A Taj here and a Taj there, everywhere a Taj

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The train to Agra was an early one and we had been upgraded to first class! We were totally spoilt with a surprisingly yummy breakfast included. When we got to Agra our hotel was right next to a Pizza Hut and a costa coffee. Now your probably thinking what is the significance of this!? Well when you have been travelling as long as we have and having eaten as much Asian/ Indian/ Chinese food as we have over the past few months, this was a revolutionary. Not to mention the fact we hadn't had a decent cup of coffee in what felt like years. Once unpacked and settled in, we headed out to do some sight seeing. The weather was over cast so we tried to get as much done as possible. We headed to Itimad-ud-dualah tomb first, also known as the baby Taj. It is said that this place was the inspiration for the actual Taj. A lovely place with some beautiful stone work in the mogul/Islamic style. (We're becoming quite the architectural connoisseurs now!). We then headed off to a place called Mehtab Bagh which was to be our first glimpse of the actual Taj Mahal! It's a lovely gardened area behind and across the river from the Taj. So when you look out from it, you'd be looking out across the gardens. We were meant to stay for sunset, but the weather wasn't playing ball. So we settled for a few lovely pictures and headed back for an early night. Tomorrow we had to be up at 4am to get to the Taj Mahal for that money shot.
4am- the only thing motivating me to get up is the Taj Mahal and to be there for sunrise. Unfortunately there was no glorious sunrise but instead it luckily stayed dry and but grey. We still managed to get some beautiful shots and seeing as we were the first people in there of the day; no other people in the photos! The outside of the building did have some renovation work going on and scaffolding up, but it didn't seem to take away the splendour of it all. Our guide told us of the love story which lead to its construction and it definitely gives it that little extra romantic feel to it all. Maybe one day we will return with partners and actually enjoy a lovely sunrise! (Here's hoping...!) After a few hours of wandering around and taking it all in, we were back on the bus, destination bed!!
In the evening we were on a night train to Varanassi. Now this train route is known as the black hole of India. Why!? Well the train is literally guaranteed to have some sort of delay. Whether it be getting into the station and/or along the way. We got the the station and only had 40 mins delay to get onto the train. (easy- we can handle that) thankfully that was the only delay we actually encountered. Our guide said it was unheard of. As a side note the group that were a day behind us got seriously delayed and basically spent 24 hours on a train- just to give you an idea! Arrived in Varanasi to absolute chaos of tuk tuk's, cars, rickshaws, camels and carts, more cows and people everywhere. This place was buzzing! And why wouldn't it be, home to the Ganges and holy temples of Shiva. As it goes we had arrived in monsoon season- something later we would feel the full force of. And along with monsoon season comes Kanwar yatra.
Kanwar Yatra which is an auspicious pilgrimage observed by the devotees of Lord Shiva annually. In this practice the bearer known as ‘Kanvarias’ (men dressed in all orange, bearing decorated bamboo sticks around their neck, with the water from the holy Ganges filled in pots hanging on either sides),go the Hindu pilgrimage places like Varanasu and Haridwar to fetch water from the Holy Ganges and then offer the ‘Ganga Jal’ (water of the Ganges)in the local Lord Shiva temples. The Kanvar Yatra takes place during the Hindu month of ‘Shravan’ or 'Sawan', meaning monsoon,that corresponds to the month of July to August in the Gregorian calendar. It was a fantastic spectacle and you could really tell that there was a sense of occasion about the place. That afternoon we were onto a rickshaw to see some more of the town and get to our evening cruise on the Ganges. Again me and Jo split up as to not kill a poor rickshaw driver. Early on into the ride we were in gridlock traffic. And I mean you literally couldn't move. Cows, tuk tuks the lot. They don't seem to have any lane rules or even any rules at all regarding driving in India; except you must beep your horn as much as you can! By the time we had got out of the traffic, around the cows and gone off roading a bit we arrived at our stop point. The rest was on foot. By this time it's now raining pretty hard and we're in flip flops!!! Guess that dip in the Ganges is inevitable now. We wondered down side streets dodging cows, people and poo of all sorts until we got to the Ghat- also known as a quay/river side stop. The rain wasn't going to stop us enjoying the evening ceremonies along the Ganges. On the boat we learnt more about the religious ceremonies and prayers being carried out as we sent off our own candle lit flower offerings. As we cruised down we also caught a glimpse at the infamous burning Ghats where they burn the dead. Being of a medical background I did find this quite interesting but you can't help but feel you are intruding on quite a personal moment. In the Indian culture however it's a more the merrier view on the cremations. By this point the family have already said goodbye and had their personal moment with the deceased. The whole process from death- washing and dressing the body, a procession through the streets with the body to the Ganges, dunking the body in the Ganges and then finally the burning of the body takes no more than 8 hours. Oddly enough there isn't a bad smell of burning flesh. It's a crazy place the Ganges that truly does encompass everything from life all the way to death. By the time we got back there was time for a late dinner before bed. We were all so tired and keen to get home to bed, it was no wonder Jo ended up kicking a shit by accident in her flip flops!!!
We tried to catch another sunrise again in the morning on another boat ride on the Ganges. Again Lady Luck was not smiling on us, but it was dry. Again the Ganges was a totally different place and had a very different vibe. Quieter and felt more holy. After a great start to the day we stopped off for breakfast, at what we were promised was a great place for eggs! Through experience I had learnt scrambled or omelette was the only way to go, Jo however was so excited by the prospect of poached eggs she didn't hesitate. This hilariously back fired with her poached eggs turning up like a brick of Old jelly. Her face was a picture! After a disappointing breakfast we had arranged to go visit a silk factory later in the day.
Our lovely guide lead us down the winding maze of side streets where in tiny rooms there are men at work on various aspects of the silk making. Some men were punching holes into cardboard for making the pattern. Some men were working the electronic looms, others the man powered/ using feet to do the work. The machines were a crazy mess of threads and cardboard mixed into the machine, producing a beautiful patterned material. Whilst roaming the side streets I got separated from Jo for like 2 mins. All I could here was hear squeal 'ooooooohhhh' in shock. Followed by nervous giggling. It turns out a little Indian man had crept up behind her slapped her bottom and then run off- forever to be known as 'skippy bum smacker' till this day we will never know if it could have been true love! After all the excitement we went to have a look at some finished goods. Presents were brought and chai was drunk. Upon leaving the man came to tell us that our transport was currently held up under knee deep rainwater outside. I genuinely thought it was an exaggeration. How could rain fall be knee deep in an hour! Well the monsoon had come to flex its muscles and I couldn't believe my eyes as it literally was knee deep. It was lovely to see everyone celebrating and still going about normal business despite the rain. I however couldn't help but think about all the poop still out there swimming around in it!
Being that we had the full day in Varanasi before the night train, we thought it might be a good idea to get a late breakfast on the Ghats and do some last min shopping. Due to the festival the tuk tuk couldn't drop us all the way to where we wanted to be. After an hour in traffic we hastily got off the tuk tuk only to discover- he had dropped us at the burning ghat........or so we thought. In a panic we tried to get away from it as quick as possible. With calmer minds under shelter from the rain we checked and realised he has actually dropped us at the right place. We ended up wandering the back streets looking for food and last minute souvenirs.
Back at the hotel it was a quick turn around before our last night train to Delhi. The adventure was almost over.
Back in Delhi we navigated some crazy very local markets as well as the metro and a more modern market. We even found a Marks and Spencer's!!! This was after we were conned into a tuk tuk to a tourist trap by a man 'on his way home from work' trying to be helpful or so we thought. Last souvenirs brought it was back for the last supper with our group and another excuse to put on our sari's! We have had such a wonderful time in India, I can't wait to return and see more of it.
Next stop Africa! See you at the finish line
Lauren and Jo!

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Comments

[Emma and DSJ]

Great catch up
Hi Lauren-just having a long overdue catch up on your blogs. Bringing back great memories and sounds like you're having a ball. Not too sure where you are in the world but hope you're well, keep safe, lots of love xx