The overnight train arrives in Delhi. The hustle and bustle is a bit of a shock after the quiet night train!
Our guides find us porters to take our bags to the bus (£1.50 each!- well worth it as our bags are heavy and there is a way to walk!)
We climb on the bus and the driver takes us onto the toll roads. Not much traffic here, so a quieter journey- although the driver likes to use his horn! We stop at a motorway service station. The coffee ordering is different and more complicated! Order your drink and pay, get given a receipt. Take receipt to another man on the coffee machine who makes it. Then another man brings it to you.
We carry on, driving by countryside- small farms, fields, trees, and of course- cows! The farming is much more hands on and. It mechanised. Hand held tools are often used for digging and earth prep. If there is a tractor it’s old.
The land is flat- no hills or mountains like on the trek. But there are lots of native trees and bushes by the roadside and throughout the fields. It’s very hazy- probably smog caused by pollution and dust. But it’s warmer than the trek days.
We arrive at our accommodation- it’s beautiful! Cool and clean, the toilets have seats and loo paper! We eat a brunch, then explore for a few hours before heading off for the Taj Mahal.
It’s the second of a 3-day religious festival so the monument is much busier than usual. We enjoy a couple of hours here.
It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (r. 1628–1658) to house the tomb of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal; it also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan himself.
It is breathtaking – it took 20,000 men 22 years to complete.
We then had a dinner of several curries and rice and a local restaurant. We retire early to bed, we have a long day of travelling tomorrow.
