STEPHANIE MORK

Part two of my India trip highlights will include Agra and Jaipur – two of the points of a tourist loop in India called the golden triangle with the third point being Delhi.

Agra

Agra is known for the all famous Taj Mahal and for good reason.

The Taj Mahal is probably on every travelers bucket list, and was definitely on mine – but I had no idea I would see it so soon or that it would be such a meaningful experience. The Taj was built by an emperor, Shah Jahal, for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who passed away during the birth of their 14th child. On her deathbed, he promised her he would build something to show his undying love for her and would last through the ages. It took 22 years and 22,000 people, many of who I presume passed away during the construction.

The part about the Taj Mahal that touched me the most wasn’t the love story, but the other parts of history that surround it. The fact that people have been coming here for hundreds of years to marvel at the magnificence of the perfectly perfect white marble is really special in itself. But now, I am connected with all of these other people in history who have touched the same stone, and let’s be honest, take the same picture. It made me think about all these other people with their own stories and journeys of how and why they were there but this one place and moment in time can still create a link of commonality between two people who are different on every other level.

Jaipur

Jaipur is known as the pink city, so I knew I would like it before even stepping foot within city limits because well.. pink! If I am being honest, the best part about Jaipur had to be my airbnb, which turned out to be more of a home stay than just a place to sleep. My friend, Sophie, and I enjoyed multiple home cooked meals, personal yoga classes, puppy kisses, and help arranging tours of the city as well as a super comfy bed, hot water and just a really warm welcome and invitation to hang out with the family during the kite festival in Jaipur.

It’s hard to pick just one thing here because we saw so many beautiful buildings, ate a lot of good food, and took in some really great views. If I had to pick, it would be a building called Hawa Mahal – a wind palace where royal ladies would look out onto the street, hidden from view, to watch the happenings, parades and other events in Jaipur as at that time, women couldn’t be seen in public without face coverings. Obviously and thankfully, that isn’t the case anymore and the structure was open for us to explore all the edges and in betweens.

This was one of the first stops in the city and energy was high and expectations were minimal, so I think I was just blown away by the detail, the colors, the intricacy and beauty with which this structure was built. We explored the nooks and crannies, took silly pictures and got a cool view of the busy street below and the rest of the surrounding city. It was pure awe, pure joy and pure novelty. We were free of exhaustion and just excited to be there.

India was a trip to remember and if the opportunity presents itself to go back, I wouldn’t say no. There is always more to see and more to learn from every unique pocket of the globe and I am thankful to have had the opportunities to learn and grow in a such worldwide playground.

India is a country that I didn’t always have on my travel list. It’s really far away from Minnesota (like really far), it’s highly likely that something (food, water, pollution) will make a foreigner sick, and the culture is completely unfamiliar. But when the opportunity to go somewhere as other as India pops up, you don’t say no.

Everyone and anyone who has been there before will tell you their stories and what they experienced in India and the stories range from horrific to life changing. Knowing that some people had some really unfortunate experiences in India was scary, but I wanted to experience it for myself and make up my own mind about how I would think and feel about India.

In the span of two and a half weeks, I along with friends and classmates as part of my graduate studies, covered a pretty decent amount of ground in Northern India. I learned so much and saw so much but here I will highlight some of my favorite moments and experiences from each city we visited. Learnings from India deserves its own post.

2.5 weeks in Northern India Itinerary:

1 day in Delhi
1 full travel day
4 days in Haridwar
4 days in Rishikesh
1 full travel day
1 day in Agra
1 full travel day
4 days in Jaipur

Delhi

It was hard to really get a grasp on this city in such a short amount of time but a highlight for me was visiting Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, a Sikh temple. The complex was large and included a pool full of holy water, a kitchen and large dining hall, and an area for worship and prayer. One of the main components of Sikh religion is inclusiveness. The kitchen actually pumps out 10,000 meals per day that are offered for free to anyone who wishes to eat – prepared completely by volunteers and with donated food, which was a really cool thing to see. It was one of the first places we went in the city and I was kind of in a dreamlike state from the jet lag and traveling, so arriving here was a little bit of peace away from the chaos of Delhi streets.

The experience itself was incredibly sensory. We walked with heads covered in bare feet as shoes are not allowed in the complex, and feeling all the sensations of cold marble, cement, water, and oil on my feet along with smelling naan frying and rice cooking and hearing some calming music in the background was all very new to me. It was a beautiful temple – the sun creating sparkles on the surface of the pool, the white and gold of the building against the light blue sky creating a tranquil place that locals no doubt come to feel at peace.

Haridwar and Rishikesh

In both of these places I stayed in ashrams and didn’t have a ton of time for exploring, but I am combining them because my highlight in both places is seeing and feeling and experiencing the Ganges River – or the Ganga in Hindi. My first glimpse of the Ganga in Haridwar was through the streaked windows of a bus, and it was so much more beautiful than I ever expected and I didn’t even really think much of seeing this river before my arrival. The eternal smog in India, however difficult it makes breathing, makes for a really beautiful picture with the backdrop of colorful buildings, streets filled with dogs and monkeys and of course the Ganga.

In Rishikesh, I had the opportunity to get up close to the Ganga by participating in a ceremony called Ganga Aarti. The Ganga is the holiest river in India, and many people come to places like Rishikesh just to pay their respects, dip their feet in the water, and send hopes and prayers to the Goddess Ganga. Aarti is a ceremony meant to embody the physical send off of dreams, prayers, and wishes by lighting a candle and placing it in the middle of a boat full of red, gold and pink flowers, before sending it down the river. Other aspects of the ceremony include music, lamps lit with fire, and other rituals often performed for the public on the bank of the river outside of an ashram.

While sending off the flaming flower boats, I felt the chill of the Ganga with my bare feet, taking a few steps into the rivers cleansing and healing waters. (not actually super clean, but you know what I mean). Without really understanding the significance of what I was doing, putting my feet in the water and thinking about my hopes for the year to come was a moment that I already knew would be really special.

Highlights from Agra and Jaipur up next.