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Day 8 - At 4.30 we got up and headed through a dark Jaipur to find our train. Luckily clearly labelled platforms showed us where to go and we found ourselves next to some nice people who worked in Swindon. The journey was nice and cool in AC and with men walking up and down with water, chai and breakfast it made for an enjoyable few hours. After reaching our plain but nice room at Hotel Sidhartha we walked to buy tickets for the Taj Mahal. Luckily our hotel is 1minute away from the Western Gate and the start of our first monsoon rains meant queues were non-existent. Soon we had befriended a cycle rickshaw driver who took us past elephants and camels to view the massive Agra Fort then onto the delicately decorated Itimad-ud-Daulah or Baby Taj and the hidden riverside tomb of Chini-Ka-Rauza. The rickshaw wallah insisted Olivia and I tried riding his bike - luckily it was suprisingly easy, and the roads were quiet! Finally at the lovely Mehtab Bagh park and gardens we were on the bank opposite the Taj. Seeing it properly for the first time was an amazing moment, also to be the only ones in the park, except for our driver and a few boys playing catch, made it very peaceful. That night we found our hotels rooftop restaurant and despite its tribe of monkeys we managed a quick look our over the Taj.
Day 9 - And so the time had come to view the Taj. At 5.30am we queued up at the West Gate and after a short wait entered. The Taj was absolutely beautiful and even better than the pictures. Wandering round in the early morning light when it was almost empty made for an indescribable experience. The mosque and parks were impressive in their own right but the Taj's decoration up close and the two cenotaphs in white marble were stunning. After compulsory touristy photos, the quiet Taj museum housed architectural drawings, plaster work and plates which cracked if poisoned food was served on them. After one last look, a return to the hotel saw a warm?! banana milkshake breakfast interuptred by simultaneous moneky and cow invasions of the hotel! One day left in Agra then back to Jaipur before our first sleeper train to Mumbai - wish us luck!
Day 10 - Today's breakfast consisted of banana porridge and a banana milkshake, replaced by a hot chocolate which the waiter then removed and a chocolate milkshake appeared! Soon we autorickshawed to the Mughal tomb of Akbar's Mausoleum, a lovely red colour with white minarets and large numbers of deer in the grounds amongst palm trees. We then drove past a white Gudwara and the Baby Taj to reach Swami Bagh - a mausoleum still being built after 80 years! A quick trip to the Jama Masjid involved much pestering by children but was still worth a look round. Agra's massive Fort was impressive both for its sheer size and bits of intricate detail and offered great views of the Taj from old thrones. On the way back we loved our trip to a "teaching centre for marble work", sadly we decided not to purchase large, heavy slabs to bring home. After lunch and a chat with an English teacher we got on our train back to Jaipur. Agra's Taj is spectacular but it was lovely seeing other parts of the town which although much quieter were equally as breathtaking. At Jaipur our driver met us from the station with his sign for Cathorine Dumaore and we found ourselves at our very blue room in the Royal Aayshina Palace hotel.
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