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By Root 2454 0

Agra is renowned for moneymaking restaurant scams. Besides the fact that guides, taxi drivers, and auto-rickshaw wallas earn commissions for taking you to certain eateries, you need to be wary of getting caught up in more dangerous pursuits. Some unsuspecting diners have been taken for a ride by unscrupulous restaurateurs working in tandem with rickshaw-wallas and so-called doctors. Everyone involved might feign major concern over your health, but you’ll pay dearly for the experience. Bottom line: Be careful where you eat, and if you feel sudden illness coming on, don’t rely on the restaurateur to call a “doctor”—insist on being taken back to your hotel.

Esphahan INDIAN Even if you aren’t staying at Amarvilās, you should dine at this exceptional restaurant—not only are the cuisine, service, and live Indian music superb, but arriving at the flame-lit latter-day palace is one of Agra’s most memorable moments. (When you reserve, ask to have your predinner cocktail on the veranda so you can watch the sunset hues color the Taj and the magnificent pool area below.) Start with tandoori phool, stuffed cauliflower in a yogurt and star anise marinade; tandoori prawns or the succulent chicken tikka, prepared in saffron and garlic. Highly recommended is palak ke kofte (cheese dumplings in spinach gravy) and the rogan gosht, lamb braised in kashmiri chilies—beware though as it is rather oily. There’s also delicious Persian-style quail. Alternatively, you could loosen your belt and make room for a filling thali (platter), which affords the opportunity to sample a range of tastes. All in all, a most memorable evening out, and the perfect place to celebrate seeing the Taj.

Amarvilās, Taj East Gate End. 0562/223-1515. Reservations essential. Main courses Rs 550–Rs 1,250. AE, DC, MC, V. Daily 7–10:30pm.

SHOPPING

Agra is famous for its marble and soft-stone inlay, as well as zardori-embroidered fabrics, leather goods, brassware, carpets, and jewelry. However, it’s hard work dealing with what is probably the worst concentration of touts and scamsters in all India, so if you can, avoid shopping here. Don’t be fooled by Cottage Industries Exposition, which is not a branch of the similarly named government-owned (Emporium) shops in other parts of the country. This one is overpriced, and whatever is sold here can quite easily be obtained in Delhi at half the price. If you absolutely must buy something to remind you of your visit here, Subhash Emporium (18/1 Gwalior Rd.; 0562/222-5828; www.subhashemporium.com) sells good-quality inlay work, souvenirs, and other gifts. Or make your way to one of the official government emporiums for reasonably priced sources of local handicrafts.

3 Varanasi (Benaras)

320km (198 miles) SE of Lucknow; 765km (474 miles) SE of Delhi

Varanasi

A crumbling maze of a city that rises from the ghats (steps) on the western banks of the Ganges, Varanasi is in many senses the quintessential India. With an ancient history—Mark Twain famously described it as “older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together”—it is also one of the most sacred cities in the world today. Kashi, or “City of Light, where the eternal light of Shiva intersects the earth,” as Varanasi is seen by devotees, is the holiest of Indian pilgrimages, home of Shiva, where the devout come to wash away their sins. It is also one of the holiest tirthas (literally a “crossing” or sacred place where mortals can cross over to the divine, or the gods and goddesses come to bathe on earth), where many return to die in the hope that they may achieve moksha, the salvation of the soul from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

Named after the confluence of two rivers, Varuna and Asi, the city is centered on the ghats that line the waterfront, each honoring Shiva in the form of a linga—the rounded phalliclike shaft of stone found on every ghat. Cruise the waterfront at dawn and you will witness the most surreal scenes, when devotees come to bathe, meditate, and perform ancient rituals to greet