Agra and Back

Delhi, India

With a sigh of relief we met our guide to Agra at 6am on Wednesday morning. a 27 year old accounting student with a very pleasant personality. We decided that we liked Vicky very much (it didn't hurt that we all found it hysterical that our names rhymed). The trip to Agra was approximately 4 hours by car. We had initially intended to take the train, but it was completely sold out. The roads here are crazy! In Delhi, we assumed the roads were crazy because we were in a major city of 15 million people. But no, Delhi roads are actually just slow motion versions of the rest of the country. With so many different speeds: cows, walkers, bicycles, rickshaws, tractors, trucks, motorcycles, and cars vying for the same two lanes on the road, you can only imagine the chaos that ensues.
On arrival at Agra we immediately went to the Taj Mahal. It was very impressive, huge, white, intricate, and in amazing condition. We were surprised to see so few westerners, and so many Indian tourists. They came in droves, with their entire families and posed for pictures. It was really nice to see such big families traveling together. We started trying to estimate how many people were there, but we couldn't there were a lot. Photographing a white building with foggy smog in the background was a challenge, but hopefully we got some good ones.
After the Taj Mahal we went to the Red Fort which was impressive in a completely different way. Rather than a lone curiosity, it was an entire environment to explore. It felt especially different because for the first time in two days we found ourselves alone after a turn into some intricately carved chambers. Even if it was only for a moment, we felt like we were really exploring something on our own.
We then had our first real Indian meal which was just what we had hoped for and immediately crashed upon our arrival at the hotel. The 5pm bedtime was typical for our stay so far, but this time we were able to sleep until 4am. This morning we saw two other tombs before we hit the road back to Dehli. They were all amazing in their own unique way. One so large that there were herds of deer inside the gates. The other an artistic predecessor of the Taj Mahal which provided some context for the architecture of the period.
We are now back in Delhi hoping to try to stay up late enough to celebrate New Years. It seems to be a long shot, and we will probably end up celebrating it tomorrow on NY time. Happy New Year to everyone! We appreciate all the comments and emails! Keep 'em coming.

P.S. sorry for the lack of pictures, we left our card reader back at the hostel.