Saturday, 14 February 2026
Five of the girls were sporting henna tattoos this morning. As we wandered down to breakfast, June and Chris (the initiators of the henna tattooing) told us that five of them ended up having tattoos done. I asked if the artist used stencils or worked freehand. The girls told me she had a range of designs they could choose from and then she worked freehand with her henna dye to create their chosen design. They said they looked like they had been drawn on with ‘Ice Magic’ when the tattoo was completed. Apparently they could have washed the excess dye off after an hour but they decided to leave it untouched overnight. They said their beds looked like they were filled with rat droppings this morning from the excess dye that had sloughed off!! Certainly an interesting and very traditional thing to try while in India. Taking months to wear off, it will be a reminder of their holiday for many weeks to come.
After a very quick breakfast we returned upstairs to clean our teeth and finalise our packing to be back downstairs at 7.45am for an 8.00am departure. Bernie headed down a little ahead of me to pay for our laundry and complete our check out. When the laundry came back last night it was very fancy with Bernie’s shirts and my top folded precisely around rectangular light card rectangles. Apart from a day or two’s worth of underwear I think we’ll just about complete this holiday without needing to organise for more washing to be done.
Another big driving day today completing the next leg of the triangle with a 280-kilometre (give or take) journey to Agra. Another opportunity to write up the travel diary as that level of brain/hand activity does seem to help me to stay awake.
After about an hour and a half we turned off the highway to visit the small village of Abanheri. As we drove on the local roads, Chandresh told us that the people in this area are growing wheat and mustard. The mustard for cooking oil with mustard seed oil being the main oil used to prepare their food. The farmers also raise dairy cattle and goats in this area that is known for its agriculture.
We arrived at the Chand Baori Step Well which is located opposite a temple known as Harshat Mata Temple. After a bouncy ride from Jaipur, the first thing on the agenda was a trip to the washroom. Ahem, first experience with a squat toilet. There were two cubicles. Apparently one was western and the other one … was not. As luck would have it, when I reached the head of the queue, it was the squat toilet that became available although, at the time, I didn’t know there was another option. Anyhow, I managed. At least the ladies were being issued with seven or eight squares of toilet paper as they entered the facility!! It could have been worse, ha, ha.
From the loos we made our way to the step well. It is believed that the Chand Baori Step Well has a religious connection and that’s the reason it was built in front of the temple. The well is an ancient (1,200-year-old) construction that acted as the village’s water catchment for centuries. Built from sandstone, there are steps built into each side of the huge, square well so that people could still access the water as the level went down and down … and down during the period between the wet seasons. An impressive structure.
From the well, we made our way into the Harshat Mara Temple. Although it is still identifiable as a temple, it was sacked, and much of the Hindu decoration was stripped, during the period that the Mughals ruled when Islam was the main religion that was practiced. There was broken stonework scattered around the site. Chandresh also told us that the temple was once home to a huge sapphire as tall as a man but this was stolen many years ago. With the disappearance occurring as recently as the mid-20th century, he seemed vague about whether the British were responsible or if it was individuals.
We resumed our journey towards Agra making a lunch stop at Udai Vilas Palace in Bharatpur. It must be the dream of restauranteurs to be chosen as a stopping point for the tourist buses. Having a steady stream of tourists eating at your establishment must make life easier?? We had another smorgasbord today which, once I get over the worries about lukewarm food and ladles handled by who knows how many people, is a good option in terms of choosing what I want to eat and how much I want to eat. Today I opted for a spiced potato dish, some eggplant casserole, some rice and a little bit of dhal. There was no naan at the buffet but then a waiter came around with a basketful and started it dishing it out onto our side plates. I’m not sure if I was looking especially hungry but he gave me two big naans to everyone else’s one, ha, ha.
After another hour and a half we arrived in Agra described in our itinerary as the quintessential Mughal City where the world marvels at the epitome of love, beauty and sacrifice. It’s also home to the Taj Mahal, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. So overwhelming is this monument that Agra has been immortalised, as the City of the Taj.
Although we were scheduled to be taken to our hotel on arrival in Agra, it was straight to the Agra Fort (Red Fort) for us. The number of tourists visiting the fort was crazy, easily the busiest monument we have visited so far. The number of domestic tourists far outweighs the western tourists so this must be a popular time of year for Indians to take their holidays too. The Red Fort is HUGE and showcases a high level of ornamentation. We had to queue in Ladies and Gents lines to go through security where our bags were X-Rayed on an airport style scanner as we walked through a metal detector. Finally we were in!
The fort’s artwork mixes Persian, European and Indian art, which results in a unique ‘Shahjahani style’ that is rich in form, expression and colour. The Red Fort is one of the building complexes of India that encapsulates a long period of history, art and innovative architectural style. The building and its surrounding gardens influenced later buildings and gardens in Delhi. In 2007, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Red Fort Complex.
After the Red Fort we had the option to enjoy this world-famous city at leisure or choose an optional activity. We had already purchased the optional tour, along with most other member of the group. Chandresh encouraged the remaining two group members to join us, rather than return to the hotel. Although our itinerary said we would be travelling to the Itmad ud Daulah (‘Baby Taj’) in an air-conditioned vehicle, Chandresh made it more of an adventure by arranging for us to take electric rickshaws. He told us that the bus would have to drive many kilometres to use the bridge suitable for heavy vehicles and this would take much more time than crossing on the nearby bridge in a convoy of small vehicles. Well, not really a convoy because I think our drivers all took their personal favourite route AND, in the afternoon traffic there was no chance of travelling in convoy.
It certainly was exciting getting to the other side of the river by tuk tuk! Miraculously we all arrived in the same place within a few minutes of each other, rejoining Chandresh who escorted us into the mausoleum of Itmad ud Daulah. We were able to enjoy the intricately carved marble monument, which does indeed look like a smaller version of the Taj Mahal. The tomb was commissioned by Empress Nur Jahan for her father, Miriam Ghiyas Beg and built between 1622 and 1628. Pre-dating the Taj Mahal, it is considered the blueprint for the larger monument.
Our group had a bit of a crisis at the monument with one of the girls leaving her phone behind after her and her sister took a break and sat down for a couple of minutes. She realised very soon after leaving it behind and returned to the spot straightaway, but it was already gone. Oh, no! Other group members were offering support and it was decided we needed to ring the number in case someone with good intentions had picked it up. Not everyone is paying for global roaming though, so it was only when we used my phone that the call went through. The person with the phone was planning to hand it in at the gate, but Sally took off with my phone to try to catch up with the lady with her phone while she was still nearby. Bernie says to me – you know she’s going to ransom your phone to get her phone back, ha, ha. As if. Both phones were soon back and the crisis was averted. Phew.
After that excitement, we continued by electric tuk tuk to Mehtab Bagh (the Moonlight Garden) where our itinerary advertised that we would ‘sip a drink as the sun sets over the Taj Mahal’. Ahem, we didn’t end up inside the Moonlight Garden, cocktail in hand, we skirted around the fenced off garden and arrived at a viewpoint heaving with tourists looking (and photographing) across the river to the back of the Taj Mahal. Still pretty spectacular even though it was the backside. And on Valentine’s Day, what’s more. How romantic is that, looking across the river to the world’s greatest monument to love on Valentine’s Day??!
We walked back to the tuk tuks for a thrill packed half an hour ride to our hotel. On the way another tuk tuk pulled alongside us gesturing that we had something wrong at the back of our tuk tuk. That would be my hat which had slipped out the back between the seat and the back rest of the tuk tuk. Thank goodness it was still attached to my bag with my trusty ‘ Klipsta’ hat holder. I think that is testament to how strong the magnet is that it was flapping out the back of a tuk tuk without coming loose.
After our white knuckle ride through Agra’s evening peak hour traffic we arrived at the Clarks Shiraz Hotel where will be staying tonight. The third of our groups’ three tuk tuks arrived and they had been involved in a minor collision. It’s hardly surprising because the drivers are crazy, trying to fit their vehicles into gaps that just aren’t there. Fortunately it was only a touch and none of our group members had hands, arms, legs or feet hanging outside the side of the tuk that made contact with another. It has all been happening today but everyone has survived.
We barely had to time to check-in before it was time to go out again on this evening’s optional activity. Once again, our room was at THE furthest reaches of the hotel so, by the time we walked all the way there we only had time for a quick pit stop before we needed to start the long walk back to the foyer to meet Chandresh at 7.30pm for our Food Trail Tour.
After a quick ten minute ride on our bus, we embarked on a heritage walk through the night food market where Chandresh took us to visit his favourite local eateries. He purchased a couple of different snacks that are common in northern India for us to sample and then, when I mentioned dosas he took us to another stall specializing in southern Indian food. After the potato filled dosas we declared ourselves full and we were taken in search of cold drinks and ice-cream. As we walked back to the bus, Chandresh scurried across the road to pick up a box of Agra’s famous sweet, petha, for us to try. This confectionery was originally prepared more than 350 years ago in the royal kitchens of Shah Jahan. It is a sugary white pumpkin sweet that comes in a variety of flavours apparently?? How anyone can taste anything beyond the overwhelming sweetness is beyond me. Bernie thought it was alright, while I thought it was disgusting. I couldn’t even finish the piece that I had selected from the box to try.
Fervently hoping that there would be no regrets in the morning after this outing, we enjoyed a short drive back to the hotel and a long walk to our room before putting our feet up after another epic day of sightseeing.
Steps: 11, 646 (7.50kms)
