The Taj The Taj Mahal is one of those places you have seen images of a million times, so it is somewhat surprising that when you see it in the flesh for the first time it is still awe inspiring. This is perhaps also due to the fact that you are not really sure what it is about the building that makes it so impressive, but it just makes such a grand impression on you.
Something else which makes a grand impression on you is the smell of hundreds of feet was you walk inside the Taj in your socks. Such a grand impression in fact, that we made a very quick exit and agreed to admire it from the outside.
Indian woman at the Taj Mahal
Of course the beauty of the building is a photographers dream and those that way inclined amongst us went a little crazy taking the same shot some 20 or so times as the light may have become marginally better. Although the white marble certainly makes the best back drop for all the colourful saris (sorry women) wandering around.
It is interesting to see the grand and stately Taj Mahal juxtaposed against the jumbled chaos of Taj Ganj, the residential area immediately to the south. Originally the residences of the labouers and artisans working on the Taj, it is now a lively area of ultra-cheap guesthouses, markets, houses and the ever-present livestock. There is definitely something to be said for a Taj view while knocking back your $2 meal! The top game in the area is obviously chasing the goat around the block as kids will run round and round all day, chasing the same poor bastard of a goat the whole time.
Rickshaw driver in Taj Ganj
Taj Ganj is actually a quite lively, vibrant and surprising place to wander around, with camels plodding along pulling carts, a cacophony of sounds and people selling everything from marble to medicine. If only there weren't people to hassle you every step with shouts of "Hello, now you look in my shop", "Hello, my friend, very cheap", "Hello, only 100 rupees, now you buy" and of course "Hello, Rickshaw". Always said as a statement, never a question.
It seems that, much to Aimes' dismay, the cold has followed us from China. Our last day in Agra coincided with the coldest day in 70 years in Delhi and the cold snap resulted in many deaths throughout the north. For us it was simply an absolutely freezing early morning rickshaw ride to the train station so we shouldn't really complain.
Sunset over Agra
An interesting sight at the Agra Train Station was an eagle swooping down and snatching a rat off the tracks, not something that you see at Central every day! Though of course Indian stations are not places you want to hang around for too long, mainly because they decline to lock the toilet doors while they are idle at stations and it seems few people heed the requests to refrain from using them at such times. Though since the many dogs are actively adding to the mess on the platform itself, there's no really any avoiding it!
Crowds entering the Taj Mahal
From Agra it was a quick 4 hour train down to Jhansi, from where we were to get a bus out to the temples of Khajuraho. Alighting from the train and initialising our new found tout ignoring mode, we strode out past the many rickshaw drivers to where the bus was supposed to leave. Only trouble was rather than leaving, it had already left, which one of the rickshaw drivers quickly informed us he had been trying to tell us the whole way. He told us we could still catch it so we jumped in and he proceeded to chase it down at full speed, Super Mario-style, through the narrow streets, somehow avoiding the various hazards (cows, bikes, people) that presented themselves along the way. Sure enough he was right, we caught the bus at the edge of town where he ran up and made sure we could get on. It was at this point that we realised just how nice Indians are and that it is the small percentage of touts and general pains in the arse that ruin it and make you close up.
The Taj Mahal contrasted with Taj Ganj So after much thanking and tipping, we squeezed our way on the bus, 'squeezing' being the operative word, as we had entered our first true Indian public bus experience. Hobbes was crammed with 5 others in the area where the passengers seat would normally be, sitting with half a bum cheek on the edge of a plank of wood balanced over the wheel hub. Aimes was slightly more fortunate, jammed between two others on a 2 seater. Yet again, public transport is where you meet the nicest people as everyone on the bus further challenged the notion that EVERYONE is trying to sell you something (as it feels most of the time). Aimes had people feeding her, and although crammed on top of each other (the people standing were even more squashed) they are all extremely friendly and will do anything to help you out.
It was interesting to see that the Vietnamese approach to rubbsh disposal also aplies in India, as when Aimes finished some food, those sitting next to her insisted quite adimantly that the rubbish go straight out the window. It took a lot of convincing for them to let her hold on to it, "the whole of India is a rubbish bin" they said. Although when they finally gave in they said "good girl" suggesting they too know better!
The Kandariya Mahadev Temple
So after 4 hours jammed on the bus we made it to dusty, sleepy Khajuraho, population 20,000 (most of them tourists). It definitely made a nice change from hectic busy Agra, little traffic and the cows, pigs and goats wandering the streets definitely seemed more at home. It even had an excellent Italian restaurant, and despite our being dubious of it's claim of a 'European trained chef', the quality of the food suggested this may have been true - just what we needed after not having eaten all day!
The reason for visiting Khajuraho was to see the 1,000 year old Chandela Temples which are scattered throughout the village and surrounding countryside. The temples are covered in extremely intricate, and well preserved, erotic carvings, which had nothing to do with why Hobbes wanted to see them...
Pornography set in stone
Unfortunately, while the carvings on the temple walls are undisputably amazing, the temples suffer somewhat from the post-Angkor syndrome. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that most of them are located with a well maintained grassed garden right across the road from the main shops in town, thus not having the intrepid, lost world feel that one has in Angkor. Or perhaps it is simple because they are not quite as massive? But for what ever reason they do not have quite the same impact. Never the less they are extremely impressive and we spent a very enjoyable day wandering amongst them.
Hot Chai to beat the cold!
Being one of the sightseeing highlights in India, the locals are well prepared for making the most of the tourists who flock here. We still managed to restrain ourselves from any violence, even when pests on a bike followed us for a good 20 minutes spouting various lies about not trying to sell us anything, "I am not a business man", "I not try to sell you anything", without one single word passing either of our lips. Though the hassles also had a humorous side, as when the 'bus-in bus-out tourists' make the quick dash from their bus to the sanctity of the main temple complex they are accompanied by a huge mass of touts, at least 3 per tourist, plus a few lookers-on there 'just for fun'. The first time we saw this we thought it was some kind of festival or parade, but soon realised that in amongst the crowd were some very frazzled oldies!
Aimes studying up
The bus ride out of Khajuraho was on a slightly nicer bus than we had taken in, however as soon as we hit the highway it took on the more typical feel of an Indian bus. While we fortunately had a seat (i.e. one seat for the two of us), as soon as the crowds started piling on, our heads were variously used as bag and arm rests, as elbows, bums and knees were thrown in all directions and the bus took on the feel of an over-packed can of sardines. There were a good 3 people hanging out each of the doors, while children were safely stowed under the seats. Hobbes even had the pleasure of being spewed on by one of the kids which wasn't shoved under a seat, which was all the more fun as there wasn't room to get anything to wipe it off!
More over embellished women, the designer obviously being male!
Getting off the bus at Satna, we decided we hadn't been crushed enough, so crammed 4 people, plus four big bags in a two person auto-rickshaw for the trip to the train station. Perhaps we are really starting to get into the Indian mindset?
Having to spend the night in Satna before our train and having absolutely no information about the town, we thought the station was as good as anywhere to try and find a hotel. Thinking we had done pretty well when we found what seemed like a simple clean room, we were just about to pat ourselves on the back. It was at this point that the electricity cut off and the massive generator was started next to our room. The power then went on and off on a 5 minute cycle for the rest of the night. Though it was better with the power off as it hid the 'Lord of the Mosquitoes' scene which was the ceiling, absolutely covered in mozzies, requiring a liberal covering of Rid on our faces. However, in complete contrast to the sleeping arrangements, the hotel did have the best Indian food we have yet eaten, guess that was the Ying to go with the Yang!
Village amongst the temples
After a restless night it was on to a train headed for Varanasi, although unfortunately we were yet again yearning for Chinese trains as ours turned up late, requiring us to wait on the platform for an hour and a half, which as anyone who has caught an Indian train will know is about 90 minutes too long! There is something about people doing their morning ablutions off the edge of the platform which doesn't sit well when you've just woken up??
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