The Calm before the Storm

Taj Mahal

I know it has only been a few days since my last post, but I want to get back in the routine because I have a feeling that it is going to get crazy here over the next 2 weeks! Alex arrived at midnight IST on Friday. I took a few hours off work to meet him at the airport. Luckily, his first flight to Frankfurt and connecting flight to Delhi were right on time and he soared through customs. Suresh and I spotted him through the windows of the Costa Coffee in the international arrivals terminal and signaled him to meet us outside. We went back to the apartment and got him all settled and showered.

The apartment-mates were hanging out and celebrating the last few hours of Jasmin and Dave's time in India. Alex got to meet the group and a few other Cventers and started to enjoy the life of Essel Towers. He was pretty tired, so we called it a night around 6am.

The alarm went off at 11am and I immediately ordered some breakfast in bed. Alex got his first taste of Puni's tea and omelets. We had planned to go into Delhi for part of the day--but plans were spoiled when I ended up falling back asleep after breakfast. Alex let me sleep because I was still recovering from being sick and he relished the chance to read up on India in his tour book. When we finally stirred, we made a snacks run to the convenience store and made plans with Erin to go for dinner in Delhi.

Amour Rooftop in Hauz Khas

We decided on Amour, a rooftop cafe in Hauz Khas village that has a wood burning grill and a lounge overlooking the park. The three of us made our way to a table and were just about to enjoy the beautiful evening when massive drops of rain started falling. We quickly gathered our things and ran inside to wait it out a few minutes. When we requested to continue our evening on the roof--the waiters agreed--with hesitation and "at our own risk". We upgraded to a better view and continued to order wood-oven pizza, a salad and crepes.

The wind started picking up again and the heat lightning was streaking the sky. Just as we were considering the possibility of moving inside, a huge gust of wind knocked my drink straight off the table--and it was still full! We quickly gathered our items and took solace inside to finish up. It finally seemed to clear up, so we went back in search of Suresh to take us to our final stop of the night.

A "retro" band was playing at the Blue Frog club in Delhi, so we met up with Prachi, Ana, Kamal, Chris and Patrick for some grooving and dancing. The band was a blast and the venue was perfect. In addition to the bars and band inside, there was a patio and rooftop area outside--plenty of space to explore. We had a blast singing along to the music and dancing with the group. It was the perfect Saturday night out in Delhi--my last one!

Sparing 45 minutes to refresh, Alex and I arrived home with just enough time to switch gears and join our driver to make the journey to the Taj. Unfortunately, the expressway that will allow you to get from Delhi to Agra in an hour and thirty minutes is set to be inaugurated in late June--so we were stuck with the current route leading us through all of the villages along the way.

Alex was introduced to driving in India at the max. Per usual, there were no seat belts and our driver seemed to enjoy playing out his own "Fast and Furious" situations. He would be speeding along at 120km/hr and maneuver his way through the tightest gaps he could find. Alex soon realized that our plans for sleep were completely washed away, as it was too terrifying to close an eye. It was worth sacrificing some sleep to ehlp keep our driver awake--there wasn't even a radio to do the trick.

Taj Mahal reflection

In a relatively speedy 3.5 hours, we arrived at the west gate of the Taj and were immediately bombarded with people asking if we wanted a guide or a Taj Mahal snow globe. We kept our heads down and sternly pushed our way ahead until we got to the ticket counter. One particularly aggressive, yet friendly guide, offered his services and we decided, "why not?". He came in handy as I went through security and the guard searching my bag refused to let Mini Mimi enter. I don't know what is so threatening about an adorable paper cartoon doll...but it was not allowed and my lack of sleep and clear sentiment allowed tears to come to my eyes. Never fear, Adil was there. He offered to leave her outside the gate in a safe place where we could retrieve her later--and he was worth every rupee at that moment.



Adil toured us around and told us about the history of the "Crown Palace" and the architecture. In addtion to his facts about the Taj he seemed to really enjoy photography--and looked the part too! He directed us to every imaginable photo spot, asked us to pose and crouched around until he got the perfect shot. Even though it was barely 9am as we were leaving, the heat was rising and we were glad that we made it an early morning! We thanked Adil for his tour and got back into a bike rickshaw (that the diver pushed uphill!) to make our way to the parking lot.



Alex at the Agra Fort

We made our way to the nearby Agra Fort. This is the protection turned palace that held the man who built the Taj Mahal a prisoner from himself for the final 8 years of his life. It is a beautiful combination of red sandstone and marble. There are amazing views of the Taj in the distance. Alex and I explored the grounds for an hour before we were ready to get on our way. The morning could not have gone smoother--we left at 4:15amIST and had thoroughly explored Agra's two greatest attractions by 11:30am IST. Unfortunately, the second half of the trip was a little...bumpy.



Alex and our driver at the "Baby Taj"



We drove circles around Agra looking for a restaurant that had been recommended to us. We could not find it and Alex and I eventually decided that we were content with our snacks anyway--we just wanted to go home! Our driver made a "quick stop for a picture" at the "Baby Taj"--a place of worship honoring a guru that passed away last month. We were pleasantly greeted by the staff, and before we knew what was happening, we were being escorted in and around the temple, across the street to the sacred cow sanctuary and through the village to the guru's dining area for food (thanks, but no thanks). Our quick pit stop turned into much more--and while the hospitality was appreciated--all we wanted to do with our lack of sleep was go home! After kindly excusing ourselves, we thanked our tour guide and hit the road.



Sacred Cow



Not 20kms further down the road did the sky open up and start pouring rain. The water was collecting on the highway and our driver pushed onward to make good time. Unfortunately, he took a wrong turn and we found ourselves on a cobblestone road, in the slums, in the rain. There is not a sketchier place that I have been--and while all the kids were adorable as they played in the rainshowers--the only thing that could have been worse was darkness.

Luckily, he was fiannly able to figure out where he made the wrong turn and we were back to Gurgaon and headed immediately to the shower. Heat, sunscreen, dirt and cow manure don't sit well on long car rides. We relaxed with the roommates and ordered a (spicy) butter chicken, chopati and fried rice dinner from Puni.

It is now a few hours in to Alex's birthday and we are trying to wait for a better hour to go to sleep. A busy first weekend, but I think it turned out to be a wonderful welcome to India for Alex. I cant believe that next week is my last in the office!

Click here for more pictures--including the Alex+Catelyn photoshoot at the Taj!