So! We arrived in Agra from Varanasi via train – I have to say, not the worst journey, but wasn’t too great either.
All in all we booked ourselves onto the 2AC sleeper (type of class in India, see man in seat 61 for an overview of classes), a three bunk bed cabin. Unfortunately we didn’t book early enough (1 day in advance isn’t enough) so we ended up getting two separate beds, one in a cabin of Westerners and the other down the train a little way. So while we waited for the train to arrive we thought it best to get some nibbles and water for the journey as we’d experienced Indian timeliness before! Also the fact that there isn’t a catering section on the train means that everyone brings their own dinner.
Eventually the train arrived and we found our beds. We were deciding which to sit at and have a read when a young boy asked whether we wanted to exchange beds so we could be in the same cabin – awesome, we thought (he said he was going to Agra)! We’d made our beds ready for the nights sleep (which was fairly good) we set our alarm for 0600. This being Indian time we weren’t expecting to be there on time, and we weren’t.
What we didn’t realise that the boy who switched with us, had only booked half the journey we had so we were awoken at about 1am by an Indian family banging and crashing around the cabin so much it woke us up. So with the other bed now free Heather moved once again… At this point however we were pretty much fully awake, not helped by the next stop when what appeared to be a platoon of soldiers in training bundled on, guns and all (which I think were just imitations…) and decided to crash anywhere where there was a tiny bit of space. This included down the isles, in the cabin isles, in free beds etc. basically filling the coach. It was a mission to get anywhere without treading on one or two people. After that we didn’t sleep…!
A few hours later we were supposed to arrive in Agra. However, having slept, not knowing how many stops we had been through, and with the inability to hop off at the stops we wanted to check the signs (because of the soldiers being in the way) we and the other Westerners started asking around, and looking at maps to figure out where we were. Eventually we figured we were at least 6 hours away. Apparently there had been a hold up somewhere, surprise! I think we were a little less surprised that the other guys at this (they had only just arrived into India).
Eventually we got there (expected time: 0600, actual time: 1200) and wandered the streets a little to try and find a place to stay. We were joined by another guy from Argentina who was also looking for accommodation so we joined up for some combined bartering on room prices. Works well in a group!
With only the Taj Mahal planned to see, that evening we had free so we decided to take a Tuk Tuk tour round the main sights of Agra. This included the baby Taj and the Northern Gardens of the Taj (Mehtab Bagh). Great tour with quite a funny guide, spoke very good English and had orange hair, so if you see him, say ‘Hi!’. The Gardens we great, he dumped us off there just before sun set and said to come back when we were done, so we had a great view of the Taj with the sunset across the river and away from the crowds – definitely a hidden secret of Agra.
Baby Taj
Mehtab Bagh - The gardens to the North of the Taj Mahal
We headed to bed early so we were good and ready for our sunrise meeting with the Taj (and a couple of other backpackers we’d met at dinner).
I think the best way to do this next bit is a few words and then pictures.
Got up at sunset, great, do it, absolutely no one around. You can get some great shots if you pick your spots right. The actual buildings are great to see, but I don’t believe you can just go and be amazed. You need to appreciate the work that has gone into the masonry, angles and perspectives of these buildings. Whilst there are a few bill boards up here and there, they don’t describe it well. Something to read up on before you come! A great day, and a great building to see, worth the trip to Agra, and it was all topped off by a little hoo-ha with the guards. One of the guys started doing a video message to his brother (for his birthday) in front of the Taj. Apparently, filming is a no-no when you are in the actual grounds of the Taj, but not just before it. As a result of this he had his bag searched and they found some playing cards (gambling, not allowed in India…!) so they were promptly taken off of him and he was escorted off to the side so they could have a chat…! In the end, everything was fine, he got his cards back and was allowed to do the video where the signs permitted it!
Up at sunrise for the Taj! Can you spot the locals sleeping?!
Later that day we got a steamy bus to Amritsar with a stop off to Delhi. I’ll let Heather explain…
NB1: People can buy tickets to ‘stand’ in any class (aka they are not allocated a bed). This means they can get on, but don’t have an allocated bed. This is what we think happened with the army guys that came on.
NB2: Buy food and water for the trains! They can be very, very, very late!
