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Published: January 16th 2015
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Today's the day!
To start we ate at the hotel and I was feeling much better (thanks to a couple little pills to help stop things). The fog was really thick this morning so our guide decided that we would go to the Agra Fort first and then on the main attraction later. Good call!!
The Agra Fort was spectacular. It was a very large red sandstone structure built back in the 1560s. There were many of the usual features similar to the forts built in Europe and North America. They had these holes in the tops of some of the walls that they used to pour hot tar or oil down onto the incoming ramps to help prevent invaders from making it too far into the complex. Then the main doors and many of the other doors were not at right angles so that elephants and other invaders could not ram them head on. Very ingenious.
There were so many different rooms throughout the Fort that were used for many different funations. There were the receiving rooms where the king would receive the visiting dignitaries or his people. Then. there were the rooms that he would use
for his private dinners and residency. It would have been quite the life back in the day.
Then we went to see the Baby Taj....very similar to the actual Taj but much smaller. It was built as a mausoleum for the minister of finance for the mogul back then. Quite a structure but small. Then we went to Pizza Hut for lunch.....hmmm.
Then it was on to the Taj. What a building! What a compound in general. Approaching it you don't get to actually see the structure until you are pretty welL looking right at it. Then.....Bam. It is there in all its splendour. We had to go through security to get to the Taj. They took all candy, gum, sharp things, markers, make up and anything the could be used to make a marking on the walls. They even tookmyCurious George animal. Why, I never really understood. They said that they were afraid that I would use it for commercial gain inside the grounds. Whatever...they are just way too concerned about some things and not about others things. Oh well....George goes half way around them prod to see the Taj and can't get in.
Even with the fog in the area it was still spectacular to see. The structure rises up and is extremely majestic along the river. The four pillars and the mausoleum are all in white marble that was brought in from up to 300 kms away to creat this memorial to Shah Jahan's wife. Quite the building. There is terrific Arabic writing down the front of the structure that looks very poetic as it flows around the entrance.
There were a lot of people but it was said that this really was not the busy time as it was too cold for many to come. It was really a great day. Very comfortable and easy to get around and experience the grounds and feelings of the area. I am now able to cross another things off my bucket list......yea!!!!
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Elizabeth George
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Very Interesting !!!!!!!
Ian my first day at work just reading your exciting trip and lovely pictures ....cant wait to hear from you first hand when you get back.....ENJOY the rest of it