Agra and the Taj Mahal

We arrived into Agra after only a short journey of five hours where we had to be moved after asking for help because my seat would stay sat up.

We checked into our hotel which was a bit of a let down after the glowing reviews in the guide book and online, but it did have a clear rooftop view of the Taj Mahal. Also the reviews said it had delicious food but the chai masala was the worst we'd had the whole trip and they some how made a chocolate banana pancake taste disgusting. We actually only ate half and then walked to a neighbouring restaurant and ordered the same thing, which was an improvement.

The next day we woke up at 6 am and headed to see the Taj Mahal. Even though it was super early it was still quite busy, but not as busy as it was when we left so I think we did beat most of the crowds.

Verdict: it actually is very impressive in person as it is in the pictures. I think it is very photogenic but it still impressed to see it in the flesh. I still can't quite believe we actually saw it in person, I kept having to pinch myself. There are large gardens around the whole if the front which we walked around enjoying it from all angles, we also walked around the back (where there's a wide river). To go inside and in the upper floor you have to pay extra and wear these like booties to keep everything clean and respectful. Inside is just two tombs stones with nice decorative bits but nothing that special. We then also stopped off at the little museum onsite service I would recommend having a look at.

After taking it all in for about 3 hours we got a lazy breakfast, where we had the best lassi of our trip so far. After that we chilled in our room and then heading back out into Agra propper to get a final taste of all our street food favourites before we left India the next day. These included chicken tikka and alou tikki. We then found a large quiet park, which only cost 10 cents to get into, to stroll around in and enjoy the wildlife and fauna. The path took us all the way back to entrance gate of the Taj Mahal which was right next to our hotel. After a bit more digesting we then went to a proper nice restaurant and got more curry and food that we'd miss when we left. We stuffed ourselves silly and got taken back in a rickshaw blasting loud Hindi music which seemed like a perfect ending to Indian culture.Read more