Awoke at 3:30am. Again. At least this time it felt like there was more purpose than the morning we needed to catch a 6am train to the desert. Today was all about the Taj Mahal, that eighth wonder of the world, that architectural feat of (perhaps) perfection. The general consensus seems to be that the best time of day to see the Taj is at sunrise. If it’s true, it’s worth an early wakeup. Plus there wasn’t really anything else on our itinerary for the day except for the drive back to Delhi from Agra (which, depending on traffic, could take anywhere from 5-8 hours even though it’s only about 120 miles away).
The drive was only two or three kilometers, but we stopped a third of the way from our destination to take a horse carriage ride to the Eastern Gate. I don’t see why, exactly, because other tourists were taking busses and taxis right up to the gate, so there was already a decent line at the entrance by the time we got there. So we stood, and we waited. And we waited. Despite arriving at about 5am, the gate didn’t open until shortly after 6. Could I have slept longer? Absolutely. But what would the line have looked like an hour or 90 minutes after I got there? It probably would have been two, three…maybe even four times the size as it was at 5am.
The sky started to turn from black to gray a few minutes after 6am. I worried if maybe we’d miss the sunrise, but soon enough the gate opened, and the sun was still so low over the horizon you couldn’t see it. Security is tighter at the Taj than at any other place we’ve been so far. They’re so concerned with people trying to chip away pieces of the inlayed marble (almost the entire thing is made of precious and semi-precious stones) that you’re not allowed to bring so much as a pen inside with you. Just a camera, money, and a cell phone if need be. If you forget or don’t know this rule and you show up with, like, an object they consider to be dangerous, you either have to discard it or leave the line to get rid of it…and at that point the line was ridiculous. I heard from someone in line that a few days ago they counted one of the biggest single-day crowds ever: 100,000 visitors in a day.
Once inside, local photographers and tour guides rush to try and take you around (for a fee, of course) or capture images of you posed in front of the Taj. I don’t know if there’s anything I can tell you about the mausoleum that you don’t already know, but just in case you’re an unworldly little troll living in your mom’s basement: it was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife. Construction began in 1632 and was completed sometime around 1653. It’s considered to be the finest example of Mughal architecture, and one of the most important Muslim works of art in the world, as well as one of the most-admired masterpieces in the world. And trust me, it’s a sight to behold. It’s supposed to be perfectly symmetrical, although one of the casket inside the tomb is slightly higher than the other, so that’s the only part of the Taj I noticed that is imperfect. The interior decoration consists of marble inlayed with precious and semi-precious gemstones. The exterior is marble with stucco, stone inlays and carvngs. It’s amazing how as the surface area changes on the exterior, the decorations are refined proportionally. It’s beyond impressive.
We began our drive back to Delhi. Our first stop was at Agra Fort. It’s a walled city about a mile from the Taj Mahal which was lived in by Babur, it was the site of Humayun’s crowning, Sher Shah lived there, and Akbar made it his capital. Under the regime of his grandson, Shah Jahan (who built the Taj) some of the buildings inside were destroyed and rebuilt. Later in his life Shah Jahan was imprisoned by his son in the fort, in a tower with a marble balcony with a view of the Taj. A battle took place at the fort in 1857 during the Indian rebellion, which ended with a century of direct rule by Britain.
Our next stop was a marble factory, but I didn’t go inside even WITH the promise of more free rum. I was simply sick and tired of being herded into these places with no real historical or spiritual value just because they’re “on the way.” It’s a base-level tourist trap and it ruins the integrity of the trip when you follow up two amazing sites with an entirely useless one.
Our final stop of the day was an orphanage maybe three or four hours outside of Delhi. It was opened by Mother Theresa. To simply call it the most emotional part of the trip would be too easy. It’s a fucking orphanage. It’s a given that what you see there is going to break your heart. One of the mothers took us around and showed us some of the children under her care, a large portion of which are special needs children (mentally handicapped or physically deformed). That just tugs the heartstrings a little more. We walked around, stopping at cribs filled with sleeping or half-asleep children, trying to communicate, to show them some love, impart gifts, pick them up and hold them for a few minutes…generally show them the affection that they probably don’t see enough on a daily basis.
It took another few hours to get to Delhi. When we arrived we were pretty beat, but since tomorrow is an entirely “free” day before the flight home, I can finally sleep past 7am! I’m looking forward to it.
Expect my next post upon returning home to the states, Saturday or Sunday. Then I’ll probably need a day to edit and select the best of my pictures. Then you’ll actually have proof that I was there! In India! Whee!!!
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