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Published: November 14th 2005
How many pictures can you take of the Taj Mahal? From every angle it is stunning, even from across the Yamuna River where it is surronded by wasteland it stands out like a diamond in the mud. The seventh wonder of the world has been described as "the most extravagant monument to love ever built" Built by Emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to his 14th child. The Taj was completed in 1653 and in total 20,000 people were involved in it's construction.
During my stay in Agra I went to (I say went - was driven to and deposited at by my rickshaw driver) a small shop which specialised in making marble artifacts in the traditional way - as used in building the Taj. It was amazing (except the hard sell at the end in which I ended up buying a marble elephant.... Just what I need.) I was shown the way in which semi precious stones are embedded into the marble and stuck with a glue made of rice, milk, egg shells and tree sap - an amazing natural superglue which has never come unstuck in all these years. The
process takes month to make even a small table top, the walls of the Taj are covered with semi precious and precious stones and it's huge!
I visited the Taj Mahal at sunrise when it glows pink and from my hotel rooftop I could see it glowing blue in the moonlight. (Though I was a bit dissapointed I couldn't enjoy the view from my rooftop with a nice cold alchoholic beverage..... The goverment banned the sale of alcohol in restaurants in Rhajastan in 1999 and made a liquer licience very expensive. Though not in Rajasthan yet I think this may be the same in Agra and Dehli as so far I have not seen alcohol on any menu or even in shops.)
Agra was fine but I think one day here is fine as the city's only real attraction is the Taj Mahal. Though I also visited "Baby Taj" - A dinky version of Taj built 20 years before and Agra Fort. Agra fort was very interesting mainly because it is where the Emperor Shah Jahan was imprisoned by his son for 8 years before his death. It must have been torture for him staring out at his magnificant labour of love and tomb of his beloved wife just a white speck on the horizon.
Moving on tomorrow into Rajasthan, first stop is the capital Jaipur then onto Ajmer and Pushkar in hope of catching the world famous Camel Fair.
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Sarah Maloney
non-member comment
hey babe glad you've finally got your blog set up so I can add it to my list of things to check every morning (well 12pm) on the internet along with emails, bank account and iains blog. Glad to hear your getting about ok and haven't been taken in by con artists. Whats the food like have you had a proper curry yet and are you coping without alcohol (bet your liver doesn't know whats happening to it. Pictures are amazing. Nothing happening here except we're all freezing to death and missing you heaps. take care love sx