I reluctantly leave Rajasthan but plan to travel up to the mountains in the north soon and am looking forward to the cool weather! I arrive in Agra and bump in to Matt at the train station, a guy who I met in Udaipur and who I end up bumping in to again in Delhi! After a bit of a debacle trying to find my accommodation and a failed attempt at sleep, I decided to go straight to the Taj Mahal and join Matt for a tour of this beautiful building. We spend about 3 hours there - it really is perfect - beautiful marble stonework, perfect symmetry and fabulous gardens. It is a little smaller than I expected but nonetheless, it's stunning! While sitting down for the typical tourist pose in front of the Taj, an Indian family pass me their baby for a photo. The photo is hilarious - I look shocked as they just threw her at me and the poor kid looks terrified! There's another Red Fort in Agra so I take a look at that too! It's not half as impressive as those of Rajasthan but there are great views of the Taj from it (and of the Baby Taj across the river). The Taj Mahal was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jaham in memory of his third wife Mumtaz Mahal, both of whom are buried within the structure. The story behind Shah Jahan, his imprisonment by his own son and his children's bitter battle over the Empire and the Taj Mahal is hugely interesting!

While in Agra, I have dinner at Joney's place - an institution in Agra with the best chocolate banana lassi and malai kofta I've ever tasted! It's a must if you are ever there! On way back to hotel, I manage to walk backwards in to a drain - an Indian drain!!!! - I'm up to my knees in who-knows-what! I'm in a panic, hopping around on one leg like a maniac, while on the phone and a lovely guy brings me to the local water pump! Not sure I'll ever be able to get rid of that dirt! There isn't much that grosses me out but that definitely did!

The view of the Taj Mahal from the top of my hotel is beautiful, even through the thick smog. That's about the only nice things about the accommodation - the electricity goes in the middle of the night so there's no fan, let alone air conditioning - am dying for it to be morning so I can finally get on the train to Delhi! There's something you won't say every day!

I arrive in Delhi and plan to spend a day or two here seeing the sights. I end up spending longer here than expected and seeing less of the sights as the dreaded Delhi Belly strikes! I think it's a matter of exhaustion after spending the past 3 weeks in 40 degree heat in Rajasthan, having taken three night trains in less than seven days and the fact that I'm trying to do Delhi on foot (you see much more interesting things than by rickshawing it about the place). I buy a lemon-water from a street stall and this is the final straw….. two days of being bed ridden. The hotel staff are so lovely…they call to the room asking if I'm ok because they notice I haven't left! I notice I've mentioned 'hotel' more than once - don't get me wrong, this is still backpacking but there are no hostels in India, just your guesthouse/hotel accommodation.

What I did get to see of Delhi I liked though - Sri Digambara Jain Lal Mandir temple with its bird hospital and my private tour of the temple, the Amber Fort and the Jama Masjid mosque, although I couldn't go in to the latter due to camera issues! It's not always about money in Delhi but you can bet that most of the time it is. They charge a crazy amount to bring your camera in to the mosque but there's nowhere to leave it if you don't want to pay to take photos! Anyway, after a few minutes of discussions between me (along with other tourists) and the ticket man, I head off and decide I'll do it tomorrow. As with all my dealings in India, it's not about the money as it's all so cheap but it's the principal of avoiding being taken advantage of! I visit the Raj Ghat, Gandhi memorial along the outskirts of the city - a very peaceful spot and I spend a while just hanging out there. On my way to Raj Ghat, I come across a line of dentists sitting at the side of a main road in Delhi - instruments are stored in mechanics tool sets or old doctor's bags and medicine in little glass jars with cotton wool stoppers! Madness! I also notice that there are mechanics hanging out at the side of the road just waiting for a broken down rickshaw….in India, everything is possible!

The next stop for me is Himachal Pradesh, specifically Manali! I take the Volvo bus which should be the quickest way to reach Manali but of course I'm moved off this and on to another bus at some stage along the journey and what was to be a 14-hour bus ride becomes 21 hours and on some of the most winding roads I've ever been on. There are a group of English youngsters on the bus who are obviously fresh off the Goa hippie trail and hoping to continue it up on the mountains - they provide the entertainment for the Indians with their scanty clothing and the 'dog/rat' thing they have decided to bring along for the ride. The highlight of the bus journey is when two of the youngsters sleep on the bus floor in a romantic embrace with the dog in the middle of them!

I eventually reach the cool of the snow-capped mountain village of Manali - it's like Switzerland in India. I'm pretty exhausted and weak after all the going of the past few weeks so decide that this is a good place just to hang out for a while and just rest up! It actually takes me a lot longer to regain my strength than I thought it would. I've lost a lot of weight and can't eat but that doesn't last for long! J I meet with some friends from Goa, entertain some friends I've met along the way who venture towards Manali, watch movies, contemplate a tattoo for the umpteenth time (decide against it, again!), eat great Indian and Tibetan food, listen to music, take in the fresh air and hike to the local waterfall…..it's a lovely quiet life and I enjoy if for a few weeks. There's a lovely restaurant called the World Peace Café in Vashisht (a small village near Manali where I stay) that serves some of the best Indian food I've ever tasted and has beautiful views over the river and mountains. The storms are particularly spectacular up here - amazing thunder and lightning, torrential rain, massive hailstones and electricity outages - pretty cool when you're cosily indoors with chai, pakora and a movie!

It's finally time to move on from India after all my relaxing in Manali . I had great plans to travel further north but no doubt I'll be back here. I'm glad I took it easy though as I needed the rest and there's a lot of traveling yet to do. I decide to cross over to Nepal overland via Gorakhpur but stop off in Rishikesh for a few days along the way. It's a long bus journey to Rishikesh in the local bus (effectively a school bus back home) with the final 14kms taking over three hours to complete - as luck would have it, I arrive on a festival day. When I finally get to Laxman Juhla (a small area in Rishikesh) I'm tired, hungry and emotional but am lucky enough to have I Norwegian friend here to meet up with. It's nice to have company after such a long trip! Rishikesh is one of the yoga capitals of India so I have a go at some ashtanga and also at yin yoga. I randomly meet with a fellow Galwegian in one of the yoga classes. I also spend some time taking in the views of the Ganges and all the worshipping practices taking place in and around it and visit some of the ashrams in Ram Juhla. I think I'd like to come back here - it would be an easy place to be around for a while and really would love to spend some time in an ashram - this had been the plan for this trip but will have to wait!

From all my travels in India and specifically what I've seen of the temples and it's patrons arriving with wads of cash, I note that Hinduism, like many other religions, seems largely focused on getting closer to god/the gods via monetary contributions. Don't feel so bad about Catholicism now!

Unfortunately, I finally have to leave India and manage to cross the border the day before my visa expires! I really really don't want to go as I really really love India - gets better with every visit but I'll be back. Before I leave, India doesn't forget to remind me how hard it can be though - a 16 hour night-train full to the brim with people and I've no seat J