After going to the Taj Mahal & the Agra Fort, the last site we visited was Akbar’s Tomb. On my first trip, we only saw the outside of the building but on this tour we were able to go inside. Except that I never made it in. First of all a couple of us almost didn’t get past the gate because we were trailing far behind taking pictures & were nowhere near our tour guide who had the tickets! After pointing toward a group well into the distance & breathily telling the guards we were with them, I was struck by the huge green piece of land between the gate & the actual tomb. Oh man! The field was FULL OF MONKEYS! & THERE WERE ANTELOPE! & PEACOCKS TOO!! So since I was ‘tombed’ out there was nothing I else I wanted to do more than take pictures till I could no longer hold the camera!! Bein’ a city girl & all, I just go crazy seeing animals, especially with some freedom to roam. Entranced as I observed the ‘stay off my turf these are my gals’ dance of the dominant male antelope, I almost missed the ‘you’re too close to me’ drama on my right as a young girl scurried for her life away from a none-too-happy-monkey who was way bigger than she. These simians were different than the ones I’d seen & photographed on ‘Monkey Way’ as Sagar calls it [a strip of road we would drive down on the way to work with the ‘jungle’ on either side]. The ones here are called Hanuman Monkeys. Hanuman is also the name of the Hindu Monkey God.
Hanuman, the Monkey God
outside a Hindu Temple in New Delhi
"Dudes beware, step off & STAY off my turf!"
Akbar's Tomb, Sikanda India
Grooming time for Hanuman Monkeys
Majestic Magnificence
Eventually my fellow tourists made their way back to the bus & as usual, myself & Elizabeth were the last to join, highly engrossed in the nature scenes. Once on the bus, I settled in for the long trip back & knew I wouldn’t see much in the dark. But as it turns out, I saw something that I probably wasn’t supposed to. I found out why the driver had an assistant, & it wasn’t to take turns at the wheel.
Looking out of my window in the state between ‘I don’t wanna fall asleep’ & ‘but you can’t see out of the window,’ the gentle breathing I heard let me know I was probably the only one awake. I feel a slight tow on the bus & look up in time to see the driver’s head bob forward as we zig zag along. The assistant who was standing in the cab snapped his fingers at homeboy to wake up & watch the road! This repeated a couple times more so I decided I was going to watch the road & never fell asleep during the 5 hour drive back to Delhi.