Janine Hay from Londonderry, Northern Ireland toured India’s Golden Triangle and lost her heart at the Taj Mahal.
I had never been to India so I was thrilled to be invited to visit Delhi, Agra and Jaipur – India’s golden Triangle. Immigration at Delhi airport was complete mayhem. Four flights from Europe arrived at the same time. I have never seen queues of people in an immigration hall like it before - not even in the States. Happily, I’d landed feeling fresh after the eight-hour flight because I’d been lucky enough to fly BA Club World.
Finally we made it to the Oberoi New Delhi – our hotel for the next two nights. The hotel overlooks the New Delhi golf course used in the Asian PGA circuit. Staying here, it is very hard to believe that outside there is a very noisy and very active city. The hotel is just so peaceful.
We spent our two days in Delhi touring both the old and new parts of Delhi. For one very memorable trip we pottered by rickshaw through the busy trading streets of Old Delhi taking in the wonderful colours and the smell of the spices from the food being cooked in the streets.
On day three we were up at the crack of dawn to catch the train from Delhi to Agra. I didn’t mind the early start because seeing the Taj Mahal was the part of the trip that I was looking forward to the most. Our base at Agra was the Oberoi Amarvilas. (Amarvilas is Sanskrit for Eternal Heaven) From there, we took a guided tour of the monument. I wasn’t disappointed.
I felt quite emotional as I entered the grounds of this great building listening to our guide explain the story of Emperor Shah Jehan who built the tomb as a symbol of his love for his wife in the middle of the seventeenth century. The dawn start was well worth it. The Taj Mahal is much more beautiful in real life than it ever seems in photographs. Next morning it was completely wonderful to wake up, look out my bedroom window and see the wonderful view of the Taj Mahal as the sun was rising. Simply breathtaking.
We left the city of Agra and made our way though scenic Rajasthan, ending up in its capital Jaipur, which is known as the Pink City because of the colour of its buildings. Jaipur is enchanting. The city is full of history and culture and has some magnificent palaces and forts where Maharajahs once lived. After visiting the City Palace and the Amber fort, we took part in some retail therapy shopping at some of the city’s fine jewellers and outfitters. After our fantastic experience in Jaipur we had to fly back down to Delhi for our flight home, I was very sad to be leaving.
Janine’s verdict My trip to India’s Golden Triangle was fantastic. It definitely lived up to my expectations and more. I met such warmth and friendliness. I can’t wait to return shown. India offers holidaymakers an unforgettable change of scenery. I now certainly recommend this trip to my customers.
The Taj Mahal Heartbroken by the death of his favourite wife Mumtaz Mahal, the fifth great mogul emperor Shah Jahan spent 20 years creating this testament to their love. 20,000 men helped build the monument in white marble inlaid with thousands of precious stones. The story goes that Shah Jahan was locked up in Agra's fort by his son. He spent his last years only able to gaze across at his wife's tomb from his prison cell.
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