Agro in Agra

After 3 weeks in India, I thought it was high time I made the trip to Agra to see the iconic Taj Mahal. I was fully expecting it to be a total anti-climax but I have to say, for me at least, it wasn't. Yes it was crowded, yes it was hot, but come on it's the Taj Mahal! While it didn't take my breath away, it is I believe the most impressive building I've ever seen. The Taj was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of and as a tomb for his wife. Legend has it that he had all the best craftsmen build it and he was so insistent that it was never replicated that he had all their thumbs cut off so they couldn't work again. The things we do for love eh?!

4 of us made the trek from Gurgaon - me, Austin (from the apartment) and Mrinalini and Heena from the office. En route, we stopped in a very nice little restaurant (Sagar Ratna) renowned for it's South Indian delicacies. Masala Dosas rock! When we finally got to the Taj car park, we were instantly surrounded by people trying to sell us postcards, Taj Mahal keyrings, and leather whips...why they thought we would be interested in buying leather whips I have no idea!! We decided to do the most touristy of all touristy things and get ourselves a camel ride up to the Taj. Cheesy, but funny! Admittedly, my first view of the Taj involved jumping up and down with my elbows out to try see over and battle the crowds (slight exaggeration perhaps!) but still, you can't help but be amazed that you're standing in front of the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal!! We instantly found a quiet spot where we could take the 'humorous photos' - so we spent about an hour jumping up and down like lunatics trying to capture ourselves in the air with the Taj in the background. Got us quite a few stares I can tell you! We finally tore ourselves away from the tomfoolery long enough to get a bit closer and actually go into the Taj. It's as nice up close as it is from afar and I can't help but think it's an insanely elaborate building to house a tomb! But hey, who am I to complain.

After that, we took our driver and went to Fetehpur Sikri, which we had been warned was pretty bad for touts. Had NO idea just how bad it would be. People were literally jumping in front of the car to stop us and tell us that it was closed but that they knew people and could get us in for a good price, including guide and tickets. We lost them somewhere along the way and discovered not only that it wasn't closed but you don't even need a ticket! We were harassed from the second we got there to the second we left, so needless to say we left pretty sharpish!

All is all, a great day away from Delhi and a New Wonder of the World ticked off the list!

Random Observations/Tips

• Barbers = mirrors pinned to trees with one rusty old chair on the side of the dusty road. Tell me fellas...would you be happy to let a man with a razor loose on your throat under these conditions?!
• Indian waiters know better what you need than you do. Example:
• Me: 'Can I have the chicken tikka, please? And can I have chips with that?'
• Waiter (with shocked look on his face): 'You can't eat tikka with chips, you have to have rice or naan'
• Me: 'Erm...ooook, can I have chicken tikka with plain rice and chips, please?'
• Waiter: 'Of course, m'am'.
• I'm a lot whiter than Indian folk...they like to remind me with constants stares and requests to be in pictures with me.
• You're as likely to cross cows, monkeys and dogs on a pedestrian bridge as you are people. One could almost call them pedestrians!
  
• A 'head waggle' can mean anything from yes, to maybe, to 'I haven't got a clue what you're talking about'.
• If a travel agency in Rishikesh tells you to turn right, turn left.
• If your stomach is telling you not to eat spicy food, it's very difficult to find anything plain to eat that isn't rice.
  

To Go or Not to Go-A

Ok, not a great title! But it was the only play on words that I could think of. And the answer is DEFINITELY go! That is to Goa, on the west coast of India and pretty much India's #1 beach resort. Though 'resort' to me implies truck loads of British people and cheesy bars lining the paths - this Goa is not. Goa (via Bombay for a night on the town!) was my first weekend away from Delhi and it was such a nice change of pace. I went with Pallavi from the office, Heba who I was living with for a wee while and 2 of Pallavi's friends and we had quite the relaxing weekend with a little adventure thrown in. It's low season now so it wasn't packed with tourists, or anyone really. Spent the weekend chilling out on various beaches, tasting the local food. I'm told the sea food is tip top, but as my motto in life is to 'eat nothing that comes from the sea', I cannot confirm nor deny this. But the rest of the food was goooood. Throw in a little bit of jet skiing and boozing and you have yourselves a good time!

So that was the relaxation....where's the adventure I hear you ask?! The adventure began when someone said 'Hey, let's rent scooters!'. Having never driven a scooter before (least of all not in India, where the road rules seem to be: 'there are no rules'), I was somewhat skeptical about this brilliant idea. We got lost numerous times, nearly hit at least 3-4 walls, had to push our scooters up a dirt hill to get out of the forest we found ourselves in and I managed to find myself in a ditch! Admittedly unscathed and unable to contain my hysterical fits of laughter, but still....I was in a ditch, desperately trying to hold the Scooter above my head so it didn't fall in top of me.

All in all, a great way to ease myself into India travel and a must-see for anyone planning some Indian adventures.

The Wonder That Is Boozy Brunch!

I'll keep this post short, it needs not to be full of words. Boozy brunch is simply...amazing. It involves hitting up the 5 star hotels in Delhi (or presumably any city) on a Sunday afternoon for all you can eat continental/Indian food along with free flowing booze. So far for me, the free flowing booze has been Moet and Veuve Clicquot (tasty champagne for those that don't know). 5 star hotels, 5 + course meals (something along the lines of: starter, cheese, main course, cheese, dessert x3) and a bottomless glass of champers....need I say more?!

The Journey Begins

Welcome to my Indian adventures! I'm starting this blog about 7 weeks into a 4 month (originally supposed to be 3 month, but recently extended) journey so you'll have to bear with me as I remember all the noteworthy things I've done so far.

When I first heard I was coming to Gurgaon, I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew it was a pretty industrial city so I was expecting something akin to a large Sandyford Industrial Estate (for those Dublin folk that will be reading this). But on the other hand, I was also expecting a shanty town. When I arrived in DelhiLondon or New York. Then to my right I saw cycle rickshaws, scooters, bicycles, people, street vendors, dogs, cows (yes, cows - they're sacred don't you know!) and everything in between fighting for space on the motorway. I also quickly discovered that if Indian men (and often women) find that nature is calling, there's no such thing as finding a restaurant or cafe 'do the needful'...it's pretty much just a matter of wherever you can find space on the road! It's amazing how you can block these things out when you've been here for a while! airport and drove to my new home, I was pretty surprised to find both. I looked to my left and I saw modern glass office buildings and shopping centres (a LOT of shopping centres) that wouldn't be out of place in the likes of

There's not a whole lot going on in Gurgaon except a whole lotta building of new malls (I live with Americans - I apologise in advance for the use of any Americanisms). But the best thing about living here is that it's only a hop, skip and a jump from Delhi and with my own driver on hand, it's no problem to head into Delhi for dinner, a night on the town or even to absorb a bit of culture. And while there isn't much happening in Gurgaon, you can be full sure you'll never be bored in Delhi! Between bustling local bazaars (markets), modern shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, nightclubs, boozy brunches (boozy brunch deserves a post of its own - watch this space!) mosques, temples, parks, tombs etc etc etc....there's more than enough to keep us busy.

I should also dedicate some air time to my living situation. I'm living in an apartment about 15 minutes drive from the Google office in Gurgaon. We have two apartments with 5 room in each and currently there's only 4 of us here for the semi long-term - me, Austin, Megan and Heather (all but me from the San Francisco/Mountain View offices). Though we will have Scott who's an old schooler (also from the US) back with us in a few short days. The apartments are great, big rooms with our own bathrooms and a massive living space where we can chill out and watch TV or listen to music or even play the X-Box (though I'll admit I've never played it!). Generally we all have 'family dinner' in one apartment, cooked by our very own master chef. Certainly can't complain!