We hired a driver and mini-van and despite some hair-raising lane changes we made it there safely in about 4 hours. Agra was the capital of the Mughal empire before moving to Delhi in the 1620s. Despite the presence of the Taj and other architectural gems, this relatively small city of about 1.7 million is a verifiable dump - a status confirmed by being the 19th most polluted city in India.
Aware of Agra's bad reputation we didn't plan to stick around for long. In fact, I was thoroughly prepared to be underwhelmed - envisioning the blistering heat of the Indian summer, vast crowds, relentless tour touts - all those standard elements that can suck the joy out of any large tourist attraction - but here, as with everything in India, I expected it to be particularly in your face.
We arrived and inevitably the anticipation started to build. The large onion shaped domes of the Taj were just visible from the hotel, and once we'd our first glimpse we were eager to be on our way.
The Taj Mahal was built by the slightly unhinged and architectural-obsessive Shah Jahan. The Taj is a mausoleum built for his third and favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.The perimeter of the Taj is surrounded by red sandstone walls and a covered walkway with ornate entrances and mosques at the front and either side of the Taj Mahal itself. The rear of the Taj is left exposed to the Yamuna River, which is far less picturesque than it sounds as the Yamuna is the dumping grounds for 80% of Agra's sewage (the smell was considerably less bad than anticipated).
The story has it that this perimeter shields the Taj like a veil from prying eyes, thus maintaining modesty - an important characteristic of any devout Muslim wife, and apparently one that should be maintained even in her not-so-modest final resting place.
Shah Jahan's other, less popular, wives are interred in tombs outside these walls.Eager to get to the main event we didn't linger outside.
We were all - even Ankit who hadn't been since he was a small child - completely amazed. The Taj Mahal is by all accounts, impressive.
The size and the symmetry are the first things that strike you - like a much bigger and better version of Sacre Coeur in Paris. But it doesn't take long - even from a distance of a few hundred meters for the sheer attention to detail to set in. The craftsmanship is easily on par with any European church, castle or monument.
It was crowded, but not overly so, no jostling for that perfect photo. It was even possible given the right angle to get a view completely devoid of people. For this, we could thank the weather - it was hot - very hot, and apparently most sane people avoid travel during the summer months in India. As a result, there were remarkably few Western tourists but plenty of Indians, who had come from far and wide to see their most treasured national monument.
We soon discovered that the Taj was not the only tourist attraction. Like other tourist attractions in India, there is an Indian nationals and PIO (Persons of Indian Origin) price and a tourist price. So whilst entry to the Taj set me back about $30, it only costs Indian around $0.30, thus making the entry fee affordable for all but the very poorest citizens (don't forget this is a nation with 1/3 of the population on $1 a day).
It goes without saying that I am more than happy to pay this price, I think it is completely fair - not only economically, but maintaining buildings like the Taj doesn't come cheap - someone has to pay and I'm certainly willing to do my part.
I digress. Given this low entry fee for locals, means that many people from small towns and villages make the trip - for them this is a real two-for-one deal - not only do they get to see the Taj, but for many of them, this is the first time they will have ever seen a white person.
It is easy to get annoyed with the staring, leering and photo-taking, but it's all part of the experience. My blond-haired, blue-eyed travel companion easily had the worst of it, with entire families queuing up to have their photos taken with her. She gracefully declined, if she'd consented, I suspect we'd still be there.
