Well here I am in a truck in a very spacious cabin with couch like seats ,only if there would have been some cushioning on it.. still, the feelings were of a poorly maintained caravan with its engine rumbling right under my ass. Four hours ride in the same condition!! the surd driving it had a constant smile on his face which was still visible from under his bushy beard. And the conversation began. “So kiddo(??) Where are u from and later on it moved on to the traffic of the city. He was ranting about all those people who don’t have any driving sense and sit behind an expensive set of wheels, all those car commuters. They drive with their high beam on, on the highways in night, they overtake from left side, never use the indicator, have no lane sense. Well he had all the valid points on the basket but I have been in this kind of conversations with those so called car commuters also and heard their part of the story also. I felt like a refry who is baffled by the situation. Both the contenders had valid points, both had expressed them well. So in the end I did what I usually do. I didn’t pass any judgment. Later the surd finding me boring company switched on the c.d player (yeah he had it in the truck) and the entire cabin filled up with Lavani (local haryanvi songs like bhojpuri songs) I enjoyed the music with two pieces of cotton in my ear and still the music was loud enough to give me an headache. When Agra came I breathed a sigh of relief thanked the surd and made a gesture of shuffling through my pockets he understood and said “no need yaar” and raved away. I could see that lanky conductor hangin on the back of the truck and waving a hand ,his expressions were so sordid the entire journey that I think he was showing a fist not waving a hand. Poor guy, because of me he had to cover an entire four hour journey clinging to the back of a truck like jacko. Anyways I was here ,I looked around…a six lane highway with trucks an fast cars zooming past you, a big sign board courtesy Govt. of Agra which clearly inscribed welcome to Agra. Holy crap I was dropped on the outskirts of the city and now there’s nothing at all which I can take to enter the city, which by looking around I can feel is nowhere in the radius of 3 Kms. Well had no choice at all I hanged my bag on my shoulders and started walking for some miracle to happen ,and a miracle happened a trax stopped in front of me ,the driver had to take a pee I jumped up[ on the opportunity and I was in the trax towards Tajmahal. In half an hour and for 50 bucks(not so lucky this time) I was standing at the gates of the great monument of love, of gravity of the emotions, and suddenly I felt a tug on my shirt ,when I came back to my senses I found myself surrounded by rikshawallas. “Sir u need a tour only for 200 bucks?” I said no and when I was about to enter the gates one guy came and told me “sir today is Friday and the Taj is closed on Fridays if u want I can give u a tour from outside only for 5o bucks. All my energy drained and blood rushed up in my head. I suddenly felt so sick. All this, for nothing. Huh?? 22 years living in India and not coming to visit Agra was itself a shame for me and now this. Now am bloody well in Agra but on a day when you.. the general population cant visit it…Today it is only open for the VIPs
. I should have got used to this VIP funda by now…but the truth is m not. These special reservations, biases, favors they all start up when u take birth in the general ward of a Government hospital. Still adamant I adjusted the backpack and started for a tour round the Taj on my foot (at least saves 20 bucks). Got a glimpse of it from the outer grounds, cursed the Indian government and my luck a bit more and then left to see the Red fort of Agra (something is better then nothing).
Red fort was a real eye feast but the only bad thing bout hangin out alone is that no one is there to take your pics you may also take it as a positive thing cuz for taking pics you need to ask other people to do it for you and that increases your social contacts(??) but that only if you want them to increase. So, for getting you these pics I disturbed few couples, a watchman, a group of friends, faced their insolent looks and ignored what they muttered in reply of my “thank yous.” Tired as hell by 4 in the evening I ran to catch the bus for Indore only to increase my G.K to the extent that the one leaving for Indore was not before 8 in the night so again I was left in the narrow streets of old Agra with nothing to do and just loiter around and Voila!! This is when I stumbled upon this garage. From outside it was shit dark and I caught the glimpse of a car with mustang looks when I entered the garage it turned out to be PONTIAC!! Al the vintage beauties were parked
here and there in the garage. For few moments I was truly dumbstruck until the mechanic out there asked me, what I wanted. Without hesitation I had my camera out and
unabashed I asked for the permission to take the snaps of the beauties standing right there in front of me.
Spending almost 2 hours there lost in the mesmerizing exquisiteness of the surroundings made more interesting by the constant commentary of the mechanic who was so enthusiastically telling me about the vintage market of India.
When I looked at the time… Holy Crap!!!! 7:30 I dashed to the bus stand and then besides it being my first sleeper bus journey nothing interesting happened all the way.