India!

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Hello from India,

I have been in India for about 2 weeks now. So far, it has been increadible. My introduction to India was in the backpacker district near Old Delhi. This area is near the very center of Delhi, the roads are at the most, only wide enough for 2 tuk-tuk's (about 1.5 cars). They are lined with shops selling everything you could need and most things you don't. The roads are always crouded with people, bicycles, carts, wagons, dogs, and every 20 feet or so, a cow. Being miles from any grass, the cows appear to be fed carrots, and luckily they are very tame. Because this area is crouded with backpackers, everyone on the street tries to sell something. If you stop, they will croud around you trying to sell you their wares, if you don't stop, they will walk a ways with you, but luckily give up after a few yards of walking. I can not describe the smell, however, everyone burns incense, there are many open air uninals and where there aren't walls suffice, there are many animal droppings on the ground, there is wonderful indian food smell in the air. Mix all of these smells, and that gives you an idea. This was my introduction to India. (I hope I didn't paint the backpacker area as bad, it was really quite fun and interesting)

A little introduction is necessary at this point. For the India portion of my trip, I am traveling with my friend Lesley. In Delhi, we visited the Red Fort, which was a massive Mughal palace built by Shah Jahan in 1648. Unfortunatly, the British destroyed large portions of it to convert it into a garrison. Afterwards, we visited the largest mosque in India, Jama Masjid, also buit by Shah Jahan.

After Delhi, we took a 2 hour train ride to Agra. This is the location of the Taj Mahal and also the capital of India during Shah Jahan's reign. While everyone has seen pictures of the Taj Mahal, they do not do it justice. It is truely something to behold. We spent one afternoon visiting the Taj Mahal, the next day we visited a mosque and palace at Fatehpur Sikri. Mughal Emporor Akbar built this palace with houses for his Hindu, Christian, and Muslem wife. Lastly in Agra, we visited Agra Fort, Shah Jahan's main palace. This beautiful, massive fort, like seemingly all Mughal arcitecture, was built entirely with red stone, encluding roof beams, intricately carved walls, and ceilings. Inside the fort, the main buildings are built from carved white marble, with inlaid precious stones. The detail on this portion was impressive, and even more impressive was the continual replacement of worn and breaking stone throughout the fort.

After Agra, we took a train to the city of Jaipur, famous for its pink painted buildings, forts, palaces, and observitory. Unfortunatly, Lesley was sick when we arrived at Jaipur and I got a bad cold shortly afterward. We ended up staying in Jaipur for 5 days and only spent 1 afternoon touring the city.

Currently, I am writing from Aurangabad, famous for its industry, but it is also close to some amazing caves carved into the hillsides 1500 years ago.

Corey

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Photos

Rooftop view of Delhi
This picture was taken at sunset from the roof of our hotel in Delhi.

Comments

[Andy Winholtz]

Glad to see your entry
Good to hear you made it. Keep the blog updated.

[Dad]

I don't know how we missed seeing your update. We'll eagerly watch for more updates. You really gave us the flavor of it.

[Mom]

Fascinationg!
I am glad Dad checked this. We had tried the site before you had started writing it. Your description of the crowded city of Delhi answered a lot of my questions. Thanks for doing this it is really helping us get a picture of where you are. Take care!! Write more soon.

[CW]

Wow
Great update! Keep em' coming. Now... let's see some more of those awesome pictures!