The Golden Triangle

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Make way for the Elephants

India's Golden Triangle: Delhi, Agra & Jaipur

Once again, I'm playing catch up with this blog, recounting some of my travels from the past few weeks. Like the last entry, my true location is different than the one I've listed above, as I'm actually in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan on the edge of the desert, having just returned from an overnight camel safari! But since I'd like to discuss prior events, I'm allocating this entry to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal as I highlight The Golden Triangle

I also wanted to take a moment to acknowledge that I've been gone a month already (14 to go, and maybe more?) and so much has happened. It's surprising how acclimated I've become to the frenzy that is India, the food, the culture, and I've even picked up a decent amount of Hindi. While I've been gone the dems took control of the house and senate (woo hoo!) and the colts lost their first game (a blessing in disguise; I still plan on watching them win the superbowl when I'm in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania! Not sure how, but that's another story)

Some housekeeping ... once again, my internet connection is extremely slow. Therefore, this blog entry won't contain photos. Fortunately, I've already uploaded the photos on this site and when I get the chance, I'll add a couple photos to this entry. For now, sit back, relax and enjoy the tales of David, Holli, and Trish as they emerge from the Himalaya mountains on a frenetically paced tour of some of India's most famous sites.


On November second our trekking group returned to the town of Ranikhet for showers and meals before heading back to Delhi via jeep and train, which provided enough time for me to finish reading Life of Pi which I had started back home.

Pulling into Delhi after a week plus in the traniquil mountains was a shock to the system, even though I had spent 48 hours in the nation's capital just ten days prior. This time, however, our train glided past the most impovershed neighborhoods and slums I have ever seen. We saw families living in hovels within sprawlling piles of garbage and back-alley homes jutting up against the railroad tracks that looked like scenery from a post-apocalyptic science fiction movie. The images that came to my mind most readily were those of war-torn Iraq and Afghanistan, only Delhi is not currently under siege. These were just everyday living conditions in the skid rows of Delhi. The Himalayan villagers we had encountered were inherently poor and have little access to modern medicine or creature comforts. But the destitute living conditions of those living right in the heart of India's captial were extremelty disheartening. I'm not sure how to reconcile these feelings or how to engage in community improvements, especially with my short time in India, so for now I'll just share it in writing and regret that I did not take any pictures for documentation.

Arriving Delhi in the evening, most of our NOLS gang went out for dinner in the huge shopping area of Connaught Place. The following morning (11/4) we took a half-day tour of some city sights admist a thick cloud of air pollution, claimed to be "fog," by our tour guide. First, we took in the India Gate, a 42m high stone memorial arch with the names of approximately 90,000 Indian army soldiers who died in WWI . The gate is located near the Indian President's official residence, and coincidentally, we arrived at its gates just in time to witness a theatrical changing of the guard.

Later, we headed over to Qutb Minar, a complex of unique structures including a victory tower built in 1193 built when Islamic forces took over the city of Delhi from its Hindu rulers, and a mosque. Qutab Minar really provided the first glimpse of unique Islamic architecture in India, which is most famously on display at the Taj Mahal in Agra.

After Qutb Minar, our tour guide informed us, "it's time to visit my friend for Kashmiri tea." But as is often the case in India, we were really being thrust into one of the countrys staple tourist traps, a souvenir showroom. Soon we found ourselves seated in a Kashmiri rug workshop "with no obligation to buy" anything. While the side trip was somewhat annoying - mostly because we didn't know it was coming and some in the group had requested to visit other local sights - the sales pitch was actually very educational. We saw an array of beautiful, even incomprehensible artfully crafted rugs, in every color and in every size imaginable. We learned how the rugs are made, how to spot lower quality, imitation Kashmiri rugs. And in all honesty, the tea was pretty tasty. If I had a home somewhere, I might have considered a purchase. But I decided not to accesorize my backpack.

At noon(ish) the NOLS trip was officially over and we returned to our hotel for some R&R, cable TV, and showers. A few dedicated members of the group went for more shopping, and then we all had a final dinner before the first of our party returned to the U.S.


Leaving Delhi
The following morning, Holli, Trish and I departed the capital for some more of India's famous sights. We had arranged for three days with a car and driver to make an effective use of time, as Holli had only a few days before her flight home. Side note - at lunch, we stopped at a restaurant where I saw the Indiana/India bumper sticker featured in my first blog. If I find a place to buy one, I can guarantee it will be affixed to my nalgene!

First stop, Akbar's Tomb.
Akbar was known as the first great Mughal (Islamic) emperor in India. The original Mughal emperor came to power in 1526, and I can't honestly remember when Akbar took the throne. Google it yourself for once! But as I was saying, Akbar is known as the first GREAT Mughal emperor, having done many positive things for the country by creating schools, hospitals, libraries, etc. The tomb featured a sprawling lawn and gardens home to deer, and stone pathways crowded with monkeys. The overall sandstone and marble structure was a beautiful memorial, and again, helped to build some anticipation of our upcoming visit to the Taj Mahal.


Agra and the Taj Mahal
We arrived in Agra, home of the Taj, in the early evening of November 5, night of the full moon. I had heard from a friend (and from my Lonely Planet guidebook) that the Taj Mahal is spectacular under the full moon, because the moonlight brings out a unique glow from the jeweled marble structure. We decided not to pay to enter the Taj proper at night, rather to try and view from a distance. Our driver laughingly drove us to a viewpoint via a relatively sketchy hole in the gates along a nearby dirt road. We saw nothing. I'm guessing that moonlight viewings are better in summer, when the full moon rises in semi-daylight as opposed to full darkness, or we should've gone an hour earlier. In any case, our photos are laughable. So we returned to our hotel where a James Bond marathon was well underway.

We left the hotel before dawn the following morning to visit the Taj Mahal at sunrise. A local guide met us in the hotel lobby and provided invaluable insight into the history of the marvelous masoleum. The Taj Mahal was built by a Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal who passed away in 1631 giving birth to their 14th child. Construction began that year, but it took 20,000 workers a total of 22 years (working by hand around the clock) to build the impressive structure. Materials and artisans were hired from throughout India, Asia and Europe for the Taj.

We've all seen pictures of the Taj Mahal, and fortunately for yours truly, it's a very photogenic building. You can't take a bad picture of the darn thing. The entry gates and walkways have all been designed with precision and wonderful symmetry. The entire building is made of a white, luminescent marble, inlaid with jewels. Both marble in inlays luminesce in different qualities of light - most notably, sunrise, sunset and full moon. And inside the Taj, locals shine flashlights directly onto the marble to demonstrate its magic (I managed to capture one decent photo of the exterior that shows one or two of the inlaid jewels glowing in the sunrise, but it was much more visible in person).

I don't really know how to sum up the Taj. On one hand, it was so incredible that if I were departing India through Delhi, I would strongly consider a return visit for another day. It was that beautiful and fascinating. On the other hand, if you're sitting in the U.S. thinking of taking a trip overseas to see a grandiose architectural masterpiece, I'd send you to Cambodia's Angkor Wat first (hopefully, if you're contemplating travel there are many more things to consider, I'm just trying to come up with a frame of reference).


After the tour, we visited a nearby marble workshop to learn a little bit about the craftsmanship that went into construction (and still goes into refurbishments) for the Taj Mahal. Of course, we were also encouraged to purchase souveniers, and this time I caved in.

We basically skipped over another famous Golden Triangle Site, the Amber Fort, in favor of hitting the road. We stopped at the gate for pics and moved on.

Next, we visited Fatehpur Sikri, Akbar's (remember him, from the tomb ... the first GREAT Mughal emperor?) ... Capital city of India, which lasted for a whopping 14-year stint from 1571 to 1585. As great an emperor as he was, the capital was placed in a drought-ridden desert, so it only existed for a short-lived tenure. Nonetheless, the ruins made for a nice visit to see more historical architecture.


Keoladeo Ghana National Park/Bird Sanctuary
Still going strong after our pre-dawn awakening, we entered the desert state of Rajasthan for a visit to KGNP. The park is a natural wetland area and famed as a bird sanctuary in which thousands upon thousands of migratory birds stop in their comings and goings. According to locals, rain has been very low this year, and there wouldn't be any birds. While we didn't see thousands of birds, we definitely saw 10-20 different species of birds, and enjoyed the quiet of the forest and plains. Touring by bicycle rickshaw with an ornithologist guide, we stopped frequently at the sights of egrets, owlets, eagles, herons, kingfishers, and parakeets. And though birds were plentiful, we were also able to catch a few other wildlife glimpses including a pack of jackals who were feeding on a kill (as two different vulture species waited in the wings, no pun intended), a few very large turtles, some wild boars, and an antelope!

Despite the relative lack of birds (according to the locals, to our eyes it was great) and the fatigue from our long day of sightseeing, we all enjoyed the visit to Keoladeo very much.

Jaipur
We arrived Jaipur around 9 pm - we're still on 11/6 here, same day as the Taj - and checked into the lavish Hotel Diggi Palace, a hotel recommended by a good friend who visited India 10 years ago. It was a great call. We settled in for a late dinner and caught a little more of the James Bond marathon before calling it a night.

Jaipur is the pink city, the capital of the state of Rajasthan - translated literally as "The Land of Kings - where mostly all the buildings in the old city are painted pink and enclosed in a pink wall. Our first stop was to the nearby Amber Fort, sitting atop a hill outside the city proper and was the ancient capital of Jaipur State, which was the Rajput army's outpost during Akbar's Mughal reign in India. The fort was both military stronghold and palace for the maharaja (king) and maharani (queen) along with the royal family. We hired a guide to take us around the labarynthine maze of narrow passages and hallways, courtyards and bedrooms. It was absolutely magical. Walking around the fort really provided a glimpse into the city's ancient past, and I couldn't help but imagine the fantastical lifestyle of those living in the palace roughly a half century ago.

We then returned within the wall's of Jaipur to visit the City Palace ... eventually, the Maharaja left the hilltop fort and founded the city of Jaipur beneath the ancient city of Amber. This will make a lot more sense when you see the photos. The palace includes museum space with historical clothing, works of art, and an armory (and many shops). But the palace is not an antiquated piece of Jaipur's past because the royal family still lives within an area of the palace that remains closed off to the public.

Next to the palace, we also toured the ancient Jantar Manter, a large-scale observatory with structures to study the night sky, to follow the constellations of the zodiac, and to keep time thanks to a massive sundial.

Rest Time
I'm guessing that by now, you're tired of reading this god forsaken blog entry. Well guess how tired we were after covering so much ground in just a few days? By the early afternoon of November 8, Trish would head off to consult a doctor (she was hit with a traveler's bug), Holli would be making her last gift purchases before heading to the Delhi airport, and I would sit back and read Karma Cola by Gita Mehta) on the Diggi Palace lawn, upload photos and post my first blog entry. However, I still had a few more days to explore Jaipur, as I would be staying in Rajasthan to travel throuhout the state until, actually today, my last in the desert state known as "The Land of Kings," which will be the subject of my next blog entry.

Until next time ... happy Monday!

David

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Photos

Taj Exterior
In addition to marblework, the Taj originally had kashmiri-styled rugs woven with jewelled thread adorning the exterior panels, but they were taken by the British.

Taj Detail
Close look at the inlaid jewelry

Leaving the Taj Mahal
One last glimpse as we head out the gate ...

Owelet
Keoladeo Ghana National Park