Metro Hotel Agra

... made the whole Taj Mahal for that queen. Only that one queen he made it for, nobody else. The stone feeled really good because it was cold like the ocean. It feeled really good when it was so hot and we took off our shoes and socks and stepped on the coldest thing.

I saw a lot of deer, some chipmunks, one peacock, cows, oxen, one pig. I saw a ton of goats like a thousand. I saw three camels, one elephant, and twenty or thirty horses. I saw ...

... Andy and went to get our tickets for the Taj Mahal, left at 6 to get to the ticket office, as it is best to see the Taj early before the crowds. We got in by 8am. It is incredible! i won't try to dscribe it yet i will just load pictures when i can.
After the Taj we went to see Agra Fort - Massive walls surrounding a huge area with palaces and mosques.
Because we started th day so early it was still only early afternoon when we finished Agra Fort so we went with Andy ...

... had some great marble statues but were too heavy for me to post. I was then convinced by Kakaji to get some of Agra's famous 'Petha' sweets. Glad I did, they were delicious...
Then on to Mehtab Bagh (the site opposite the Taj across the Yamuna river), Itimad-ud-daulah and Chini-ka-rauza before heading back over the very congested bridge to my hotel and then to the train station.
Glad to be leaving the polluted Agra but feel lucky to have seen the Taj.

... to the counter. When in Rome... I managed to get close to the counter and, following the lead of the other patrons, I shoved my package into the face of the man sitting behind it. He informed me that my package meeded to go through customs, but that I'd have to return as customs didn't open until 11:00! Defeated, I returned to my hotel: India Post 1 - Jessica 0.

We hired a rickshaw driver for the afternoon to drive us ...

... train so we're meeting up this afternoon for a meal and then sharing a cab to the station. Think this train may be more chaotic than the last one so it could be quite an experience!

Jaipurs city walls are built out of a stone that turns pink at sunset so fingers crossed it doesn't rain tomorrow night! There's also hundreds of bazars so am looking forward to going mad on buying more bangles, indian clothes & the rest! I'm spending ...

... slightly disgruntled teenager, who opened the door for us, and without a word, buried himself back in the sofa.
by the time we had had breakfast, it was about ten minutes to six, and we could see the sky getting lighter. we walked round to the east gate, to find a massive queue next to it. we joined, but moments later were pointed to another massive queue for the entry tickets.
we paid our 750 rupees entry at about 6.25, and shortly after the gates into the complex opened. we ...

Arrived in Agra, safe and sound. Quite glad to be out of Delhi...the train station was a crazy experience!!! But the tran was surprisingly comfy- found our seats and shared a cabin with a rich Scottish man (Dave) and his Phillipino "work colleague" Sherry. Were nice, bit talkative though. Saw some snapshots of the slum life and was an eye opener.

We have found some half decent accommodation....super close to the Taj, so we have already seen some great ...

... on this trip, but it most certainly hasn't. Most of our conversations revolved around how difficult India can be. They had only been to Delhi at that point so I tried to assure them that it wouldn't be quite such a chaotic nightmare once outside the big city. However, their biggest complaints and mine were not about the crowds, poverty or filth, but about the people in general. I don't really know how to proceed here without sounding like some sort of a racist so I'll try to ...

... it ! Photos as before are found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/discozo/se ts/72157616932909545/ Love to all Tom P.S Had a beard trim in the barber the other day, it included a facial massage...very nice. He did a good job at making my bad beard look as best as it can...bad. P.P.S India is HOOOOT P.P.P.S We have moved on from Agra now and i did write this a little while ago.... we are currently in Jaipur enjoying the ...

... buildings which over the years served as barracks for a number of armies, as well as the living quarters and harems of various kings and other royalty.

Moving through the complex, the influence of the many inhabitants could be seen in the changing architecture. All of the buildings near the front were made of a deep red stone, hence the name “The Red Fort”, and were in various states of deterioration. As we moved further from the gates some of the buildings had ...