We looked for our train on the board, and seeing one that said Agra City, we headed toward that platform. However, when we got there, we realized that the train number on our ticket didn't match the one on the board. So, weaving in and out of Indians with suitcases on their heads and children trailing close behind, we headed back downstairs to the main departure screen, and asked the guard. He told us a different track number. However, when we arrived at this new track, someone told us an entirely different story! When we got to this new track, we immediately approached these two women, asking if we were in the right place. It always seems like a better bet to approach women. Although they aren't as likely to speak English, they also aren't as likely to be scam artists, and will point you to someone who can help.
Anyway, it turns out that we were finally on the right track (literally!), so we headed towards our car number, stopping to help a lost Korean tourist going the same way.
Waiting for the train was much less pleasant than the train ride itself. The platform was crowded with families that looked like they never actually went anywhere, and the tracks were littered with human waste. The whole area, indeed the whole city, was covered in a smog so thick that it obscured the face of someone standing 100 meters away. But we would soon learn that it doesn't get too much better in the country-side!
The train ride was actually more pleasant than either of us had imagined. We were riding second class, but had assigned seats, which made the boarding process much less stressful. Although, while there were only supposed to be three to a bench, a fourth, then fifth person squeezed their way onto our bench. At least we could store our bags overhead, right where we could see them! We had opted to not buy the chains they were selling before you boarded.
When we arrived in Agra, we took an auto rickshaw to our hotel, listening to our driver pitch his full-day services. We checked in, then went up to the rooftop restaurant for linner, as by this time it was nearly 4! When we got to the top, we had a breathtaking view of the Taj Mahal. It's beautiful. We sat eating, looking at the view, and watching the monkeys leap across buildings and in and out of trees (and sometimes trying on peoples clean laundry).
After linner, we walked around the city a bit, making sure to arrive back at our hotel just before dark. We walked to the backside of the Taj, which faces the river, then headed back, walking right behind this cute family, and watching the monkeys play as we went. At one point we stopped to take a picture of the mini people (aka monkeys) and these three old men passing us told us worriedly and in a heightened voice, "don't touch..they bite!" We laughed and said we wouldn't. They were the cutest old men ever.
Back at the ranch, we settled in for an evening of catching up on blogs and attempting to view the Taj in the moonlight. Unfortunately, it was hidden by the smog. We did, however, see the tail end of a wedding parade and festivities, which was cool.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
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