Home safe

August 6th
We arrived safe and sound back in St. Louis last night around 7:00 PM. After most of a good’s night’s rest, we’re feeling like refreshed and rejuvenated is something we may feel someday later.
Our last day in Delhi was a wonderful one. We started out in the morning with a trip to Humayum’s tomb, where many of the royal family of the Mogul Emperors are buried.

It’s a beautiful place, with a huge garden, and elegant structures all around. It was a little warm, but we had a nice time. Just as we were getting ready to leave, the monsoon clouds opened up, and we got our first taste of real rain since Andrah Pradesh. We ran to a rickshaw, and overpaid for a trip back to Old Delhi, since Samuel wanted to see the Jama Masjid, the largest Mosque in India-it holds over 25,000 people. It’s in the heart of Old Delhi, and is a simple but elegant structure. However, we didn’t get to see it. After waiting out most of the rain in a local shoe shop, we ran over, only to learn that because it was Ramadan, the mosque was closing early for midday prayers, at 12:00 rather than the 12:30 our guidebook had suggested. We were a little sad, but we looked around from the outside, watching people getting ready to pray, and then finally had a successful orienteering adventure, when Samuel successfully took us back to the Subway station nearby.
We also managed to get back to the hotel with only one minor incident- Rachel slipped on the wet pavement and fell hard on her back, which has been hurting ever since (30 hours of travel over three plane flights didn’t help…)
In the afternoon, we went shopping. At lunch, we found a tremendously helpful woman (thanks Mina!) who introduced us to the Delhi official dish-Chaat, which is a big mix of lentils, bread, yogurt, chickpeas, and the red and green sauces you often get in Indian restaurants. Mina also pointed out the best shops for things like spices, art, and shawls in the market area in which our hotel was located- Karol Baugh. We had a great time looking through a local spice market, collecting various spice mixes to take back with us, and then Samuel indulged Rachel with a venture into a textile store to look at beautiful Indian scarves (Rachel has a thing for scarves). Finally, we went looking for the last thing on our list- some kind of art to hang in our home in remembrance of this fabulous adventure. We had already noticed a shop called Art Warehouse, and Mina had said it was a good place to look, so we went into the basement shop and spent some time looking through piles of work by local artists. This was by far the most pleasant shopping experience we had in all of India, with helpful but discreet salespeople who mostly just left us alone to browse. After a while, we found a beautiful painting showing a stylized Indian market, with women in beautiful colors which we both felt spoke to our experience of the chaos and beauty of India. We made our purchase and headed back to our hotel to take a short nap, and do a little packing and planning.
Then, for our final meal in India, we went to Swati restaurant, for an all you can eat Thali meal, recommended by Joshi, our guide from the mountains.

It was excellent, with all the wonderful things we’ve loved eating in India, with some new tastes besides. It was a high class place, and we really enjoyed being pampered a little.
Finally, we returned back to the hotel, for rest before a long day.
On our final day, we got up at 3:30, to get in the taxi for the airport at 3:45. Our taxi driver was as sleep deprived as anyone we’ve ever driven with, it was a little frightening to drive with him, but there was no one else on the road, and he drove very conservatively. The airport went smoothly, with a minor worry about the spices we brought (apparently, chili powder isn’t allowed on Indian airplanes, and many of our spices include chilis, but the security lady let me slip by).

The flight was uneventful, although the seats in the Air India plane left a lot to be desired. We sat next to a nice young woman getting her masters in London in Environmental development, something India needs a lot. She had come home for two months to do thesis research in a tribal forest. We both dozed a little, but not enough, we were kind of worked up after all our travels.
The transfer in London was SHORT, with less than 2 hours from landing to takeoff, with a transfer of terminals and another security check in the middle. However, Heathrow is clean, efficient, and polite, and things went smoothly, for us. So, we can say we’ve been in England now. It was cool, sunny and partly clouding, and green. It looked pretty much like England is supposed to look in our imaginations. Hopefully someday we’ll spend a little more time there.
London Chicago also went well, we had great seats- we didn’t get seats assigned until we walked up to the gate, but they offered us exit row seating, so we had all the leg room we could ever want! It was a treat. Sam enjoyed Kong Fu Panda 2 on the flight over.
In Chicago, we were happy to be welcomed back to the US by cheerful US customs officials, including a friendly greeting from the guy who welcomed us in line, a nice conversation about how we experienced India with the person checking our passport, and a wave through from the customs official we talked to. Rachel even almost started tearing up at the cheesy welcome to America video with patriotic music and Americana photos. (we had of course been at 24 hours without sleep at that point).
In Chicago, a disappointment. Our luggage did not arrive with us. We don’t know where it went missing, probably in the switch between Air India and American in London, but it didn’t make it with us. Sigh. That was rather disappointing. They told us to check in St. Louis.
Chicago to St. Louis was our last flight, where we learned our luggage was unknown (but this morning, they found it, and it should arrive here sometime). We were welcomed home at the airport by saint Cathy Lichti, who brought us back home. Home. Yeah. We are happy, though tired, and very glad to have gone on this adventure together. Thanks for reading along.
We’ll probably come up with some final thoughts, but for now, blessings on all your voyages, wherever they may take you.

The Taj Mahal and Back to Delhi

Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
Taj day
we got up early to explore the Taj Mahal, so as to beat both the heat and the crowds. We succeeded magnificently on both counts, as the wait in line was literally non-existent at 7:00 in the morning. Since the Taj averages 20,000 people per day, it was nice for things to go smoothly. (although I don't think August is prime time to visit).
Our day started with a slight hitch-we were adopted by an official government guide, part of our entrance fee, along with a small bottle of water, and we didn't quite have the heart to tell him we'd much rather have the soothing British guy from the day before, and figured he might add some color to the tour. We were wrong-his command of English was pretty limited, which would have been OK, but he didn't have any stories that a) we didn't already know from reading The Lonely Planet Guidebook and b) often repeated stories scholars are pretty sure are false. Also, even if we did manage to communicate our questions to him, he didn't know the answers. So, his primary use was in showing us where to take silly shots like 'holding the Taj in your hand' or 'stand next to the Taj with your finger at the point' or the ever popular 'jumping in front of the Taj', which taught us that Rachel is not a good sport for silliness.

Eventually, we sent him off, informing him we'd like to wander around on our own (much to his frustration, since apparently he couldn't leave without us, and wanted to lead about 1 tour per hour).
However, the Taj is pretty cool-the size is mind blowing, the stonework immaculate, it really is well designed, and we do feel like we've had an experience. The whole grounds are really fascinating, and its fun to wander around and see everything from a lot of different angles. We wouldn't recommend going to India just to go to the Taj, but we would recommend seeing the Taj if you're in India, it was worth the trip to Agra (but get the audio tour).

After the Taj we went back to our guest house for showers and to clean up and check out, before spending the rest of the day wandering between markets and little cafes for ice cream and cool drinks. We also took a walk along the Eastern side of the Taj area, which we hadn't yet seen. It got very hot, but we had fun, and found stuff for almost everyone on our list (we still need something for Rachel's brother Andrew, art for our own home, and some spices in Delhi). We found that ignoring salespeople cuts prices dramatically, and that we're softies to people who just ask us to take their price when its already cheap for American costs.
Now, we're on the train back to Delhi- we are in an air-conditioned compartment with narrow upper and lower bunks for ourselves and our luggage, which is perfectly comfortable for the three hour journey. In Delhi, we've booked a hotel ahead of time and have both its address and phone number written down, so hopefully no repeat of the adventures of last time we arrived at this time of night.

Wednesday August 3rd
living in the lap of luxury
We arrived in Delhi at about 9:45 last night, about 30 minutes late, and later than we were out on our last Delhi adventure, which caused us some anxiety.
However, we came into the New Delhi train station, which had been our salvation last time. Thus, we headed straight to the pre-paid taxi stand, ignoring all the opportunistic Taxi wallas telling us that it did not exist. The amount of people lying to you in India is pretty numbing after a while, its a comment on how differences in power corrupt relationships.
Once we found the people who were official, however, our wonderful driver with his perfectly comfortable taxi found our hotel with minimal concern. And what a hotel it is.
We found an online hotel yesterday, because Rachel was getting nervous about the 'guess and check' method, and so we'd booked 3 nights at the Hotel Vista Inn at a last minute special rate that is actually cheaper than 2 of the other places we'd stayed so far at about 30$ a night, because it looked fairly nice. AND IT IS! Luxury is nice. AC that's not a window unit. Real hot water. Real shower heads. A glass door on the shower. Toilet paper. Water that isn't completely full of strange minerals. A big screen TV. Sheets. A soft bed. 2 trash cans! Made of METAL! With LINERS! Its literally nicer than a super 8, and in some ways nicer than a Comfort Inn or Raddison. While its possible Samuel mentioned something about not suffering properly along with the majority of people in India, we both appreciate the break, and slept well.
This morning we got up for a marathon tour of Delhi. We got on the AC tour bus (hooray AC!) at about 10:00, and they dropped us off at a random metro station to find our way back to our hotel at 6:30 (thanks guys). In between, we saw all sorts of wonderful and interesting things, as well as a Government shop that apparently subsidizes the tours and forced our business for 30 minutes.
Highlights include The Indian Parliament Building and government offices, which are kind of Like DC, with red sandstone. Indira Gandhi's home, and location of her assassination with press clippings and mementos from her long and influential life. The Qutb Minar, a 250 ft. tall 900 year old ornately decorated stone tower (tallest in India) created by Muslim rulers, because, hey, winners get to do this kind of thing.

The Bahai Lotus Temple, a beautiful and huge place of prayer and contemplation (we like the Bahai, they just want everyone to get along, have universal education, health care, and justice.

Another highlight was Gandhi's memorial at the place of his cremation, a quiet black slab of marble with the words "Oh God" in Hindi (his last words) and an eternal flame, surrounded by a courtyard with many of his quotes in different languages.

We watched a group of South Indian Men read one of his quotes in their native tongue of Tamil together out loud, and were touched by the act of corporate memory and honor, symbolizing the connection of all parts of India and the world.
While we missed a few monuments we'd have liked to see, and would have been happy to skip the shop, it was a good time, and we'll have time tomorrow to pick up some important stragglers. We'd recommend it, it was worth the 7.5$ each.
After we found our way back to the hotel (which involved walking in completely the wrong direction for a while, then asking a random person for help and getting rescued quickly-and Rachel would like to point out she was dubious from the beginning about this plan) we settled in for the evening. Rachel convinced me to stay in for dinner so we had room service again, she started some laundry (I get to feel clean on the flight home!) and we played on the internet a bit, for example, writing a blog post.
Tomorrow we're going to Humayun's tomb, apparently one of the most beautiful buildings in Delhi, and Jahil Masab, the largest mosque in India (it holds 25000 people), and maybe a giant Indian temple, depending on how time allows. Finally, we'll do a little more shopping before a planned Indian feast for our last meal in India. It should be great-all you can eat home style from different regions in India. We are very excited.
Its been wonderful being able to send our thoughts out into the ether-it makes us feel connected to home. We hope you too have appreciated our reflections. Tomorrow should be the last post, and then we'll come home (and add pictures on a high speed connection).

The Red Fort

August 1st 2011

Its August. wow, time flies when you are having fun!

The overnight bus ride went well, which is a testimony to how good we've gotten at sleeping. But after I was able to sleep coming down a mountain road in the Himalayas, this was no trouble at all. That's a bit of an exageration-the bus was much harder than the train, with more noise, including a horn that cheerfully blared an earsplitting hello to intersections, cars, cows, ghosts, you know, whatever, as well as playing Hindi pop music until about 11. But we both slept several hours, before being dropped off uncerimoniously by the side of the road 20 Km outside of Agra. We found an auto rickshaw willing to take us into town, and we headed in to see the city.

Our first sight of the Taj Mahal was coming around a bend in the river at about 6:45 AM with the hazy mist surrounding the building. We both thought, yep. That's the Taj Mahal. (People differ in their reactions-some are blown away right away. Its growing on us). Much more exciting was getting dropped off not exactly where we wanted to be, and hiking about 1km in to find a hotel, but finding one of the Lonely Planet recommendations that fit our needs perfectly, and was willing to give us a room for the night at 7:00 AM. We put our stuff down, and said to ourselves, selves, how hot it will be later in the day. Let us get up and go do touristy things now, and rest when the sun is high. And so it was.

We took a two km hike along mostly empty streets (they try to keep autos away from the Taj for polution purposes-its GREAT) to Agra Fort, the capital of the Mughal Dynasty during its heyday. 

We were pleased to have a guided audio-tour, though the human guides are clearly put out about this new competition for their services. Its hard to compete with a soothing British voice with immense historical knowledge who isn't trying to sell you anything. The fort is huge-30 ft. walls, 20 ft. moat, lots of palace things inside. A few highlights including seeing the Taj through windows and lattices down the river-the better light and more romantic atmosphere helped, seeing the harem area, where the wives (and female family members) of the Emperors lived, and the ornate marblework around the Emperor's private quarters. It was definitely worth a visit.

After Agra fort, we took a rikshaw back to our hotel. At least, that was our plan. Instead, we were kidnapped by a rogue rickshaw driver, who took us to a shop for the commission instead. He did give us fair warning, which we sort of appreciated. We didn't shop long enough to earn him his commission, unfortunately for him. We thought he was taking us off to a second shop, so we jumped out at a sign for the west gate of the Taj, where we are staying, but actually, our route just didn't allow rikshaws.

After a nice lunch in a place with free wi-fi (updated blog! Hooray!) we did a bit of laundry, and took a much needed nap. After our rest, we decided on another adventure-this one to the 'Baby Taj' a 17th century tomb of an important Empire official. It is a little older than the Taj, and a lot smaller, but is filled with ornate carvings and marblework and lattices, and we had a delightful time exploring, being amazed at all the geometric patterns we could find in the building, wandering by the banks of the river, and climbing the walls. Samuel stiffed the guys guarding our shoes, since he had no small change, and felt a little bad about it, but its hard to pay someone a dollar to watch your shoes for 30 minutes. This probably demonstrates a deep moral flaw in his character.

After enjoying the Baby Taj, we returned to our hotel, freshened up as much as possible, and went for dinner at a rooftop restaurant just south of the Taj, known to have one of, if not the best views in the city. The food tasted distinctly as if the restaurant had one of the best views of the Taj, but we had the best seats in the house for sunset, and sat watching the building change in the shifting light with a great deal of peace and enjoyment.

Afterwards, we found a little icecream, and now are ready for bed, with the plan of getting up early tomorrow morning for our up close experience before heading back to Delhi in the evening for another adventure.