Sunday 13th January 2002; Delhi

I've had a wonderful day. It transpires host Ravi is a music critic for Indian newspapers so is very well informed about things musical. This morning host Shashi and four of her teaching colleagues organised a tour of significant sites for several of us visitors. We took in, among other things, the handicraft musiem, a number of temples and ruins and what at first I thought must be the Sydney Opera House, transferred to Delhi!

This was in fact the Bahai Lotus temple - perhaps slightly 'hyped' up but nevertheless very beautiful. It was overwhelming simply by its sheer size - roofs like the Opera House sails and a massive acoustic impact inside.

Even more fascinating for me and possibly far less physically imposing - but spiritually quite compelling - was our visit to a small Jain temple. Jains are in effect very strict Hindus who will not kill anything and are so determined in this that they walk with great care and refuse to adorn themselves with any fabric or item that might once have been alive. Apparently the most radical are so committed that they effectively starve themselves to death. This temple was elevated with views out over Delhi, and a massive buddha-like statue of Mahendra who I understand was a founder of the faith.

Having seen the film 'Monsoon Wedding' some days earlier we were delighted when we arrived at a Punjabi Sikh temple to discover that the reception for a Punjabi wedding was being held. We were invited - in fact expected to take part in the blessing rituals.

Now our colleagues treated us to a picnic lunch in the Lohre Gardens where it seemed many Delhi families came for recreation and play. The gardens have old Indo-Islamic temples still standing. Our friends had a marvelous vegetarian spread and I was delighted to find that a Punjabi desert of curd and palm syrup was identical to the buffalo curd and jaggery sauce I had so much enjoyed in my six month's stay in Sri Lanka in 1999.

Our Australian teachers learn an Indian Stick Dance