The Golden Triangle Pt I - Madness in Delhi & Gems in Agra

Hey guys! This is a continuation of my trip to India. You can find the first part of my time in India here. 

I will be giving a brief summary of my trip with G Adventure's Golden Triangle tour in India. This was my first G Adventure tour and I had a blast! I look forward to doing other tours with them in the future.

After we leave the relative comfort and safety in Shreya's, Esther and I hopped on a plane and arrived in Delhi , greeted by a scene like this...

This was pretty calm already but traffic was soooo intense

There were so many people, tuk tuks, rickshaws and cars everywhere! It was probably the most chaotic place I've ever been in. There was beeping everywhere and people drove ridiculously close to you. Yet, despite it all, people still got to places and everything... worked.  Later on in the day, we were wandering in the markets near our hotel and we found a McDonald's!

OK so at this point, I have a not-so-secret confession to make. I love going into different McDonald's in different places to see what's different on their menus! They have a regional specialty and if I can, I usually try it out. I know a lot of people hate McDonald's and their business practices worldwide. But I don't know, something about how they adapt in each region to embrace the local taste just seems so... fascinating to me. Anyways, so for years, I have been hearing about the Maharaja mac at McDonald's in India which uses chicken in the patty, rather than beef and I finally got to witness it for myself!

Also a vegetarian version available

They also had a bunch of vegetarian wraps on the menu which I thought was pretty cool. Unfortunately, I had Delhi belly at the time and didn't eat much that day so I didn't try it but it was still a cool thing to see!

The next day was the official start of the tour where we went to see some landmarks around Delhi. The one I thought was most interesting was the Jama Mosque in Old Delhi, where a lot of muslims still lived.

You had to wear a robe to get in

The place was well preserved, and architecturally interesting.  It was built a few hundred years ago and still functions today as a mosque so people can come in to pray. The fact that this mosques still functions today after oh-so-many years  shows me how different religions are tolerated and respected in India and that is something I have an immense amount of respect for.  I 'm so thankful we live in a place that is so diverse like Toronto and sometimes I forget that when I go abroad.

To get back to our tour bus, we got to ride in a rickshaw!

Look ma! No hands!

I was really surprised at how fast we were going, considering the rickshaw driver seemed very skinny and the traffic was crazy. But it was a lot of fun! 

Agra

So the next day was the main event (for me) of the trip (other than the wedding). We went to see the Taj Mahal!

OK, here's my 2nd not-so-secret confession to make... the whole reason I picked this tour was because I wanted to see the Taj Mahal. Given the fact that India is a huge country and I pretty much know nothing about it... I figured I should go see its most famous landmark. 

If you didn't know, the Taj Mahal was built in 1632 by the Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan for his second wife Mumtaz. She died giving birth to their 14th child. It is mausoleum and a monument to their love.  It's a sad story but sometimes, I can't help but feel sorry for the first wife. The second wife gets the guy and the love monument... what does the first wife get? But I guess life is unfair sometimes eh?

Anyways... the Taj did not disappoint! It was awe-inspiring to see the structure up close in real life and so much fun to explore the expansive grounds! I'm truly amazed by the amount of thought they put into the design and construction of the monument. There is a west facing mosque to the side of the main structure, and an identical building to the east to preserve the symmetry! And since I work in plant design...I know the amount of things that can potentially go wrong during execution...which makes me appreciate this place even more!

According to the guide, the structure on the outside is actually an imperfect octagon while the inside is a perfect octagon. 

Still very cool

In the afternoon, we visited the Baby Taj,  Mumtaz's parents' tomb, which was an inspiration for the Taj Mahal. 

Here, you can see more clearly the details of the gem inlaid in marble that is present in the Taj Mahal. The colour you see below is NOT paint but some kind of gemstone. I'm so impressed by this ancient technology... I only wish there were better conservation efforts at these sites :(.

Anyways, I hope you have enjoyed my little write up of the first part of my trip. Have a great week!