Agra and Varanasi

After two hectic days in Jaipur we headed East to Agra via train – where for the first time on this trip I got a proper seat by the window 👏 Agra is the base for visiting the Taj Mahal and we wasted no time hopping in a tuk tuk with driver Mad Mike to get our first glimpse from the Mehtab Bagh Park. The journey is sometimes worth more than the destination – this was the most entertaining ride yet.

In an effort to save about 50p between 6 of us (I know!) we all squeezed into one tuk tuk. This meant Jessie sitting on Adele’s knee and poor Izzie upfront getting cozy with old gap toothed Mike, who asked her to marry him and slapped her thigh at every opportunity. Later she told us he was clearly drunk as a skunk…. On top of the questionable driver we had also picked the worst tuk tuk on the road as it was chugging along at half the speed of every one else, who were openly laughing at us 😂 – we made it to the park with 5 mins to spare before last entry.

We queued for our tickets despite Mike’s best efforts to persuade us to push infront – probably because he’d agreed to wait for us and wouldnt get paid until we got safely home. Which was a near miracle as he drove the wrong way down the road most of the way back.

Next morning we got up at the ungodly hour of 4am to make it to the legendary Taj Mahal for sunrise in order to beat the crowds and get that photo. Annoyingly men and women have to queue separately for security and there were, as always, many more women queuing than men. We almost ran through the gates and there it was, still partially covered in mist, one of the ‘new’ wonders of the world. It’s one of those things you have to see in real life to appreciate.

Some of the group, who had somehow packed a never ending array of stylish outfits into backpacks, had carefully prepared a look for their Taj photoshoot, including full face of makeup. Apart from Gemma and I, who stuck with hiking trousers and jeans as it was bloody freezing! Although we did take our jackets off for a few snaps 😂

The Taj is even more impressive when you understand the history and appreciate the perfect symmetry – the emporer built it for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, taking over 10 years and costing over $800 million. Symmetry which was unfortunately ruined when his body was buried off centre next to hers. No photos allowed inside, but what looked like intricate paintings covering the marble walls, were actually real gem stones. Inside felt cool and strangely calm despite the number of visitors, each donning protective shoe covers.

Agra itself had more of a gritty feel to it. I went to get my watch strap fixed for 50p (yes it’s already fallen apart again) and somehow ended up in a jewellery shop on a mini spree. The less the shop person hassles me to buy, the less likely I am to haggle and the more I’ll actually pay 🤔

Amazingly, the best was yet to come. We boarded yet another night train, this time a three tier sleeper (how anybody with any health problems gets up I don’t know) where I had to crawl into the middle bunk and stay there. Funny enough I got my serene instagram ‘gazing out of train’ shot by accident when I was on my way to the toilet and a French woman asked me to take her photo then offered to repay the favour 😂

It took over 14 hours to reach Varanasi, our most eastern point, as this train is notorious for delays. Sure enough we awoke to find we’d stopped for 4 hours.

Varanasi is extremely important for Hindus, who travel from all over on pilgrimage to bathe in the holy river Ganges.

This is also a place where people come to die. Everyday day bodies are burned by the riverside.

Varanasi is absolutely insane – neither words nor photos convey the pure chaos of the main streets. Nor do they convey the strange calm over the river.

Unfortunately the sacred sites have become a tourist spectacle, with boatloads of visitors cruising up and down the river to get a look at the cremations. I found this extremely disrespectful and had I known the nature of our sunrise trip, I would not have gone. Note to self – do more research, even if on an organised tour. Worst of all were the tourists snapping away with zoom lenses at locals bathing in the holy water, as if they were on safari. I took a photo of them to illustrate.

The streets are so crowded that you must walk single file, amongst the cars, mopeds, bicycles, rickshaws, tuk tuks and pedestrians, and the never ending honking of horns. We were barely able to keep sight of each other and keep up without getting our feet runover. See video below!

The alleyways near the river are quiter – you can spend half a day wandering around and getting lost amongst the tailor shops. The below shop keeper was happy to pose!

Be prepared to see people carrying their loved ones, covered in cloth, to the cremation area. This is a hard thing to see – but an essential part of life here.

Dotted around the river are the Sadhus – these are the Holy men, mostly naked, with an orange robe and long hair, often with their faces painted white, who live outside of society. No photos – we also saw yoga of another kind being practiced. Let’s just say it involved a naked old man using a stick in a very interesting way to lift another man up in the air 🙈🙉🙊

We witnessed the nightly rituals, where priests played the drums, sung, chanted and waved lights and incense around. This happens every night and it was certainly an experience. Video below.

Our last day we had some free time to visit the site of Buddha’s enlightenment and his first sermon, Sarnath. I found this fascinating. The stupa has since been rebuilt but the original ruins are just visible. We took a guided tour with a monk, because we liked him and he took us to peer through a hole in the fence to see the stupa instead of paying an extortionate fee to go in 🙂

To conclude this post, the Taj was something you just have to see in India. It’s undoubtably beautiful. It’s also obscenely extravagant for a country with such poverty. But Varanasi is the India I had imagined, and then some – utterly fascinating and overwhelming. I’m so grateful I was able to experience it!