The Road to Agra

I got up this morning feeling much better. The taxi that I had hired arrived on time and I had a really nice ride to the train station in Jhansi. Unlike my previous ride, I didn't have to put up with all the people on the bus staring at me, but the driver had his rear-view mirror adjusted so that it was focused on me. Fortunately, he had to keep his eyes on the road most of the time so could only stare at me for a few seconds at a time. It was a much nicer way to travel than the bus. I have determined that the only law of the road here is that the bigger you are, the more right-of-way you have. Unless, of course, you're an animal in which case you trump everything. My taxi was a sub-compact car, so we had to pull over to the shoulder whenever there were on-coming buses, cows or goats. We pretty much just ran down the goatherds.

I got to the train station a bit early and the train was delayed, so I had to spend a few hours hanging out at the station. Fortunately, there was a first class ladies' waiting lounge, which was not nearly as grand as it sounds, but was exclusively for the use of women, so I didn't have to deal with unwanted male attention there. The Jhansi train station has a locust problem of biblical proportions which was only entertaining for the first few minutes until such time as they started landing on my shoulders and head. I swear some of these things could have fed a family of four at Thanksgiving.

I had reserved a seat in an air-conditioned car which was almost empty, so I had lots of room. The train guys treated me with respect and were very helpful, so I felt right at home and very comfortable. I know that my brother is probably cringing at the news of a 3-hour taxi ride and middle-class train ticket rather than mingling with the masses (he likes to call it the Marie Antoinette tour of India) but I challenge him to spend a few days here before he passes judgement.

The countryside that we passed through was really quite pretty and green. It is very flat here, but quite rocky and the few small hills are more like large rock formations. They're big on their temples and mosques as well as their forts, so there are some interesting buildings to see on the ridges. The fields and somewhat red earth look like many other places I've visited, particularly in Southeast Asia, and it's only when you see people that you realize that you're in India. It's not just the clothes that give them away, but also the dirt and poverty.

Once in Agra, I booked into a hotel complete with a pool and very western trappings. Again, another splurge, but I was able to barter a reasonable rate and I really feel I need it at this point. It was dinner time when I arrived, so I went out for a short walk to get a feel for the place before dark. I found that there's a Pizza Hut next door and yes, I ate there. It was glorious - the first franchised western food I've had since I left Australia in April. I'm sure Chris is almost apoplectic by now; don't worry bro...I'll go back to strictly Indian tomorrow (but I'm not giving up the hotel room).

The touts are really tenacious here, but I managed to keep a smile on my face and my spirits up when dealing with them. One rickshaw driver followed me throughout my walk (in both directions) and wanted to wait for me tomorrow morning at my hotel. I didn't tell him where I was staying and managed to lose him when I went into Pizza Hut. I expect tomorrow will be really challenging when I'm in the neighbourhood of the Taj Mahal. Still, I'm really going to try to hang onto the positive outlook I've managed to create for myself as I know it will take me far.

For those of you who have heard news of rioting in Agra, don't worry about me. The curfews have been lifted and things are returning to normal. I don't think the problems were anywhere near where I'm staying and I won't be going out after dark anyway. One of my days here will actually be a day-trip out of town and I just won't be wandering around that much on my own. I will likely, for the first time, actually take rickshaws to visit the sites, mostly because it gets me off the streets and out of the clutches of the touts. In this case, it will also provide me some extra security.

I am writing this from a computer in the corner of a souvenir shop beside my hotel. I think the store is closed but there are about six guys sitting around the counter having drinks and chatting. They have included me in their conversation from time to time and I have really enjoyed their company. What a nice thing to find some people who will just talk to me and not try to sell me anything. They even offered to let me download whatever music is in their iTunes library to my iPod.

That's it for now. I jotted down a bunch of notes today, but left them in my room so I'll add them to tomorrow's post after I've seen the famous Taj Mahal.