Taj Mahal booked

 

Today, I have finally managed ro nail down the final land tour booking that had eluded me until now, a three day trip from Mumbai to Delhi and Agra, ending with a flight to Kochi to rejoin the ship. This outing, of course, includes the Taj Mahal. For some reason this and even other even more expensive tours in India had not been made available along with the others, when first booked them in December. Unfortunately, Albina does not feel up to it, as it involves a long bus journey and a day wondering the dusty streets of Agra under a hot sun. Of course I can understand that. At a large number of destinations on the route, in order to travel together, we have deliberately chosen the less adventurous tours, where there is not so much walking in the hot sun and not so many stairs. In other places, we have split up, with Albina taking the softer options or staying on the boat, while leaving th dusty long trails to me. That includes my trip to Cairo from Port Said, the visit to Karnak temple and the submarine adventure in Maui, in Hawaii. Other options to book still remain and we have been reminded that sometimes local excursions booked in the port on arrival could be cheaper than the prebooked ones. 

However, the fact that we will not visit the Taj Mahal as a couple, is genuinely sad. What better place than this temple to love to reaffirm our 50 year marriage? When there, I shall have to send her a selfie picture by phone. At that time she will be travelling around the waterways of Goa, so she won't feel too deprived of happy sensations. We have now covered each stopping point with at least one excursion, except for Brindisi, the second day in Singapore, and Acapulco, that last because we will be meeting our old friends Jack and Lyn.

I have just booked our three necessary vaccinations with a clinic in Brentford for February 2nd. That clears another obstacle before we travel.

Also at lunchtime a courier arrived with our passports, each one now displaying an Indian visa, bearing our glum looking photos. The visas are valid for a year. Another job done. 

Albina is having another biopsy again. This is potentially quite scary as her creatinine levels have been rising steadily in the last couple of weeks following the removal of her two redundant kidneys earlier this year. I dropped her at Hammersmith Hospital early this morning and hope to collect her later in the day. I trust that the results will not impinge on our holiday trip. However, she has rung me to say she is very very weak and losing blood in her urine. They are keeping her further for an infusion and for further observation.

All this is happening as I also await news from Sandro and Liisa who are finally leaving their house in Cambridge today and will be on their way down to London by train. I am due to collect them this evening from Boston Manor station with three heavy suitcases. Who wil I be collecting first? Sandro and Lissa? Or Albina?