Bytes from India by Randa Breuer

I have been living in Delhi for over two years now and have visited most of the main monuments; I have joined heritage walking tours as often as I could.  Yet one important and bustling area eluded me until last weekend. It is a neighborhood that is thronged with multitudes, but not often visited by tourists and expats, despite being a stone’s throw from important Delhi landmarks and a UNESCO heritage site.   Our Sunday walking group led by our professional guide, Mr. Dushyant Singh, met in front of the Nizamuddin Police station. I had no idea what to expect other than a mosque and a stepwell. I knew cars could not go into that area, as many taxi drivers I had asked had refused to take me there in the past.  I knew it was an ethnic muslim area. Beyond that, I was not prepared for the experience. Upon leaving the main road to enter the Nizamuddin enclave, we were immediately transported into a different reality;  a warren of narrow winding streets leading to a labyrinth of stalls and bo