I think elephant might be my new favorite mode of travel. You get to enjoy the scenic view while being gently rocked as if in a boat on calm waters. Plus, elephants are extremely cute, which beats out many other modes of transportation.

On my last full day of touring India, I rode one particularly cute elephant up to the Amber Fort, just outside Jaipur. The red sandstone fort protected the Rajput Maharajas, who choose the area because of the surrounding steep hills. Cobblestone paths, tall ramparts and a series of gates protected them from invaders from 1592 to 1727.

The ancient citadel blends both Hindu and Mughal elements, since the Hindu Rajputs managed to stay in power with the help of many Mughal treaties. Although several centuries old, the fort retains many of its luxurious stone and glass details.

On my way out of the fort, I passed a snake charmer who encouraged me to have no fear while petting a cobra and allowing a python to curl around my shoulders. Trusting the power of the snake charmer’s music, I enjoyed getting close to creatures I would have run from in the wild.

That evening I thought all my adventures on Globus’ India trip were over until I heard the joyful music of a wedding procession going past my hotel window. I hurried outside to see a band, dancing wedding guests, bright decorative lights and a soon-to-be groom on a white horse. The groom and his family typically walk/dance in parade-like fashion to the wedding reception where the bride and her family are waiting.

As I was snapping some pictures, one of the girls ran over to me to ask if I would like to dance. I said yes and was ushered into a sea of ornately dressed ladies jubilantly dancing to the music. Everyone welcomed me with a gleeful hello as we danced about. Sometimes it is the unplanned moments that can say so much about a culture.

The gorgeous Amber palace

The sweepers at Amber Fort take a break

Happily petting the cobra

A groom on the way to his wedding

Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore once called the Taj Mahal a teardrop that glistened “spotlessly bright on the cheek of time.” I felt these romantic sentiments accurately captured the delicate beauty of the great Taj Mahal.

It all began with a love story, which I listened to in front of the Taj Mahal at daybreak. As my guide related the story of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s wish to memorialize his love for his wife in white marble, the sun’s rays illuminated more and more of the glowing mausoleum.

No matter how many pictures are splashed over tour guides, this is a place you have to see face to face to truly appreciate. The details of the 1653 monument became more apparent the closer I came to the Taj Mahal. Eventually, I could see the colored designs all over the walls were semi-precious and precious stones cut into the white marble. These stones sparkled in the sunlight with a dazzling effect.

The chamber for Shah Jahan’s wife’s tomb is kept quiet with little light except an overhead lamp. Echoes from visitors’ voices reverberated musically overhead as I paused to think about the royal couple that inspired the Taj Mahal’s construction.

After journeying through some of India’s crazy traffic to get to Jaipur, I watched a demonstration of clothes and carpet making at the Shree Carpet and Textile Mahal. People here use the same methods they have used for centuries to produce handmade clothes and carpets. Inside the main shop, I saw the brightly colored finished products of shirts, scarves, dresses, tablecloths and rugs for sale.

One of the many strange sights I saw on the way to Jaipur

A rug making demonstration

How can a building stay snow white for centuries? By using some of India’s stain-free white marble. This is how the Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah in Agra still looks new after almost 400 years. The use of white marble, carved stone screens and colorful wall designs illustrate how this Mughal mausoleum was the precursor to the Taj Mahal. Sometimes compared to an elaborate wedding cake, the decadent building was constructed by one of the few females in charge of the Mughal empire: Nur Jahan for her father after his death.

Walking around the tomb’s sandstone gate, I noticed a monkey crawling along the top of the gate in a hurry. I hustled after to try and get a picture and found not one but about 15 monkeys taking advantage of the shade of a stone canopy. I couldn’t get over my good fortune as I watched the monkeys regard me with little concern as I snapped photos.

Nearby, the Agra Fort goes all the way back to Akbar the Great in 1565. It was different from any fort I had seen before, since it was not only for defensive purposes, but also the residence of the emperors. After our guide described the history and daily life at the fort, I wandered through room after room of elaborately designed red sandstone before realizing that if I wasn’t careful, I would soon be lost.

Part of the fun of touring these ancient structures is also the people watching, since Indians have keep their local style of dress for centuries. The local women embrace vibrantly colored saris that jumped out at me, making me wondering what magic detergent they were using.

Fortunately, many of the locals are as curious of you as you are of them. Several came up to me asking to take a picture with me, since some of the Indian tourists to these sites are from rural India where Westerners are scarce. My face will now be captured forever in several Indian tourists' photo albumns.

The Agra Fort

Some Indian tourists resting at the Agra Fort

“If you want to experience the sights, the sounds and the smells of “real” India all at once, the best way is a rickshaw ride through Old Delhi,” said Anil Bahal, my India tour director.

So on my first day of touring India with Globus Tours, I climbed into a tiny rickshaw to let all of India come rushing at me all at once. The rickshaw driver must have legs of steel to be able to bike two people and their covered seats into the mass of people in the Old Delhi markets without ever showing signs of weariness.

There was barely enough room for the rickshaw and the amount of people walking past the market's mostly pedestrian streets. But for such a narrow street, I felt like my senses couldn’t soak everything in fast enough. Everywhere I looked were bright colors from bejeweled fabrics, fresh fruit and store signs. Incense hung in the air, as well as excitement from the bustling activity of people buying, selling and honking to get through. Then of course there is always the occasional man pushing a cart of bricks or woman carrying a large bag of clothes on her head.

The rickshaw turned out to be a perfect way to safely watch the madness of the market without the headache of trying to navigate the labyrinth of streets. People would even take the time to wave a friendly hello as we passed by.

My first day also included a quieter side of India at Delhi’s Jama Masjid and Tomb of Humayun. These magnificent buildings made me realize that the country has managed to preserve a vast quantity of ancient structures. Built in the 16th and 17th centuries, these two historic sites provided a glimpse into the time of India’s affluent Mughal Empire.

One colorful scene on the rickshaw ride

At the Tomb of Humayun

At the Jama Masjid