14 January
On the road from Agra to Delhi.
It's 10 am and all the markets and shops are opening as we leave the city. It's another foggy, chilly morning and we are glad that we saw the Taj Mahal yesterday afternoon in the hour before sunset. The light was beautiful and it had warmed up some.
Neither of us brought big coats (choosing instead to have layers and layers- heat-tech, leggings, ultralight down vest, etc) and now I am a little apprehensive about going up to the Darjeeling area. I guess I am feeling a little old and cantankerous today :). As it is though, our bags are pretty heavy and I am not sure we could have handled bigger or heavier luggage. I have worn or used every piece of clothing/shoes I am carrying and so far (thankfully!) the major surplus items seem to be in the pharmacy bag.
Aside: we are on an immaculate 6-lane expressway. Ravi says it is a private road- not government.
Here's what we saw yesterday:
Fatehpur Sikri -- Mughal Capitol for 14 years in the late 1500s and abandoned because the population swelled to 30,000 and outgrew the water supply (which adequately supported 5000 for hundreds of years). The emperor who built it (Akbar) was known for his religious tolerance and tried to even start a new religion blending elements of Islam, Hindu, Christian, and Jain. He had 3 wives - Muslim, Hindu, and Christian, and built a separate palace there (and places of worship) for each of them. Very interesting architecture mostly carved out of the local red sandstone. There's a large archaeological project there as well as restoration work going on.
The Red Fort (Agra Fort) - built by Akbar as he moved to Agra. Much of the fort area is being used today by the Indian Army so really only a tiny percentage is open to the public. Interesting approach to the gates with holes and troughs for pouring boiling oil on ones enemy.
Taj Mahal.
Hard parts of the day: riding another early morning train to go from there to here; a tour guide in Agra that walked about 8 feet in front of us and expected us to keep up, and then was not very interesting (he sounded like he had memorized the back of the postcard- and then was surprised that we already knew much of the background and history and could converse about it - and he couldn't go beyond what he had memorized); not enough time to truly explore and I appreciate Fatehpur Sikri because our train was 2 hours behind schedule; a weird hotel and lots of noisy schoolchildren on our floor (very late and very early)-- it sounded like there were 40 of them but it was probably only 10-12.
Best parts of the day: eating our supper at Sheroes Hangout, a cooperative dedicated to helping stop acid attacks on women and children-- an amazing place run by strong, creative, and brave women--the food was so nourishing and yummy; watching the sunset at the Taj Mahal chatting with some nice Aussies; the friendly of our driver Ravi as we left Sheroes (we tried to get him to come inside and at least have tea) - he has really watched out for us and we leave him tomorrow.
Tomorrow brings a flight on Air India to Bagdogra. We will then spend 2 nights in Kalimpong and 3 nights in Darjeeling before coming back for our final round in Delhi.
