October 6 – Seeing an Amazing Site on the Way to Agra

As we traveled on the bus, we passed through towns that were all lined with both shops and freestanding vendor carts, selling a great variety of items. The produce was brightly colored, all looking very fresh. People were making purchases, probably just of the day since many do not have any refrigeration.

Sanjay told us we were going to a “wow” place. He wasn’t kidding. As we entered Chand Baori, I was amazed. This magnificent stepped well was built by Raja Chand, who ruled from the 8th to 9th century. This is one the earliest baori in Rajasthan. The 19.8 meter deep baori is square on a plan enclosed by pillared verandas with the entrance on the north. It has a double flight of steps on 15 landings from south, east, and west. It was used for religious purposes. The water level constantly changed depending on rainfall, so access to whatever level it was at was made possible by using the many steps.

Nearby, we watched a man using a traditional potter’s wheel. It was impressive to see how quickly he made useful pottery items. School children, on their half-hour break from classes, came by and watched us and posed for pictures.

Buffet lunch on the way and more riding in the bus.

We got off the bus and onto a smaller bus to ride up the hill to Fateh-Pur-Sikri, the City of Victory and monument to the great Moghai Emperor Akbar. Buildings of red sandstone surrounded a courtyard. Outside the complex area and at the bottom of the hill, we were constantly pestered to make purchases. Again, we had to totally ignore them on the walk to our bus. Sanjay had a great system of showing us different items on the bus from each vendor, at the best prices, so we could buy something without the annoyance of the hawkers.

Arriving in the city of Agra was an experience. A lot of traffic that crawled along the roads. I was amazed to see people carrying very large purchases on the back of bicycle rickshaws.

We arrived at the Jaypee Palace Hotel, a modern hotel that has convention facilities and many amenities that would be expected from this type of property. As we entered, each of us was given a flower garland and a tasty lime drink. We were again given a bindi mark on our foreheads.

Very nice room with all the comforts to be expected. There were apples on the table, something (a fruit plate) that GCT often provides to its Inner Circle members.

We had dinner at the Grand Buffet, where food displays were inviting to look at and the food was excellent. A cook was making “pasta to order” which I couldn’t resist having made for me. Trying not to eat too much is very difficult when all of the food looks so good.