I met my cousin, Jenny, and her husband, Bobby, at 11. We went to Connaught Place and had lunch at a Chinese restaurant. They had to look around for an ATM and phone, then we went to a tourist company to book a car for tomorrow to Agra, where the Taj Mahal is.
After we got business taken care of, we went to the National Museum. In addition to the cost of admission, foreigners have to pay 300 rupees to take photos but nationals only pay 20. Since Bobby is Indian we just had him take pictures of what we wanted. I’ll have a lot more pictures when they send me what they took during the trip. The National Museum is not as impressive as I hoped. Many galleries were closed and it was not the modern facility I expected from a country that is poised to become a world power. But there are still many interesting things to see including ancient sculptures and paintings. I really like ancient Indian art and am eagerly anticipating the photos Jenny and Bobby will send.
When we left the museum, it was time for dinner so we headed back to Connaught Place and ate at a restaurant called the Embassy. Bobby was in the mood for biryani. He ordered a lamb dish that’s similar. Jenny and I both got the fish and chips. I had hoped that given the English influence in India, I might dine on the dish. Oh, there’s nothing like a good dinner of fish and chips when you’ve been craving it for nine months.
14 July 2011
The car picked us up for Agra at 6am. It took about five hours to get there because we stopped twice for food and potty breaks. One of the places was McDonald’s where we saw a group of school children all in their uniforms
crowding around the statue of Ronald McDonald. Some kept squeezing his nose. I had a Maharaja Mac, which is a Big Mac but with chicken instead of beef. I found it interesting that they offered nutritional information pamphlets like they do in the States. Interesting and kind of sad in a way. The fast-food diet and obesity epidemic is becoming America’s number one export.
When we got to the Taj it was overcast and eventually started raining. It was still a worthwhile trip and the rain wasn’t as heavy as I had experienced earlier in India nor did it last long. For those who don’t know, the Taj was built as a tomb and memorial for the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan’s, third wife. His first two marriages were arranged, but the third marriage was a love match. She bore him fourteen children in seventeen years. (Turkmen will tell you she was Turkmen; the rest of the world will tell you she was Persian.) When she died, he commissioned the building of the Taj Mahal and he also went insane. One of his sons later had him killed. The Taj is constructed of white marble
and is inlaid with semi-precious stones: onyx, lapis lazuli, jasper, cornelian and red sandstone. It took 20,000 workers 22 years to complete.
After the Taj we headed back. In Agra, there’s also Akbar’s tomb. Akbar was one of the Mughal emperors. We stopped there but only saw the outside since it was raining and we didn’t want to spend a lot of time. Also we didn’t want to pay admission. On the road between Delhi and Agra, there’s a city called Mathura that is considered the birthplace of Vishnu in the Hindu religion. We saw the temple and since it happened to be a festival, hundreds of
devotees heading to worship.
Today we explored Lodi Gardens, which I think I would say were my favorite site from my trip. The gardens are sprawled out over nineteen acres and within the compound
are a few tombs that, while not as elaborate as places like the Taj, are made beautiful by the surrounding flora and the marked absence of other people. Lodi Gardens isn’t crowded like the more popular tourist sites and the only people we ran into were natives. I could have spent more time there if I’d had it and it will be one of the first places I return to if I go back to
Delhi.
After the gardens we went to Humayan’s Tomb. Humayan was another of the Mughal emperors and his tomb is
considered a prototype for the Taj Mahal. It was interesting to see an Islamic structure with Stars of David on it. And it, too, was not as crowded that day as some other tourist sites, so good photos were easier to take. Still, a group of Europeans ruined one of my shots.
We spent the afternoon shopping in Karol Bagh market, where I found some Indian kurtas (the long tunics women wear) for cheap. Unfortunately, Jenny and Bobby had to get going early to catch their bus, so we didn’t shop for long. I walked with them until they found a taxi and we said our goodbyes. I returned to Karol Bagh market but
didn’t buy anything else.
Next post: the kindness of strangers and Jama Masjid