Day 2: Agra

17 December 2006: 6.00 am……… rrrrrrrrrrrrring rrrrrrrrrrring rrrrrrrrrrring………. Growl………… Yep, time to get up and get cracking with the…. packing???? No unfortunately not Christmas packing, time to really get our trip on the road, or better said: kick start our train trip. Unfortunately there was no hot water and no real shower. A sign for the rest of the survival trip. Yep, just put your head under the cold water tap and you will be fine :D After a 3 hour train ride, which allowed us to see that the national pooing time along the railway tracks is 7.30 am and group pooing is fun and there is no need to be embarrassed about the trains passing by just metres away from you, we arrived in Agra. There we immediately hooked up with 2 Canadians and decided to share a taxi for the rest of the day. We first dropped off our luggage at the cloak room at the train station and went on to the long waiting lines for the Taj Mahal. Having seen the small version of the Taj Mahal in Aurangabad did prepare us for the Taj Mahal. Basically it looks the same, just slightly bigger. But then again…………… this is the real Taj Mahal!!!!! Yes, I have fulfilled my mission, I can go home a happy and more wise person now…… I came, saw and conquered, veni, vidi, vici, I have seen one of the seven world wonders before it sank into the ground :D. I was amazed, however, with the security precautions. You are not allowed to bring anything inside, not even your cell phone!!! After the Taj Mahal we had a quick lunch (and also saw a bridal march) and went on to Agra Fort. Now this is a must see as well. Most of the time you have an amazing view of the Taj Mahal and you can see the colour of the marble change while the sun goes down. The fort itself is amazing.

Since we did not have much time left after visiting the fort we decided to go the train station and we had dinner at the restaurant there. We were supposed to catch the train at 23.30 but due to fog, we had to wait…. wait…… and wait a bit more…… with monkeys and rats jumping around us and the bitter cold attacking us and showing us the amazing difference between Bombay heat and Rajasthani cold.

Sites visited: Taj Mahal, Agra Fort.
Travel time: 3 hour train ride+ 5 hours waiting+ 8 hour train ride.