You can read a million articles on the Taj Mahal and its history, I'll just post photos instead of words to describe the day we visited the Taj Mahal. I will just say that it is worth the hype!

In Delhi we were really fortunate to meet an old colleague for the day and take us around. It was a total novelty being in a car and not a tuk tuk. We started in the centre of Delhi at Connaught place for a very posh Indian lunch and then headed up to the famous Indian gate and the local parliament buildings. It was also an opportunity to speak to Dinesh and his friend about our time in India and also ask him about things we had seen but didn't understand (Why is there a man handing out cash at weddings?)

From there on we were taken on a thorough tour of some spectacular temples scattered across Delhi. The first was the lotus temple, which is built for the Baha'i religion (i had never heard of it before). When you step inside you are not allowed to speak. Dinesh said he comes here sometimes to escape the noise of Delhi. It was very peaceful even though we were surrounded by lots of tourists !

The second temple and the most visually spectatuclar was the Swaminarayan Akshardarim temple. No camera or phones are allowed inside and that adds to the experience in a way. I can't convey how beautiful the golden Buddha inside is or the intricate paintings all around. A must see in Delhi, but not from the religious aspect but more from the fact that it a bit of a theme park setup in the middle of the capital. A very unique place and nice to not have any distractions from phones or cameras!!

The third temple we visited was a Sikh temple. We learnt that the temples are run by volunteers from the Sikh community, and that the jobs are dished out in a unique way. The lowest level jobs such as shoe shining or cleaning are done by the most wealthy of the volunteers and vice Verca. The temple is much more of a working temple than a shrine. It's open all the time, food is given to anyone that wants to eat and if you are homeless then you can stay there too. It demonstrated the best in religion, rather than being a pretty place to look at.

We were very fortunate to cover such a lot into our day with our kind hosts and we were left India on a high. India for us has been a mixed bag. Whilst you can't deny the beauty of the country and the sheer volume of things to see and experience, you can feel sometimes overwhelmed by the onslaught to your senses. But that in a way makes it such an interesting place to be in and witness.