Holy Cow, India!

Of course it’s only appropriate that you end up in a third world country sleep deprived and unprepared. First we arrived in Dubai after an early morning of shark diving and four in-flight movies when we had our first encounter with the squatty potty. After a few seconds of contemplation, it was decided that we didn’t have to go that bad and we waited for our flight to India. Having finally arrived in Delhi we needed to figure out how to cover a lot of ground in not a lot of time. We originally planned on trains, but some tickets were not available and we would be arriving and departing at strange times of the day. Our better judgment said go with a car hire, so after being taken to the “official tourist office” by rickshaw we found our way to the real one and got a recommendation for Grace India Holiday. It was more than we had budgeted for transport but figured it would be money well spent as it would be safer, easier, and give us more flexibility.

As most of our day was spent figuring out travel logistics we didn’t see too much of Delhi. We met our friendly driver, Karma, and the non AC Ambassador we would be spending many hours in and headed straight for Agra to admire the Taj Mahal. Cars are no longer permitted to drive within a certain radius of the monument as the pollution has begun to leave the pearly white marble with a dull tint. Nonetheless, this melancholy work of love does not disappoint as we walked through the arch to view the mausoleum of Emperor Shah Jahan’s most beloved and third wife. Heart-broken after she died giving birth to their 14th child, he began construction of her elaborate tomb that was adorned with semiprecious gems. It took a workforce of 20,000 and a total of 22 years to complete. Arriving just after dawn, we were able to catch the sparkle of inlayed sapphire and crystal as the sunlight hit the stones just right. Next we drove around the outside of Agra fort, followed with the cash cow treatment as we are chauffeured to local stores selling the famous wares of the city.

To finish the Golden Triangle, we drove to Jaipur where we explored the intricate Amber Fort, City Palace, and Galtaji, the monkey temple. Many forts, like Amber, still possess temples where Hindu’s come to worship. As we made our trek up the back way to the gates, in theory to avoid street vendors, we pass by hundreds of locals coming to celbrate and we catch some interesting sights. First, we see a young boy painted in blue posing as the deity Rama, then we pass by a skinny white bearded snake charmer yelling “Bakshesh” as he opens his can and a cobra pops out. And before I know it, I have a red bindi dotted on my forehead and a red thumbed toothless woman asking for a couple Rupees. With the ticket booth in sight, we tip the elderly woman and make our way into the fort. There are many small chambers and hallways throughout the fort as well as a beautiful room decorated in nothing but tiny mirror tiles. Next, was the City Palace which seemed pretty uninteresting after the fort. But our interest was peaked again after a visit to Galtaji temple, where hundreds of monkeys have set up residence.