Where: Agra, India
When: June 1, 2013
With: Dave
On our last day in India, it was time to visit the top Indian site: the Taj Mahal. While it may be the cliche thing to do, there's a reason it's so popular, and we couldn't leave India without seeing it.
On top of that...by going to this site, I will have officially completed 150 things of the 1,000. What a way to mark the milestone!
We were back in Delhi and Dave had sought to get us to the site in authentic Indian fashion: on the train! The only downside? It left at 6am. Womp womp.
Upon arriving at the train station, despite being 5am, we were surprised to see that it was already an absolute chaotic mess. (It was silly to be surprised. Everything in India always appeared crowded and chaotic!) We stood out like sore thumbs in the midst of all the people, staring at the information board, searching for our train. It should therefore not have been surprising that someone walked up to us without us asking for help and informed us that the information board was broken. Before we could protest or figure it out for ourselves, he pushed us along to a man who was checking tickets at the entrance to the platform.
The man looked at our tickets, stated that our train had been cancelled, and asked if we had our passports with us. Luckily we did not cause who knows what would have happened next, but he refused to let us pass and instead sent us to a tourist information booth located on the second floor for more information. This is when things started to seem funny, but we were so tired (physically and mentally) that we followed his directions. Climbing the stairs to the second floor with one swinging lightbulb lighting the hallway, we stepped over several bodies sleeping on the floor. It felt like a scene out of a horror movie.
Upon arriving, we found the tourist information office to be just a man standing outside of the office. He agreed that our train had been cancelled and again asked if we had our passports. Again, so glad we did not bring them. He told us that we'd have to drive across Delhi to a booking office to re-book ourselves on the 7am train and that the only way to do that was to follow him to a special taxi cab that could have us there and back in under an hour. If we had been unsure about this whole situation earlier, the alarm bells were now beyond ringing, they were screaming. It had taken Dave weeks to confirm seats on this 6am train, and this guy who had a mild obsession with our passports was going to get us on a train in under an hour? No thanks, chief.
In our tired and frustrated state, we left the insistent man with the intent to just head back to the hotel. Upon walking outside, we were absolutely mobbed by cab drivers, all shouting that for 200 rupees, they could take us. Take us where? They didn't even know! Dave was yelling "You don't even know where I'm going! Stop yelling 200 rupees!" We pushed through the crowd to purchase our fare at the (mildly more legitimate looking) taxi cab station. Upon being herded in a cab, we checked that the driver knew where our hotel was, to which he nodded vigorously. He then proceeded to drive for 15 minutes (our hotel should have been less than 10 minutes away) straight to a tourist information center to ask for directions. This was not a good morning.
By 6:30am, we were finally back at our hotel. We went straight to the concierge in hopes he could help us solve this train conundrum and get us to the Taj Mahal. Sadly, we learned just how poorly trained the night-shift concierge can be. The man spent about 20 minutes trying to confirm whether our train had really been cancelled. Irrelevant, sir...even if it wasn't cancelled, it left 30 minutes ago! He then politely told us that the hotel would be able to hire a car to take us to the site, but that it would cost us quite a few thousand rupees. We nearly lost it.
At this point, we needed a pow-wow. While India has many lovely qualities, ease of travel and simple logistics were not included. After 9 days of haggling and disputing every taxi ride, drivers who never knew where to go and travel bookings that always fell through, I was done. I was finished and frustrated and had hit my limit. We decided that it was non-negotiable that we go to the Taj Mahal, and that in reality, a few thousand rupees was not a bank-breaking amount in dollars. So, for number 150 on my list, we would just set our minds at ease and pay to have the hotel's driver escort us to the Taj Mahal in style - seatbelts and everything!
It was the best money we've ever spent. Rather than cramming ourselves on a hot, sweaty train for 3 hours, we rode along the newly-built Indian highway. We had a lovely driver who ironically came from Dharamsala and was so excited to hear about our wedding adventures. We made it to Agra in just about two hours and picked up a private tour guide along the way. We hadn't realised it until that moment, but it was just the thing we needed to get through the sites on the 120 degree day.
Once in Agra, the driver let us out on a long road leading up to the entrance of the Taj Mahal's grounds. There were fewer people at this entrance than others (due to its having less historical significance), so we eased towards the gate and walked right in. Once through, tall, red brick walls lined a long pathway surrounded by perfectly manicured lawns. Eventually the pathway opened up to a large courtyard, the center of which was this large structure.
At this point, our guide took control to ensure our experience started out right. He made us walk to the very center of this gate to give us time to appreciate the precise symmetry and ornate design of this beautiful, red archway. But the real "show" was the way that this building provides you with your first glimpse of the famous structure we all know and love. As you approach its entrance, the white marble domes slowly make their appearance through the perfectly aligned archway, "like a shy bride slowly lifting the veil from her face to reveal her beauty".
The tall pillars around the mausoleum were built in a really cool way. Rather than using scaffolding, huge mounds of dirt were continually piled around the base. As the tower grew, more dirt was piled around to continue building. Once the towers were complete, the dirt was cleared away, revealing the spire. All four spires are built on a slight angle so that if they ever fell, they wouldn't hit the main structure.
Behind the Taj Mahal is the Yamuna river. A little ways upstream sits the Agra Fort. This is where Shah Jahan was held prisoner by his son who was angry at how lavishly his father spent to build the Taj Mahal. But more on that later.
When: June 1, 2013
With: Dave
On our last day in India, it was time to visit the top Indian site: the Taj Mahal. While it may be the cliche thing to do, there's a reason it's so popular, and we couldn't leave India without seeing it.
On top of that...by going to this site, I will have officially completed 150 things of the 1,000. What a way to mark the milestone!
We were back in Delhi and Dave had sought to get us to the site in authentic Indian fashion: on the train! The only downside? It left at 6am. Womp womp.
Upon arriving at the train station, despite being 5am, we were surprised to see that it was already an absolute chaotic mess. (It was silly to be surprised. Everything in India always appeared crowded and chaotic!) We stood out like sore thumbs in the midst of all the people, staring at the information board, searching for our train. It should therefore not have been surprising that someone walked up to us without us asking for help and informed us that the information board was broken. Before we could protest or figure it out for ourselves, he pushed us along to a man who was checking tickets at the entrance to the platform.
The man looked at our tickets, stated that our train had been cancelled, and asked if we had our passports with us. Luckily we did not cause who knows what would have happened next, but he refused to let us pass and instead sent us to a tourist information booth located on the second floor for more information. This is when things started to seem funny, but we were so tired (physically and mentally) that we followed his directions. Climbing the stairs to the second floor with one swinging lightbulb lighting the hallway, we stepped over several bodies sleeping on the floor. It felt like a scene out of a horror movie.
Upon arriving, we found the tourist information office to be just a man standing outside of the office. He agreed that our train had been cancelled and again asked if we had our passports. Again, so glad we did not bring them. He told us that we'd have to drive across Delhi to a booking office to re-book ourselves on the 7am train and that the only way to do that was to follow him to a special taxi cab that could have us there and back in under an hour. If we had been unsure about this whole situation earlier, the alarm bells were now beyond ringing, they were screaming. It had taken Dave weeks to confirm seats on this 6am train, and this guy who had a mild obsession with our passports was going to get us on a train in under an hour? No thanks, chief.
In our tired and frustrated state, we left the insistent man with the intent to just head back to the hotel. Upon walking outside, we were absolutely mobbed by cab drivers, all shouting that for 200 rupees, they could take us. Take us where? They didn't even know! Dave was yelling "You don't even know where I'm going! Stop yelling 200 rupees!" We pushed through the crowd to purchase our fare at the (mildly more legitimate looking) taxi cab station. Upon being herded in a cab, we checked that the driver knew where our hotel was, to which he nodded vigorously. He then proceeded to drive for 15 minutes (our hotel should have been less than 10 minutes away) straight to a tourist information center to ask for directions. This was not a good morning.
By 6:30am, we were finally back at our hotel. We went straight to the concierge in hopes he could help us solve this train conundrum and get us to the Taj Mahal. Sadly, we learned just how poorly trained the night-shift concierge can be. The man spent about 20 minutes trying to confirm whether our train had really been cancelled. Irrelevant, sir...even if it wasn't cancelled, it left 30 minutes ago! He then politely told us that the hotel would be able to hire a car to take us to the site, but that it would cost us quite a few thousand rupees. We nearly lost it.
At this point, we needed a pow-wow. While India has many lovely qualities, ease of travel and simple logistics were not included. After 9 days of haggling and disputing every taxi ride, drivers who never knew where to go and travel bookings that always fell through, I was done. I was finished and frustrated and had hit my limit. We decided that it was non-negotiable that we go to the Taj Mahal, and that in reality, a few thousand rupees was not a bank-breaking amount in dollars. So, for number 150 on my list, we would just set our minds at ease and pay to have the hotel's driver escort us to the Taj Mahal in style - seatbelts and everything!
It was the best money we've ever spent. Rather than cramming ourselves on a hot, sweaty train for 3 hours, we rode along the newly-built Indian highway. We had a lovely driver who ironically came from Dharamsala and was so excited to hear about our wedding adventures. We made it to Agra in just about two hours and picked up a private tour guide along the way. We hadn't realised it until that moment, but it was just the thing we needed to get through the sites on the 120 degree day.
Once in Agra, the driver let us out on a long road leading up to the entrance of the Taj Mahal's grounds. There were fewer people at this entrance than others (due to its having less historical significance), so we eased towards the gate and walked right in. Once through, tall, red brick walls lined a long pathway surrounded by perfectly manicured lawns. Eventually the pathway opened up to a large courtyard, the center of which was this large structure.
At this point, our guide took control to ensure our experience started out right. He made us walk to the very center of this gate to give us time to appreciate the precise symmetry and ornate design of this beautiful, red archway. But the real "show" was the way that this building provides you with your first glimpse of the famous structure we all know and love. As you approach its entrance, the white marble domes slowly make their appearance through the perfectly aligned archway, "like a shy bride slowly lifting the veil from her face to reveal her beauty".
Walking through the archway, the oppressing crowds shoving past you seem to melt away as you stare in wonder at this amazing site.
The Taj Mahal is actually not just this building, but also includes the entire complex that surrounds it. It was built in the mid-1600s by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third and (clearly) most beloved wife, who died giving birth to their 14th child. The famous domed structure serves as the mausoleum for her body. It was inspired by Humayan's Tomb, which we had seen in Delhi.
Having a guide made it easy for Dave and I to have a good, old-fashioned photo shoot.
Unfortuantely, once a month, the famous pools providing the quintessential shot of the mausoleum reflected in the water are emptied for cleaning. This was unfortunately one of those days, so we didn't get the iconic photo.
When playing around with different camera angles, it was amazing to see how off the photo looks when the shot was asymmetrically aligned. The structure almost looks like it's going to tip over. You have to get all or none of the columns in to make it work.
No reflection, but still pretty cool.
Taking a slow wander around the complex, appreciating the precision and symmetry at every angle.
Flanking the left side of the mausoleum is a mosque. Flanking the right side is an identical building; however, this one is not a mosque. It was only built to keep the symmetry of the complex.
The tall pillars around the mausoleum were built in a really cool way. Rather than using scaffolding, huge mounds of dirt were continually piled around the base. As the tower grew, more dirt was piled around to continue building. Once the towers were complete, the dirt was cleared away, revealing the spire. All four spires are built on a slight angle so that if they ever fell, they wouldn't hit the main structure.
The view of the complex from the front of the mausoleum.
At the entrance, you start to gain an appreciation for the intricate stonework that was involved in designing the building. Each stone was hand carved and in-laid into the white marble to create these beautiful patterns. Before this structure, most buildings were made with the red sandstone we'd so often seen, so the use of white marble took Indian architecture to a whole new level of beauty.
Inside, you have the opportunity to see the tombs that mark the graves of the Shah and his beloved wife. It's shockingly dark inside for how bright the exterior is and much of the delicate decor is deteriorating.
Behind the Taj Mahal is the Yamuna river. A little ways upstream sits the Agra Fort. This is where Shah Jahan was held prisoner by his son who was angry at how lavishly his father spent to build the Taj Mahal. But more on that later.
It was fascinating to watch the colors of the tomb change, even just in the short time we were there. Apparently, it's a different shade at all points in the day: blue in the moonlight, pink at sunset, and white in the day.
We ended our tour of the grounds in the perimeter of the grounds where there were more symmetrical wonders awaiting us before we escaped the heat and headed back to the car.
After the Taj Mahal, our next stop was a workshop run by the direct descendants of the builders of the Taj Mahal (or so they say). They continue to practice the same technique of shaping the stones and placing them into the white polished marble. The painstaking process absolutely destroys the fingers of the men who perform it, forcing them to retire by the time they're 30.
Our next stop was the Agra Fort. As mentioned earlier, this was the structure where Shah Jahan was detained after building the Taj Mahal. Originally built as a fort in the 1000s, it was eventually converted into a palace in the 1500s making for an interesting combination of structures that are both foreboding and beautiful.
Similar to the Red Fort in Delhi, this fort was made out of sandstone, giving it the deep, red glow. Ornate carvings and symmetrical architecture also dominate this structure.
In the back of the fort, you can see the view of the Taj Mahal that the Shah would have had while being detained.
The decor inside was fascinating even while deteriorating.
Afterwards, while driving around between sites, we got a unique view at a day in the life of the typical Agra woman. First, a view of laundry day in the river.
This was followed by seeing the very unfortunate job of buildings homes out of dung. Women will literally make little patties out of dung that are then slapped together like bricks to make a hut.
We then made our final stop in Agra at the I'timād-Ud-Daulah, or the Baby Taj as it's nicknamed. This structure was also built as a mausoleum, but by an empress for her father. It resonates the same themes of grandeur and symmetry.
Situated along the river, this site is WAY more peaceful than the Taj Mahal (though way less grand too).
This was an incredible way to cap off our last day in India, and also one amazing way to celebrate 150! The Taj Mahal is a site that absolutely lives up to the hype and does not fail to disappoint.
150!! Congrats!
ReplyDeleteThank you!!!
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