Agra

Our first glimpse of the Taj through one of the gates. more pics

The Taj Mahal was very impressive. We were lucky to get a local tour guide named Bilal, a handsome man who used to be a professional photographer and lived in Agra almost all his life. He took us to the best vista points, so we could take postcard pictures of the Taj. He even took pictures of us with our cameras. He also told us so many stories and so many tidbits about the places we saw. We even learned about his personal life – he met his wife on his wedding day and he thought she was very beautiful, they still give each other the first bite of every meal, and his second son (who happened to drive by in his motorbike) is getting married soon.

The old name of the monument was Mumtaj Mahal, which means crown of the palace. It is the name given to the king’s third and most beautiful wife. They were married for 17 years and she bore him 14 children. When she was pregnant with the 14th child, there was some bad omen which meant death. (I didn’t quite hear what the omen was since I was in the back of the bus.) Mumtaj Mahal asked her husband to build a beautiful mausoleum as a monument to their great love. [Sigh.] How romantic is that?


A script from the Koran. more pics

The front entrance was framed by a script (I don’t know what it said, but it’s probably a quote from the Koran). But it was made bigger and wider at the top so it was readable from the ground. The four towers that guarded the monument were also tapered outwards so that the outer edge was straight and the inner edge was about five degrees slanted. The towers were designed that way so that, if an earthquake toppled the towers, they would fall away from the monument.

The grave itself is underground, but to prevent visitors from stepping over the grave, a replica was built above it at ground level. The details of the inlays were amazing. Plants, flowers, and Arabic script decorated almost every inch inside and outside. Nothing was painted. Everything was inlaid with semi-precious stones, which were so exquisitely done that the surface is so smooth even at the edges where the stones meet the marble. Inside the monument, Mahdad had the guide call out his name, and the echo resounded for about ten or fifteen seconds.

Everything about the Taj is symmetrical. On one side was a mosque. And to balance it, the king built a matching structure on the other side, which he called the guest house but it was never really used for anything. The king also started building a black Taj Mahal on the other side of the river for his own resting place, with a tunnel connecting the two mausoleums. But the king died before the black Taj Mahal was completed.


Inside the mosque. more pics

It was a good thing that we got up very early because by the time we left, there was a very long line of people at the entrance, waiting to be let in.

After the Taj, we went to another cottage industry store where they demonstrated the inlay work that was done on the mausoleum. Our guide said that the stories about the workers’ hands being chopped off after the Taj was completed was not true. Instead, the workers were paid handsomely so that they could retire in prosperity. And they never worked again so that no other monument like the Taj could be made. Instead, they taught their children the art of inlay, and it’s been passed down from generation to generation. The glue they use is a closely guarded secret, and the skill is not taught to the girls for fear that the trade secret would be spilled to other families that the girls marry into.


Grinding the semi-precious stone inlays. more pics

After lunch, we went to Fatepur Sikri. We went into the Sikri Palace and got a tour of the place. It was a maze of buildings. But, by that time, I wasn't listening much to the guide anymore because I was too busy taking pictures.


A detail of the intricate stonework in the Sikri Palace. more pics

In the evening, we drove to Jaipur. Our hotel was another Hilton and just as nice as the one last night, maybe even more so.

Happy birthday, Mom!