16th September - Agra to Jaipur via Fatehpur Sikri

Following our visit we returned to the hotel for breakfast and a few more photographs before heading to Jaipur. On our way we stopped at Fatehpur Sikri.

Fatehpur Sikri is a fascinating ghost city built in the 16th century by Akbar the Great. At the age of 26 he still did not have an heir. He went to a priest who lived in a city called Sikri who gave Akbar a blessing resulting in a son being born. As a gesture, Akbar built a whole new city in Sikri and named it as Fatehpur Sikri or The City of Victory, and is one of the finest examples of Mughal architecture which has a combination of both Hindu and Muslim architecture.

It was built between 1569 and 1585 and was intended to be the joint capital with Agra but was soon deserted because of the water system and the capital was moved to Lahore. It remained untouched for over  400 years.

We really enjoyed this abandoned city and it was easy to imagine how the court worked and played during this time.

There is also a tower built by Akbar in memory of his favourite elephant.

16th September - Taj Mahal

So another early morning to ensure we were at the Taj Mahal for sunrise. We took the advice and only carried our camera and a bottle of water to avoid the queues but for some reason they only had one ladies queue so I was left queuing (under the tree with the baboons....slightly messier than birds!)
The queues were not too long and we were soon inside.

Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal for his third wife Arjumand Banu Begum, she became his favourite wife and gave her the title of Mumtaz Mahal Begum ( Chosen one of the Palace). Mumtaz Mahal had a very deep and loving marriage with Shah Jahan. Even during her lifetime, poets would extol her beauty, gracefulness and compassion. Mumtaz Mahal was Shah Jahan's trusted companion, travelling with him all over the Mughal Empire. 

She died in Burhanpur [1631 AD] during the birth of their thirtheenth child, a daughter named Gauhara Begum. She had been accompanying her husband whilst he was fighting a campaign in the Deccan Plateau. Her body was temporarily buried at Burhanpur in a walled pleasure garden known as Zainabad originally constructed by Shah Jahan's uncle Daniyal on the bank of the Tapti River. Her original grave still lies here. Burhanpur was never intended by her husband as his wife's final resting spot. As a result her body was disinterred in December 1631 and transported in a golden casket escorted by her son Shah Shuja and the head lady in waiting of the deceased Empress back to Agra. There it was interred in a small building on the banks of the river Yamuna.
Shah Jahan stayed behind in Burhanpur to conclude the military campaign that had originally bought him to the region. While there he began planning the design and construction of a suitable mausoleum and funerary garden in Agra for his wife, a task that would take more than 22 years to complete, the Taj Mahal. Today, the Taj Mahal stands as the ultimate monument to love and homage to her beauty and llife. 

It is a really stunning building which changes colour with the light. As the sun rose the building almost glowed gold but in other lights away from the sun it is glaringly white and almost translucent. Our guide enabled us to find quite corners to really view the building at its best (despite the back right minaret having scaffolding around it due to some urgent restoration to prevent water damage). Photos really do not do this beautiful building justice and it was lovely to see it in real life.

15th September - Celebrating 25 Wonderful Years

This trip was in celebration of our Silver Wedding Anniversary and with the help of Alison at Audley travel we managed to arrange to be in Agra that night. We selected the AmasVilas Hotel due  to its location and that all rooms have a view of the Taj Mahal.
Following a very early start from Delhi and a long, hot morning visiting some of Agras sites we returned to the hotel for the afternoon.

The pool area was beautiful and so peaceful that it really felt we had it all to ourselvees apart from the two pool butlers and the two towel men! Within seconds of walking to the pool a lounger in your preferred location was provided with a beautiful fluffy towels and a tray with chilled mineral water, rose water spray and suntan lotion. Drinks and snacks were delivered as and when required by the charming and friendly staff.
We spent a happy couple of hours relaxing and swimming before returning to our room to shower and change for dinner.

At 7.30 we left our room to enable the staff to prepare the balcony and on our return at 8pm we were amazed at the effort they had made. Small candle holders had been laid out across the top of the balcony and in all the little gaps, a beautiful table had been laid with a red rose centre piece, plus the bath was filled with petals and surrounded by candles. In the room was a delightful waiter called Saurav Kumar who went out of his way to ensure we had a beautiful evening.

 This included a 5 course menu (we barely managed four before admitting defeat). He then produced a beautiful gift or a marble tea light glow dome, an anniversary cake followed by a Chinese lantern which headed off towards the Taj Mahal. It couldn't have been a more perfect day

15th September - Delhi to Agra

4.30am saw us up and packed ready to experience an Indian train journey. Certainly a different way to celebrate 25 years of marriage! We were met in reception by the Audley agent who escorted us to our car with the picnic breakfast provided by the hotel. We had a different driver this morning as Allum had left the previous night to be in Agra to collect us at the station when we arrived.
When we arrived at the station, there were 100s of cars all trying to squeeze into the road infront of the station along with as many porters grabbing any bag they could see.mwe were really grateful to have our fantastic Audley representative with us who advised us to stick close to him as we went through the station. He also explained that all the people sleeping on the platform were all waiting for trains and had probably been traveling a number of days. It was quite shocking to see old ladies lying in the floors asleep but it is the way they live and they all seemed to be sleeping soundly.....and I complain when a clock is ticking too loud!
We were very quickly on our train and in our seats with our bags safely stowed above us, we were recommended not to eat the hot food that we would be served but the tea would be fine along with anything packaged. Almost as soon as the train started the hour long breakfast service commenced with orange juice and yoghurt, followed by tea, then a banana, followed by a tray with cornflakes, bread and jam, 10 minutes later came the hot food which we declined.

From the train you really do see the poverty areas of Delhi where animals and humans live side by side with little or no sanitation or fresh running water. The train line is also used to walk to work along or to travel between towns. It wasn't the first time Graham and I have commented on how the UK health and safety officials would have apoplexy!
When we arrived in Agra, the stewards on the train took our cases off the train and we were greeted by the Audley representative who had a porter ready to take our cases. Alum was in the car park to greet us with fresh, cold bottles of water and his smile.
Within 20 minutes we pulled in through the gates of the Amarvilas Hotel and wow what a beautiful place to celebrate 25 years of wedded bliss. From the moment we arrived we were treated with such kindness and respect from everyone. We were taken to the most beautiful lounge area which had a stunning view over the Taj Mahal, we were given cold towers and fresh limes juice before being escorted tour room.

When booking our holiday we had asked for the cost of upgrading to a balcony room but it was so expensive we decided not to as we wouldn't be spending much time in the room. When we walked into our room we were delighted to realise we had been upgraded in recognition of our anniversary....probably helped by the lovely gift of card and champagne from my lovely brother and Julie. We decided it would be silly not to use the balcony so opted for a private dining experience.

Before that we had our first tour of Agra which included going over the river to a park to view the Taj Mahal from a different perspective, a visit to the Mini Taj followed by the Red Fort.
Mehtab Bagh is a garden on the other side of the river Yamuna to the Taj Mahal, we were the only people there apart from a couple of local ladies by the river and three local boys with their goat.

We then moved to the tomb of  l'timad-us-Daulah or Baby Taj.this building et a precedent as the first Mughal building to be fa end with white marble inlaid with contracting stones. It is much more intimate than the Big Taj but still beautifully ornate. The tombs was built for Ghiyas Beg and his wife, Ghiyas Beg worked under both Akbar and Jahangir (3rd and 4th Mughal Emperors). Their daughter eventually married Jahangir and she built the tomb Following her father's death.

Finally we visited Agra Fort also known as the Red Fort which was built by Akbar and dominates the centre of the city surrounded by 2.5km of walls and ramparts.

Akbar built the walls, gates and the first buildings inside. Shah Jahan (5th Mughal Emperor) built the imperial quarters and Mosque while Aurangzeb (6th Emperor) added to the ramparts. At the end of his life, Shah Jahan was deposed and restrained by his son, Aurangzeb, in the fort. It is rumoured that Shah Jahan died in Muasamman Burj, a tower with a marble balcony with a view of the Taj Mahal, the tomb he built for his wife.

We then headed back to the hotel to continue our anniversary celebrations...to be continued in the next post 

14th September - Delhi In Day - Part 2

In the afternoon we continued to the two UNESCO World Heritage sites. The first one was Humayun's Tomb which is the earliest example of the Mogul style of tomb and it is really well maintained. Humayuan was the 2nd Great Moghul Emperor who was forced into exile in Persia after being defeated b the Afghan Sher Shah in 1540, he returned to India in 1545 and finally recaptured India in 1555. The tomb was designed and built by his senior widow and the mother of his son and successor Akbar. She supervised the construction, living on site between (1564-1573)

It was at the tub that Umesh explained the theory of "char bhag"...char meaning four and bhag meaning garden therefore garden dividend into quadrants. It should also contain the four elements of paradise - walled garden, water, trees and birds and animals.

It really was a stunning place but such a huge building and gardens initially for just one man, although it now contains the graves of other members of his family including that of his wife.

We then headed back in time to the 12th century, with a visit to Qutb Minar. 

Qutab Minar is a soaring, 73 m-high tower of victory, built in 1193 by Qutab-ud-din Aibak immediately after the defeat of Delhi's last Hindu kingdom. The tower has five distinct storeys, each marked by a projecting balcony and tapers from a 15 m diameter at the base to just 2.5 m at the top. The first three storeys are made of red sandstone; the fourth and fifth storeys are of marble and sandstone. At the foot of the tower is the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, the first mosque to be built in IndiA.

The origins of Qutab Minar are shrouded in controversy. Some believe it was erected as a tower of victory to signify the beginning of the Muslim rule in India. Others say it served as a minaret to the muezzins to call the faithful to prayer. Qutab-ud-din Aibak, the first Muslim ruler of Delhi, commenced the construction of the Qutab Minar in 1200 AD, but could only finish the basement. His successor, Iltutmush, added three more storeys, and in 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlak constructed the fifth and the last storey.
It was whilst at Qtub Minar that we first experienced the Indians fascination with the fair skinned Bitish. We were sat in the shade talking with our guide when a young couple approached us and at first we thought they were asking to the paid to take our photograph but they wanted to have their photograph taken with us! It is apparently a great to have such a photograph in your holiday snaps!!



After a very long and hot day we returned to the hotel for a quick swim before deciding on dinner in our room as the heat, long day and jetlag finally took its toll. We also had to set the alarm for 4.30am to catch the train from Delhi to Agra the next morningPicture of The Maidens Hotel