temples, tiges and trains, oh my!!

we took the train from agra to jhansi in the morning and from there, we'd planned on taking a bus from jhansi to neighbouring orchha.  the rickshaw driver drove us to the bus station and took me to the bus ticket sales guy for orchha however the gentleman refused to sell me a ticket for the bus.  i scoured the station for an actual ticket office however i had to give up the effort and we caved and took the rickshaw to orchha.  (my personal believe is that the rickshaw driver pays the bus ticket sales guy to refuse to sell tickets to foreigners so that he can make some additional cash.) 

we arrived around 3pm, had a late lunch and checked into a hotel before wandering around the small little town of approx 15,000.  there are many temples and cenotaphs within walking distance which i wanted to see and i'd hoped that it would be a peaceful place to escape the chaos that is india for a few days!  i was not mistaken on either point :-)  we spent a number of hours on the internet trying to research and book the next and most complicated leg of our journey before having a snack and then heading off to bed.  it was a rather uneventful day!

we were at the chatryeaju temple for sunrise and were let in by a boy around 14 years of age.  he had keys to the door and gave us access to the main area.  from there, we started up a set of dark, steep stairs to the next level and then the next level.  the views were superb and he had a love for photography as every time we passed a viewpoint, he'd suggest a photo ;-)  amg is scared of heights (specifically the edges) so he ended up taking a couple of photos on her behalf!!  from there, we headed down for breakfast and then off to the cenotaphs which were right on the bank of the river betwa.  we wandered through the cenotaphs; climbing their steeps steps to take more photos before we finally sat down in the cenotaph main square to watch a number of eagles/birds of prey flying about, trying desperately to capture them on film.  i don't think either of us were overly successful ;-) 

we took a bit of a nap and then headed over to the fort and palace to get some afternoon light.  we were told by a local guide that it'd be better to come back the next day as it would be free for everyone so we agreed :-)  we went to the sheesh mahal (a fancy restaurant in the palace) for dinner as amg wanted to listen to the "local music and watch the ethnic dancing"; it was a mismatched affair that left much to be desired!!  that said, we had a good dinner (i had a fresh salad) and a beer and then headed back to the hotel for bed.  

i dropped off "londry" at a local laundress and then we headed over to the fort/palace after a bit of breakfast.  (it's so cute how they often have to run out to buy what we've ordered so that toast can take over 30mins to make :-)  we toured the fort/palace, took a few photos and spent the rest of the afternoon chilling, eating and then preparing for the next change of city...  we took a rickshaw back into jhansi and we were both amazed at the cacaphony that we'd not been exposed to whilst in orchha - it was a nice break ;-) 

we boarded for our night train from jhansi to umaria in 2nd class sleeper at 8:30pm.  i promptly lowered my bunk (much to the annoyance of the indian below) and tried to sleep.  it was a long, noisy and cold journey which ended abruptly at 5:20am when we disembarked.  we'd arranged for a pick up from the train station to tala which effectively is one entrance to the bandhavarg tiger reserve :-)  we arrived at the resort just after 7am, checked in and then fell into bed for a few hours.  we had breakfast, then headed off on a tiger safari!  we piled into a jeep with a german couple and headed off for two and a half hours, combining a 110 square kilometer section of the park which houses approximately 25 tigers along with about 30 other jeeps.  we saw no tigers on our first safari however we did see black-faced monkeys and spotted deer a plenty along with a few sambar deer and some wild peacocks.  it was a beautiful park with loads of animal noises and plant/tree smells that only the wilderness can offer!  we returned to the resort for a bbq 'snack' which we mistook for dinner and felt obligated to eat dinner as well.  i rolled myself into bed having done nothing but sit on my butt all day and eat, exhausted and happy! 

we woke early for the dawn safari with the same driver and fellow passengers as the day before; we all knew that our main focus for the morning was to see a tiger!!  we drove around with no luck for much of the time and then, just as we were due to finish up, we found many fresh tiger tracks including some baby cubs.  the driver took us onto a circuit that wasn't ours (he could have been suspended for 15 days if caught) and we drove along slowly, listening carefully.  there was some rustling in the bushes and then the head of a tiger popped out!!  he crossed the road in the front of us and continued on his merry way.  i got a couple of shots however this was the one time when i desperately regretted not bringing the slr; point and shoots just don't recover from a shot quickly enough!!  we were all smiley happy as we returned to the resort with our sighting for breakfast!!

we hadn't managed to book an onward ticket from umaria due to technical issues (read there was only one train per day and it was sold out) so we'd kind of considered taking general seating for the 12 hour journey to varanasi but that sounded painful!!  we were counselled to take the train to katni which was more of a hub than umaria and try our luck there.  as such, we rose at 2am and took the 4:30am train from umaria to katni (tickets booked at 4:15am) and then we managed two sleepers from katni to varanasi.  it was an air conditioned car which meant that it was near sound-proof and we got blankets, pillows, etc...  amg and i were in train heaven and we fell asleep quite promptly!!  that said, at about hour 6 (dinner time), we realised that we'd be on the train for almost 12 hours with no food!!  a minor oops on our part :-)  we got collected from the station and taken to our hotel by an indian gentleman who works for the hotel.  i will likely always be grateful to as i was near delirious/stupid with exhaustion and he guided us effortlessly to the hotel and procured us some food.  i ate at 10:30pm and then fell into bed, unfortunately waking early the next morning but that, i'm afraid, is another story :-)

 

hugs,

s

a truly romantic story...

amg and i left jaipur by government bus and headed to agra, home of the taj mahal.  the bus ride was long, tedious and hot but we arrived in the end.  the rough guide (guidebook) had advised to be warying of people suggeting that we get off the bus prior to its arrival in the station as they were looking to charge increased rickshaw fares for a further distance and just as warned, a gent got on the bus and told us it was the spot to get off which was a lie.  we stuck our ground and we continued onwards to the bus station and saved ourselves some rupees :-)
we were met by a lovely gentleman who gave us a map of agra and gave us a bit of advice on eating and traveling around the city.  we've been warned by a number of indians along the way to be "very careful" in agra as there are many bad indians who take advantage of tourists.  personally, i'd suggest that there are bad and not-so-bad indians but they all love to take advantage of tourists :-)  we caught a rickshaw over to taj ganj which is just south of the taj mahal and found ourselves rooms in the shah jahan guest house. 
once settled, we headed off for dinner at a recommended "safe" restaurant.  it might very well have been safe but the food was less than inspiring and cold ;-(  we had a beer (which came wrapped in newspaper so no one would know what we were drinking :-)  and then headed home to bed as we were rising early. 
we had breakfast at a cute restaurant and befriended an english guy who tagged along on our tour of the taj mahal.  for 750 rupees (about $20cdn), we were supposed to get entrance to the taj, a pair of booties to wear inside and a bottle of water but they'd run out of water so adam and i went to get some while amg went inside on her own.  there were many guides offering their service inside and we decided that if there was anywhere that was appropriate for a tour, it was the taj so we paid a local guy for his services.  it started out as a photographic tour but eventually he got into the finer points regarding the monument. 
factually, the taj mahal was constructed over a 22 yr period during which 20,000 people worked on its construction.  it was built by shah jahan after the death of one of his four wives (his favourite) who fathered him 14 children in 18 years.  none of his other wives or concubines gave him any children.  the masoleum cost 16 million rupees to construct between 1632 and 1653 and is made of white marble with precious stones in laid.  it used to have gold spires over the domes however the english took them and they've since been replaced with bronze replicas.  more impressionistically (if that is a word :-), the monument is beautiful yet very difficult to describe.  most people see the taj in the morning or evening as the play of light on the marble makes it shimmer and is an important decorative device.  it is absolutely breathtaking to witness and i was most impressed with the sheer size and the amount of detail in the marble.  there's a certain serene/peaceful feeling when you look at the building despite the multitude of people on the grounds visiting at the same time.  the people seem ant-size when compared with the actual masoleum.  shah jahan had planned on building himself a black marble taj for himself however his son soon put a stop to the extravagant ways of his father and he was locked up in the agra fort until his death when he was buried in the taj with the love of his life. 
after the taj, we had a quick rest and then headed off to the agra fort.  we took a rickshaw (which we haggled for) and then we stopped for lunch (which we haggled for) before we finally got to the fort where there was a massive queue.  after much pushing and shoving, amg managed to secure us all tickets and we went inside.  the fort is surrounded by a moat (as all good forts should be :-) and was red-sandstone in colour.  we took some photos and ambled about before going to find our rickshaw driver.  unfortunately, he left despite agreeing to stay (obviously we'd haggled well :-) and so we had to start the process all over again!! 
we headed off to the train station to buy tickets, then the sadar (main) bazaar for a look-see but there wasn't much happening.  finally, the rickshaw driver took us to a couple of little shops and we bought a few items.  he confided in us that they make 2% of whatever is purchased.  effectively, he has to go back to collect his cash after he drops us where we're headed.  that said, i'm sure that the shop keepers lie about the amount paid so that they don't have to pay as much commission; it's a real dog-eat-dog world here.. 
we headed off for dinner to a restaurant that served beers for 65 rupees and ate to our hearts content (unfortunately the food was average at best).  whilst on the rooftop, we witnessed a wedding parade.  the groom sat on the top of a horse and a band and friends paraded around the city, collecting more and more people.  we heading back to the hotel with a few extra beers so we could sit on the rooftop and listen to adam play guitar and sing.  it was a lovely way to end the evening! 
we woke early and sat on the rooftop having breakfast.  it was a peaceful morning and i watched some nearby kabootars (pigeon fanciers) training their flocks of pigeons.  effectively, they're trained to fly in formations around the rooftops to the whistling and gesturing of their owners.  a thoroughbred pigeon can cost as much as 5000 rupees which amounts to about 6mths wages in agra!  we headed off to the station and boarded the train without further ado ;-)