After experiencing the capital city of Delhi we were off to see Agra & Jaipur. We rented a car & Sanjay was our driver who came along with us visiting the other 2 cities that make up India’s “Golden Triangle” I read it’s called “golden” for the extraordinary wealth of cultural & history.
The 5-hour drive to Agra was down a main road that would hit busy parts of little cities & villages along the way. The horns were honking constantly through the traffic jams, people on each sides of the road, mopeds pull up next to my window leaving a foot between us. Agra, the city that is home to the Taj Mahal is more crowded, more poverty & more people than what I saw in Delhi… which was hard to believe. Arrived just around sunset, when the Taj closes so we drove & stopped on the side of the road to see it from the distance. That was the extent of our 1st night in Agra. The drive was exhausting.
The next morning we were off to the Taj Mahal! We got a tour guide to walk us through and tell us stories about it. The Taj is made out of all white marble with flower details on the walls & sanskrit writings etched around the doorways. It’s something to see from a distance and up close. I was surprised to see more locals than tourists in line to get a ticket into the Taj. They go in barefoot & say a pray.
After the quick but memorable visit to Agra we were off to the 3rd city, Jaipur. This drive was different than the drive to Agra. This was more of a freeway without hitting any traffic along the way. I got to see India’s country side. Lots of workers in the fields gathering hay/wheat/grass on their heads walking through the fields. Women walking on the side of the road with jugs of waters being balanced on their heads. I’ve noticed that no matter what these people are doing they are smiling.
Jaipur was my favorite city of the 3. There were lots more animals here. More camels (I love camels!) & elephants on the roads. We took an elephant ride up Amber Fort that sits on top a mountain. The views were amazing! I felt like I was somewhere in the Middle East with it’s red sandstone & dry landscape for miles.
My travels through the sub continent reflected their culture. It was splendid chaos of memorable people and places with little sleep. You know when you go to the pool and you dip your toes in to test the waters. That doesn’t happen when you step foot in India. India is the pool and you get pushed right in!
