The purpose of this week's travelling was to get me around one of India's most popular travellers jaunts, the Golden Triangle, so-called because its three points represent the tourist's hotspots of Agra, Jaipur and Delhi. Of course the most famous landmark of Agra, and probably the whole country, the Taj Mahal, was as enchanting and as special as everyone makes it out to be, but I also particuarly enjoyed the couple of days I had in Jaipur, where the people, though just as intent on getting a sale as in every other place I've been, seemed a little more easy going and chatty then I'd seen before....or perhaps, I was just less cranky. One thing I think I've learnt about India is that it will not change to suit its travellers. Instead, one has to adapt to it in order to obtain the experience one will enjoy, so no matter how many times saying "no thank you" is annoying, it's only treating people in the way that you are being treated yourself.

Today I arrived in Delhi, and after ten flights, two or three boat rides and countless numbers of buses and trains, this is where my trip ends. It's very surreal to me when I think about how much distance I have travelled in such a short space of time, but it is only in these moments when one has time to reflect, that one may recognize just how far they've come and how much they've done. To me, South America, especially back in May when I met Barbara and the others, could have been a year ago, and I'm sure they'd tell you the same thing. Stranger still, Australia and New Zealand seem like equally distant memories, when in reality, they was only a few weeks back. I've met numerous people on the way who had spent months and years in just one or two of these places which perhaps didn't warrant my envy, but I remember pretty early on I'd made the decision, with expectations of having a long-term full-time job in the not so distant future, to cover as much of the world as I could, and though now I'm just a little bit tired, I'm glad for my decision. I mean I've really seen and done so many things, like the Taj, but also Brazil's salt flats, hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, bunji jumped off Auckland Harbour bridge, sandboarded in a Peruvian oasis just to name a few highlights; all of these things are most likely once in a lifetime experiences, and to have them all over three months is something special that I shan't forget.

It's been really nice reading everyone's comments when I've been able to get on the internet, some very encoraging, some not so complimentary, but all reminders of how interested everyone was in my round the world adventure. So thank you, all of you for your words. (I said this would be a better idea than sending emails!)

Finally, of the people I've met, I can only say complimentary things. At first, I must confess I really found it difficult to accept having to leave some of them, in the knowledge that it was nothing more than a stroke of fortune, a coincidence that they were in the same place that I was for that very day in time, but i guess I soon realised it is something the traveller must get their head around if they are to carry on meeting those with like minds. One thing I cannot deny, however, is that there are one or two who I may only thank good fortune for having let us cross paths, perhaps those who I may have just as easily have walked past in the street back home without giving them a second glance. For this and for my whole adventure, I am extremely fortunate.