Are We There Yet?

Two of the more iconic reasons to visit India are to visit the Taj Mahal and to observe tigers in the wild. One down.

I left you in a mountain resort in Nepal, with us enjoying massages and Nepalese cuisine. The night before we left we were treated to a singing (or healing) bowl demonsration and a cooking demonstration. The dumplings made during the latter were delicious.

Left: Making dumplings. When we sat down for dinner, we were initially disappointed that dumplings were not on the menu. But they were, being served as a surprise appetizer. Right: We fought Kathmandu traffic just to fly to Delhi and hit even more traffic. Much of the road in Kathmandu valley was under construction.

We paid the price the next day, spending all that day first being driven to Kathmandu, then flown to Delhi and finally driven to Agra and our next lodging. That twelve hour ordeal, despite its length and administrative hassles, delivered us on time (9:00 p.m.) to our next hotel, the Oberoi Amarvilas, in Agra. Consistent with all our lodging so far, the hotel is beautiful. Our hotel room is back to “normal” in size, but we have a view of the Taj Mahal in the distance from our suite window. The one downside is that while our late supper meal was preordered, the restaurant mismanaged the affair. We and several others of the group waited nearly an hour for our appetizers to arrive (one of which was wrong). We were then so tired that we cancelled our main course. Patrons at an adjacent table took pity on us and shared a pizza with us. We’ll not starve.

Our hotel. Our room is nice enough but, this time, not worth a picture—except out the window. We were greeted with a necklace of marigolds.

The Taj Mahal

Our first event the next morning? The Taj Mahal, of course. Many know the basic story. Mughal emperor Shah Jahan had the mausoleum built as the tomb for his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child. Construction began in 1632 and the mausoleum completed in 1648, with other construction in the complex continuing for another five years.

Even the entrance buildings are impressive.

The white marble structure is marvelous in pictures but is something that must be seen in person to fully appreciate. And as grand in size and architecture as is the mausoleum, the detail work is also impressive.

I have about fifty other shots, if anyone is interested.

The details are carved or inlaid. The green, for instance, is jade.

We were able to view the interior of the mausoleum but photo taking is forbidden. Mumtaz’s tomb is in the middle. Also Jahan is buried there. These pictures were “borrowed” from the internet.

I love the colorful attire of the Indian women.

The Dallens, the McKennas and the Taj Mahal.

The Agra Fort

After a brief return to the hotel we headed to the Agra Fort. Besides being a fortification that housed 6,000 or so soldiers, servants and family, the fort was the royal residence and government center for emperors. The present day structure was built in the 16th century. There is a mile and a half of walls and the grounds occupy 94 acres. Part of the fort is still used by the Indian military.

Outside the fort…

…and inside.

Detail within the complex.

Left: A view of the Taj Mahal from the fort. Right: Another structure in the fort. This is near where the emperor held court and dispensed justice.

Our Thali Dinner

For the evening, the women in the group were all dressed in saris while the men sported turbans (wrapped on our heads by a turban “master”). From there we were escorted outside for a traditional Thali meal—all this while being entertained by two Indian dancers and two musicians. A thali meal features small portions of several different dishes. Much to my surprise, the meal was very bland, much too dumbed down for my taste, without a hint of spices. The wine was good though.

Our ladies plus the two dancers.

There is another travel day tomorrow. We are taking the train in the morning. No, we’re not riding on the roofs. However, our luggage is being sent ahead so we’re living out of our backpacks for a night and a day.

Now where are those tigers!