Highlights:

* Visiting the Taj Mahal - The palace for the beautiful queen... this is a truly amazing site, especially in the early morning when not many others are around. Across from it in a distance stood the foundation of the black Taj, which the king intended it for himself, but was never built.

* Riding the rickshaw - as the bicycle rickshaws are being phased out of the system, the drivers become more aggressive in pulling business. They'd wait outside for tourists for hours at a time to get day of business, and they are very skilled in navigating on roads of all rules while avoiding running into bikes, mules, people, cars, elephants, etc. Be sure to negotiate a rate before taking the first ride.

* Watching artcraft and carpet making - any of the rickshaw drivers will try their absolute most to get tourists to visit a shop, as they get a few cents in kickback. Tourists may resist at all costs, but sometimes it may be worthwhile to settle with the driver and visit one or two. Buying there is not necessary especially if one has more travels in the days ahead, as the good places have mail/web ordering available.

We took train from Agra to Jaipur and stayed at Hotel Arya Niwas (behind Amber Towers) in Jaipur:
Tel: +91-141-2372456 or +91-141-2371775

Hotel evaluation:
convenience 5/5
value 5/5
experience 5/5 (we loved it here... clothing washed here was even attached red strings!)