AGRA, INDIA

I checked into a different and cheaper hotel in Paharganj that was very close to the train station. My Ajmer train got in fairly late and my Agra train was leaving early the next morning so there was no point in getting an expensive hotel in a nicer neighborhood for that little time. It turned out that the Agra train actually left from another station about 20 minutes away so it wasn’t as efficient as it could have. I shared a taxi to the new station in the morning with an American girl backpacker and to be nice I paid for it, but she soon disappeared and never really thanked me. Oh well. The train left on time and my seat was similarly comfortable since it was the exact same set up as the train I was on the previous day.

We pulled into Agra Station around 10:30 in the morning. Everything in India is quite cheap except for entrance to the Taj Mahal for foreigners at almost $20. My book recommended the government-run bus tour that included the Taj and a few other things including all the admission charges for about $32. It’s supposed to be timed to pick up people from the train I arrived on and deliver them back to the station just in time for the outbound train in the evening. I went into the parking lot looking for the bus and a taxi driver assured me the bus wasn’t going today. Taxi drivers in India are big liars so that meant nothing to me, but he dragged someone who looked like a transit policeman over who also said there would be no bus today. Since corruption is so horrible in India his guarantee meant nothing either. I eventually found a desk back in the station that is set up for people signing up for the bus tour. They said the bus would be going as long as a few more people sign up — there were only 2 so far and at least 5 are needed. That sounded reasonable to me and also proved that those assholes outside, including the cop, were lying.

Unfortunately nobody else came to sign up for the tour so I was on my own. A taxi driver offered to drive me all day for about $13 and that didn’t seem too bad, but the deal got even sweeter when he informed me that this was one of 5 World Heritage Days each year when all the attractions are free. I was a bit skeptical of this at first, but it turned out to be true. We drove first to the Taj itself since he said that bus tours from Delhi leave in the morning and all arrive around the same time around noon. If we went to the Taj first we would miss the crowds.

Actually I had a driver AND a tour guide. I don’t know how they can afford to have two people working all day for so little money, but it was fine with me. The car was comfortable and almost new and the A/C worked well and was used the whole day. The driver dropped us off in front of the entrance. I read where the car pollution was taking its toll on the exterior of the Taj so they wisely restricted access so cars can’t get any closer than about 1 km away. You have to, or get to, walk through a rather pleasant park area for a while before you get to the entrance. The only other thing this nice in India was the area in front of the capitol buildings in Delhi. We got to the entrance and the sign said it was free. I was actually surprised, but happy to be saving over $24 on entrance fees for the day.

I had read this in my book so I shouldn’t have been caught off guard, but I was. You can bring cameras into the Taj Mahal, but you can’t bring phones or other electronic devices for some reason. I had my iPod in my pocket and they made me check it in a locker area a ways back the road. I was worried that I might never see it again, but it was there when I returned. My guide actually arranged for a locker with a key for my iPod while everyone else had to just hand over their device and get a claim ticket. The guide actually provided some great information and spoke good English.

Once inside, the complex is quite big and you have to walk for a bit and then go through a gate before you see the Taj itself. I was expecting to be disappointed since other travelers had said that it looks in person exactly how you think it will. I guess it did, but it’s still a really incredible building. There is a functioning mosque on one side of it and an empty and identical one on the other side. The fascinating thing about this is the empty one was built just for the sake of symmetry and can’t be used as a mosque no matter what because, unlike the other one, it doesn’t face Mecca.

The Taj Mahal actually looks very large and regal from a distance and it is quite large. It was constructed as a tomb by a king in memory of his second (and favorite) wife who died giving birth. Even though I heard it was a tomb, for some reason I still assumed people lived inside. It certainly looks like a really nice palace to live in, but when you get inside it’s actually just a tomb. It’s plenty big enough to live in, but it’s really just like a church-type place with a couple of graves inside although the actual bodies are supposedly in other graves well below the floor.

I also assumed there would be lots to look at, but there isn’t. It takes only 5 or 10 minutes tops to look around the whole interior and a few more minutes to walk around the outside. After that you are back in the real India. We went back to the car and the guide told the driver to take us to something called the Baby Taj. That turned out to be an older and similar, but much smaller Mahal than the famous one. It’s nice enough, but it’s like seeing the Eiffel Tower and then going to a smaller version that is falling apart. What’s the point? The thing is, there are only a few sights in Agra and I had all day.

My guide was at least honest with me when he said that if he takes me to a souvenir emporium he gets money whether I buy anything or not. We had lots of time to kill and they charged me so little for the tour that I was feeling charitable so I agreed. At this point I have been worked over by dozens of high-pressure sales people in places like this all over the world so I fear them no longer. It’s not enjoyable, but I am somewhat numb to the painful part by now. He dropped me off and I was shown all sorts of jewelry and clothes that were really expensive and I had no interest in. About 10 minutes later I was back outside and they took me to a restaurant for lunch.

These restaurants that tour guides take you too are far more expensive than everything else, but I have had some excellent meals at them and they are always nice so I was fine with that. It also allows for another kickback for the guide and that helps keep the price of the tour down. I had a very good lunch while talking to another American guy in a similar situation and I downed a couple of beers too. Since beer is not on the menu and against their religion they had to serve it in opaque mugs. These mugs looked like something that a 1960s ski resort would give away for being too tacky and would wind up in a garage sale somewhere and no one would ever buy them. The beer tasted good though.

Back in the car we went to the famous Agra Fort. There is a similar fort in Delhi that was designed to resemble this one, but that one (the Red Fort) was closed when I went there so it was good that I got to see the better one, and for free too. The fort is large and very impressive. My guide walked through it with me and explained everything including the area where they used to make Elephants fight each other for their amusement and possibly gambling pleasure.

At this point it wasn’t even 3 p.m. and the train is at 6:55 p.m. so I still had lots of time. I told them they could drive me to the station and I would just read at a restaurant there until my train, unless he had something else I should see. He said he had one more thing — something called the Star of India. That sounded interesting and he said it wasn’t far away. We pulled up at the side entrance of a jewelry shop and I quickly realized I had been tricked. I appreciated him leveling with me on the first shopping excursion so I was extra disappointed when he just threw me in with the lions.

This was nothing more than a jewelry store, but the stones I was forced to look at were quite nice. I know almost nothing about precious gems, but these all had a distinctive feature that would show up as a 4 or 6-point star when held under the light. I toyed with him for a bit and asked a few prices, but of course they were outrageous. Even if I were interested in such a gem, a store like this would be the last place on Earth I would buy one. Even if the wholesale price is low you have to pay sales commissions and commissions to your guide and god knows what else. I walked out empty handed and the guy actually followed me into the street begging me to buy or at least make a counter offer. I just got in the car and soon we were at the train station. I tipped the guide and the driver pretty well. Even though he tried to trick me on this last thing he did an excellent job and I wanted to reward him for that. The whole thing cost me far less than I would have had to pay for the bus tour since all the sights were free. I had a couple of cups of tea in a restaurant at the train station and read a book. A couple hours later I was on the train and back on my way to Delhi.

I went back to my hotel from the train station and had a good night’s sleep and then got a taxi to the Delhi airport for my flight to Bangkok. India is fascinating and I actually had a good time most of the time and met some very interesting travelers, but I was thrilled to be leaving. I imagine I will talk about India as much as any place I’ve ever been so in that sense it was an incredible visit, although partially because it’s so screwed up that bizarre stories are impossible to avoid. We landed in Bangkok on time.