Delhi to Agra

Under normal conditions, if there are such a thing in India, the train ride from Delhi to Agra takes three hours. Winter presents a problem, though. Again it's mother nature asserting her authority in the form of FOG. In foggy conditions, the train conductor can't see the train signals - the ones that tell him if other trains are coming and if the track ahead is his to use or his to yield to the other train. In these conditions, trains move painfully slowly. But given the alternative - a head-on collision - slow is good.

Shortly before I arrived to India foggy conditions had been blamed for a railway accident in the north, near where I am. A bunch of peopled died, and even more were wounded. Given that, I am in no hurry to get anywhere.

So in my case, the three hour journey lasted 8 1/2 hours. Fortunately I had some interesting people to talk to: mother and adult daughter from Belgium by way of Armenia. Mom is a Hindu and is here on pilgrimage. She has read the Old and New Testaments twice, the Qu'ran, and the Bagava Vida (Hindu text, sorry about the spelling), and after careful condideration and review of these sacred texts, she selected Hinduism as the most valid religion. When they left the train in Mathura, birthplace of Krishna, their seats were filled by some local business men who work in Mathura and live in Agra. We had the remaining two hours of the journey to chat. It is a pleasure to chat with the locals, when you are not on the streets of India and they aren't trying to sell you something or provide you with transportation.

So here I am in Agra, home of the Taj Mahal. I haven't seen the place yet; I did visit on my 2004 trip to India, so there is no rush. Instead of siteseeing like a normal tourist, I have spent the last two days in my guesthouse room. After my hotel in Delhi, the Tourists Rest House is heaven - clean and odor free. So I have been catching up on my sleep and waiting to be less hormonal, and tomorrow I will head out to see what all the Agra fuss is about.

I have ventured out twice for food and have found a great Lonely Planet guidebook recommended south Indian restaurant. It's a 15 minute, 15 rickshaw solicitation walk from my guesthouse. The streets of Agra are busy in my neighborhood, but not as busy as Delhi, and not as busy as the part of Agra with the Taj. I'm a bit scared to go there, so I am waiting to be de-jetlagged to take that on. More to come. And I will post some photos once I take some.