Historically speaking: Delhi’s parks

Delhi would probably be the only city in the world where you could walk through different centuries along the same path. Nothing substantiates the claim better than Delhi’s public parks. Located a hop, skip and a jump away from the India International Centre, Lodhi Gardens, transport you to an era of the Lodhi and Sayyid dynasties. A breather from the hustle-bustle of the city, the garden attracts many fitness enthusiasts along with hundreds of visitors who throng to Lodhi for a moment or two of solitude. The best thing about Lodhi Garden is the perfect alchemy of modern landscaping, re-created by J.A. Stein and Garrett Eckbo in 1968 with the medieval architecture.

Central Delhi, on the other hand, has the pick of the lot, as it houses The Rose Garden, Nehru Park and the India Gate Lawns. Spread over 85-acres, Nehru Park is famous for playing host to many music concerts around the year. Famed for attracting families for picnics, or late night ice-creams, winters are the best time to take a long walk along the India Gate Lawns at Rajpath.

Spread over 20-hectares with over 200 varieties of plants, the Garden of Five Senses at Syed Ul-Ajab village, near the Mehrauli heritage is a blend of natural bounty and subtle human creation. An interactive installation art, sounds of ceramic bells, waterfalls along with food courts complete this sensory journey.

Some of the other green havens that the city offers include the famed Shalimar Gardens on the Delhi-Karnal Road, and once served as a venue for the crowning of Aurangzeb. “Tal” meaning tank and “katora” meaning cup, the Talkatora Gardens at Willingdon Crescent Road once housed a huge walled tank. The gardens, nevertheless, are worth checking out, despite the well being replaced by a swimming pool.

The Mughal gardens, Zoological Gardens, Buddha Jayanti Park, Millennium Park, Yamuna Water Front and the local DDA parks, too, dot the city’s landscape.

In fact, every nook and cranny of Delhi has some historical fable attached to it; all you have to do is take some time out, and time-travel to different era’s.

Go on, be ready to be transported!