Sunday 9 October 2011
We left the guesthouse at 7:30 with much excitement and anticipation. It is only 199km to the ancient city of Agra, so we were expecting a 2 and a half hour journey. But 3 hours later we made a halfway stop at the Rajastan Hotel for colddrinks and a pit stop.
Everyone was delighted with the array of souvenirs on offer, but aghast at the ridiculous tourist prices - 100 rupees for a small can of coke (that is R20.00)and 220 rupees for Pringles!
The owner of the performing monkey demanded money when we took pictures and pounded on the bus windows. Thank goodness we had Monica with us, who yelled out the window, "Get a life, you!" This has become our new catch phrase.
The entrance to the hotel. All very colourful and exciting.
After the well-deserved break, back into the bus for another 2 and a half hours. There were patches of sparsely-populated land, but many many extremely busy villages so almost no respite from the traffic.
The ancient city of Agra definitely has a different feel to it and the architecture is different. Tummies were rumbling, and after being given the choice of Macdonalds, Pizza or a multi-cuisine restaurant, it was off to the restaurant we went - we get all the other stuff at home!
At last we were on our way to see the Taj!! We all had our own ideas of what we would see, but nothing could prepare us for the spectacle of this amazing mausoleum.
It is made of pure white marble which is mined nearby and is encrusted with precious and semi-precious jewels. There are 22 towers to illustrate the 22 years it took to build. 150 000 craftsmen worked on it. They and their families were housed in a village across the river from the Taj Mahal. This village is still only inhabited by their descendants; no one else may live there.
Zillions of people were visiting so it was quite a challenge to snap good pictures, hence the strange angle.
The Taj is perfectly symmetrical; it is identical on all four sides. Next to the Taj on one side is a beautiful mosque which was built for the workmen and to maintain the symmetry an identical structure was built on the other side, though this had no use whatsoever. The mosque is no longer in use.
Mosque
We left the guesthouse at 7:30 with much excitement and anticipation. It is only 199km to the ancient city of Agra, so we were expecting a 2 and a half hour journey. But 3 hours later we made a halfway stop at the Rajastan Hotel for colddrinks and a pit stop.Everyone was delighted with the array of souvenirs on offer, but aghast at the ridiculous tourist prices - 100 rupees for a small can of coke (that is R20.00)and 220 rupees for Pringles!
The owner of the performing monkey demanded money when we took pictures and pounded on the bus windows. Thank goodness we had Monica with us, who yelled out the window, "Get a life, you!" This has become our new catch phrase.
The entrance to the hotel. All very colourful and exciting.
Thabiso playing at being the Raja!
After the well-deserved break, back into the bus for another 2 and a half hours. There were patches of sparsely-populated land, but many many extremely busy villages so almost no respite from the traffic.
The ancient city of Agra definitely has a different feel to it and the architecture is different. Tummies were rumbling, and after being given the choice of Macdonalds, Pizza or a multi-cuisine restaurant, it was off to the restaurant we went - we get all the other stuff at home!
A delightful magician who entertained us at no cost and then explained his tricks and sold some to us for ridiculously low prices.
Samuel enjoying his lunch. The children were over the moon at being able to eat meat - delicious mutton curry!
Andreas not too sure about the massive python around his neck - gross!
Intrepid Thabiso charms the cobra, much to the delight of all.
At last we were on our way to see the Taj!! We all had our own ideas of what we would see, but nothing could prepare us for the spectacle of this amazing mausoleum.
It is made of pure white marble which is mined nearby and is encrusted with precious and semi-precious jewels. There are 22 towers to illustrate the 22 years it took to build. 150 000 craftsmen worked on it. They and their families were housed in a village across the river from the Taj Mahal. This village is still only inhabited by their descendants; no one else may live there.
This is the Yamuna, linked to the holy River Ganges
Zillions of people were visiting so it was quite a challenge to snap good pictures, hence the strange angle.
Mosque
We really were there - ignore the date on the photo. Andreas has not set the date on his camera!
The Gondwana Dawn Team Africa
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