Serendipity

Hello friends, I think someone was smiling down on me today. By the grace of god did I make my train this morning. It left at 6:15 am--usually, no problem. I don't really have trouble getting up early for things like trains. Last night, however, I wore my earplugs to bed because the guy in the room next to me was watching tv ALL NIGHT. So, my alarm went off for half an hour before I woke up enough to realize what the noise was. My first reaction: holy crap! Second reaction: you still have a half hour to get to the station. No problem.
My clock, unbeknownst to me was 10 minutes slow. The giant clock at the station said 6:10 when I arrived! So, I ran. I made it on the train, sat in my seat and the train began to move. I'm very happy I did not miss the train. I even got served breakfast!
I made it to Agra and got a prepaid rickshaw to my hotel--the government provides this prepaid service (you go to a booth, pay and give a voucher to the driver) to help we vulnerable tourists avoid hastle. My driver was the nicest guy in the world and I hired him to take me around to the sights for the day.
I went to another red fort that was absolutely magnificent. Much more so than the one in Delhi. And it had views of the Taj Mahal. I went to another mausoleum that was a precursor to the Taj Mahal, that is likewise gorgeous.
I also went to a garden where I looked over the river at a lovely view of the backside of the Taj Mahal.
Have I mentioned the Taj Mahal? You can see it from the rooftop of my hotel. It seemed unreal to be able to sit up there and read a book and casually glance at...the Taj Mahal.
Tomorrow, I see it up close. I want to go in the morning, at sunrise, when it won't be so hot and there will be fewer people.
It's hotter here than in Delhi. It's 8:15 and it's still 93 degrees. The high today was 100, tomorrow it's 107. At least it's a dry heat, right?
This afternoon I bought a ring to wear as a wedding ring to stave of untoward male attention.
I met some really nice people today and I'm really glad I'm here! I feel lucky to have made it to Agra this morning, and lucky to have met all the nice people I did today.
TTFN,
Lauren