06/03/05
I am blogging because Elena forced me to. And since i am using her account, i'll have to oblige her.
So we just completed an 18-hour train ride from mumbai to Delhi. we had the sketchiest rickshaw experience ever. An old man accosted us once we stepped off the train and hailed a rickshaw for us...then he got in with us and tried to lure me into a different hotel. ("only 100-200 rupees a night!" he whispered, confidentially and knowingly) He must have charged the auto-rickshaw driver commission. The moral of the story is: commission sharks are rampant in Delhi. be wary of freckle-y old men in white who smile a lot at you and try to be helpful.
The plan for the day is to go to the Greater Kailash Area after South Extension (where we are right now). Elena wants to go to Mango..surprise surprise.
We just went to mcdonald's. yum.
What else is there to say? since i was supposed to blog about Agra, i guess i'll do that right now.
I chose to write about Agra because that was where we saw the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal was an exciting experience for me because I have always been inspired by any creation inspired by love. So, the Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife who died. She was a common person, but apparentely, did many great deeds for the poor of the country. Shah Jahan managed to win her by being a cross-dresser. (no joke.) He dressed up in a lady's veil and walked around the market, stalking this woman who would become the love of his life. They got married and were very happy together. Then, she died in childbirth, and as a result, the king's hair turned grey overnight. That is the first miracle. The second miracle was that he managed to get the Taj Mahal constructed to commemorate his wife. it took 22 years with 20,000 workers, i think. dont' quote me on the fact. my memory's a little fuzzy. The general point is that it took a lot of effort from a lot of artisans.
After going to the Taj Mahal, we were taken to a very touristy shop where they were selling the transparent marble that the Taj is made of. Everything was ridiculously overpriced, but the trinkets and tables they were selling were undeniable beautiful.
I think that covers Agra. I'll be staying in Delhi for awhile longer alone. now that i won't be surrounded with white people (i'm asian), i wonder if peopel will still take pictures of me on their cell phones.
PS. We also went to Fatehpur Sikkri. (probably spelled that wrong). I am including this fact because Elena made me. She just read my blog, and said "Honey! you forgot about Fatehpur Sikkri! AT least mention that we went there!". So here it is. I'm mentioning that we went there. the coolest thing there was the table in the middle of the courtyard where the king would play chess using his wives as gamepieces. good thing i didn't live back then in India and i wasn't Akbar's wife. If i were, i would never have consented to being his gamepiece. who would, in over 40 degree celsius weather? i would have gotten a ridiculous-looking sari tan.
PPS. Elena read my revision and was still not pleased. she said "Victoria, these are historical Indian sites...please respect them! At least mention that they were nice!" So here it is, AGAIN. Both the Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikkri were very nice. Or to use Elena's words, "say 'spectacular!'" (she is looking over my shoulder as i am typing). yes, it was SPECTACULAR!!!!!!
happy, elena?
um... her response is : "Whatever, man. i don't care anymore."
So we just completed an 18-hour train ride from mumbai to Delhi. we had the sketchiest rickshaw experience ever. An old man accosted us once we stepped off the train and hailed a rickshaw for us...then he got in with us and tried to lure me into a different hotel. ("only 100-200 rupees a night!" he whispered, confidentially and knowingly) He must have charged the auto-rickshaw driver commission. The moral of the story is: commission sharks are rampant in Delhi. be wary of freckle-y old men in white who smile a lot at you and try to be helpful.
The plan for the day is to go to the Greater Kailash Area after South Extension (where we are right now). Elena wants to go to Mango..surprise surprise.
We just went to mcdonald's. yum.
What else is there to say? since i was supposed to blog about Agra, i guess i'll do that right now.
I chose to write about Agra because that was where we saw the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal was an exciting experience for me because I have always been inspired by any creation inspired by love. So, the Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife who died. She was a common person, but apparentely, did many great deeds for the poor of the country. Shah Jahan managed to win her by being a cross-dresser. (no joke.) He dressed up in a lady's veil and walked around the market, stalking this woman who would become the love of his life. They got married and were very happy together. Then, she died in childbirth, and as a result, the king's hair turned grey overnight. That is the first miracle. The second miracle was that he managed to get the Taj Mahal constructed to commemorate his wife. it took 22 years with 20,000 workers, i think. dont' quote me on the fact. my memory's a little fuzzy. The general point is that it took a lot of effort from a lot of artisans.
After going to the Taj Mahal, we were taken to a very touristy shop where they were selling the transparent marble that the Taj is made of. Everything was ridiculously overpriced, but the trinkets and tables they were selling were undeniable beautiful.
I think that covers Agra. I'll be staying in Delhi for awhile longer alone. now that i won't be surrounded with white people (i'm asian), i wonder if peopel will still take pictures of me on their cell phones.
PS. We also went to Fatehpur Sikkri. (probably spelled that wrong). I am including this fact because Elena made me. She just read my blog, and said "Honey! you forgot about Fatehpur Sikkri! AT least mention that we went there!". So here it is. I'm mentioning that we went there. the coolest thing there was the table in the middle of the courtyard where the king would play chess using his wives as gamepieces. good thing i didn't live back then in India and i wasn't Akbar's wife. If i were, i would never have consented to being his gamepiece. who would, in over 40 degree celsius weather? i would have gotten a ridiculous-looking sari tan.
PPS. Elena read my revision and was still not pleased. she said "Victoria, these are historical Indian sites...please respect them! At least mention that they were nice!" So here it is, AGAIN. Both the Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikkri were very nice. Or to use Elena's words, "say 'spectacular!'" (she is looking over my shoulder as i am typing). yes, it was SPECTACULAR!!!!!!
happy, elena?
um... her response is : "Whatever, man. i don't care anymore."
posted by victoria at 1:28 AM
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