Intense, Incredible, India!

21-25 November 2010

The sights and smells of Delhi whizzed by us, quite literally. By the
time we successfully picked up my sister Sarah and cousin Kevin from
the airport, ate platefuls of delicious Indian cuisine, and survived
our first auto-rickshaw ride we were on a train bound for Agra, home
to the Taj Mahal.

As we munched on chickpea nuggets and chicory coffee, we watched the
Indian countryside awaken from the comfortable seats of the train.
Arriving in Agra in the late morning, we headed to an ancient city
called Fatehpur Sikri.

There, we laughed as goats dressed like people
(or as Kevin would say, “like pharmacists”) begged fruit off Indian
tourists, were amused by the begging children who were transfixed by
Nick’s “Ali Baba” beard, were awestruck by the intricate marble carved
rooms and buildings, and last but not least were pestered by numerous
men offering us their guide services. After an early dinner, we headed
back to our hotel in the rain, hopeful that the next days’ weather
would be better for our visit to the Taj Mahal.


We approached the west gate of the Taj Mahal just before dawn only to
realize that the ticket booth was about a kilometer or so back up the
road. Why would the ticket booth be up the road you ask? I think the
only answer for that is, this is India. While Nick and Kevin grabbed a
bicycle rickshaw back to the ticket booth, Sarah and I hung out near
the entrance and fended off the early morning nagging to buy
bracelets, marble carvings, postcards, calendars, and Taj Mahal
t-shirts. Yikes.


By 6:30am we were inside the gates to the Taj Mahal, excited to catch
our first glimpse of this grand wonder of the world. In the early
morning haze, the Taj Mahal appeared to be almost an illusion –
blending into and blurred by the pollution and grey skies. It was
surreal; it looked like it did not exist.


We spent the next few hours walking through and around the Taj. The
cloud colored marble inlayed with semi-precious stones was sublime.
The intricate designs carved out of the marble were magnificent.
Everything about the Taj was beautiful. As the sun rose higher in the
cloudy sky, the large tour groups started to arrive –signaling to us
that it was time to leave and get some breakfast. We went to a nearby
hotel where we could enjoy breakfast on the roof with a perfect view
of the Taj Mahal. Sitting there on the serene rooftop, we were shocked
when the guy at the next table said “Hey, didn’t we meet in Lukla, how
did you ever get out of there?” HA!


Later that day we hired an auto-rickshaw to take us to what is known
as the “Baby Taj Mahal” or Itmad-Ud- Daulah. For us, this was the
highlight of our time in Agra. Our driver was hilarious and brutally
honest, and the Baby Taj was peaceful, uncrowded, and its inlaid
marble was even more impressive than the Taj Mahal proper. Our driver
suggested that we go down to the river to get a view of the Taj Mahal
from the backside. The view was lovely, but we were hungry and soon
headed to yet another rooftop to enjoy a spicy, curried Thanksgiving
feast while enjoying the fading light on the Taj Mahal.


At 4am the next morning we found ourselves at a train station littered
with possibly hundreds of people sleeping on the ground. Dodging
sleeping bodies, we found our seats, secured our bags, and enjoyed
another sleepy early morning train ride to Jaipur and the state of
Rajasthan. We will spend the next week and a half touring through
Rajasthan, making our way through Jaipur, Udaipur, and Jaisalmer via
train before heading back to Delhi.