The Blog of Gord

The British handed over power on August 15, 1947.  For some history, see here and here.

This past weekend was my big trip to see the Taj Mahal, and it was excellent! After years of seeing pictures and hearing about it, it was quite exciting to actually be there to see it in person and touch it.

I flew from Bangalore to Delhi on Kingfisher Airlines, a domestic carrier which is the best airline I’ve flown on in quite a while. The food was great (even had metal utensils), the staff friendly, every seat had a personal video system, and the legroom was excellent. Kingfisher is the same company that makes Kingfisher beer, but ironically, alcohol consumption is prohibited on Indian domestic flights. I flew on a new Airbus A320.

My driver was waiting for me, and we were off. The first thing that struck me about Delhi was the heat. After a summer in mild Bangalore, a temperature in the mid-30’s seemed especially hot. Fortunately, the car had air-conditioning, which I became increasingly glad of as the day wore on. The second thing that struck me was that people are more inclined to follow traffic laws. The fact that the roads,at least in the new part of Delhi, are broader than those in Bangalore probably helps, but it can’t explain all of it. Delhi also has more modern rules, like seatbelt laws, helmet laws for motorcycles (mostly adhered to), and no more than two people on a bike (mostly ignored).

My plan for the day was to drive around Delhi to do some sightseeing before continuing on to Agra. There are so many things to see in Delhi, though, that it’s impossible to see them all in one day. I told the driver the list of places I had in mind, and he laughed, saying that would take at least three days. We would have spent most of the day just sitting in traffic. The bulk of the my sights were located in the new part of Delhi, so that’s where we focused. The main items on my list that I didn’t see were the Red Fort and Chandni Chowk, the old market.

First stop was the Qutb Minar, a 72.5 metre brick minaret constructed 800 years ago. As with most of the ancient buildings here, it was put up by the Muslim invaders who ruled most of India for centuries. There were a lot of ruins to wander around in. I spent an hour there, and with the heat coming off the red sandstone, by the end I felt like a piece of pottery in a kiln.

Next was the Parliament Building and the president’s residence (Rastrapati Bhavan), neither of which could be entered (at least, not with an introduction letter from the High Commission), and further down Rajpath, India Gate (tomb of the unknown soldier).

There were a couple of snake charmers at India Gate, young boys with a cobra in a basket. A boy with a basket would run up in front of some tourists, put the basket down and pull then lid off, then play the flute while coaxing the cobra out. One time the snake didn’t need any coaxing: as soon as the lid was off, it lunged at the boy and bit his hand!

Along the way we passed the Canadian High Commission. Looks like we have quite a nice place in Delhi. I stopped for a while at the Baha’i “Lotus” temple, an interestingly-shaped building in a large park. In spite of the large number of visitors, inside it was very quiet.

Then we were off to Agra, passing through the state of Haryana to Uttar Pradesh. Delhi is in a corner of Haryana bordering Uttar Pradesh, close to Rajasthan (which borders Pakistan). The road was in good shape, but still it’s slow going, with the large number of slow vehicles on it. While in south India there are a lot of ox carts on the road, here there were a lot camels pulling vast loads.

In fact, most vehicles had vast loads. We came up two overturned trucks on the highway, both of which had taken curves too quickly for their high centres of gravity. Also here’s a bus that I’m glad I wasn’t on, and a train where you can make out the people in the doorways.

It was about a 4.5 hour drive, including a stop for lunch at the Rajasthan Motel, an over-priced restaurant (and hotel) in the middle of nowhere. Everyone was dressed in period costumes, including giant moustaches– I mean larger than the rather fancy moustaches that most men in this area seem to favour. Too bad I don’t have mine anymore! Anyway, in spite of the traditional feel of the place, the restaurant served nothing but Chinese food, and pretty good too.

There were a number of toll and tax stops along the way. At one of them, a man with a pet monkey on a leash went from car to car hoping for handouts while the monkey crawled all over the windows.

Just outside Agra, in Sikandra, we stopped to see the tomb of Akbar, a Moghul emperor who lived about 450 years ago. Akbar was the son of the emperor Humayun (more on him later).

The driver dropped me off at my hotel for the night, the Taj View hotel. This is a fancy hotel. When I tried to check in, the staff ushered me to an armchair, put a lotus garland around my neck, and gave me a glass of fresh lime juice to drink while they did the paperwork. The room was an even bigger surprise: it really did have a view of the Taj Mahal.

After a shower, and a visit from someone sent to turn down my bed, I spent the evening at the bar in the lounge, drinking Kingfishers and watching people. There was a magician doing tricks for a group of older Japanese men, a portrait artist, an astrologer in a fancy turban who wasn’t getting much business, and a piano player playing Beatles tunes, lounge-style. Later in the evening, he was replaced by two musicians (drums and an accordian-like instrument) and a dancer in a blue, sparkly sari. It was quite a nice evening.

Early the next morning, I was off to the Taj Mahal. There’s a no-exhaust zone around the Taj Mahal, so we had to park nearby where I had a choice of walking, bicycle rickshaw, or camel cart. Even at 08h00, the heat was starting to rule out walking, and sitting behind a camel didn’t seem that attractive, so I chose a bicycle rickshaw. Also I hired a guide, so I wouldn’t miss anything important.

At the gate, there’s a security check that was more thorough than anything I’ve had at an airport. I knew in advance that nothing is allowed inside except water and cameras, so I’d left everything else in the car. Still, the guard spent a couple of minutes checking every pocket in my backpack for gum or other contraband.

The Taj Mahal is, of course, a grand spectacle. It was built about 350 years ago by the Moghul emperor Shah Jahan for his favourite wife who had died in childbirth. That sounds very romantic, but she died giving him his 14th child in 19 years, so I figure she was probably glad of a rest. It took 22 years and 20,000 people to build it, and shortly after it was completed, he was overthrown by his son, imprisoned, and later entombed beside his wife. I mention that because it’s the only asymmetrical aspect to the whole place: everything including the other buildings and gates has a mirror image, except that his crypt is off to one side of his wife’s which is in the center. Read the Wikipedia link and this link for the rest of the history.

It was a cloudy, humid day, but whenever the sun came out, the building glowed. Pictures don’t do it justice. Up close, the detail of the inlay and carving was incredible, and the marble was in fine shape, even after so many years of exposure. Inside the building (wearing gauze shoe-covers instead of going barefoot) we could see replicas of the crypts; the actual crypts are downstairs, not accessible to tourists.

Speaking of tourists, there weren’t that many first thing in the morning. There were plenty of people, but it wasn’t crowded. Going early was smart, partly to avoid the mid-day heat, and partly because two hours later when I left, there was a long lineup waiting for the security check. This is the off-season, so I imagine it would be much worse during the cooler tourist season.

Across the Yamuna river, you can see the place where the so-called “Black Taj” was supposed to be built. Depending on which story you’d like to believe, this was supposed to be a mirror image of the white Taj Mahal to complete the symmetry, or a mausoleum for Shah Jahan in black marble to symbolize his mourning.

Outside, my guide took me around the maze of small streets surrounding the Taj Mahal to a jeweller (nothing to interest me there) and a place where craftsmen make marble inlay items the same way as it was done 350 years ago, though of course wearing safety glasses now.

Next stop was the Agra Fort, a huge walled palace from which Akbar the Great (Shah Jahan’s grandfather) governed his empire. I spent another couple of hours there, again getting baked by all the red and white stone. The best part, for me, was the view of the Taj Mahal down the river.

When I was properly cooked, I found my driver and we drove back to Delhi in air-conditioned comfort.

Back in Delhi, it was still blazing hot, but at least the sun was starting to get low in the sky, so we made one more tourist stop, at Humayun’s tomb. Humayun was Akbar’s father, and the second Moghul emperor. Humayun’s wife built the mausoleum for him about 450 years ago, in a large, walled complex of buildings.

By the time I was finished exploring, it was getting dark, so I went to the hotel and said goodbye to the driver. The Taj Ambassador isn’t anything like the Taj View, though part of the same chain: this is a business hotel, and once inside I could have been in an upscale business hotel anywhere. After a shower, I spent some time in the cramped bar drinking some Golden Eagle beer. It was OK, especially after spending a day out in the heat.

Monday morning I flew back to Bangalore, and on the drive back to the guest house from the airport, it felt like I’d returned home.

Not many people think of going to India in the summer to escape the heat back home, but maybe they should:  NYC 38 C, Ottawa 36 C, Bangalore… 26 C.  I haven’t even had the AC on this week!

This past weekend was a quiet one, with no major adventures.  Saturday I mailed some postcards, only Rs 8 to send back to Canada and the US.  Perhaps the low cost is due to not pre-gumming the stamps.  At the main post office, where I walked Saturday morning to buy stamps, they provide a pot of glue you can scoop glue out of with your finger.  It’s tricky to get the right amount, so one of you might get ten postcards all glued together.

On Sunday I walked down Hosur Road (Hoser Road, eh? A Kannada name?) to The Forum, purported to be the biggest shopping mall in India.  Actually it didn’t feel that big (not even close to a corner of West Edmonton Mall) but it was big, five stories tall, including a set of movie theatres.  Stepping inside, after going through the security check (people dressed in commando outfits search all bags and purses) was like being teleported into a suburban North American mall.  Outside: a shepherd tending a flock of sheep, a guy sleeping on the road, and vendors selling live chickens and skinned goats.  Inside: trendy, expensive stores and restaurants, everything gleaming, everyone well-dressed.  Wow.  Just so I could say I did it, I ate at McDonald’s and had a Chicken Maharaja Mac combo for Rs 99.

I managed to find another couple of pubs to sample.  In both cases, only Kingfisher was on tap, so I’m getting the idea these guys have a lock on the local pub scene.  On Saturday I visited the Downtown Pub, which is in a basement in the core shopping area off Brigade Road.  It was busy, with loud western rap music and people playing pool in the back.  On Sunday I tried to find the Guzzler’s Inn (sounds like my kind of place!), but it appeared to be under renovation, so I went to a place called the Museum Inn instead.  It was empty:  I had the whole bar to myself, and watched a couple of hours of a cricket match between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe while I enjoyed a few pints.

This weekend I probably won’t make it to any pubs.  Instead, I’m flying to Delhi Saturday morning and then driving to Agra to spend Sunday at the Taj Mahal.