Ahhhh... grahhh... (Part III)
Up at 5:30am for the Taj Mahal, but of course it doesn't open at 6am like we are told. Rather, we are kept in line for the ticket booth until 6:30am, then have to queue up again to enter the Mahal. As usual at large tourist attractions, there is a local entry price, and a foreigner price. At the Mahal, it is Rs 20 for locals, 750 for foreigners. As well, there are separate lines - locals get in faster, of course.
The Taj Mahal is mesmerizing to behold. Only a building for the dead (well, two dead people) can be kept this pristine! It is really everything that the movies make it out to be, and then some. I can't believe that I am right here in front of it. It is the most beautiful piece of architecture I've ever seen.
There are swarms of people like tiny ants all over the grounds. I lose Matjas in all the wandering, and photo ops everywhere, but meet Isabella from Austria who I chatted with while in line earlier. It turns out we are both going to Jaipur later that day - she by taxi, and me by train. We decide we will meet up in Jaipur to do some exploring. I'm starting to see how easy it is to meet up with other travelers once you're on the road and friendly!
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We find a ledge to rest on, and I take a nap in the most curious bent-over cross legged position. I really enjoy that Matjas will often just top in the middle of somewhere and just sit and do nothing for an hour. I have a most delicious 15 minute nap complete with a dream while in my odd position, then we meander out to have a kicking iced coffee outside the Mahal. There we give some suggestions to two guys who just arrived, one of them from Kitchener, ON, who is living in Delhi. We may meet up once I'm back there! All of a sudden there are more contacts in my phone, and people to see in India! This is the part I'm really enjoying - just seeing who turns up in the path I'm on because of something that was influenced by a previous traveler. I'm beginning to have more faith that good things and great people will come my way!
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A few tuktuks and some great South Indian lunch (my favorite food so far), we're back in the Mahal area, and climb back up to a rooftop terrace for Kingfisher beer (pretty much India's only brand of beer) and a few games of chess. I get my butt kicked x3, but I'm getting better!
Two big bottles later, both a bit tipsy, we're grabbing bags from the hotel, and part ways at the tuktuk that I take to the train station. Meeting Matjas really enriched my experience of Agra, and despite my advice to see the Taj and get out, I enjoyed my stay, stained bed sheets and all! Now that I think about it, expecting fresh sheets every night does seem a bit unnecessary! I still won't show pictures of my room to my mother though...
As I sit in the tuktuk, I suddenly realize that in the last 30 hours I went from totally on edge about being on my own, to sitting back relaxed, having acquired a ton of practical getting around kills, and how-to-be skills just be hanging out with Matjas. I already feel much better about arriving in Jaipur late in the evening with no place booked to stay.