Utkarsh Vilas Hotel Agra

This is the abandoned capital city of the Mughal emperor Akbar. He built it, used it for a while and then it was abandoned.<br><br>First I went to the mosque, got hassled all the way round by unofficial guides who try and persuade you that they are workers and will not want any money for guiding you. Surprise surprise at the end they say you can pay what you will (favourite saying over here) so I really ****** one ...

... breakfast, we headed over to the Taj Mahal to be shocked by the 750 Rs entrance fee, which is pretty much what we budget for each day for our daily living costs, in comparison to the 50 Rs entrance fee for the indian residents!<br> It was unsurprisingly packed inside the surrounding grounds and it was a jaw dropping moment when we were stood in front of it. Inside there are two tombs, one for the emperor who had the Taj Mahal commissioned and the other for his wife ...

... far away, looking to part with everything from postcards to guitars and 'official' guides were pestering to offer their assistance with such regularity that many were shouted down by the end.<br><br>Having said all this, the Taj Mahal itself is something I am really pleased to have seen. The sheer size of this iconic building is what strikes you and it is only when seen from centimetres away that one can truly admire that imperious nature of ...

... që nusja do të largohet nga shtëpia e sepse kujtojnë ndjenjën e humbjes që kanë provuar edhe ato kur i kanë thënë lamtumirë shtëpisë së tyre", më shpjegon ajo. Grupi që i bie veglave muzikore sinjalizon për ardhjen e dhëndrit, i hipur mbi një kalë të bardhë. Në rrugë, një grup vajzash mban në dorë një tabelë ku shkruhet "Mirë se erdhe". Sipas traditës dhëndri duhet të japë aty një lloj "takse" (para) para se të futet te shtëpia e nuses. Ndërsa në kopsht ka nisur banketi dhe gjithë t ...

... indian rupees is not an extortionate amount of money. it equates to about one pound and thirty three pence. and in the end, it was our fault we were in this position. so begrudgingly, we agreed to pay the four hundred, and set off to gorakhpur. about three hours later, we were on the train to delhi.<br>trains in india are not what people imagine them to be. given a little thought, anyone would realise that it is unreasonable to assume that the second largest producer of silicone ...

... red sandstone surrounding it was literaallly like a hot plate and we ended up running the twenty or thirty yards to the slightly cooler marble.<br><br>i'm not even gonna try describe it as countless, literary types have failed to do so before me! safe to say, seeing is believing!<br><br>oh, and the rest of agra is a steaming kip!

... my visit was to visit the Taj.<br>And so, on the second day, I awoke at 5.30am. Having had a few glasses of Whiskey the previous night - watching cricket with the hotel owner and his friends, the wake-up call was less than welcome. Remembering why I had awoken so early, I practically jumped out of bed and into the shower. Less than a quarter of an hour later, I was entering the East gate and approaching what has to be one of the most stunning things I've ever seen. The ...

... trip, only injuries were a body full of bites from some insects I did not see. You may notice I am still writing on paper and copying straight to my blog instead of writing from memory... I like it, it keeps it fresh. ***I did say that a few paragraphs ago so obviously not too fresh!!** I'm sat on a table drinking masala tea in our guesthouse, Zoë is next to me teaching the Indian dude who runs the hostel how to play 500, a ...

... the rest of the main site was almost empty and full of beautiful palaces, buildings and gardens. In the courtyard was a giant ludo board - apparently Akbar was a big fan and used to use slave girls as live pieces. No one was allowed home until he had finished 16 rounds...which could take up to 3 months. Still, apparently there was wine doing the rounds to revive those that were flagging, so it cant have been all bad..... Next ...