Agra & The Taj Mahal

Hey all

Well, we're here in Agra, the home of the Taj Mahal and a wonderful city. After being in Jaipur, a hectic and dirty place, it's nice to see a city where they are so proud of their monument.

We are staying in a hotel with an INCREDIBLE view of the Taj. From the rooftop, you can see it in all its splendour. It's really an amazing building.

Things are good with us travelling together too. Having travelled with a boyfriend before and not having had similar travel styles, it's nice to be able to relax and take it easy with Tom. The most stressful thing we've done together is trying to locate our nearest Beer and Wine Shop (this is what the Bottle-O's or Off-Licences are called here!)

Tonight, feeling sleepy and not up to doing anything, we had a quick dinner on the roof terrace and then slipped into our room for a game of Pontoon (or 21) on our bed, a hipflask of whisky to share between us. The only reason I'm on the internet again is because Tom is talking to his mama in England. THere's been some big news from his family - their childhood home has been sold and Tom and his sister Jess are very sad about it (and his mum and step dad), understandably. I don't know whether all of you readers have a childhood home, but I'm sure when it comes to my ma and pa selling our house, I'm going to be very sad indeed. It is a good move, though, I'm sure, for TOm's folks, who are embarking on a whole new phase of life and will no doubt lead to wonderful things for them. I'm sure you've done the right thing.

Things here are good. We leave Agra on Tuesday to go back to Anil and Renu's place in Delhi for some relaxation before heading to Varanasi on Thursday. We are looking forward to some cooler weather in Darjeeling early next week.

The things i find most weird about India are:

1. The men all chew tobacco and therefore spend most of their time hacking up big globules of phlem which they spit indescriminately into the street. You spend a lot of time avoiding slipping in these small puddles.

2. The women all walk behind the men, at least 2 metres, I assume because women are still considered the lesser sex. Fortunately, Tom walks behind me on busy streets so that he can keep an eye on me.

3. Standards of cleanliness are just not even close to those in the West. Rubbish bins are impossible to find and it's hard to reconcile that holding on to your rubbish for the half hour it takes to find one will make any difference at all in this mess.

4. "Nature" is a different term here. Nature here means any patch of grass.

5. I've seen countless men taking a piss on the streets against a wall but have never seen a woman trying to find a loo. WHere do they go??? (I just hold on....)

6. The first question any person will ask you in INdia is "What is your country?" to which i reply, Australia, then they all say "Ricky Ponting"! he he! They LOVE cricket here.

Anyway, that all sounds a bit like I'm rubbishing India, and that's by no means what I'm tryng to do. People are happy - most sing as they work or ride their bikes, and they all want to know how much we like their country. And we do, very much.

Hoping you're all well, happy and safe.

Kaz xxx

PS - Tom promised to post soon. Keep an eye out!