also have their homes there.In front of Red fort you can find a lot of travelling agents who can help you to give a visit to all important places in Delhi.You can find enormous number of Tourists visiting Red Fort daily and from there getting packages from travelling agents to tour nearby places like India Gate,Qutub Minar,Jantar Mantar,Delhi Haat,Mahatma Gandhi Smarak,Zoo,Birla Mandir,Children park etc. Chandni Chowk is also very near to Red Fort.I often visit Chandni Chowk in order to complete all kinds of transactions with HFDC bank.All important banks like Canara Bank,Oriental Bank,Bank of Rajasthan ltd,State bank of India(SBI),ICICI bank,Union Bank of India etc can be found at Chandni Chowk.ATMs of all important banks like HDFC and ICICI bank can also be found at Chandni Chowk.Chandni Chowk is famous for big showrooms of shoes,clothes,mobile phones,decorative items,electronic goods,sarees,fashion and designing etc.The most popular and biggest shop for sweets and namkeens,Haldiram, is also located at Chandni Chowk.Haldiram is the only shop for food and bevarges which has maximum number of branches in India.You can find a lot of rush all the time on Haldiramwala.People come from far and wide to order sweets and Namkeens from the shop of Haldiram.Haldiram is just located near the fountain of Chandni Chowk which is also very famous.The fountain is located between Bhagirath place and Chandni Chowk.There is also a big underground parking place for cars and scooters near the fountain.Just opposite to the Chandni Chowk fountain is the famous Gurudwara,a worship place for sikhs in India. After Chandni Chowk,as we move from East to West,comes the area named Fatepuri which is famous for fruit market and Gyani Faluda and ice cream.In between the fatepuri there is a small way which lead to cloth market.You can find all kinds bed sheet covers,pillow covers,clothes for paints and shirts etc in the cloth market.There is also a small market called "tilak bazar" for chemicals,paints and dyes just near the cloth market.Naya bazar comes just after this chemical market.At the centre of Chandni Chowk you can also find a way which lead to another area called "Nai Sarak".Nai Sarak is famous for Saree shops and book shops.You can find all kinds of books at Nai Sarak.After Nai Sarak comes the area "Chawari Bazar" which is the wholesale market for Greeting cards and marriage cards.I am not sure about the spelling of Chawari Bazar.Its either Chawri Bazar or Chawari Bazar.One way from Chawri Bazar move towards "Ajmeri Gate",which is also a famous Gate just opposite to New delhi Railway station.Between Ajmeri Gate and Lahori Gate is the famous G.B Road,where you can find all call girls.When you move from Ajmeri Gate to Lahori Gate,Naya Bazar is just next to Lahori gate Chowk.So again I have reached my office rounding up from different path. Khari Baoli near Naya Bazar is a place where you can find Importers of Gambier, Beetlenuts, Poppy Seeds, Spices, Herbs, Seeds, Spices, Natural Colour,green spices, cardamom, Elaichi, Elakkai, foods, food stuff, pan,Dry Fruits,Cardamom, Black Pepper, White Pepper, Mace, Nutmeg, Cloves, Taj Cassia, PISTACHIO, ALMOND KERNEL, DRY DATES, CLOVES, CASSIA, BETEL NUTS, SPICES etc.World class market for all these items. Chandni Chowk is most famous for its eating places.The eating joints in Chandni Chowk are famous not only in Delhi, but all over India. Most of these date from the last century, some even earlier than that. Mute witnesses to time-induced changes in Chandni Chowk, they have managed to retain their essence and yet move ahead with the times. Here, with every bite one samples not only a delicacy but also a piece of history.Handed down from father to son, many of these businesses are now being managed by the 4th or 5th generations. They include halwais (confectioners), namkeen ( spicy savouries) shops, chaatwalahs and many others.Quality is a top priority, with some even preparing their own spices and using only butter and pure ghee (clarified butter). More often than not, each shop has its own recipes (which are treated like family heirlooms) so that even though two shops may provide the same product, the flavour will differ.More famous eating places in Chandni Chowk are as below: The Ghantewala Halwai It would be appropriate to start with the oldest sweet shop in entire Chandni Chowk. More than two hundred years old, the Ghantewala is a landmark in itself. The shop has always prided itself for the quality of the sweets available, the one most in demand being Sohanhalwa, made from dry fruits, sprouts and sugar. Ghanta' in Hindi means a huge bell. Legend goes that when the royal procession used to move down the road, the emperor would stop and be offered the delicacies from the sweet shop. The emperor's elephant would also be offered sweets. In a short time the animal came to know the shop so well that, procession or no procession, it would refuse to pass through the road and shake its head until the compulsory offering of sweets was made! The bells hanging from the elephant's neck would tinkle melodiously in the process, and from there the shop acquired its name. There is another Ghantewalah Shahi Halwai near the famous fountain. Originally from the same family, the business has now been divided. This shop is also famous for its dry fruits, sohanhalwa, barfis and namkeens. An interesting fact- at present the shop is owned by the 11th generation! Natraj's Dahi Bhalle A typical Punjabi delicacy prepared from Dahi (curd) and Bhalle (a doughnut shaped item made of ground pulses). Dating back to 1940, the shop also provides seating space and is patronized by many famous politicians and film stars. Kanwarji Bhagirathmal Dalbhajiwallah More than 150 years old, this shop is well known for its namkeens like dalbhuji (fried pulses), aalu ka lachha (spicy fried potato sticks) and sweets like barfi and imarti. The shop is famous among the locals simply as 'Kanwarji". Chaatwallah Famous for its Chaat (fruit salad garnished with lots of spices and lemon juice), this tiny shop dates back to 1923. The fruits are fresh and the best that can be obtained from the market while the spices used are specially prepared. Bikaner Sweet Shop Originally from Rajasthan ( formerly a princely city, Bikaner is a famous tourist destination), the shop, till some time back, actually brought water and spices from there to prepare its stuff. It is famous for its rasmalai (a sweet made from milk and cream), bhujia and papar (sun-dried wafer thin accompaniments to meals). Haldiram's Delicious, attractively styled Bengali sweets are the speciality here. The shop also offers namkeens. Dry fruits, sugar, almonds, cardamoms, citric acid and saffron is used in the preparation of the almond squash ( a traditional North Indian drink) known as thandai. Gianiji ka falooda Famous for its Rabri Falooda (milk starch and rice noodles served with crushed ice), the shop dates back to the time of India's independence. Extremely particular about their products quality, the owners manufacture their own ice from filtered water. Lately ice creams have also been included in the menu. Near the Fatehpuri Mosque are two more famous confectioners - 'Meghraj and Sons' and 'Chainaram'.The former dates back to more than a 100 years whereas the latter was established in 1948. Both shops offer exotic Indian sweets and other fried foodstuffs. Chandni Chowk has the distinction of being perhaps the only trade market that also houses an equally amazing number of places of worship of all the prominent Indian religions. Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity and Jainism exist side by sides in the 2 km. stretch between Fatehpur Masjid to Red Fort alone. Here one can find more than seven Hindu and Jain temples, two Churches, three Mosques and two Gurudwaras. This is excluding the numerous smaller shrines that exist in the remoter parts of Chandni Chowk. * Sri Digambar Jain lal Mandir * Jama Masjid * Gurudwara Shish Ganj * Gauri Shankar Temple * Sunehri Masjid Author: Radha Kishan |