This morning we traveled on our private coach to the city of Agra .  The traffic getting out of Delhi wasn’t too bad but as usual the roads are crowded with all types of vehicles and people.

We drove on the new highway which cut the trip down by about 2 hours.  From the highway we saw farmers working in their fields. There are many crops in this fertile area; maze, sugar cane, potatoes, mustard and rice.  It’s also rich in clay so there are many brick ovens dotting the country side.  It’s interesting observing the rural life .

There are various animals too.  Shepherds tend their flock of goats, gaiwala tend their cattle and we even came across a herd of camel.

As we enter the outskirts of Agra the traffic becomes very busy. The verhichles and people seem to weave in and out in a disorganized fashion with horns honking constantly.  The drivers not only have to watch out for other drivers, they also dodge cows, dogs, people and even and horse and rider.  It’s quite interesting watching all of this from the front seats of the bus.  Our driver Anand does a fantastic job for which we are very grateful.

We arrived the Radisson Blu hotel in Agra. Upon check in were greeted with a refreshing drink and a lovely young lady placed a blessing on our forehead. After a quick check in were treated to a fabulous buffet lunch.  The food is excellent!

After freshening up we head back out for a tour of  Agra’s Grand Fort; the towering red-sandstone ramparts house a variety of palace apartments. Ali, our guide is very knowledgeable and goes into great detail explaining the history of the mighty Mughal Emperor, Akbar the Great. The red sand stone fort is an amalgamation of buildings and palaces, which were built by Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangeb.  It is a vast museum of building of various tastes of the Mughal rulers. Ali toured us through the various rooms of the palace and explained what life was like for this young ruler and his three wives.

Then had our first view of the impressive Taj Mahal, It glows in the beautiful evening light. We’ve seen  depictions of it a hundred times, but this is one of the feAs in the other monuments visited, there were many Indian tourists that are taken with our western look. They non nonchalantly take selfies, strategically placing us in their photos. Some even ask if they can take a photo with us.  I’m sure we are popular on India’s facebook posts. We are also intrigued with them and find ourselves taking photos of the beautiful women in their colourful saris.

There are some cute monkeys wandering about the fort and many beautiful birds flying about with an abundance of green parrots.

As the sun set we made our way back to the bus for our drive through the busy, hectic, noisy street to our hotel.  Some of us took a dip in the roof top infinity pool and afterwards enjoyed dinner outdoors at the terrace restaurant.  A great end to a fabulous day.  Tomorrow morning were up and out at 6am to view the sunrise on the Taj Mahal.

Accommodation: Radisson Hotel