I knew in advance that the Taj Mahal is closed on Friday's for outsiders but as it happens I arrived to Agra on Thursday. Due to rain I stayed in for the rest of the day. Woke up around 8 am and decided to check out Lucky's restaurant down the street for breakfast and use their free wi-fi. This is quiet a nice place with free wi-fi. Air con keeps you cool while you sip some hot chai and browse the net. They also have an attached hotel that should be as good as the restaurant.
Ankit, the young owner informed me that the electricity was out, hence no internet service. I already knew of the frequent power outage problems so I bid farewell for now and promised to come back during lunch. Thursday was a quiet day for me, I mostly spent it browsing the net and eating. I was happy to meet fellow travelers from Germany who gave me good tips on a guest house in Varanasi for my stay. A couple from England were eager to hear about California and became my company for dinner that night. Another guest from the hotel and I made plans to visit the Taj Mahal together the next morning. He was German, so I had a hard time understanding the accent sometimes,but I didn't care much.
Hotel Shah Jahan is located in the Taj Ganj area as well. It is a family run business and has good food. Everyone is super nice especially the restaurant boys. They were sweet enough to offer me chai's at no cost. The rooms are decent, the roof top views of the Taj are very nice, the only problem here is that the power goes out a lot, but that seems to be the problem for all of Agra.My Agra stay was definitely made better due to all the helpful people I met.
We headed to the Taj at about 5.50am, and lined up to get our tickets. I paid 50 rupees as entrance fee while he had to pay 750 rupees. This is definitely a sign of discrimination(most foreigners complained of this). If I didn't pass for being Indian, I would have had to pay the same I bet. The Taj Mahal can be accessed by 3 gates, the east, west and the south. It is as beautiful as the pictures look, even better. The ques of people that show up to view this marble building is amazing. Day in and day out, 1000's line up to experience one of the wonders of this world. Oh, I forgot to mention that you have to take your shoes off before setting foot on the grounds of the Taj.
Next stop was the Agra Fort. It is one of the finest forts in India.Once again the fee for Indians is about 20 rupees while foreigners pay 250 rupees.The fort was built by Akbar and additions were made by his grandson Shah Jahan. It has plenty of views of the Taj Mahal and also has structures made using white marble. More then half the fort is closed to visitors due to restoration. What ever is left is nice to view especially if you are history buff and Mogul era is your passion.
I was still not over the train issues in India and so had to catch the 10pm bus to Ayodhya.I was told at the bus station that I had to catch the bus to Lucknow since there was no direct bus to Ayodhya from Agra. I could have arranged to take a AC bus instead because the local bus was a nightmare. It was hot and to say the least I was regretting every minute of this bus ride. I think I also came to the conclusion that I was going to book my ticket to Manila where it was cooler. Arrived in Lucknow about 7 am and was glad to catch the bus to Ayodhya right away. My butt at this point was very sore from sitting down for such a long periods of time.
Even though I had one of the most terrible journeys to date, I was still going to stick with my itinerary. I was missing home and most of all missing my best friends. I can not wait to see you all when I get back.
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