Our Trip to Vrindavan and Agra

During my previous visit to New Delhi, India, my wife's cousin Vandana and her husband Sunil organised a two day trip to Vrindavan and Agra. In all, there were nine pople in the group, including my wife Ritu (Savita) and my sons Ankur and Anuj. We hired a van and started the trip around 10 am from Vandana and Sunil's residence in Gurgaon, on the outskirts of New Delhi on a sunny winter day in December. At the border of Haryana and UP, we were held up for some time due to some confusion about the permit the driver of the van was carrying. While we were waiting for the permit issue to be resolved, a bandarwala (monkey performer) appeared and provided some entertainment. 

Vrindavan 

We reached the town of Vrindavan in the afternoon. Vrindavan is popular for old Hindu temples, the most famous being the Banke Bihari temple. The moment we entered Vrindavan, several tough looking young man moved in the front of our van and tried to force us to accept one of them as a guide. We had tough time telling them that we don't need their services. Vrindavan is an old town with narrow streets. While trying to reach the Ranganath temple, we ended up on a street that was so norrow that on several occasions, I had to get down to puch bicyles, rickshaws and even cows aside to let our van move forward. In the evening, we visited the famous Banke Bihari temple. 

The temple is sitauted in a narrow lane just three metres wide. The atmosphere in and around the temple was so different that we felt that we were in a different world. It appears that temple complex lives in the previous century. Before proceeding to Agra, we visited the ISKCON temple built by ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement. This beautiful temple made of white marble is loacted at the outskirts of Vrindavan. Don't forget to visit this temple if visit Vrindavan. 

Agra

We reached Agra at night and checked in a hotel. Next day, after having breakfast in the hotel we proceeded toward Taj Mahal around 10.30 am. To reduce the effect of vehicle pollution, carbon-dioxide emitting vehicles are not allowed to go near Taj Mahal. After parking our van about 1 kilometer from Taj Mahal, one person offered to take us to Taj Mahan in his battery-operated van for very reasonable price. We gladly hopped into his van. While taking us toward Taj Mahal, that person told us that the monument opens at 11 am, so instead of waiting at the gate, he would take us to a UP Government handicrafts shop for our benefit. We believed in what he told and did significant shopping at that shop. Later we learnt that Taj Mahal opens in the morning at sunrise and that shop, which did not not belong to the UP Government sold us stuff at nearly double the market rates. 

Well, after finishing the shopping, that battery van driver did take us to Taj Mahal. This was my third visit to Taj Mahal, but I felt am witnessing the world's wonder for the first time. We were lucky that it was a beautiful bright sunny day. We spent a few hours in the Taj Mahal complex and then proceeded toward Delhi. On the way back to New Delhi, we stopped briefly at Fatehpur Sikri, another historical city that has the famous Buland Darwala. We reached our past mid-night after having two fun-filled days. 

Note: Please see the photo album for a few photographs from our trip.