We woke up at 4 am again mostly because we couldn't sleep anymore, but also to prepare for our journey to Agra. We took our normal spot in the darkness of the rooftop restaurant waiting to see if one of the hotel staff would miraculously be awake at 4 again... We waited and watched the street below come alive with the first vendors and cows wandering the streets while being dodged by rickshaws and backpackers. Another morning of toast and coffee while we played rummi (I won... Not to rub it in or anything.)
Around what we thought was 5:45 we checked out and began our trek to the train station only to find our driver was already downstairs waiting for us. We couldn't get train tickets so we hired a driver to make the 4-5 hour journey. Pretty amazing to have air conditioning all day long when it's about 100 degrees outside with 100% humidity (probably over exaggerating a little, but not much! We had a thunder storm last night and it didn't let up on the humidity one bit.)
We set off for Agra and saw the last bits of Delhi pass us by. All these places started to crop up even before we left the city of Delhi. The Old fort is similar to the Red Fort, but older and crumbling a little bit. Beautiful old trees and vegetation growing through the roofs and I swear these places are each their own bird sanctuary! We have seen more falcons and hawks than I have ever seen in one place before. Farther along the road we got a flat tire just as a camel caravan past. The locals were all very happy to see us! Everyone always asks where we are from and then speaks to our driver laughing!
Getting back on the road we saw monkeys with their babies hanging out in the trees and stopped off at a really touristy hotel where a boy, about 15, was sitting out front with a baby python and a cobra for us to hold and play with! Jess even got to play the little flute to hypnotize it a bit. Onward to a the tomb of Itmad-Ud-Daulah, a Moghal ruler, right outside of Agra. It was an actual animal sanctuary with more monkeys, birds, deer, and antelope! We were stopped by several families and groups to take pictures with them! I have never felt sillier, but it was great fun! Finally we got to see the tomb itself and the building was the first of it's kind to be made out of marble with honeycomb designs carved in and intricate paintings.
Finally we hit the city of Agra and stopped off at the baby Taj, a tomb for the same family that built the Taj Mahal. It was beautiful, but also infested by scary looking red assed monkeys! Our final stop before the hotel was a lookout spot across the river from the actual Taj Mahal! I can't even begin to tell you how beautiful and massive that place is! On top of the view of the Taj Mahal we saw a cremation ceremony, tons more ruins, and the Agra Fort.
Finally we make it to this really touristy hotel (it was complementary with the driver) had a quick wash and had our first proper meal of the day... All I know is once we came home we are not even going to try to go back out today! This has been overwhelming enough and with the heat and tummy rumblings beginning we decided to take it easy in the hotel room tonight. (aka pass out, watch Indian TV or read. all I know is the soap operas and music videos here are worth the TV alone!)
That's all for day two. I can't believe it's only been 2 days! I have been loosing track of any sense of time or place! I feel like I have already been here for at least a week! Off to the Taj Mahal tomorrow then an overnight train to Mumbai.
