Agra

We have had a nice early morning this morning to go and see the Taj Mahal and our guide was basically the most annoying person known to man - although he did know his stuff, giving us a pretty thorough tour of Agra, while telling us all about the Culture and the art.

Here is our first official photograph with the Taj Mahal.  It was breathtaking.

We then took a trip to meet the direct ancestors of the artists of the Taj Mahal.  There might not be too many of you out there interested in this type of thing, but I thought I would share it with you anyway.  The Taj Mahal is decorated and was designed very cleverly and mathematically calculated so that the design appears to all be the same size all the way up and down and is inlaid with precious and semi precious stones from the area.  Read more here.

When we met the ancestors, we got to see how they worked to create this look and how difficult it actually was.  We purchased some of the smaller versions of their work, as they weren't cheap.  But the versions that we did purchase we split and each took one of a pair, so that later in life perhaps our ancestors will be able to track the other half down.

Here are some photos we took of our day in Agra:

stone being carved

Taj Mahal and retired temple

Scoring the plates on the right, ready for the precious stones and the finished product on the left

Taj Mahal behind all the smog

Later in the evening we popped back to the Taj again to get some more photos from behind, on the other side of the river and then on route to see the black Taj we met some lovely little girls who we had our photograph with.

Agra, the Taj Mahal and shopping

After two days exploring Delhi, we finally made a later than expected 6 hour journey to Agra.  Our driver is so lovely too and has shown us quiet a few different things on route here too.

Had a bit more than a mishap with our hotel when we arrived here too, no thanks to Expedia.  Who after this I would be very dubious to book with again.  We arrived late to the Raj Mahal hotel, so it was dark outside and we were pretty tired from traveling all day and seeing the rest of the sights in Delhi.  The hotel were no help at trying to sort out the booking that hadn't been placed via Expedia, so I was left to sort the issue out myself or they would have been happy to leave us out on the street for the night.

Once that was finally all sorted out, after a few hours of going back and forth on phone calls, we finally made it to our room, which we couldn't fault.  Outside our window we could see that there was a wedding happening, so we popped down to be nosy after dinner and ended up being invited to the wedding.

Groom and his family

We were invited to the wedding, as the guys in the photo explained to us, we are a symbol of luck for the family.  They were then all more than welcoming, they offered us food, drinks and told us all about how the ceremonies happen/work.

This wedding was a Muslim wedding, which we were told are a little more rare in India as the main religion is Hinduism.  At the wedding there are three stages (bride's family accept groom, groom's family accept the bride and then they accept each other) and the bride and groom don't meet each other until the ceremony is over.  The bride was in the hotel with other female members of her family, while the groom was having a party outside, which I have to say he didn't appear to happy to be at.

Brides Family

Once the three stages are complete, a gun is fired (yes a gun) and then everyone eats a celebratory pot of food containing fruit and nuts.

We made quiet a few new friends at the wedding, some adding us on Facebook too... they were especially fond of Siobhan.

Siobhan's new Facebook friend tagged in a photo with 15 of his other friends...

After the wedding we went back to the hotel, where we were talking to one of the guys that worked there about arranged marriages and love marriages and what he thought of them.  He had had a girl friend that he loved and who was made to marry someone else, who he had begged her and her family not to.  It was pretty sad actually.

This morning in Delhi we went to see the Raj Ghat and Laxmi Narayan Biri Mancir which is a temple and a crematorium for some of the Hindu gods.  Here we bought a few different things, I bought a silk scarf made by the in temple artist, which is intricately laced with a delicate pattern significant to that particular temple.  (I will see if I can get a photo of it up here asap)

Yesterday we visited a few more places in Delhi than we managed this morning.  As I mentioned in my previous post, the first place we visited was Jama Misjid whrer I met a fate worse than death in the 'toilets' and were forced to wear multi-coloured bin liners.  All the locals were laughing at us.

After this lovely introduction to India, we made it to the Red Fort or Lal Qila which was absolutely stunning and were made to feel like actual celebrities, again having more photos with strangers than we did with ourselves.

So far we have had two lovely drivers here, already owing today's driver a massive tip for how amazing he has been.

Our last trip in Delhi was to the slums, which until you have seen with your own eyes, you couldn't imagine the poverty that they live in and how genuinely happy they still are.

These pictures are just some of the 'better' slums in the Delhi area.  We weren't allowed to go into the inner circle of the slums as they are too dangerous, but we wanted to witness it for ourselves.

A new adventure

Yesterday, after 7 years in storage, my beloved back pack made a welcome appearance from its home in the loft.  The (slightly) old boy, was then packed and ready for a new adventure.

Since then I have managed to get him and myself from London Heathrow to Delhi, via Mumbai all on my own.  That's right, I made my first solo flight all the way to India and I wont lie, I was terrified.

When I arrived at Heathrow, I had a nice surprise of an upgraded flight to first class and I spent my time waiting in the first class lounge, eating bacon sandwich's and drinking champagne.

My flight was pretty comfortable too, as you can imagine when you have this much leg room with lost of free food and drink!

The experience at Mumbai airport was a bit overwhelming, I had to collect my bags, have them scanned, check them back in again and then get on a bus all the way to the other side of the airport.  Luckily, I was sat next to a really lovely man on the plane on the way to India and he helped me out and made sure I got to where I needed to go.

My next flight was a little less comfortable, as I had just spent 5 hours in Mumbai during the night, but at least this flight was considerably shorter!  If I thought arriving in Mumbai was overwhelming, well you can imagine Delhi was a massive culture shock.

My senses were assaulted as I stepped onto the tarmac and the constant nagging to get into someone's cab, was little more than annoying after nearly two days of traveling.  Now here is a tip for you, when you arrive in Delhi get yourself a prepaid cab and don't get yourself conned.  I did this and found myself sat in the back of, what I can only describe as a VW beetle that had been shrunk in the wash and battered with a hammer, it was amazing.  I felt like my real journey in India was beginning.

My hour(ish) drive then to the hotel consisted of closing my eyes and PRAYING, that I arrived at the hotel to see Siobhan in one piece.  The driving in India is shocking, they have no regard for the lines, they use their horns instead of their eyes and drive around round abouts and through pot holes like they are on an off-roading rally in a 4x4, not a tin can car/motorbike.  But its something you just have to embrace and try and relax into.  Eventually I got used to it and didn't try slamming my foot onto my imaginary break, quite as much by the end of the trip, as I did in the beginning.

Here is a photo that I took on my first journey into Delhi:

After a massively girly/screaming welcome to Delhi when I finally found Siobhan at the door to our hotel, I checked in and have now already seen half of Delhi.  The hotel we stayed in here, was called Suncourt Corporate and was perfect for what we needed.  The staff were really helpful, friendly and made sure that our stay was comfortable and stress free.

Here is a short snapshot of our day today:

We have hired a driver for the next 4 days (and its barely cost us a penny) and tomorrow will be on our way to see Agra and the Taj Mahal.

Our first stop in Delhi was to a temple called Jama Masjid, where we were charged 100R to look like idiots in what I can only describe as a hair dressing cloak from the 60s'.  This was after I was busting for the loo, yet after seeing them decided that I would probably rather wet myself, than walk through that amount of excrement in flip flops.

Our first day in Delhi has been quite an experience, one which we have shared with more than one Indian family too.  Its been our in joke today that we think we must have been in more photographs with other people than we have with each other.

We finished the day with a trip to India Gate, where I was harassed by a little girl to buy a bracelet with my name on it.  So I got one for Kelly...

This post might seem like a massive moan, but its honestly not, its just how India is and if you are prepared to embrace all of its little quirks, you will love it just as much as I did.

Tonight I am looking forward to my first curry (in India not ever) and going to sleep!  Tomorrow we are going to explore a few more places in Delhi and then will be off to Agra to see the Taj...

Going Traveling?

When you are travelling, getting the perfect travel diary for you can be hard to find and sometimes I think its best to just have a normal note pad and jot everything down in there when you have enough time to write in it.  Because lets face it you go to these places to see the world and if you have enough time to document those memories then all well and good.

My first travel diary (and actually only travel diary) was just a note pad that I date each time I write in it, and I love it.

This time around as I am going to India, I wanted something a little more exotic or just a bit more exciting to look at while I was away to inspire me to write down everything that I saw at the end of each day, because now with hind sight I love reading back through my diary.  The pages are now well thumbed.

Recently Joules a lovely English Heritage type brand offered me this journal to give away to you, my lovely readers, as a travel diary.

If you would like to win this gorgeous Joules Journal, then all you have to do is:

1. Become a fan of Joules on Facebook
2. Follow Joules on Twitter 
3. Write in the comment box below, where you are off to on your travels, how long you are away for and what dreams you are looking to make come true while you are away!

I look forward to hearing from you soon... 

The bug has struck again

Ok so I say again, its never gone anywhere its one of those things that once you have caught it, you have it for life.  There are just days where the pain (yes I know that sounds extreme but its true) is less bearable than on others and then there are the days when I just chose to torture myself too by watching Bondi Rescue on repeat.

Enough of that anyway.  I'm not getting back to Australia any time soon, so to face that fact and to try and see a little bit more of the world anyway - I am taking a trip of a lifetime to go see India.

Now I have already written about all the superficial things on my other blog, fashion wise, that I am excited about doing when I get there and where I am going to buy my first sari, but here is where I am going to write all the nitty gritty, if I Can get anywhere near a computer while I am there, if I cant I will write it all in my diary and tell you all about it when I get back.

I have already purchased my Lonely planet guide to India and my visa is already sorted.  Now I just need to compile a list of all the places that I want to see and when I am going to find the time to squeeze them all in.

I am going out there to meet my friend Siobhan, who will have been working there for a month as a journalist in Bangalore.  She is going to fly to Deli, where we will meet and go explore some of the wonders of the world, like the Taj Mahal.

I will keep you up to date, with all the things that I am planning, but if you have any other suggestions too of places that I should visit in Delhi, Agra or Jaipur then let me know and I can add it to my list.  Its rather long already....

Travel Tips

So you are going traveling, you have bought your ticket organised EVERYTHING and now all you have left to do is pack.  Sounds easy but not really when you are used to having all your home luxuries and you can only just fit your makeup bag in your back pack.

I know exactly how you feel, its a nightmare the first time you have to pack that all important back pack.  Here are a few top tips for you.

Tip 1.
Buy a back pack which unzips all the way down the side, something similar to this one here:

 

This back pack from Osprey is perfect for the following reasons:

1. You can unzip it all the way down both sides (so you aren't struggling to get that dress out of the bottom you need to wear tonight without unpacking the whole bag).

2. You have three different handles on it to help you carry it in different situations (on your back, at the top to pull along or up some stairs, on the side to sling into the bottom of a coach).

3. You can attach your day pack to your main back pack - this avoids you looking stupid with a back pack on your front and your back (you will see this a lot).

 

 4. The little tabs all over mean you can hang things like bottles, trainers and towels on the outside.  These are things which take up and enormous amount of room inside your pack, so by tying them to the outside you are saving yourself a lot of stress and making extra room for a pair of luxury hair straighteners.

5.  You can zip away your straps - this is so valuable sometimes, especially when you are staying settled in one place for a while.  They can be a death trap especially when drunk stumbling back into your hostel.

Tip 2.

Get a hanging wash bag, like this:

You will be able to hang this bag up when you get to each hostel or in the bathroom.  It also means if you over load it or cant fit it into your back pack one way, you can mold it into many different shapes and sizes and make it fit.

Tip 3.

Your first aid kit will be your life saver, dont just assume that you have everything in the standard issue travelers first aid kit, you won't and even if you do - you will run out pretty quickly and that's the worst thing that can happen to you if you are somewhere that doesn't have a pharmacy on every corner.

Checklist:

• Plasters
• Anti Septic
• Immodium
• Painkillers (Parecetemol + Ibubrofen)
• Saftey Pins
• Sissors
• Tweasors
• Anti Septic Cream
• Bite Cream

Tip 4.
Footwear, bring with you some closed in trainers, some flip flops and some sandals.  This is already too many pairs of shoes but you will need them all at some point during your journey.

These are a popular choice with travelers - might want to wait until you get there to purchase a pair though, as here they cost a bomb.

 

As for trainers, these little guys here wouldn't be a bad buy:

Bringing another pair of flip flops that you are really comfortable in is another brilliant choice.  You dont want to be hobbling around with blisters for the first two weeks of your travels.

Tip 5.

Roll your clothes.  Roll each piece of clothing individually, this avoids creases and means you can fit each piece into small little gaps.  It also means that you are able to grab one thing from your pack without unpacking four tops.

Tip 6.

If you are struggling to fit everything in still then see if you can take anything out.  If not then pack everything in your bag, rolling as tightly as you can and do your bag up once you have fitted everything in you think your bag could possibly hold. 

Stand your back pack up and shake, banging the bottom of the pack on the floor.  Don't worry about being gentle, it wont break.  You will find that you have a lot of space at the top of you back pack now, so undo and keep upright, pushing in the rest of your items as you go.

Tip 7.

Put everything that you are going to need first, when you reach your next hostel/destination, into your day pack and attach it to the front of you back pack LAST.

Tip 8.

Getting your back pack on your back.  Put it on a seat somewhere as high as possible and perch your bum on the edge.  Pull the back pack on, but dont do up the clips which will sit on your hips.  Ones the main straps are on your shoulders, give them a little wriggle and make sure you are comfy and then do up the hip straps.

Once you have got used to carrying your pack on your back you wont need to do this any more, you will have built up enough strength to just swing your bag onto your back.  You will also find your own ways of doing things by then which you prefer.

Tip 9.

Jumpers, they can take up a lot of room, so go grab yourself a Skiing fleece, they are lightweight and are designed to keep you warm.  Make sure you dont make my mistake and buy a white one though, they dont stay that colour for very long.

 

Tip 10.

Safety bag, the one that slips on under your clothes.  Best invention ever, I loved mine - more because it was an easy way to store all of my belongings that were most valuable in one place and tuck under my pillow and clothes.  I recommend investing in one of these.

 

Check back later for more travel tips and a packing checklist.