Taj Mahal

Stunned is probably the most apt description. We've all seen the Taj Mahal. It is as familiar to us in pictures as the Golden Gate Bridge or the Statue of Liberty. I thought I knew what to expect but the Taj is much more than can be displayed within the two dimensional space of a photograph. The building leaps at you as you enter the courtyard through the brown limestone gates.



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The detail in the building is delicate and beautiful. This craft is still practiced in Agra.



The detail at the top of the frame is semi-precious stone (garnet, onyx, and the like) inset into the marble.



The inset script framing the door is a chapter of the Koran.



Paula has enough hanging from her neck to supply an electronics store.

Our hotel, the Oberoi Amarvillas Hotel, is considered one of the finest in the world. Incredible. It is only 800 yards from the Taj and all the rooms have a view of the Taj. The patio off our suite was about 15' by 20' over looking the pool with a view of the Taj Mahal




Here's the patio....



and the views.



Everyone on the trip griped about the difficulty of attaining an Indian Visa to enter the country but none of us thought it would be difficult to leave. We flew in and out of Agra through a military airbase. When leaving, our pilot got clearance to board the plane and depart. Once we were all onboard, the story changed. The Indian military decided we didn't have sufficient visibility to takeoff. Our pilot required 500 meters but the military decided 3,000 meters and then, in the spirit of international cooperation, reduced it to 1,500 meters but they decided when that would occur. The problem is that it wasn't fog or bad weather reducing the visibility but the air pollution. The air had the same haze the as the previous smoggy days. Our pilot negotiated with the military and agreed on the appropriate amount of whiskey and money to be handed over and we were allowed out of their polluted airspace with only a two hour delay.

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