Agra - I'm Famous!
Interestingly enough, in India I am famous, and my arrival has been heralded by many newspapers, international televison and previous public engagements I was, til this time, unaware of.
When I walk down the streets of any city, people call out my name, smile, point and very often want to shake my hand, albeit with the left, if they are not terribly familiar with this ancient Roman practice we westerners have adopted (and, for those of you who know things, you know what Indians do with the left hand . . .).
It does not matter if the name they call out is not my own or, if on further questioning, they find out I am unaware of my current batting average or the fate of my team - - it is all still very enjoyable. For the person they all mistake me for is a one "Jason Gillespie," "fast-bowler" darling of the Australian cricket team. Indians are crazy about cricket, a habit inflicted on them by the British, and are always very excited to see me. No joke. I fend off at least three "Jason Gillespie??" requests a day. Do I really look like this guy? Decide for youself by going here and scrolling down to the section that offers pictures of this hallowed man.
Aside from my great new-found fame, life continues at its breakneck Indian pace. My Hindi is coming along smashingly - - I can usually get 1 out of 5 Indians to understand me when I try to say "my name is James." The rest assume I am the member of some European country they have not had the pleasure of trying to extract money from. Seriously, I am improving, and adding such select words as "how much" and numbers past ten.
I went to the "mini-Mahal" today, as the real Taj Mahal was closed. Apparantly, it is always closed Friday, perhaps to give the hawkers and scam artists a rest, since they work so hard all the other days of the week. I will try and visit there tomorrow at dawn.
The "mini-Mahal," more properly referred to as the Itimad-ud-Daulah, is a small (about the size of a moderate house) and beautiful marble tomb with semi-precious stones inlaid in dazzling geometric shapes and floral patterns both outside and in. It was near sunset when I arrived, as I waited for decent light and until the day was not so hot. I was rewarded with very few people and some great shots. It is right by the river Yamuna, which runs through Agra, and is surrounded by four smaller red sandstone archways separated by green fields of grass, flowers and sprawling trees.
I took many pictures of the tomb and am having them developed today. I also received back a roll of film from the last days in Kathmandu with the Solu Khumbu crew and my first days in India, at Varanasi. The resolution is very high, though, and I am having a hard time uploading them quickly, so it may be some time before your eyes are graced by them.
Yesterday I visited the famous Agra Fort, or "Red Fort," as it is also called, due to it being almost completely built from red sandstone. I was only barely able to restrain my desire as a paleomagnetisist to drill and sample the hematite-saturated thing by the fact that every block is out of place.
A beautiful, sprawling structure that would withstand the mightiest of armies. That is, unless it was led by George W. "The Destroyer" Bush and heralded by some airborne "Shock and Awe." Modern armies take all the fun out of a nice prolonged castle siege.
A great job has been done restoring Agra Fort, and I was able to imagine many a pampered maharajah receiving audience in the large, many-columned open-aired hallways or relaxing in one of the marble screened bedrooms while women of the harem giggled nearby. Equally as easy, I also imagined a besieged maharajah or British officer cowering behind the thick wall while the well water quietly dried up due to the enimies efforts and seething masses of an angry mob rushed the wall again and again. Quite a place.
Wow, okay, so the pictures are taking an unbeleivable amount of time and I would like to sleep soon. Additionally, I am quite tired of this hot sweaty box that I am writing to you from, so I shall bid you good night (or good morning, for those of you in "The Land of Yesterday," as I have been calling it) and see you soon. There are all of three or four tantilizing pictures to be found in the "Nepal to India" folder of my picture collection.
When I walk down the streets of any city, people call out my name, smile, point and very often want to shake my hand, albeit with the left, if they are not terribly familiar with this ancient Roman practice we westerners have adopted (and, for those of you who know things, you know what Indians do with the left hand . . .).
It does not matter if the name they call out is not my own or, if on further questioning, they find out I am unaware of my current batting average or the fate of my team - - it is all still very enjoyable. For the person they all mistake me for is a one "Jason Gillespie," "fast-bowler" darling of the Australian cricket team. Indians are crazy about cricket, a habit inflicted on them by the British, and are always very excited to see me. No joke. I fend off at least three "Jason Gillespie??" requests a day. Do I really look like this guy? Decide for youself by going here and scrolling down to the section that offers pictures of this hallowed man.
Aside from my great new-found fame, life continues at its breakneck Indian pace. My Hindi is coming along smashingly - - I can usually get 1 out of 5 Indians to understand me when I try to say "my name is James." The rest assume I am the member of some European country they have not had the pleasure of trying to extract money from. Seriously, I am improving, and adding such select words as "how much" and numbers past ten.
I went to the "mini-Mahal" today, as the real Taj Mahal was closed. Apparantly, it is always closed Friday, perhaps to give the hawkers and scam artists a rest, since they work so hard all the other days of the week. I will try and visit there tomorrow at dawn.
The "mini-Mahal," more properly referred to as the Itimad-ud-Daulah, is a small (about the size of a moderate house) and beautiful marble tomb with semi-precious stones inlaid in dazzling geometric shapes and floral patterns both outside and in. It was near sunset when I arrived, as I waited for decent light and until the day was not so hot. I was rewarded with very few people and some great shots. It is right by the river Yamuna, which runs through Agra, and is surrounded by four smaller red sandstone archways separated by green fields of grass, flowers and sprawling trees.
I took many pictures of the tomb and am having them developed today. I also received back a roll of film from the last days in Kathmandu with the Solu Khumbu crew and my first days in India, at Varanasi. The resolution is very high, though, and I am having a hard time uploading them quickly, so it may be some time before your eyes are graced by them.
Yesterday I visited the famous Agra Fort, or "Red Fort," as it is also called, due to it being almost completely built from red sandstone. I was only barely able to restrain my desire as a paleomagnetisist to drill and sample the hematite-saturated thing by the fact that every block is out of place.
A beautiful, sprawling structure that would withstand the mightiest of armies. That is, unless it was led by George W. "The Destroyer" Bush and heralded by some airborne "Shock and Awe." Modern armies take all the fun out of a nice prolonged castle siege.
A great job has been done restoring Agra Fort, and I was able to imagine many a pampered maharajah receiving audience in the large, many-columned open-aired hallways or relaxing in one of the marble screened bedrooms while women of the harem giggled nearby. Equally as easy, I also imagined a besieged maharajah or British officer cowering behind the thick wall while the well water quietly dried up due to the enimies efforts and seething masses of an angry mob rushed the wall again and again. Quite a place.
Wow, okay, so the pictures are taking an unbeleivable amount of time and I would like to sleep soon. Additionally, I am quite tired of this hot sweaty box that I am writing to you from, so I shall bid you good night (or good morning, for those of you in "The Land of Yesterday," as I have been calling it) and see you soon. There are all of three or four tantilizing pictures to be found in the "Nepal to India" folder of my picture collection.
posted by JAshby at 6:55 AM
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