The journey took 36 hours, but in air-conditioned sleeper car with one fellow passanger it was quite comfortable.
And as everything in India, the ticket was very cheap(2100 Km for 50US$). I got accomodation in large room with white marble floor, air conditioning, attached bathroom, cable TV and possible food delivery to the room for 12 US$ per day or lunch at the restaurant costs less than 2 US$.
Main bazaar:
turn right from this effective chaos and after few metres you will find my hotel.
But it is not so easy time here in New Delhi. Every ten metres someone approches you on the street with saying "Hallo Sir." "How are you." "Which country?" "Where are you from?" "First time in India?" (Don't answer Yes after the last question otherwise hunting on naive tourist begins : )
The scheme is the same, after couple of sentences I realize that the person wants to take me to his shop, show me some jewellery, souvenirs, tourist tours. Or they want to offer a hotel accommodation, taxi, auto-rickshaw, cycle-rickshaw. After couple of days it begins to be annoying and I am becoming rude and ignorant as other tourists. I do believe that there are Indian people who really just want to speak with you and know you (I have met some) but 99 % of people who approach you are touts or beggars.
It is specially bad on famous tourist places as Taj Mahal.
After tight security
(they deposit my cookies and magazine New Scientist :) and didn't notice Swiss army knife in my backpack)
you see huge mausolem made of white marble and it's experience to walk inside barefooted and touch the stone.
Sometimes tout can enter even your sight-seeing bus. One guy approched me sitting in the bus saying that other people are going to a different place and he will arrange small transport for me to see Taj Mahal and Agra and then buy me a train ticket back to Delhi. This all is included in my already paid tour fee. He took me to an autorickshaw, tour guide person saw it and didn't say any single word. When we arrived to a jewellery shop to book a train ticket I realized that this is a scam. (I've read some India info on the Internet before) Shouting helped, they took me to a next place where my bus should have parked. Thanks God I memorized my bus vehicle number otherwise it would be hard time to find my bus in Agra between many others. Your tour guide can offer to buy a ticket for you, special price 300 rupees instead of 750 ruppes as an entrance for Non-Indians. Normal entrance is 250 but we passed the entrance without buying a ticket yesterday :)
I joined group of 3 Indian IT guys from Bangalore (photos maybe later) in Taj Mahal so they protected me from those artists of scam for a while.
Taj Mahal Roses:
Agra Fort:
On the way back we visited the temple and the birthplace of Lord Krishna.
It was 8pm but still many people there praying and singing.
There are nice colourful and embossed Hindu paintings inside the temple but no photos were allowed and security is very tight as in Taj Mahal.
2 comments:
Mily nas skuseny CESTOVATEL ROMANKO,
Tvoje zapisky su stale velmi mile semanticky aj syntakticky a velmi radi sa potesujeme ich citanim v nadhernej, prijemnej anglictinou.Je toho strasne moc, co u Teba obdivujeme a co sme sa od Teba naucili.DAKUJEME.
Uzi si plnoduskovo zaver putovania. Posielame Ti veliky pozdrav a pusu z Bratislavy.Edita+Jirka
PS.Dnes popoludni ideme aj s Dankou na Kralovu.Berieme notebook a vsetky Tvoje zapisky chceme prezentovat babke a dedkovi.
Dakujem za pochvalu. Nie je toho vela na mne co obdivovat, az tu v Indii vidim, ze som si do skutocneho cestovania len tak trochu namocil jazyk. Uz sa nikam nenahlim po pamiatkach. Relaxujem a skusam zjednavat na bazaroch a v utorok letim do Europy. Pozdravujem do Modry aj Bratislavy a dovidenia.
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