Agra/Jaipur – A surprisingly good day
We were only staying in Agra one day, which is pretty much par for the course – once you’ve seen the Taj Mahal, it just makes you pity any other monuments. As Gary, Michelle and Brad were all heading to the same place as I, Jaipur, they got tickets for the same train. Unfortunately this meant another dream-wrenchingly early start, to leave the hostel at 5.30am.
Perhaps miraculously, we were all up on time, and managed to get two rickshaws right outside the hostel – Michelle and Gary took one, Brad and I the other. The day didn’t get off to the best start when our rickshaw gradually started losing power, and it eventually ground to a halt on a dark stretch of road that patently wasn’t the train station. I got a fit of the giggles as the driver had to kick start it, Fred Flinstone style, with one foot out the side. I guess the AA doesn’t come this far out.
Eventually we made it to the train station, and found Michelle and Gary inside. After asking around a couple of times, we worked out that our train would leave from Platform 1 – the bad news, though, was that it was running an hour and a half late. Undeterred at first, we waited stoically on a bench on the platform, watching a gang of monkeys opposite picking their way through the rubbish. Soon though, we heard a rumour that it would be even later than this, and would in fact arrive at 9am. With this news, we decided to find something a bit more substantial to sustain us, and headed to the station restaurant which had just opened. We had a banquet-sized table to ourselves, and we ordered chai and vegetable cutlets (similar quality to those on the train the day before, and I should know – I’m a European) and settled in for the long wait. Gary got his laptop out, which attracted a lot of attention from fascinated Indian station workers, and Michelle and I played cards. Well, I say played, I have an astonishingly bad memory for card games, so I had to learn them again from scratch. I promised Michelle I wasn’t a hustler, and we started a game of Rummy.
About 9.30, when we had been told numerous times “the train will be here in half an hour”, we started to get impatient, and I was almost ready to throw in the towel and try to find an alternative way to Jaipur. Rationally, though, I should have known that getting impatient wasn’t going to change a thing. However, at 10.00, all the promises came good, and the train at last rolled into Agra Fort Station.
When Indian trains get to a major station, they stay put for a long time. Chai wallahs wander the platform, selling little clay cups filled with chai for a few rupees. Goods and stock get loaded on to travel cross-country. There’s even time for some of the men to get off, have a wash, and get back on again. So when our train came in, we had a while to wander up and down the platform to find our carriages (we were all sitting separately). The first couple of carriages we saw were literally packed like sardines and, to be honest, I started to get a touch of the Princess about me and was thinking “I can’t go like that”. As Brad had already made the leap of faith and got into his carriage, and seeing Michelle and Gary were about to do the same, I found my name posted outside with all the reservations, gulped, and got on.
And it was fine. A tad crowded maybe, certainly dusty and dirty, but fine. I was sitting next to a young family with two small boys, throwing chunks of chapatti out the window to the monkey on the tracks, though all three of us yelled and jumped back when it came right up to the window. Before we’d even set off, Michelle and Gary wandered through to my carriage, and we all found seats together – Brad was happy enough where he was. Knowing we had at least a five hour journey ahead of us, Michelle and I carried on our game of Rummy, and soon we had an audience, about five or six Indian guys gathered round, asking us if we were playing Rummy. After a couple of games, we invited them to join us and they showed us how they played it over here, slightly different to us, but easy enough to pick up. And you know what? It was really good fun. We spent the whole six hours (yep, instead of making up time, we lost yet another hour) playing cards with these guys – they barely spoke English, we spoke none of their language yet somehow we mangaged to find a common connection and have a truly memorable journey. When I look back on this trip in years to come, I know that time on the train will be one of the stand-out things that sticks in my mind.
Getting to Jaipur station was hot, crowded, and filled with touts. Paying no attention to them, we marched up the platform and went straight to the tourist information office, where we were going to book our hotel that we’d picked out of the Lonely Planet. Because it’s festival time in Jaipur (in fact, all over India, but Jaipur is one of the hot spots to be right now), the hotels were fully booked, but the man working in the office recommended another one to us. Slightly suspicious, and thinking maybe he was on commission, we eventually agreed to take a look, as the rates were the same, if not a bit cheaper, than the others in the book. And then came the next pleasant surprise of the day. The hotel is wonderful, really fabulous. The rooms are big, clean, airy, there’s a garden in the front and a balcony on the second floor where I’m going to eat breakfast in a short while.
That night we headed further up the main road in Jaipur, MI Road, to a revolving restaurant. We arrived a bit early for the revolutions, so went to the Tex-Mex themed bar on the 9th floor, and I had just about the strongest Bloody Mary ever known to man. Heading back up, we sat down, enjoyed the ride and the views, and ate one of the tastiest meals I’ve had since I’ve arrived.
All things considered, a surprisingly good day.
Tags: India, Travel
Suzanne
Ha ha, I knew it wouldn’t be long before you reverted to type: cocktails and hustling at cards. Mum taught you well. :0)
The journey sounds fascinating too. Are you sure Michael Palin isn’t ghost writing this for you?
Love you lots.
Michael
So, so glad you are having an amazing time – and thank you for warming up long winter days with your accounts!
Keep enjoying the adventure!
Take care .
Loads of love and hugs.
xxx
Hi Suzie:
Just a test as I’m having trouble getting this message through to-day for some reason.
Auntie Rosemaryx
Hi Suzie:
Seems o.k. now – well once again it was lovely seeing your entry this morning. Really sounds as if you’re enjoying it all (could you see me (Mrs. Bouquet!) on that dirty dusty
train – I’d be wiping the seats down! Glad you’ve got company I’m sure it makes a difference. Everything sounds fascinating – what memories you’ll have. Keep on writing!
Much love – Auntie Rosemary x
Hi Suze,
Isn’t it perverse how, what you’d expect to be a long and dreary train journey turns out to be such an amazing experince?
As I type, I’m on hold to Virgin Customer Services, about to make the suggestion of hiring some gibbons from Knowsley Safari Park and giving them a free reign at Lime Street to entertain delayed rail passengers. Sounds so much more entertaining then playing ‘I Spy’ or doing a wordsearch!!
Take care.
Paul x
Sounds like an epic journey to Jaipur Suze. The Mounsey Sisters would be proud of you – they never went on holiday without taking with them a pack of playing cards. I guess it’s time you introduced your American friends to “Chase the Ace” but goodness knows how you will explain to them what exactly it means to go on the parish!!!
Love you lots.
Mum
Hey Suzanne – another great blog entry. You do realise that you’re really building up our expectations don’t you? Me and your mum already have a proposition to Penguin to publish them all. You’ll be ranked among the greatest diary writers – Pepys, Anne Frank, Alan Clarke and er…Bridget Jones (actually could you tell us more about your weight loss and the colour of Brads hair. We’ve been informed it will appeal to a particular audience!)
I got something today that you would appreciate. A get well card and on the front was a picture of a Christian Belt US of A church (you know the type big white building, lush green lawns and a big sign out front) and on the sign the letters were arranged to say “Lying in bed shouting God does not constitute going to church”. Very funny. You’d have liked it.
Can’t wait for the next installment.
God Bless
Elephant Apple (Snr) x