Night time drives have always been fun for me. Last night, we rove from Gurgaon to Civil Lines, Delhi to receive mummy, who was returning from the month-long gruelling and, from what I understand, fantastic adventure of the Kailash Mansarover Yatra (she will blog about it in good time, keep your eyes peeled!)

To get to ISBT, we decided to take the Barapulla and then the Ring Road Bypass. It took us barely an hour to get there on a Sunday night and it was a great drive. As I clicked the pics below, feeling a tad foolish for behaving rather like a tourist, I realized that the city is indeed my Muse. Nothing fires my cylinders like the urban environment around me. Pastoral scenes, lovely as they are, can move me immensely. But city scenes, even the filth and haphazardness, make me feel energized. I don’t think I was aware of this when I chose architecture and then urban planning as my subjects of study. I guess, then, I should thank my starts for ending up in the right spot! I must also say, though, that I do not think one needs training to appreciate the city. I know many (authors, painters, photographers, social workers) for whom the City is the Muse…it’s a sign of the time we live in, our increasingly urban identity. And it signifies the natural instinct of human beings to celebrate their surroundings, and to seek happiness and fulfillment in their context.

I cannot get over how pretty the JN Stadium looks as you drive by

Tombs like this strew the landscape of Delhi, reminding us of how our lives intertwine with the ghosts of the past

A faux-Stupa stands in the vast Indraprastha Park along the Ring Road