So for all you wondering where the heck we are...we are here in India still, we've made it over the finish line in Jaisalmer (as of last Friday) and we are stoked! Between long days of driving and Internet connectivity problems during the last few days though (along with no working smartphone), we didnt get to update with as many stories from the road as we wanted, so now we're going to make up for it.

Here's what went down driving from Agra to Jaipur (photos already up) around days 8-10....

We woke up before dawn to see the Taj Mahal at sunrise. We walked over to the West Gate to get a closer look at this forgotten world wonder. Words cannot describe the sheer beauty of this monument dedicated to lost love. It rained as we walked around the the area barefoot and proceeded to the inside of the marble tomb. Lots of great photos posted.

We trudged through the flooded streets and after one last rooftop picture of the Taj, we pointed our Tuk (Rocky) towards Jaipur. Highway miles went well despite the rain. Note to self: try not to sign up for an event that takes place during Monsoon Season. 

One of the Irish teams got a flat and we stopped to help them. The second rule of Tuktuk club is No team left behind. Since they were back on the highway we had to find a path on the road to bang a U-turn (yes we were on another road that had actual dividers between traffic!). We found one back were the guys were and went to go through. What looked like a 2 inch puddle was actually 2 feet. Oops. Even Rocky couldn't crawl out of this one easily. With the engine dying, Jim and Bri got out to push as Kate took over to steer. With ponchos on, pouring rain and tractors careening down the road it was a shame one of the locals didn't have a GoPro rolling...Once out, we pulled over to find Paddy & Jim had found a tire place across the street.

After a few hours in the rain the sun came out. Another one of the rickshaws had stopped with a breakdown. It happened to be next to a field filled with monkeys with red faces. We later found out these are the dangerous kind- awesome. The monkey started coming towards our tuk and Bri jumped out the side. Because of the bar on our rickshaw, Kate had to jump into the front and then out the side to see the monkey go right into Rocky. Luckily, rather than going for the CamelBak, our cash or expensive video equipment, he (or she- not sure) went for a near empty bag of chips. Or crisps for our British friends. Apparently no one, not even monkeys can eat just one Lays. 

Oh well, onto Jaipur.

Upon arrival into Jaipur we found something very strange. There were stoplights that people were actually stopping at when they turned red. Seemed very organized and resembled an actual city. Needless to say we were excited.  Jim ran out to get some flip flops and was very excited to get out of soaking wet shoes. 

We got up in the morning and hired a driver to take us around town - not a rickshaw. We headed to Amber Fort where a group of women asked for a picture with Jim and the boy scouts of India wanted photos with Kate & Bri. The Fort was massive and you could walk wherever you want. Bri & Kate encountered some bats in a random hallway so quickly decided to go another way. We tend to have a knack for finding these animals! After this we went to the City Palace and the observatory where astronomy discoveries were made centuries earlier.   Even though the history of these scientific devices were all in English, it was still a little beyond our level of comprehension. Next time, we'll need to hire a fifth grade science teacher or keep wikipedia open. Yet another monkey was guarding the exit out of the observatory. Gotta love it. 

Our last night in Jaipur we went to dinner with Soni, Bri's mom's neighbor's cousin (gotta love playing 6 degrees of separation). She was amazing. We went to Spice Court for traditional Rajasthan fare and Dessert. Yes. DESSERT. Soni has a T-shirt business in Jaipur and is yet another example of why we love India.

Next we prepared for an easy day up to Pushkar based on Soni's suggestion.

We'll post soon on what went down the next few days of the Run from Puskhar to the finish line in Jaisalmer (taking us some time to catch up here but now that we have Internet we are back at it!). Until next update....