This was originally posted by Jill Cruse on the community forum.
The adventures continue in Agra and Jaipur.
While in Agra, (the capitol of the Mughal's in the 16th and 17th Centuries) we visited the Agra Fort, built by Emperor Akbar. I had learned that the Kolinoor Diamond was taken by the British from the fort, and while I was in London this past year, I had seen it on display in the Tower of London. It was fun to put the two together. The Indians are trying the get this diamond back from Queen Elizabeth - good luck!
We visited a beautiful jewelry store that we will include on tour. It came recommended by a few of our guests that had been to India, and raved about the quality and prices. They were right - this place is well known for it's reputation of having good quality, prices and guarantees, so we need to include a stop to this place in the trip as well! And by the way, I visited two other stores like this, and neither of them compared to the quality and pricing of this particular place.
Later we visited the Taj Mahal at sunset. It is an absolutely perfect structure. It is amazing to see in detail the amount of work that went into building this monument, and why it took 22 years to complete. What a love story.
The following morning we went back to the Taj at sunrise. There were far less people and this time we went inside. The sound and acoustics in there were so beautiful. Our guide tipped one of the monument guards and suddenly a short chant had begun. The echo and acoustics and the length of that one note in that room held was poetic. Needless to say I took a lot of photos and really enjoyed the peacefulness of that morning. On our trip in November, we are adding a special enhancement. After a sunrise visit to the Taj Mahal, we will go to a site nearby for tea and with a gorgeous view of the Taj to enjoy as the sun rises.
We began our drive to Agra, first stopping at the Fatehpur Sikri, The "City of Victory" once ruled by Emperor Akbar. Inside we visited the area that the women stayed, the "harem" and the different rooms. We continued our travels, and while driving, I kept noticing that the people were looking a little different and dressing a bit differently. The women's clothing were getting brighter and brighter. Instead of all the Ox Carts, we were now seeing Camel carts. And in India, every form of transportation is in traffic on the road. It is quite a site to see rickshaws, bicycles, mopeds, motorcycles, cars, trucks, Camels, ox's, horses . . . and in Jaipur today, add "elephants" to that list. It is great to see how harmoniously Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians can all live together so peacefully and respectfully. Even in many of the temples and palaces we had visited, there was evidence of tolerance in the writings and decorations, especially regarding Hindus and Muslims.
We are now in Jaipur, staying at a gorgeous hotel, the Jai Mahal Palace. We went over to the Polo field where we are planning an elephant polo event with our group. They will even have an opportunity to get on the elephant and play a match! Jaipur is world renowned for it's polo, and Prince Charles, and many other dignitaries come to Jaipur specifically for this. I even met the Prince of Malaysia while I was in their "Club House" speaking with the owner - he will soon be the King! That was exciting!
Jaipur is a beautiful city, known for it's Pink walls. Today we toured the remainder of this hotel, and visited the City Palace, Observatory and the Amber Fort. We also checked out some great shopping for our gals :-), and found a place that demonstrates the art of block printing, where you can even try your hand at it, see how rugs are made, and purchase textiles, scarves, etc . . . You can even choose something to be made, pick your material, and they will make it that day and deliver it to the hotel. I had that done with some silk pajamas for my girlfriend for our anniversary next week - because I had to check it out beforehand so I knew whether or not to recommend it to our gals. . . right? They turned out beautiful.
While at the City palace, our tour guide recognized a friend of his standing just outside the entrance. We came to find out he was driving Richard Gere and his wife around Jaipur, and Richard and his wife had just gone inside the palace to have lunch with the Maharaja.
Our terrific guide had just done a show for the Travel Channel and National Geographic for the Worlds Best Hotels, representing the Taj chain. He was actually on the show as a historian, speaking about the history of the Taj hotels here in Jaipur (which, by the way, includes the Jai Mahal Palace, where we are staying).
Tomorrow morning we fly to Goa via Mumbai to check out this option for our post stay after the trip.
I have been having some issues downloading photos, but I will try again!
Jill