Taj Mahal here I come!

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Descend on Agra.
The Taj Mahal awaits us.
Simply amazing.

Six AM meeting time to catch a train to Agra. I was really excited to finally get started with our tour since it seems like ages that I've been in New Delhi (only a couple of days!) It's really nice to have a tour leader to do all of the thinking for us. Basically we just follow him and he has all the transportation and accommodations arranged for us. Sure makes one a lazy traveler. But hey, sometimes you just need that! 😊

We had a pretty busy day once we arrived in Agra. We grabbed a quick bite to eat then headed off to see Baby Taj, Agra Fort and then a carpet factory before taking a break. The person leading the tour at the carpet factory was quite amusing and entertaining. I never really thought about how carpets were made and was surprised that each strand is individually tied. Something like 20, 782 knots per square foot! I instantly knew I would not be getting a carpet when a fair sized carpet started at about $900US! The smaller wall hangings which were the "cheapest" were still a few hundred dollars!

Rachel, Mel and I headed over to the Taj Mahal around 4:30 so we could be there well before sunset. The Taj Mahal was even more amazing than I had imagined. Truly an impressive monument. Even with the hundreds of people milling around the courtyard there was still a sense of serenity and peacefulness about the place. Although walking into the Taj Mahal it sounded like we had just entered a beehive. Then the longer we were in there the sound transformed to creepy voices. Sort of like souls trying to escape. So I had to remind myself that the creepy voices were just our voices echoing otherwise I would have been all creeped out! We sat outside to watch the sunset. Or rather watch the colour of the Taj Mahal change. My camera didn't really capture the moment. Oh well. We sat out there for quite a bit. It was too funny when we were all wondering what the metal rings on the Taj Mahal were for. Christmas lights? To aid in climbing? For a cover? (Hey where'd the Taj Mahal go? It was just here a minute ago...) Still not sure what they are for. Jen, Mel and myself walked through some of the garden area trying to etch the moment and image of the Taj Mahal in our minds before heading back to the hotel.

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Photos

Baby Taj
That's me in front of the Baby Taj.

I see the Taj Mahal..
..as seen from the Red Fort.

Hand knotted rugs
These guys make knots at super lightening speeds. It was hilarious to see them working in slow motion so that we could have a better view.

All done by hand
The designs for the rugs are still graphed out by hand and also painted by hand. A lot of work! Guess they haven't heard of computers before...