Agra to Delhi - Thursday, January 31

Into the car by 9:15, and on the road much of the day. We expected to reach our hotel in Delhi mid-day. It turned out to be almost 4 pm, instead. More memorable on-the-road shots from the back seat:

The variety of transport will forever be a memory of India

Advertising on the median 

Congestion has a new definition here

A Methodist church in Agra!

A rose for the teacher?

Pedaling brooms to market

By 10 we reached the one monument on today's itinerary, the pre-Taj and pre-baby-Taj tomb of the Mughal Emperor Akbar.  A very masculine contrast to those feminine tombs.

Entry gate to the complex

Exterior stone work

This property was once Akbar's hunting grounds. Now the large green area all around the tomb is where the deer and the antelope play!

The designs on the interior walls, arches, and ceilings are spectacular.

The actual tomb is on the ground level, in a high-ceilinged plain room. People came and left flowers there. The "guard" required payment before I could take a photo.

Back on the road for some more snaps:

Garland makers at work at an intersection

How can this carrier ever move on these roads?!

Tire repair, anyone?

At 1 it was time for the driver to have a break, and we stopped at a hotel in the middle of "nowhere" and enjoyed their garden. The dahlias are spectacular here and in Agra. 

Kenneth's favorite

A field (wheat?) in back

And back on the road. More interesting things to snap. The closer we got to Delhi, the worse the congestion got...something I had thought impossible.

 

It was a very happy moment when we saw the Imperial Hotel Entrance sign at 3:40. But some confusion followed, as we had heard yesterday we'd have our driver through our time in Delhi, and now that plan was only 50/50. I hadn't found my notes on how much to tip him. I had thought the travel company rep had said he'd meet me at the hotel, but he didn't. We finally worked things out, sent our beloved Mr. Singh on his way with gratitude, and went to the 1811 Verandah restaurant in the hotel for a bowl of soup. And what a presentation! The waiter recommended the consommé with vegetables and then brought out a large bowl with a little pile of diced fresh veggies mounded in the center, then poured the delicious broth over it. A piece of olive bread was the perfect compliment. O happy day!

I explored the hotel, then gave K a tour after his nap. We walked down the street past 100 shops selling typical Indian tourist products, and returned to the hotel. By 7:30 we were in the fine Italian restaurant ordering small portions of ravioli (A) and chicken (K). And enjoying the company of the Connecticut couple at the next table, traveling with the Met Museum group. 

As I finish writing this c. 5 a.m. I can hear the sound of construction workers and equipment working on the Metro outside the gate. This town could really use an expanded system!