Delhi is one of those capital cities round the world — like Cairo, Nairobi, Bangkok, Athens and Johannesburg — where travellers only seem to stay longer than a few days if they are trying to replace stolen passports or travellers cheques or have screwed up their travel arrangements and are waiting on a shortlist to leave the country. All the others seem to head out of town to more touristy destinations as soon as possible with tales about what an awful place Delhi is.

If you are even remotely interested in the history and culture of India ,then Delhi is a fascinating place to linger for a few days, get over the jet lag and get into the swing of being in India. There are two distinct parts of Delhi — New Delhi and Old Delhi. Old Delhi has to be one of the most hectic and crowded parts of the world. It is centred on the massive sandstone walls of the Lal Qila —the Red Fort. The fort was built by Shah Jahan, the Mughal emperor who built the Taj Mahal.

From the walls of the fort you can look out to the Yamuna River, the same river which flows past the Taj and the similarly styled Red Fort in Agra.

Just at the foot of these walls you will often see a group of itinerant snake charmers who will perform for the tourists for a few minutes and then yell angrily at anyone who wanders off without throwing down a few coins.

All manner of beggars and cripples hang outside of the Red Fort to swamp unsuspecting tourists and hassle them out of some money. Pause to look at a map for a few seconds and they will come at you from all angles like a nightmare scene from a Brughel painting.

From the Red Fort it is only a short walk up to the Jama Masijd, the largest mosque in India which is over 300 years old. The mosque is immense and you can climb to the top of one of the 40 metre high minarets for an unparalleled view of the old city and on a clear (relatively pollution-free) day you can even see New Delhi. The steps leading up the minaret are very cramped and burst out onto a low platform shielded by a very low wall. As is the case in India there is little or no crowd control and pushing is the order of the day. It can be quite dangerous up there if it gets too crowded.

From the mosque you should take a walk round the bazaar leading up to the mosque. All manner of street traders ply their business here including dentists who will pull your teeth and fit you with a secondhand false set as the crowds mill past. Leading back to the Red Fort, which is a good place to pick up a free auto-rickshaw, is the totally manic Chandi Chowk. This is the main shopping street in Old Delhi and is always a crush of the weirdest mix of people and things, day and night.

New Delhi is a marked contrast to the chaos of Old Delhi. The city was created by the architect Lutyens when the British moved their capital from Calcutta in the early 1900s. Following the two Indian Mutinies the British hold on the Raj was slipping and they tried to create a brand new capital as their attempt to impress the natives.

The centrepiece of Old Delhi is Raj Path, leading down from the India Gate to the Parliament buildings and the Rashtrapati Bhavan. This used to be the residence of the British viceroy but is now the official home of the president. A well worn story is how the natural dip in the Raj Path hides the Rashtrapati Bhavan on the approach which was the cause of major contention at the time. The area around the Raj Path is thriving as street traders selling snacks and the ubiquitous snake-charmers vie for your attention.

The commercial centre of New Delhi is Connaught Place. This was once a refined area in the city of the Raj, with elegant shops and businesses. It is still a relatively relaxed area to shop, bank and sort out travel arrangements, but the street life which makes up India is here with a passion. You can buy virtually anything here from out of date magazines to roasted maize, from single cigarettes to bad copies of fashion labels. All round the outside are the old colonial buildings with their columned facades hung with matting to try and offer shoppers some protection from the noonday sun.

A little further out of town are some more remnants of Delhi's colourful history. The easiest way to get there is to get a few people and take once of the old metered taxis which crowd Connaught Place. These taxis are Ambassador cars — based on the old Morris Oxford. When production ceased on the Oxford the entire production line was sold to an Indian company and they have been churning them out ever since.

The first site to head for is the Humayun's Tomb, which was built over 400 years ago and is precursor of the Taj Mahal in Agra. Another tremendous structure is the Safdarjang Tomb, built in 1754 at the very end of the Mughal period — the muslim leaders who ruled India and built many of the great monuments which are associated with India.

The grounds of these tombs are quiet and relaxing, especially after the hustle and bustle of the city. Further afield, on the way to the ruins of Tughlaqabad, the so-called third city of Delhi — there is the Qutab Minar. The Qutab Minar was built some 800 years ago to celebrate the crushing of the last Hindu kingdom by the muslims. The tower is a 73 metre high free standing stone tower, decorated by quotes from the Koran. The tower has been closed for a number of years since, with typical Indian enthusiasm a school party stampeded to the top of the tower and a number of them fell off.

Next to the Tower there is a mosque made out of the ruins of a number of Hindu temples and covered in various finely detailed carvings. In the middle of the mosque there is an iron pillar which is said to be over 2000 years old. It is of such purity that it has never rusted in all of this time. Legend says that it is good luck if you can reach backwards round the pillar and touch your hands together. This is quite a task, but there is always someone there ready to yank on your arms to make sure that your fingertips touch — even at the risk of dislocating your shoulders.

On the way back from this excursion you will no doubt be caught in one of the monumental traffic snarl ups which characterise Delhi. You will certainly find yourself gagging for breath as the smog from the two-stroke engines of all the auto-rickshaws gets boiled in the sun. Delhi is a horribly crowded, dirty, smelly and hectic place. But it's also great fun. Survive for a week here and you are ready to take anything which India can throw at you.