Lost at the Taj Mahal

We've swapped the spirituality and squalor of Varanasi for the grandeur and beauty of the Taj Mahal in Agra.
5.30 wake ups seem the norm in India but not so for Bry. I left him sleeping yesterday and spent a last hour down by the Ganges. I bade farewell to the homeless boys and stray dogs who slept and played in the abandonded palace at the end of our alley. While sitting quietly a young man decided I looked like a shoulder to cry on and told me the story of his tormented love life involving an Indian girl and an Israeli girl. Not being much of a counsellor I told him it would make a good Bollywood movie and left with both of us laughing.
We flew to New Delhi. A cosmopolitan looking city of a mere 12 million people. Grabbed a taxi at the airport and headed out on the expressway to Agra. Delhi is flat and brown and dry. Leaving Delhi is surreal because lining the expressway are thousands of empty apartment buildings. At least 20 stories high, all unfinished with spidery cranes perched atop and giving the impression of some desolate post apocalyptic world rather than a living one. The expressway is even weirder.200km of dead flat, dead straight road and almost completely empty of cars because no one can afford the toll. Just as well there were no other cars as at one point our driver managed to weave across all 3 lanes as he almost fell asleep (until Brian yelled).
We made it to Agra(just). Got up early this morning to see sunrise at the Taj Mahal. Not an auspicious start as it was raining for the first time in months. We entered the main gate and I scurried ahead briefly to get my first glimpse of the gleaming dome of the musoleum, and that was the last I saw of Bryan. While I waited on the gate steps Bry raced on ahead with the money, phone, tickets, camera and without me. Oh well. I had plenty of time to contemplate the Taj. The thing that impressed me most is it's size. It's enormous and certainly awe inspiring in design. I eventually found Bryan a couple of hours later back at the tuktuk stand which is just as well as I'm not sure how I would have found my way back to the hostel.
Feeling better now after delicious aloo parata, curd and pickle for breakfast.
India certainly poses some challenges. I can't say I'm bored.

Namaste Sandy