O.K. I was not in the plan; simply couldn't digest the idea of seein'em off and thus I perched myself on one of the bikes hoping to pick up mine enroute. But got to strike a deal with a pillion ride - not bad!

Atleast I was going :)

I'm amazed to see the ease with which the guys handle their 'bulls', more so, when one of the bikes tried to 'careen off a little' at one ambushed blockage. And the best part was that 'vTheRiders' played it on self reliance this time without any sponsorship! Kudos guys!

"C h i l l e d winter morning 'n' the roads 'too good"...

...Nothing much of a view, except for the fresh paddy fields on either sides and the ocassional train (we counted as many as 11) snaked parallel to us until the rails deviated out of sight.We stopped at the roadside dhaba for parathas where Mr Mohindroo with his ever loyal 'ride pal' Tushar joined us. Harish backed up with the safety-aid kit while Praveen maintained the tool kit. All geared up, the group of

7 bikes and 11 fanatics started off with Mr. Mohindroo & Yashneet altering as 'heads' and Praveen at the tail. Discipline comes the better with each successive ride. The engines thudded through the streaming concrete road -- a delight. The road was rather lonely, and there was nothing much to talk about.So me 'n Praveen got engaged in measuring 'distance between two milestones' -- it was fun while it lasted :)

Well, here we got something straight out of the bygone era - I'd rather call'em Sher-Shah-Suri's milestones :). Wanna spot them?? - Lookout for a missile like structure of bricks about 2 meters high sprouting from the ground. As for the calculations, do your own homework plz (cheaters can approach Praveen :)).

So we were simply 'gliding' on NH4...and rode about 180 kms and turned about 20 kms short of Agra City, when the bad stretch started. We did get to traverse about 15 kms of this severely rugged terrain until finally, the Fatehpur entrance welcomed us. All parked their bikes on one side and took a few snapshots before entering for the Mughal glory.

A colossal redstone monument in classic architecture, had all our eyes fixed all around it. While most of us got on with moving around reading inscriptions, viewing the interiors, Chandan and Praveen also got on with their cameras to take home the art. A few of us did strike a pose, like for one, with me & Sandy against the only white structure as the backdrop. But I must say, Benny poses the best! We had ample time at hand, thus,could cover it all including the Emperor's seat, the Asrologer's seat, the harem-where he used to keep his treasurey, Jodhabai's palace, her kitchen, the PanchMahal, the Madrasa, their bathing ponds, vast gardens et al....The towering domes, the geometrical patterns, beautiful marble carvings, details embroidered on walls,the aisles in the shrine at Sikri, each just could not let the gazer take leave from it.

Throughout the views of the palace we were just admiring the lavish lifestyle of the Mughals and their great architecture. And when we were done with the shrine at Sikri, Benny didn't even shy away from announcing his whimsical wish to go back into the timezone for just one day to feel what it was to live like one of these emperors.

Already evening, it was time to start back when Tushar's betting around got me clamber on to Mr Mohindroo's bike even while my feet could barely touch the ground! It looked funny, but I could not have minded a 'redo' of the spectacle for this sheer boyish giggle ;). And to his delight I did ride for a couple of kilometers.

Due to paucity of time, we decided to trace the same way back. On the way, we gobbled on kadai paneer and dal makhani while waiting again for the 'misdirected pack' to join together (they steered off to Agra).

Praveen at the tail would halt at times to ensure that all the bikes moved ahead.

Enroute our way back, got to ride the 500cc for a short distance - about 15-20 kms.

Praveen kept his reminders on with his 'where's the brake?'--- 'ride it cool 'n slow down' (I think 'pillion' is the only tricky thing for him). Well, overjoyed, I just took it head on and.........b u l l e t t s ! ! ........ I went! This was the only time when I was fully awake!

The expertise can come later, these first 15-20 kms on a 500cc at '90'

would be the thrill I'd cherish akin to a kid who's learnt her pedal-bike' for the first time :).

And then the trains with 'lights on' in the dark looked even more beautiful, giving way to imagination of little lanterns moving in tandem. Barring a few back-aches through the wobbly 'to & fro' of those 30kms, overall the ride was a Bravo!