Taj Mahal, how great thou art!

The Taj Mahal was one of the most fascinating places I have been this far in my "young" life.

We took a 4 person a horse drawn carriage up to the Taj, as polluting vehicles are not allowed within a certain distance surrounding the structure. On the way, our horse had a small collision with a van, neither party was injured or damaged, but the driver was not happy. The horse was quite slim with ribs visible at all angles. About a half mile later, we reached the entrance to the Taj. I knew the Taj was going to be quite grandiose once I saw snow globes, key chains, postcards, books, figurines, t-shirts and tea with the name being sold on the street!

We entered through gates and had a small pat down, and we were in. The first word that comes to mind is symmetry. Everything was symmetrical, offices, gardens, walkways, plant motifs, painting, the Taj itself as well as the two outlying buildings.

The first glimpse of the Taj in the distance was breath-taking. It was truly amazing and the pictures do not do any justice. All the facts are maybe the most impressive to me: 23 years to build, 1000s of artisans and craftsman involved, all marble brought in quarries of Makrana and elephants were used for transportation of the marble. I was also impressed with the minarets and how they are all learning a few degrees away from the dome in the event of a disaster, they would fall away from the tomb. Once inside the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal, photos are not allowed. The details of the walls were incredible, there were 28 different kinds of precious and semi-precious stones used in the inlays, and everyone was perfect and beautiful.

I probably could have walked around and sat and stared at the Taj Mahal for the good portion of a day if we would have had the time. The reflection of the sun and the effect of the weather was very interesting to me. When we arrived, the fog had not completely lifted, but by the time we left, the fog was gone and the blue sky was a perfect complement to the white marble structure and green gardens.