Goa - Oct 24-26

Goa, a tiny state on the Arabian Sea, only joined India within the last 30 years. Long held by Portugal, it has a strong European-Catholic influence. Wandering "old Goa," we felt we were back in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Lush and humid, and wonderfully laid back (especially after the chaos of Delhi and Bangalore), we were content to sit on our balcony and watch the tide come and go.

Nearby, the Dona Paula jetty area had lots of water craft available. Since we were traveling with a missionary, we had to opt out. But we did walk the beaches a bit. And attending church on Sunday with Josh's member friends was a treat.

Old Goa is filled with churches and cathedrals. Most are in poor repair and neglected, as there isn't much wealth among the native Christians.

While riding the local (and really cheap) bus, we made sure we obeyed the "NO SPITING" and "SITING" rules!

Jaipur - Oct 19-20

Jaipur's old city, where our hotel room overlooked a chaotic and noisy open air market, ran from early morning to late at night, and was watched over by hordes of monkeys running along the rooftops. Kites dotted the skies in the evening, while the drone of sunset call-t0-prayer competed with the honking of cars and taxis.

Amber Fort, set high above the city, is pretty much accessible only by elephant. The dozens of elephants marched tail-to-trunk up the wide street, past the local photographers who would snap the tourists' pictures, and have them ready for sale by the end of your visit.

Nearby is the "floating palace," which regularly becomes inaccessible when the lake in which it's located rises with the monsoon rains.

The ubiquitous camel cart. Camels, goats, and men are the beasts of burden here.

Taj Mahal - October 19

Words can't begin to describe this place. We arrived before sunrise, and watched the colors of the Taj Mahal subtly change from warm rose to clear white while we were there. The perfect symmetry (including a matching, non-functioning duplicate of the accompanying mosque) was apparent from every angle and arch. It was wondrous.

Agra - Oct 18-19

The Agra Fort, a huge complex of fortress and courtyards covering hundreds of acres.

Our first glimpse of the Taj Mahal, across the river.

After the fort, we visited a rug factory, and watched them working on this loom. They tied their knots incredily fast, and perfectly accurately. To ensure that they work accurately together, they actually sing the patterns to each other!

Of course, we had to pick a souvenir of the factory, didn't we?

The final selection.

Delhi - Oct 16-18

We landed in New Delhi the evening of the 16th, and spent the next day and a half checking out some of the sights.

This is the Q'tab tower, the tallest in India. Much or the area around it is now in ruins, but the famous tower is still intact. It's very ornate, with beautiful carvings throughout.

A group of school children were there for an outing, and were busy drawing the different arches and buildings.

After lunch, we took a bicycle rickshaw ride through the Kinari Market. It was so narrow cars couldn't get through, and so crowded we didn't dare stop!

The market was filled with decorations for the upcoming Diwali (Festival of Light) celebrations.

The Jami Masjid Mosque, the largest in India. A huge enclosed courtyard is filled several times a day for worship.

The nearby Hindu temple was dramatically different than the mosques, and was filled with statues and friezes of the many Hindu gods.

The ubiqitous auto-rickshaw - cheap and handy. We (thankfully) had our own driver, so didn't have to try this particular adventure!

Scott was the only one brave enough (dumb enough?) to get up close and personal with the cobras!