Up at 4:45 am, check out of the hotel, check my luggage with the bellman, and pick up by my driver at 5:30 am for the short ride to the train station to catch the Express Executive Train (well see how "executive" this is) at 6:15 am. Scheduled to arrive in Agra at 8:30 am. It is always amazing to me how your body clock works. I woke up at 4:39 - - 6 minutes before the wake up call. So far everything according to schedule. I got several bottles of purified water and a bag of snacks to take with me since I don't know what eating arrangements lie in store for me on this tour. Purified water and no ice (only wine and beer) have been the norm here since you can't use water from the tap here since it isn't pure.
Everything was right on time - the Executive Class is certainly better than the coach class or even reserved class. We have air condition and you get a reserved, comfortable seat. We even had tea service and crackers. They served a breakfast but the food was unrecognizable so I passed on that. The regular trains are so dirty and have people crammed into them. They hang out the doors. We passed lots of villages on the 2 hour train ride to Agra. Cqualid, dirty, poor, and desolate are words that come to mind. It really makes you appreciate what we have.
The train got to Agra right on schedule at 8:30 am. My tour guide and driver (Ravi) were there to meet me. After making a quick stop at the Tour office, we haded straight to the Taj Mahal - the highlight of my visit to India and Agra. We had to park our car in a remote lot and take an electric bus to the entrance as they don't allow cars any longer to cut down on the pollution. Some people rode on a camel drawn cart but the camels looked very dirty and smelly so Iiked the little bus better. We entered the grounds through the East Gate. The Taj Mahal itself is symmetrical and it sits on a river that is mostly dried up. On moving through the North gate, the view of the Taj Mahal is abrolutely breath-taking. I stood there in awe of it and just stared at it.
The Taj Mahal was bult by Shad Jahan, the 3rd Moghul emperor out of love for his #3 wife, Nuntez Mahal. She died at age 38 giving birth to her 14th child. She was beautiful and Shah Jahan had the Taj Mahal built over a 20 year period in the mid 1600's to honor her beautyand his love for her. It took over 20,000 people to build the tomb and both he and she are entombed under the white dome. The white marble for the Taj Mahal came from Makrana in the Rajasthan region. There is a mosque facing west and to keep it all symmetrical, they built a structure just like the mosque but it as used for guests to stay in. There are gardens, fountains, grassy areas, trees, and small canals all around. I also saw the bench that Princess Diana sat on in the plaza in front of the Taj Mahal. It was all absolutely breath-taking. I sat in the shade with my guide for quite a while after walking around just taking in its beauty. My guide told me a lot about the history. The white marble stone, inlaid semi-precious stones - exquisite. He must have loved her so very much to have such a beautiful thing built in her honor.
We left and drove a short way in Agra to a craft store where I got to see a short movie about how the marble for the Taj Mahal was obtained and carved and inlaid. I then got to see 4 young boys chiseling marble and shaping small stones to inlay in table tops. Their fingers were so calloused. I then got the usual sales pitch for an inlaid marble table top that would look "boo-wrong" in Florida. Then I made a fatal mistake. I couldn't help but look at some of the handmade rugs. This then led me to a loom where 2 young boys were tying knots and cutting the wool threads so fast. It was fascinating to watch them. Then I got the sale pitch again for rugs! Over the next 30 minutes they pulled out a room full of rugs for me to view. Here we go again. Silk, wook, and blend carpets all handmade in Agra. High know counts, and low know counts. I got caught up in the moment. I had my eye on a beautiful 8X10 silk and wool carpet that as hanging on the wall. It had cobalt blue in the background but there was too much green in it - so that killed it for me. Nothing else hit me. Assar Fazili was devaastated that I wasn't going to buy but he gave me one of his cards in case I changed my mind. I obliged them by looking at the rest of the crafts - wood, brass, cashmere, marble boxes, ett but once again, I don't need any other bric-brac at home. It was fun looking.
My driver and guide thaen took me to Agra Fort. I now understand why they didn't takeme to the Red Fort in Delhi as this one is huge - it has a moat all around and 3 gates to get to the inside castle. It as built in 1565 by Emperor Akbar and eventually became a palace for his grandson - Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal. I saw where the Shah lived and the harem area where the concubines and wives lived. No men other than the emperor and the eunochs were allowed here and this is where the harem "entertained" the emperor. It was a beautiful view up the river from the emperor's quarters of the Taj Mahal. Absolutely stunning. Today is another Highlight Day for me.
As we lft the fort, I was innundated with merchants and beggars selling post cards, wooden statues, marble, whips, and other nic-nacs. The best way to deal with this is to ignore them and never look at them. The drive took me then to the Agra Hilton for a leisurely lunch and I had Indian food - chicken kabobs in Indian mint sauce and lamb in curry with vegetables and flat bread with jam. It wasn't naan bread but I can't remember what they called it - thin and crispy and good bread. My mouth was as hot as I was hot outside but the KingFisher beer (made in India) helped solve that problem.
The driver and guide picked me up at 3 pm for a 1 hour drive to Fatchow Sikri - calle the ghost city since it was built, inhabited for 15 years and then abandoned. It ssat way up on top of a hill and had 3 sections - the lower, middle and upper. In the lower, any condemned person as put by an elephant and the elephant stomped them to death! Ugh! The architecture was amazing and King Akbar built it after a sage had predicted that he would have a male heir (when he had only girls) - within a year a male heir was born. He build different palaces for ech of his wives - the Hindu being the smallest palace for some reason. But he believed in coexistence of the different religions and had carvings in the palaces to reflect this belief.
The ride t and from Fatchow Sikro was interesting too. Straw huts were in the fields where they store the cow dungs used for fire instead of wood. There were women carrying large baskets of dried dung on their heads down the streets, packed public buses, tuktuks and bicycles going everywhere, and the many carts and people in the street markets buying and selling fruit and vegetables.
Today was the hottest day I've even experienced - my guide told me it got to 124 degrees F! I've never felt such heat - even in the shade. I couldn't stay in the sun for long and don't remember how many bottles of water I drank to keep hydrated. They dropped me back at the Hilton for later afternoon tea, to cool off in the air conditioning, and rest befure my trip back on the train to New Delhi. It is scheduled to leave Agra at 8:30 and they tell me always operates on schedule (more to come on this!).
The ride to the train station as interesting in Agra at night - none of the bicycles had reflectors - and when this huge bull with large horns bumped into our car, I thought I'd lose it. We got to the train station at 8:10 only to find out that the always on time train was delayed. While we waited, the power in the entire station went out 4 times - we stood there in the dark - a bit disconcerting but my guide was with me the entire time. So long story - short - - they announced for 1 hour and 20 minutes that my train was arriving on Track 2. All the while every panhandler, every shoe shine person, and every defored person in Agra approached me. (Don't look at them - don't look at them!). I also t\got to see many of the unreserved trains come through the station wile we waited. Don't ever take one of these or even a sleeper car - they are packed in like sardines and sometimes hanging out the doors. The train ride was a farce - since it was late, many people were snoring throughout the car - quite noisy but funny to me.
The train finally arrived at 9:45 and we left for New Delhi at 9:50 for the 2 1/4 hour trip so I should be okay for checking in for my 2:25 am flight. I switched seats on the train with a British couple so they could sit together - so I ended up sitting by the window by a turbanded Indian man who was eating the train food like he hadn't eaten in a month - and unfortunately, was passing gas - this was such a delightful experience. I passed on the Indian food they served on the train since it was indescribable and I have made it 5 weeks now without Montezuma's Revenge so I didn't want to contract that during my last week out.
We arrived back in New Delhi at 12:30 - delayed along the way due to the civil disruptions in Rajasthan and the trains were diverted due to that. Kurian was there to meet me thank goodness. He had already picked up my bag from the hotel and we dashed off forthe Indira Gandhi International Airport. India has been suah a great experience. Visiting the Taj Mahal is well worth it - even putting up with the filth, beggars, peddlers, and lack of conveniences that we take for granted. The Taj Mahal is definitely one of the Top 3 Highlights of my Around the World Trip so far. But my recommendation is never go to India without a guide every step of the way.
There was a full moon tonight that I could see from the train. As my India adventure drew to a close, I couldn't help but wonder what the Taj Mahal looked like under that full moon
