We should be thankful to the Iranians. Actually we had not planned to go to Northern India, but since we had changed our flights anyway, we decided to seize the time and go on a short week-end trip to Rajastan. On the way we got the message that the Iranian visa would not work at all, so we could prolong our trip and include the famous Taj Mahal. And in the short time periods in which we did not sit in a train or enjoyed the sites, we organized our journey to Ethiopia.

Choosing Rajastan was more or less coincidence: in the Bollywood film we had seen, there were beautiful takes of an old town with a lovely palace at a lake. We googled it and found out it was set in Udaipur, only one night away from Mumbai. Spontaneously we booked the bus ticket and went there.

And indeed we were not disappointed. The place is marvellous, almost like a dream, and every fairytale can be enriched by such a setting. Visiting the palace, sitting at the lake or immerse in the great scenery which lies below the sunset point at a hill, we understood why the maharajahs had chosen such an area to live. However, the town appeared incredibly touristy to us. But, well, we were told from the locals that it is off season and that nearly no foreigners were here, compared to what is usual. Yet before Mumbai, we could literally always remember every western tourist we had met that day. Udaipur was the first place where this was not possible anymore.

Next we headed to Jodhpur, another city in Rajastan which combines a beautiful blue old town, an impressive fort and an atmospheric market. Although being quite touristy, Jodhpur is much more authentic and you still feel you are in India. We were there on market day and walked around through the busy, lively streets for hours. At the evening we met the first foreign tourists with whom we got into closer contact since Varanasi (5 weeks ago). Together with them, we explored the fort and were overwhelmed by its dimensions, the skills needed to build it as well as its beauty. Apart from being a military shelter, it was also a luxurious palace with opulent representative rooms. And we felt pity for the maharajah family who nowadays has to live such a miserable life, without servants and court clerks ….

After that we travelled to Agra, home of the world famous Taj Mahal. Often the most known sites are the least impressive ones, but Taj Mahal is truly different. We spent hours there admiring the light white marble, exploring the fine but never kitschy details and stood in awe before the aesthetic symmetry. Everything fits simply together here, the Taj Mahal is just the perfect building. And we met quite a few friendly young Indian tourists who politely asked us for taking a group photo and exchanged pleasantries.

Finally, after this great trip, we took the classical night train Dehli-Mumbai which is as quick as a European night train and therefore is called “Ultra-Fast Supersonic Express”, or something the like. Again we were in best company with some young middle-class Indians, among them two women from Nagaland who looked like Burmese. And we were served a delicious three-dishes dinner, that’s service!

Two things we realized during our journey: first, we are much more serene when confronted with touts and vendors. Not that they were able to cheat on us when we were still new in India, but now we were superior and made them grin ashamed at the end. Actually the trick is easy, never even think about having a bad conscience when rejecting their demands, objectively describe the situation and make them feel a bit ridiculous. Second, we can now really understand the fascination of India. Of course, we have not seen everything in the North (just like in the South), but have an impression of another aspect of the country’s beauty and its more ancient history. We are happy we did this trip because without it our picture of India would have been seriously incomplete.

Recommendable guest-houses where we stayed: Hotel Kumbha Palace Udaipur, Ganpati Guest-House Jodhpur, Hotel Taj Plaza Agra