March 11, Sunday
Carved marble and stone ornaments 
Smoke from all the brick kiln furnaces
Green fields, flat land, throughout Rajasthan
Me in the tuk-tuk 
Fatehpur Sikri fort
For some reason, the shoes have to come off before we enter the inner courtyard, rather than just the shrine within the courtyard. The place is filled with pigeon poop and God knows what else. I would be wearing sandals today, so socks on. YUCK !
The inner courtyard
The white marble temple within the courtyard
The "double" jalousie windows (two layers with different patterns placed together)
The same jalousie window from the outside. Impossible to see in.
One of the outer corridors surrounding the courtyard.
My guide calls me “mama” and goes through the “I am your son, I will take care of you” routine…. and I get fleeced again ! When will I learn? It’s the same everywhere I go in India; they take advantage of tourists. Here is how it played out: during the visit of the fort, it included a famous temple (new addition within the inner courtyard) where I was expected to make a donation. This time, it was to feed the homeless, but also provide material that could be used for “poor” brides. You purchased some material, and gave it as a donation in the temple. It sounded like a good cause, and I paid the $20 to buy a pre-package of material. When we entered the temple, a man would open the package and lay out the material on the pre-existing pile. The package I had bought turned out to be some cheap material that could not have been worth more than $4, probably less. I could have made a cash donation that would have benefitted the poor much more than furnishing these shikesters with $16 in their pockets. REEL ME IN ! ! !
Looking back at the entrance to the fort
He didn’t even bring me into the Palace section, and we just walked along the back side of it instead. I finished the tour and went back by tuk-tuk to the parking lot where Neema was waiting for me.
Carrying a sheep on a motorcycle !
We arrive in Agra and I only get ½ an hour to drop off my bags and leave for my sight-seeing tour. The city looks like every other city in India, but the area around the Taj Mahal and the newer hotels is much cleaner.
Agra city streets
My beautiful hotel room
The view from my room. Party tents set up below in the back yard. Same thing with the neighbouring hotel. Weddings taking place in both hotels tonight.
Waiting outside to get through the ticketing office and security screening.
Nearing the inner gate through which your finally see the Taj Mahal.
My first glimpses of the Taj Mahal
It is just as beautiful as I imagined.
Look at how massive it is. You can see the crowds both at the base and on the upper level of the memorial
A look at one of the four minarets on each corner of the monument.
It is a Sunday and the place is packed; long line-ups waiting to get through the entrance, then another line up to actually enter the Taj Mahal. Tourists pay 900 rupees (just under $20) to enter the grounds but Indians only pay 20 (less than 50 cents). I love this type of approach since tourists can easily afford this amount, but Indians with low incomes could not. It means that Indian children can visit, often for free. What the $20 provides in addition to the entrance is one bottle of water (no food or other drinks allowed) and 1 pair of shoe covers (something like the blue ones you are given in hospitals or doctors’ offices). Tourists get to keep their shoes on for this visit, with the shoe covers on top, whereas Indians must take off their shoes which is customary when visiting a temple or mausoleum. Tourists also have their own lines to enter the grounds of the Taj, as well as the Taj Mahal itself. I would usually feel bad about cutting in line like that, but the extra price made me feel better; tourists who come here are usually in groups and only stay a limited amount of time. Indians make a whole day of it.
Beautiful inlaid marble in the white marble. There were jewels precious and semi-precious stones on the interior walls,, but at some point they were removed and used to pay for wars by other maharanas.
Beautiful arabic writing, black marble inlaid into the white.
I'm very conservatively dressed today for this visit. Check out the white shoe covers ! The carvings in the white marble are quite beautiful.
The main portion of the Taj is as wide as it is high: 55 meters, perfectly proportioned. There are semi precious stones inlaid into the white marble; a true work of art. I am told that the colour of the translucent marble keeps changing from dawn to midnight. I was there in the early afternoon; unfortunately no sunset view for me. Mumtaz Mahal's tombis in the middle of the inner sanctum, and Shah Jahan's was placed beside hers, on her left. Sorry, no photos allowed in the inner sanctum, athough others ignored the rule and were screamed at by the guards.
The 4 minarets are actually not built straight (big at the bottom, skinny on top, yes) but not centered. They are straight on the outer sides but slanted towards the main building something like this: |\____/| This was to ensure that if there was an earthquake and the columns tumbled, they would tumble away from the Taj rather than towards it. SMART !
Shah Jahan’s entire story is very interesting and for those of you who love reading I recommend the book “TAJ” written by Colin de Silva (Also wrote The Winds of Sinhala, Alhambra) something similar to a James Michener read (The Source, Centennial, Hawaii, Poland, etc) I re-read the book last summer before leaving on this trip. He writes historical fiction, but all based on facts. The only fiction is what no one has recorded and where he can take creative license.
The river Jumna as seen from the upper deck of the Taj Mahal
The site across the river where the black marble monument was to be erected, mirror image to the Taj Mahal.
The upper level with its long line of people waiting to enter the inner sanctum, and other visitors walking around enjoying the sights.
Main gate to enter the fort
Huge watch towers
Long ramp to climb. Check out the ground; these are grooved to provide the elephants a grip when they were entering or leaving the fort.
The main inner courtyard
Red sandstone all intricately carved
Looking down at the area which was the moat and the walls surrounding the fort.
Love this shot of the jalousie windows looking out to the rest of the Palace walls.
Within the part of the Palace which Shah Jahan added, everything is in white marble.
This is one of two identical structures which he built for 2 of his daughters
We can clearly see that the style of marble work done here was later used in the architectural design of the Taj Mahal. Between the two structures he built for his daughters stands his Hall of Public Audiences, below
The details of the carvings are so similar to those later used in the Taj Mahal
Even these arches with the diamond shape cuttings are the same
The walls and ceilings of the Hall of Private Audiences are amazing. Here we see a section restored to what it would originally have looked like. Brilliant gold leaf was used at the time; it is all gone now.
Intricately inlaid white marble columns, walls and archways
Even the marble steps are carved with intricate designs
Details of the Hall of Private Audiences were spectacular
Upper walkway along the garden courtyard
The garden courtyard with the Hall of Private Audiences in the background.
Another of the inner garden courtyards, this one elaborately layed out.
A view of the Taj Mahal and the two red mosques that sit on each side. (Actually only one is a mosque, the other was built simply to create symmetry
On the way back out of the fort
One of the buildings outside the palace was a series of intricate arches. Above is the biased view
This one is looking straight down the line of arches
Monkeys in the outer courtyard of the fort.
Step one, carve out the areas where the inlay will be applied. Since it would be very difficult to do (white on white) they apply a paste to the surface to make it easier to cut acurately.
Step two is to use a spinning wheel with a cutting surface to shape the small pieces of marble which will be inlaid into the white marble
These are all the smal coloured pieces, ready to use as inlays.
And in case you can't tell how small some of the pieces are, are are two samples
Step 3 is to delicately position the small pieces into the openings. Amazing! Hours and hours, days and days of work to complete just one small piece.
There were hundreds of pieces for sale, from huge inlaid marble table tops, large wall hangings, small table tops, hot plate holders (though who would dare place a hot dish on any of these works of art should be shot !), to small coasters. OK ! OK ! I admit it, I bought two coasters. I just could not resist and the guy had been trying to sell me something for at least 15 minutes as I walked through his shop and admired all the pieces in his shop. Pieces costing thousands of dollars down to the $30 I paid for mine, but when you consider the number of man hours that go into these magnificent pieces, it is a steal.
Sorry for preaching; it must be the “genetic” teacher in me.
We leave at 8:30 today, to drive the 240 km from Jaipur to Agra. The first part on a 4 lane highway which is great and we make good time. Lots of smoke in the air from the brick kilns along the way. I still see camels pulling carts but seeming more and more horses pulling them in this region, just with smaller loads.
Carved marble and stone ornaments
Smoke from all the brick kiln furnaces
Green fields, flat land, throughout RajasthanI realized today that Neema’s B’s and W’s are mixed up, actually he may not use W’s at all (Beet = Wheat, what I thought was mispronounced “boat” which sounded like “balk” was actually “walk” and instead of “work” he says “bork”, kind of explains the problem about the “beet field” which was a wheat field. J
We leave Rajasthan behind and enter the state of Uttar Pradesh. I’ve seen a lot of trains by now, going across the country side, and I haven’t seen anyone riding on top of the cars. Maybe it is only done in certain regions of India, or has now been banned; it’s a mystery !Before we arrive in Agra, we stop at another fort along the way. Fatehpur Sikri is 40 km from Agra and built by Emperor Akbar in 1569 and abandoned after 15 years due to scarcity of water. I need to take a guide here, and a tuk-tuk to ride up to the fort.
Me in the tuk-tuk
Fatehpur Sikri fort
For some reason, the shoes have to come off before we enter the inner courtyard, rather than just the shrine within the courtyard. The place is filled with pigeon poop and God knows what else. I would be wearing sandals today, so socks on. YUCK !
The inner courtyard
The white marble temple within the courtyard
The "double" jalousie windows (two layers with different patterns placed together)
The same jalousie window from the outside. Impossible to see in.
One of the outer corridors surrounding the courtyard.My guide calls me “mama” and goes through the “I am your son, I will take care of you” routine…. and I get fleeced again ! When will I learn? It’s the same everywhere I go in India; they take advantage of tourists. Here is how it played out: during the visit of the fort, it included a famous temple (new addition within the inner courtyard) where I was expected to make a donation. This time, it was to feed the homeless, but also provide material that could be used for “poor” brides. You purchased some material, and gave it as a donation in the temple. It sounded like a good cause, and I paid the $20 to buy a pre-package of material. When we entered the temple, a man would open the package and lay out the material on the pre-existing pile. The package I had bought turned out to be some cheap material that could not have been worth more than $4, probably less. I could have made a cash donation that would have benefitted the poor much more than furnishing these shikesters with $16 in their pockets. REEL ME IN ! ! !
Looking back at the entrance to the fortHe didn’t even bring me into the Palace section, and we just walked along the back side of it instead. I finished the tour and went back by tuk-tuk to the parking lot where Neema was waiting for me.
Carrying a sheep on a motorcycle !We arrive in Agra and I only get ½ an hour to drop off my bags and leave for my sight-seeing tour. The city looks like every other city in India, but the area around the Taj Mahal and the newer hotels is much cleaner.
Agra city streets 
My beautiful hotel room
The view from my room. Party tents set up below in the back yard. Same thing with the neighbouring hotel. Weddings taking place in both hotels tonight.I have a local guide for the day who escorts me to the Taj Mahal and then through the Agra Fort. This is the reason that I included India on my list of travel destinations; I wanted to see the Taj Mahal. Everything else was a “might as well see it while I am here”. Taj means Crown. Mahal means House or Abode.
In order to visit the Taj Mahal, you must leave your vehicle a good distance away from the entrance and take a motorized group transport, something like a tram, of various sizes. Sorry, my picture of this did not turn out. We only go a short distance and have to walk several blocks before we arrive at the main gate.
Waiting outside to get through the ticketing office and security screening.
Nearing the inner gate through which your finally see the Taj Mahal.
My first glimpses of the Taj Mahal
It is just as beautiful as I imagined.
Look at how massive it is. You can see the crowds both at the base and on the upper level of the memorial
A look at one of the four minarets on each corner of the monument.It is a Sunday and the place is packed; long line-ups waiting to get through the entrance, then another line up to actually enter the Taj Mahal. Tourists pay 900 rupees (just under $20) to enter the grounds but Indians only pay 20 (less than 50 cents). I love this type of approach since tourists can easily afford this amount, but Indians with low incomes could not. It means that Indian children can visit, often for free. What the $20 provides in addition to the entrance is one bottle of water (no food or other drinks allowed) and 1 pair of shoe covers (something like the blue ones you are given in hospitals or doctors’ offices). Tourists get to keep their shoes on for this visit, with the shoe covers on top, whereas Indians must take off their shoes which is customary when visiting a temple or mausoleum. Tourists also have their own lines to enter the grounds of the Taj, as well as the Taj Mahal itself. I would usually feel bad about cutting in line like that, but the extra price made me feel better; tourists who come here are usually in groups and only stay a limited amount of time. Indians make a whole day of it.
Beautiful inlaid marble in the white marble. There were jewels precious and semi-precious stones on the interior walls,, but at some point they were removed and used to pay for wars by other maharanas.
Beautiful arabic writing, black marble inlaid into the white.
I'm very conservatively dressed today for this visit. Check out the white shoe covers ! The carvings in the white marble are quite beautiful.As many of you may know, Shah Jahan, a Mughal Emperor, had the monument built to honor his favourite wife Mumtaz Mahal. Yes he had more than one. They married by choice, which did not happen often in these cultures, because they had loved each other since childhood. She bore him 14 children and actually died in childbirth in 1631. http://www.tajmahal.org.uk/shah-jahan.html
“The building is influenced mostly from central Asian and Persian architecture combined with Muslim architecture.” 20,000 workers labored for 12 years (1631-1643) to finish the Taj Mahal, and it took a further 10 years to finish the construction of other buildings on the site. It is entirely built of white marble, which came from Makrana, 400 km away. “Because the use of images of human or animal is strictly prohibited in Islamic traditions due to the belief of equalising the images with God, Islamic calligraphic designs, (made of black marble incrusted into the white) mostly writings of Koran, were commonly used inside and outside of the pure white building as the very important art of ornamentation. The talented Persian Abd-ul-Haqq with the title of “Amanat Khan” was positioned in Taj Mahal’s calligraphic decoration who was before appointed by Jahangir on Akbar’s tomb. He was also reputed to be the only one who was allowed to sign his works in Taj Mahal.” You may have noticed the same Islamic calligraphic designs on the main inner gate photo, which leads to the Taj itself. The main portion of the Taj is as wide as it is high: 55 meters, perfectly proportioned. There are semi precious stones inlaid into the white marble; a true work of art. I am told that the colour of the translucent marble keeps changing from dawn to midnight. I was there in the early afternoon; unfortunately no sunset view for me. Mumtaz Mahal's tomb
The 4 minarets are actually not built straight (big at the bottom, skinny on top, yes) but not centered. They are straight on the outer sides but slanted towards the main building something like this: |\____/| This was to ensure that if there was an earthquake and the columns tumbled, they would tumble away from the Taj rather than towards it. SMART !
Shah Jahan’s entire story is very interesting and for those of you who love reading I recommend the book “TAJ” written by Colin de Silva (Also wrote The Winds of Sinhala, Alhambra) something similar to a James Michener read (The Source, Centennial, Hawaii, Poland, etc) I re-read the book last summer before leaving on this trip. He writes historical fiction, but all based on facts. The only fiction is what no one has recorded and where he can take creative license.
Shah Jahan planned on building himself an identical monument on the other side of the river Jumna,all in black marble,but he was killed by one of his sons before he could carry out these plans.
The river Jumna as seen from the upper deck of the Taj Mahal
The site across the river where the black marble monument was to be erected, mirror image to the Taj Mahal.
The upper level with its long line of people waiting to enter the inner sanctum, and other visitors walking around enjoying the sights.We return to the car and head for the Agra Fort. This fort was rebuilt in red sandstone (it was in ruins when he decided to relocate here) by Shah Jahan’s grandfather, Akbar the Great (1566-1605) during the reign of the Mughals, who ruled India between 1526 and 1707. Also saw his work earlier in….. I think Udaipur.
Arriving at the Agra Fort
Main gate to enter the fort
Huge watch towers
Long ramp to climb. Check out the ground; these are grooved to provide the elephants a grip when they were entering or leaving the fort.
The main inner courtyard
Red sandstone all intricately carved
Looking down at the area which was the moat and the walls surrounding the fort.Again, it is a palace within a fort. I have a special guide in Agra and he is good at explaining everything. Although it is a huge complex, we only have access to a small portion since it is still in use by the military. Love it ! But the “small” portion is the palace section and to me, that’s the best part. It truly is a living history.
Love this shot of the jalousie windows looking out to the rest of the Palace walls.
Within the part of the Palace which Shah Jahan added, everything is in white marble.
This is one of two identical structures which he built for 2 of his daughters
We can clearly see that the style of marble work done here was later used in the architectural design of the Taj Mahal. Between the two structures he built for his daughters stands his Hall of Public Audiences, below
The details of the carvings are so similar to those later used in the Taj Mahal
Even these arches with the diamond shape cuttings are the same
The walls and ceilings of the Hall of Private Audiences are amazing. Here we see a section restored to what it would originally have looked like. Brilliant gold leaf was used at the time; it is all gone now.
Intricately inlaid white marble columns, walls and archways
Even the marble steps are carved with intricate designs
Excerpts from a Note plaque on-site “Agra fort is the most important in India. From here, during the Mughal rule, all of India was governed. It was visited by highest dignitaries, ambassadors, travellers during the medieval history of India. No other fort had this honour. It stands on the ancient site of an earlier fort, mentioned for the first time in 1080 AD. The outer walls are 70 feet high, double ramparts have massive circular bastions. Shah Jahan was crowned here. He was later imprisoned here in 1658 by one of his sons, Aurangzer. After Shah Jahan’s death, Agra lost its grandeur. When Aurangzer was killed 1707 which threw the affairs of the mughal empire to chaos.”
The maharanis' upper courtyard, all enclosed by double jalousie screens.
Details of the Hall of Private Audiences were spectacular
Upper walkway along the garden courtyard
The garden courtyard with the Hall of Private Audiences in the background.
Another of the inner garden courtyards, this one elaborately layed out.
A view of the Taj Mahal and the two red mosques that sit on each side. (Actually only one is a mosque, the other was built simply to create symmetry
On the way back out of the fort
One of the buildings outside the palace was a series of intricate arches. Above is the biased view
This one is looking straight down the line of arches
Monkeys in the outer courtyard of the fort.
I wish I could have stayed longer in Agra and maybe shortened my visit elsewhere (like Varanasi) but that’s how the cookies crumbled and at least I got to see this beautiful architectural wonder that is the Taj Mahal. {Yvette & Helene, remember the 3D puzzle ? It doesn’t do it justice !}
From there I was driven to the proverbial shopping stop. Although I indicated I was not interested in buying anything, I went in to see the workshop portion. Men working on the production of inlaid marble. 
Step one, carve out the areas where the inlay will be applied. Since it would be very difficult to do (white on white) they apply a paste to the surface to make it easier to cut acurately.
Step two is to use a spinning wheel with a cutting surface to shape the small pieces of marble which will be inlaid into the white marble
These are all the smal coloured pieces, ready to use as inlays.
And in case you can't tell how small some of the pieces are, are are two samples
Step 3 is to delicately position the small pieces into the openings. Amazing! Hours and hours, days and days of work to complete just one small piece.
There were hundreds of pieces for sale, from huge inlaid marble table tops, large wall hangings, small table tops, hot plate holders (though who would dare place a hot dish on any of these works of art should be shot !), to small coasters. OK ! OK ! I admit it, I bought two coasters. I just could not resist and the guy had been trying to sell me something for at least 15 minutes as I walked through his shop and admired all the pieces in his shop. Pieces costing thousands of dollars down to the $30 I paid for mine, but when you consider the number of man hours that go into these magnificent pieces, it is a steal.
Returned to my room at the hotel in Agra
Aside: To all Canadians and Americans who still use the term “Indian” to describe our Native People: it insults our “First Nations” people as well as people from Indian descent (people who live in or come from India). Sorry for preaching; it must be the “genetic” teacher in me.
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