The Taj Mahal.

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Today we do the Taj Mahal! And its not for nothing that its one of the wonders of the world! Amazing, and all made for love. 5am and a rickshaw through early morning Pahar Ganj to the station and the Shatabdi express, which was difficult as we are still a bit jetlagged from the 5 hours difference. 2 hours of train and here we are in Agra, a big smelly city south of Delhi, to visit one of the most visited sites in the world.

The Mohghol Emperor Shah Jahan was madly in love with his second wife Mumtaz Mahal who died in 1631 whilst giving birth to her 14th child. Broken hearted the emperor built the Taj Mahal as her tomb. Made out of white marble and beautifully sculptered with semi precious stones the Taj was a revelation for me, especialyy as i have been coming here for the last 20 years and never visited it. 2 mosques of red grey stone flank it on either side as it sits next to the Yamuna river which joins the Ganga a couple of hundred km down the line and symetric well kept gardens add to its splendour. We spent the afternoon exploring the nearby Agra fort which was impressive but nothing compared to the Taj.

Tommorrow we are off to Rajasthan and the next step of our adventure.

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