On the way back from breakfast to our hotel suite in Abhaneri, I notice a peacock pecking at his reflection in the glass of Garima’s door. When I go closer, he hides behind a bush, popping his head out from time to time to see if I’ve left yet. I assume he wants to continue his romantic endeavors with his reflection in the glass door.

We leave Abhaneri and drive to Agra in our own minibus.

Agra is a super busy city with crazy traffic and all kinds of characters. I love watching the every day life of the city. We stop for South Indian food at Dasaprakash Restaurant (which was delicious) before checking in to Hotel Karan Vilas (yes, just one ‘l’). which is a typical, clean city hotel similar to anywhere else in the world.

At 3pm we get into our minibus and head to Agra Fort. The traffic is crazy busy. The president of Myanmar and his wife are in town to see the Taj Mahal resulting in the Taj Mahal being closed for 2 hours for their private visit and road closures with the resulting traffic chaos.

At the Fort entrance a number of red butted monkeys are hanging around. Boy their bottoms look sore. I’m a little scared of them.

There are a number of men doing renovation work on the Fort. I see a few of them high up balancing on scaffolding that is not secured. Some other men bring a heavy wheelbarrow full of cement mix or stones. They bang the wheelbarrow into the fort’s red sandstone stairs and a huge chunk breaks off…and when I say huge, I mean huge. We all cringe.

After entering the front gate a long sloping ramp bordered by tall walls leads up to another gate. Along the walls are slits from which defenders could pour hot oil upon any attackers unfortunate enough to make it that far. They used to have crocodiles in the moat and tigers they could release.

We have a guide to take us through the Fort. He tells us many stories about the rulers that lived there and their many wives.

One of the rulers was the builder of the Taj Mahal which can be clearly seen in the distance across the river from the Fort. His son later imprisoned him in part of the Fort.

Another ruler loved the ladies and sometimes he would have many of them dress in white saris and stand in a fountain; apparently the modern day equivalent of a wet t-shirt contest.

The acoustics in one part of the building are incredible. If I face and whisper into the corner of the room, John(who is also facing his corner), can hear me and whisper back from the opposite corner. It is very clear, as if he is beside me. Amazing.

They also used ingenious construction designs and the use of water to cool the interior rooms.

Our guide shows us numerous optical illusions including one that makes the Taj Mahal look much closer than it really is.

As evening descends, many parrots fly above the Fort getting ready to settle down for the night.

We pile back into the minibus and head to a carpet factory where we see people hand knot beautiful carpets that are really pieces of art. Prices for a 6 x 9 foot carpet range from $1,800-2,200 USD.

Back at the hotel, I see a groom and many dressed up guests heading out to a wedding. There is only a little over a week left in India’s wedding season.

Once again we cannot figure out how to turn off the tv. I throw my pants over it but then John just pulls the plug.

We have all chosen our outfits and are having an early night because we head to the Taj Mahal for sunrise. I’m so excited.

*Agra Fort – 550Rs