The Road Back to Delhi

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This morning we slept in and took advantage of the breakfast. It was helpful just having the carry on bag as our only ariticle for clothes, so packing and repacking for this stop was a snap. Once we checked out, the guide walked through the door with perfect timing and away we went to Agra Fort. The roads were a little quieter today, in relation to the day before, as the roads here are never really quiet. The fog was pretty thick as well, but we were able to see a pretty good distance. It made things seem smokey, and with all the fireworks going off for the last night, maybe that was a bit of a factor as well. The fort was not so far from the hotel, but first we needed a stop at a jeweler. Go figure. It was a nice shop, they are quite famous, a must see for all dignitaries and heads of state. But, as we were neither, we saw their mini museum and then hit the road for all other things ancient. The fort is huge, and still being kept in very good shape. It is an acitve fort as the Indian army still uses portions of it, which also meant a few security checks as we entered the fort. They use the term fort here in Inda loosely to describe their walled cities that enclosed the palaces the rulers lived in. This was also the location for our largest monkey sighting so far for the trip. They were everywhere at the entrance to the fort, both when we came in and when we left. We noticed that some are used as a way to earn, so they are lead all over the place with a rope around the neck. The majority are just wild and hang out looking for tourist scraps and picking through the many junk piles with the street kids, looking for something to eat. Once we were done with the fort, we headed to a location known as Fatehpur Sikri. The guide described it as the abandoned city as it was only occupied for a short period. It was a very nicely laid out palace and had areas for all three of the rulers queens. Going into this site, just like going into Agra fort, was a lot like peeling an onion, a new layer being revealed after the old one. We kept moving from one area to another, always revealing new wonders for the eyes. It was an interesting contrast for our minds, after being at Versailles just recently on this trip, how rulers made their palaces. They are very similar; not so much in design, but in use of space. Using lots and lots of space. One would think that as rulers, they had a lot of parallels, so that would explain why they lived how they lived, even if the actual architecture was miles apart. So, with this stop being done, we bid our guide a farewell, the afternoon had begun and we needed to be back in Delhi before it got too dark. The drive back was not nearly as glamourous as the day before since all the woman on the backs of the motorcycles had dressed down with the holiday having been finished. It was, however, still very mindblowing as so often there were 4 lanes of traffic fitting into 2. One thing though, we never did see an accident; how that was possible we are still trying to understand. Once in Delhi, we went back to the hotel, got a room, some food, and then straight to sleep. We needed to get the extra rest because, as it turns out, we had another visit to the airport in our future. It was an immediate futre as our plane was leaving at two in the morning; more transit for Penny!

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