The Taj Mahal

THE TAJ MAHAL:
This is the part of my trip in India when the sensory overload really hit me.
Day One: Traveling Day! We headed out on an early flight to Delhi, and after a quick stay-on-the-bus city orientation we began our five-hour bus ride to Agra. We were supposed to take a 2 hour express train, but apparently it only ran at 6am, and even though our flight was early, it wasn’t THAT early. First we went to a DELICIOUS Indian restaurant for lunch. It was so good!!! The five-hour ride started out ok, but it didn’t end as great. I apparently got stuck on the party bus, which meant after the first two and half hours, when we stopped at a rest stop most of the bus loaded up on huge bottles of beer. It definitely made the second half of the trip a little more annoying as the majority of the bus kept getting drunker. There were 70 kids in our group, only two trip leaders, and three buses full of kids. Obviously, I was on the trip-leaderless bus. We had a guide from India, but he wasn’t good for much. I think the adventure climaxed when three of the guys decided to pee out the window because they just couldn’t hold it any longer. I was so relieved to get at the hotel for dinner that evening, which was another delicious Indian meal. I went to bed immediately after dinner and showering; I was too exhausted for anything else. My roomie for the trip was cute too; her name was Jenna and we got along well.
Day Two: Another very long day. We had to get up around 5am so we could see the Taj at sunrise. Well, unfortunately it was a pretty cloudy day so we didn’t really get to see the sunrise, but fortunately it meant it wasn’t very hot either. It was still pretty spectacular. It was awesome, impressive, and any other awe-inspiring word you can think of. Next, we went back to the hotel for an Indian breakfast. After breakfast we went to Fatepah Sikri, the Lost City. In the 16th century the current emperor tried to move the capitol to this city, but it was a failed attempt. It was pretty cool to see the ruins. Following this, we headed back to the hotel for…yes, more Indian food. After lunch we went to visit Fort Agra, which was also built in the 16th century by the same guy who built the Taj. It wasn’t as cool as the old city, but it was still pretty interesting. We hit up the Taj again for sunset. It was still pretty cloudy, so it wasn’t much of a sunset, but it’s still the Taj. By this time in the day, we had been pestered by sooo many people trying to sell us “postcards for 100 rupees” and “pretty bangles” that we were getting pretty snappy. They were just in your face, shoving items at you, trying to touch you. It was very frustrating. We also saw a lot of poverty throughout the day. Just down the road from the Taj were deformed men (humpbacks, limbless, swollen-footed, and everything in between) who lived in this pathetic little shacks. They weren’t very many women at all (thanks to gendered abortions—girls aren’t well thought of in India, they can’t help the family much and they cost dowry). It was really depressing. At the Taj for the second time, there were a LOT more people there, many of whom were Indian. They kept taking pictures of us, and some random men bugged us into taking a picture with them. It was very unsettling, really. We didn’t let it bother us too much, so we enjoyed the Taj with picture montages. After many more pictures, it was time to head back to Delhi. We got to ride the 2-hour express train ride. You hear riding the trains is quite an experience, but ours was pretty tame because SAS took two entire coaches. There were no locals to harass us and stare at us, so it was a pretty fun train ride. There were only 70 of us in our group, but there were two other groups who were there as well—another one of 70 and one of 20. We would run into them everywhere and we were all on the same train, so SAS really did attack the Taj and Delhi. The hotel we stayed at in New Delhi was incredibly nice and seemed really expensive. Every SAS group was staying there, including another 70 kids who had been on the 4 day Taj trip. Most everyone decided to hit up the overpriced hotel bar, but after another long day, I just wanted to get some sleep.
Day Three: Another early morning. We had to get up at 5:30 for a 6 o clock breakfast. This time it was actually breakfast food too…not spicy Indian food. We were supposed to leave at 7am to catch our flight home, but we had some late sleepers who didn’t get up in time. After waiting for a half hour and trying to call their rooms (where they obviously hadn’t spent the night), we left without them. We weren’t going to miss our flight because of them. Those four kids are pretty lucky though, because if you’re going to miss your flight do it when there are about 4 other SAS groups who are all leaving to come back to Chennai throughout the entire day. My guess is that they were able to get on another flight with the other SAS kids, but I don’t know that for sure. They could still be stuck in Delhi…that’s what happens when you party too late and too hard. I don’t feel sorry for them; they were totally irresponsible. On the plane ride back, my stomach started to bother me. At first I thought it must have been something I ate, but by the time we got back to the ship in the late afternoon, I was feeling sick all over. It feels like the flu, but I think it’s a combination of something I ate (even though I took all of the necessary precautions—only bottled water, even for brushing teeth, two pepto after every meal, LOTS of hand sanitizer) and my immune system being shot. In those three nights, I probably only got a maximum of 14 hours of sleep, and they were all VERY long days. So even though today is my last day in India, I just don’t think I can make it back out. I don’t want to get any sicker and think it best to rest for the day, instead of exposing myself to more dirtiness and germs. If I’m not feeling better by tomorrow, I will go to the health center and get some antibiotics. Otherwise, I just intend to sleep and rest for the entire day…maybe try eating something if my stomach doesn’t hurt too badly.