Arriving in Agra

March 28

30-minutes along the road to Agra from Bharatpur is the must-see Fateh Shikri, at least it is a must-see by Yash, and we agreed and are glad. Built by the Mughal Emperor Akbar in the 1600's, this fortified ancient city was completed in 3 years but only occupied for 12 due to water shortage. At that time, this complex was larger than London.

The Emperor had 3 wives: one Muslim wife to bear a son and heir and large house, a Hindu wife whose house was tiny but her compensation was to be nearest to the big guy's house, and a Christian wife, whose domicile was medium-sized - all religions intertwined and balanced.  Of course, he had a really big harem. 

Mansingh Hotel in Agra- part of a chain and the  most Western-like one that we have stayed in - has issues, as they say. We opened the window and when a pigeon tried to enter, I shooed him away and the window hinge broke and we had to put the window back in place, gently. The refrigerator is cool to tepid in temp, and we only discovered this after taking a short excursion in a tuk-tuk  to a shop to buy a bottle of wine. The prices here are absurd for wine and, like my craving for a pizza or a burger, I want a glass of wine instead of  beer. 

We are sort of pissed at the hotel because we paid for wifi in the room and it doesn't work. The manager said she would send someone up, for what we wondered, and no one came. She also said she would suggest some restaurants which served continental cuisine, and later told us, when we asked, that she didn't know of any - that we should eat here. 

When we left for our walk around the neighborhood, the new person at the desk told us there was no wifi in the rooms. Hmmm. But we are certainly welcome to pay for wifi and sit in the lobby which is freezing cold. I can't make any generalization about the hospitality business in Agra, only about this hotel which seems more suited for bus tours. This has been a first.

View from our room at the Mansingh at sunset in Agra

Dennis bought a 6-dollar leather wallet in the shopping arcade off the hotel lobby, and he actually quibbled about the price. It's a very nice wallet, flat and not too many slots and pockets, just what he has been looking for. I need to get him home soon.