Agra with Aaron, Annika and Isaac

Fog played a major roll in our visit to Agra with Aaron, Isaac and Annika. We got up very early in Delhi last Tuesday morning to catch the Taj Express, but that train was canceled because of the heavy Delhi fog. We managed to get seats in 2 separate coaches on a later train that took nearly six hours instead of the scheduled three. Lynn, Aaron and Isaac were in one coach, while Annika and I travelled in another. That's why the photos show only Annika.

The fog was still with us when we arrived in Agra, and that flavoured the pictures we took that afternoon--of the tomb of Etimad ud Doulah and then of the Taj from across the Jamuna River. It was also bitterly cold in Agra--only 2 degrees when we got up on Wednesdeay morning. Fortunately, the fog was no longer with us for our second day in Agra, with visits to Fatehpur Sikri and the Taj. This meant we got some pretty good pictures. It may not seem like it, but we've only included a few of our Agra pics in the slide show embedded below.

We all agree that our favourite Mughal visit was the Etimad ud Doulah tomb. We arrived there late in the day, and had the place almost to ourselves. Fatehpur Sikri is also truly amazing, but we didn't have time to do it justice. Fatehpur Sikri is the incredible city built by Akhbar that served as capital of the Mughal Empire for only 16 years. 

Having visited the Taj in an era when visitors were relatively few, we were almost overwhelmed this time by the crowds there! I remember visiting the Taj with grade some 11 classmates in 1967 when we were the only visitors inside the Taj. This time there were hundreds, and it felt like thousands.

The slide show embedded below shares our Agra adventure, and includes a few episodes not mentioned here. I hope it illustrates how wonderful Isaac and Annika are as travelers and tourists They have been absolutely fabulous all along the way. I'm posting this from Hampi, in the South Indian state of Karnataka, so our amazing grandchildren have had a great deal more opportunity to demonstrate their cheerfully adventurous spirit since Agra. Stay tuned for more of our fabulous family journey...

Agra from paulhami