By Indian standards our journey from Delhi to Agra was without incident. We can say this because we are now used to wandering cows, herds of cows, packs of dogs, wild boar, camels and carts all sharing our already limited road space. That’s not to mention overtaking and undertaking with milliseconds to spare, cars, motorbikes travelling the wrong way down a dual carriage way and road surfaces of unpredictable conditions! Today we saw a man riding a motorbike, carrying a goat! We have an excellent driver called Raj who has looked after us for hundreds of miles.
A visit to the Taj Mahal at sunrise was our start to the first morning. Nothing really prepares you for your first sight of this iconic building. It really is as beautiful and impressive as we hoped it would be.As the sun came up we saw the colour of the marble change from grey to an almost translucent white. The precious stones, inlaid within the marble, glittered in the sunlight. .it was peaceful, serene and calm. Like so many others before us, we sat on, what the locals now call, “The Diana Bench” and posed for our picture. There is much to see within the gardens and the mausoleum, the intricacies of the carving and sculptures and the attention to detail of precious stone work are exquisite. Reluctantly we left, turning our heads for one last look, trying to soak up the serenity of this awesome complex.
Another day, another red fort! Today we visited our 3rd at Fatepur Sikhri. Our knowledge of history of the Mughal Dynasty is improving and this fort was built by a king who wished to unite his kingdom. He did this by marrying 3 women of different faiths,not all at the same time! Each queen had their own palace with its own architecture, so we saw the Moslem, Hindu and Christian palaces.
Next stop Rathambore for our tiger hunt! We were looking forward to escaping the hustle and bustle of the city and our 2 days here were a welcome relief. Our hotel was colonial in style and we enjoyed a relaxing swim in the pool in the afternoon and a gin and tonic each night in the gardens. Those of you who know us well (John and Sara definitely, Cath less so) will be surprised to learn that alcohol has not featured very highly on this holiday!
We were fully prepared not to see tigers as we had been warned that this happened quite frequently. However we did! On both game drives! Our first was in the early morning, after a lot of searching, we found a sleeping tiger under a tree. Next to him was his half eaten breakfast! An antelope who hadn’t been quick enough! Our driver was brilliant and drove our jeep to within 5 metres of the tiger. We could see the rise and fall of his chest as he was breathing!
In the afternoon, in a different sector of the park, we spotted a tiger quite quickly. Unfortunately he was initially a fair distance away and spent a lot of time lying down! How inconsiderate! We gained some understanding of the patience needed by naturalists who make wildlife programmes. At the point our driver had said we would have to give up and go back to the hotel, our tiger woke up and decided it was time for dinner. We’d already spied half a dead gazelle by the track and so we watched as he came much closer to our jeep and dragged the carcass further up the hill to gorge on his prey. Our patience had been rewarded!
Our adventure continues! Next stop Jaipur!
Indian Adventures for Silver Surfers 