Jaipur

Jaipur was another 6-hour bus ride from Agra...and it was my favorite city on the trip, although I enjoyed the sites of Agra more.  Driving in to Jaipur it hit me as a sleepy little town, but that's not really true.  We got in on Wednesday afternoon, relaxed at the pool for a bit, then went in to town to get some dinner and explore the shops/city.  We got convinced to check out this guy's puppet shop in a back alley, which also led us to straight razor shaves for a couple dollars.  From there we went back and just relaxed at the hotel as we had another early morning for sights.

The next day we went to Amber Fort, where we got to ride elephants up the hill to the entrance of the Fort.

 

Here are some pictures from Amber Fort:

 

My favorite part of the entire trip came after this though.  We had a bunch of free time to explore the city, so we went to the main street where there were countless shops...shoes, jewelery, textiles, etc. Basically you go in to these shops and they try to sell you whatever they have, and for ridiculously expensive prices...so you say you start to bargain, and when you aren't getting what you want...my rule is to walk away and every 10 feet you walk is 100 rupees off...because these guys HATE to see you walk out without their product...so basically you end up getting the price you want by telling them no and walking away.  I ended up buying...a really cool elephant tapestry, a collapsible/folding knife, 3 different silver pendants, and a cool Ganesha painting

Overall, it was an amazing trip, but I am happy to be back in Bangalore with less than 1 month to go til home.  So it's back on the school grind for less than a month.  Thanks for reading!

Peace and Love,

JL

Delhi & Agra

Delhi
 
The first leg of our Golden Triangle trip was to Delhi.  Got to see some very cool things, and took a bike rickshaw through Old Delhi.  Also got to see the Qutub Minar (which is the tallest completely stone structure) - I could've swore I took pictures, but I can't find them, so I will get some from a friend to post.  I'll be the first to admit I didn't utilize my time well in Delhi.  I was exhausted after our long week of classes and traveling that I just wanted to chill out and recuperate, and I got a haircut!

Agra

From Delhi we had a 5-hour bus ride to get to Agra.  Arriving in Agra we went to a cool textile shop, where I made some purchases for my mom and sister.  But it was an early night because we had a 5am wake up call for the Taj Mahal.  It is impossible to accurately describe how beautiful the Taj Mahal is, rather, it just needs to be experienced (so do it!).  But we went right after sunrise, so the way in which the sun hits the Taj at sunrise is breathtaking, it pretty much glows from the sunlight.  One thing I didn't know going in to seeing the Taj was how small it is inside.  History Lesson: The Taj was built by Shah Jahan for his 3rd and favorite wife (she gave him 14 children, but died in child birth), and she asked that he build something to remember her forever...so she got the Taj Mahal...where they both rest in peace together side by side inside.  Here are some of my favorite pictures.

Taj Mahal from the South

Taj glowing in the morning sun

View from just outside the mausoleum, glowing again.

From the Taj Mahal, we went back to the hotel to eat breakfast and then ventured out again, this time to Agra Fort.  It's this crazy expansive fort that is mostly red.  I had more fun exploring the nooks of the fort than I did the Taj because the Taj is "what you see is what you get" while the fort had all these passages and rooms that were open to explore.  Again, here are some pictures...I was also completely surprised when we looked out to the east and the Taj Mahal was sitting there in all it's glory.

Map of Agra Fort

Taj from inside Agra Fort

Taj one last time