Taj Mahal and Agra Fort

20 Feb 08 - Up with the roosters and trash burners for our sunrise viewing of the Taj. We oooed and ahhhhed for the obligatory amount of time, then had our group and individual portraits taken by a local pro.

Then we went on our tour of the grounds and the Taj itself. Our guide showed us where Shah Jahan and his lady are buried "under the neathe" the monument (our guide had an interesting, yet endearing manner, of butchering the English language.) To enter the Taj itself, which is a working tomb, one must go barefoot or wear slippers to show due respect.

He also pointed out to us the precise symmetry in all aspects of the Taj. The mosque and the exact 1/2 scale replicas on either side of the Taj balance the Taj on a big wooden beam, and keep it from sinking into the river.

When you are up close to the Taj, you can see the intricate designs made of inlaid precious and semi precious stones. It's easy to see why it is one of the new 7 wonders of the world.

Overall, an impressive sight. What more can you really say? It looks like every picture you've ever seen of it, but it is one of those things that takes on a whole new perspective when you actually see it in person. Enormous scale, intricate up close detail. The real beauty is in the details, something that doesn't usually show up in the pictures you see.

After some haggling for some trinkets (not anothrer ganet necklace?!) we left the Taj and went back to the hotel for breakfast. Then we took a little time from our day for a little shopping, First in a tourist trap, then on the street.

We next toured the Agra Fort, another World Heritage Site, a where Shah Jahan, the builder of the Taj Mahal was imprisoned by his son for wasting the family jewels building oversized coffins. Jahan was planning a copy of the Taj across the river, made of black marble, for his personal use. The son felt enough was enough. Families.

Then it was off on another bumpy, dusty drive back to Delhi. On one of our pit stops, the bus drove off and left Jim behind in the snack shop. His wife, Nancy, didn't even notice he was missing. He said he wasn't worried, just wondered how long it would take us to realize he was not with us.

We arrived at our Delhi hotel, the Park Premier, a new hotel near the airport, around 7:00 p.m., just in time for dinner. They still had some bugs to work out -- the electricity went out about four times while we were there.