Feb 20, 2010

This morning we woke up at dawn to see the sunrise at the Taj Mahal. Although we didn’t get there until after sunrise, it was still stunning. I have never seen anything more beautiful in my life. The entire architecture of the Taj is complete perfection. The fact that Shah Jahan created such a flawless and magnificent building out of love to house his wife’s tomb makes the Taj even more exquisite.
After the Taj Mahal we went to the Agra Fort built by Akbar. It was a military fort with a palace inside. It too was a beautiful piece of architecture. The Mughals definitely had it down. Or too much money to spend. It was so fascinating to walk through the fort and look at semi-precious stone inlays and know that it has been there for hundreds of years. I forget that we have shared this planet for thousands of years with billions of people.
After the Agra Fort we went to Itamad-Ud-Daula built by Nur Shaha. It was a tomb for her parents and was built in the same style of the Taj Mahal, just on a smaller scale. Out of all the tombs I have seen so far in India, it was definitely the most ornate and stylized one. She had great taste. The entire building was covered in semi-precious stones which made up flowers climbing the walls. The entire building was so beautiful and such an incredible display of love and honor for her parents.
The city of Agra is my least favorite so far. It’s so dirty and the kids begging on the street are ruthless- you have to keep your doors locked and windows up at all times because they try to get in your car. I never thought I would miss Delhi so much.