Delhi, Agra

The kids had a week off for Diwali so Prasad and I took the week off. We landed in Delhi and right off the bat, I really wished I had already started those Hindi lessons I have been talking about for months. I have found a teacher and plan to start soon so for our next trip up north, I won't feel so lost.

Sindhu made two observations about the northern part of India:

1) People speak far less English in Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. She concluded this mainly from the signs on the shops, most were in Hindi, unlike in Bangalore, where most signs are in both Hindi and Kannada. Most people only spoke Hindi.

2) They celebrate Diwali with much more pomp in the North. Many of the homes, shops, gardens were lit up with beautiful lights and we didn't see it in Bangalore. On the day of Diwali, we were travelling back from a safari trip and it was getting dark and we saw tiny lights in the small villages, they had all lit diyas, it was very beautiful.

As soon as we landed in Delhi, we drove to Agra. We rented a car through a contact from Prasad's friend. jaideep.hora@learninglinksindia.org 98802 16581. Although he didn't give us the contact number of driver till the last hour, he did pull through with a decent van and driver. The driver, Bunty took us to Haldirams for lunch which was a great place to eat mainly because I've eaten their soan papdi and namkeen in the US and it was it interesting to see where it all started. You could see them deep fry the baturas right in front of you and they had a wide selection of chats and sweets available, ofcourse, most of it was unhealthy.

The drive to Agra took much longer than expected so we got in very late. The city was very much alive at 10pm though mainly because it was Diwali season. Many of the shops were open and there were huge crowds of people (mainly men though) outside enjoying the festive atmosphere.

We stayed at the garden villa homestay www.gardenvillahomestay.com. It is a family run business and they are very hospitable. They provide a nice home cooked meal if you give them enough advance. The owner speaks English and French and is quite entertaining. It is like staying in a home, it is not a 4 or 5 star hotel but it's clean, the bathrooms are modern and a great play to stay.

Prasad's watch was set back 2 hours so we completely overslept and only realized this after breakfast. We quickly got ready and went to see the Taj Mahal. Sindhu was very excited about seeing the monument and wanted to see every part of it. We were harrassed by guides and Sindhu emphatically didn't want one so we obliged her this one time. The lighting in our photographs was dark so we hired one of the local photographers and he took some great pictures so although it got tiring to pose for him, it was totally worth it. It is a beautiful monument and it was peaceful to sit and watch it for a bit even with the huge crowds.

We drove to Fatipur Sikhri after lunch. About 1 mile before we even reached the destination, we were stopped by some very aggressive guides, we finally got rid of them only to be harrassed by another set every kilometer or so. Finally Prasad gave in and we hired one of the guides much to Sindhu's disappointment. But we really did need a guide so we could get some history and information on the sight. This was Prasad's and my 2nd visit here and I think this visit was a bit disappointing. It become much more commercial and people were harrassing us to buy cloths, flowers to put at the mosque when all we wanted to do was to tie a string and make a wish. Also the last time, one of the imams sang a beautiful islamic prayer and this time around we couldn't find any imams. It is also not as well maintained as the Taj Mahal. Nevertheless, it is worth a visit and has a rich history surrounding it.