Agra & The Taj and then Varanasi....

AGRA
So, from Udaipur, we took a 10 hour bus (sleeper) to Agra. We decided to skip Jaipur, as it is mainly a lot of the same of Jodhpur but busier and more touts. Our 10 hour bus trip turned out to be more like 16 and we were exhausted when we got there. The sleeper is great, if you can sleep on the bumpy roads, but at 6AM when the man is wailing down the isle screaming CHAI and children are crying and the lady across is coughing something that sounds like consumption, it starts to get uncomfortable. I must also make mention at this point, that there are no pee-stops like in Thailand. Well, if you are a man you can do so but for women, I find it easier to dehydrate myself and hope that I can hold it. We were lucky enough to stop next to a hotel at 10PM and they were kind enough to let me use their squat toilet for no charge (I was willing to pay) and was good for the bulk of this trip.

Agra, home to The Taj Mahal is a huge tourist city. The Lonely Planet warns of touts and scams and all sorts of bad stuff. So, we tried plan well and arm ourselves with all the info necessary to get off the bus, buy our train tickets, visit the Taj and then get out that night on the train. Didn't happen. First, the bus was very late so instead of arriving at 6:30AM, we started the day more like 10:30AM. Our rickshaw driver told us the train ticket office wasn't open on Sundays and we believed him. He took us to his 'friend' who could sell us a ticket. Very expensive and not today, tomorrow. We ditched that driver and stubbornly walked to a hotel that we found in the book. The hotel was ok and it was nice to have A/C and a television. Actually, I was glued to the Peace Debate from UDenver being broadcast on BBC until we showered and decided to head near the Taj for food and to see what all the hub-bub was about. We had a nice rickshaw driver, he seemed more honest than most and we asked him to drive us the next day to the Taj and Fort. Around the Taj area, the beggars, street vendors, and men trying to pull us into the shop were really strong and overaggressive. Ethan and I had a great time speaking Samoan so noone could understand us and we constantly used the "English no good" line. Some children began to mimic our Samoan words, it was really entertaining and useful with bargaining. It also made them loose interest. The next day, we had our driver take us to the train, where we were unable to book tickets that night, so we booked them for the next day. That meant one more night in Agra. We moved our bags to a cheaper guest house, same owners and headed to the Taj. It was amazing. Although it is Rs750 to go in, they give you a 1/2 liter of water and have refill options available for free. They put us through metal detectors and searched our bags. Ethan had his lighter and our playing cards taken away. But once inside, it was serene and beautiful. The Taj was impressive and we have many pictures for you puruse. It was definately not worth missing, but we were a bit stuck and everything was expensive in Agra. We went to see the Fort but were surprized that they wanted another Rs250 to enter, so opted to just look at it from the outside and head back to rest. We had a great South Indian meal down the street and chilled.

The next day, we lazed around and I finished one more grad school application, while Ethan worked away at finishing his book, until we left to go get the train. At the train station, we watched a festival float go by, tribute to the last day of one of the many Indian festivals. When we got on the train, our bunks were separated and the people there were convinced we should be in the A/C class car, but no, we were in their bunk and it seemed a bit odd to them. The next morning, I made the two boys day by sharing my iPod. The father seemed pleased that I was entertaining his children and the boys helped teach me my numbers in Hindi.




Varansi is the holiest of cities in the Hindu Indian world. They believe that if you die and are cremated in Varanasi at the Ghats of the Ganges river, you are freed from the cycle of death and rebirth. The city is crammed and the alleyways leading up and down to the river flood every year. They are maze-like and crazy-narrow. The touts are everywhere. Men and children following you, some helping you to get unlost and some getting you more lost. If you take a wrong turn into a home, a woman from a dark window yells 'no go' and we apologize and turn around. To quote Lonely Planet, "a walking along the ghats is a 'world class' people watching walk as you mingle with the fascinating mixture of people who come to the Ganges not only for a ritual bath but also to wash clothes, do yoga, offer blessings, buy paan (micture of betel nut and leaves), sell flowers, get a massage, play cricket, wash their buffaloes, get a shave, improve their karma by giving to beggars, or simply loiter. It is itraditional India at its most colorful and most picturesque."

It was a pretty magical place, hence the reason it is also a big tourist stop. We took the sunrise boat trip down the Ganges (see picture of the sun rising) and truly felt the magical vibe of the city. Our boatman gave us some nice insight after feeling trapped between buildings and salesman, drifting down the river was a great way to feel the city. We arrived on an overnight train and spent only one night here, leaving on another night train bound for Calcutta the evening after our sunrise boat trip. More from Calcutta soon....

A young Chai vendor....