India – Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and a little shopping

Today we slept in and missed sunrise at the Taj Mahal, but we did not miss the Taj.  We did see the sun rising – still on some other time zone – and we can see the top of the Taj Mahal from our terrace – but we did not go there at 5:15 AM.

We had a wonderfully well done guided tour in the morning.  The Taj Mahal actually does take your breath away.  The fine craftsmanship in the design, the decoration and setting are amazing.  I think we must have taken 100’s of photos.  Our guide did a wonderful job of explaining the who, how and why of the Taj. He also found shady spots for us to listen to his explanations.  This was very much appreciated because the temperature at 10 AM had to have been in the high 80’s if not in the 90’s.  In addition to the actual building we went into the working mosque that is part of the complex.  We were very fortunate to have Jack Daulton – one of the expert lecturers on the trip – in our group and he was able to further expound on the mosque and how it is used for worship.  There was a mosque near our hotel and we heard the call to prayer several times.

When we returned to the hotel after our tour our clothes were drenched.  We sent out 6 pieces for express laundry service and got them back mid-afternoon.  This service cost us around $10!

In the afternoon we went to Agra Fort, the Red Fort,  which is a large fortress and palace complex on the Lamuna River about 3/4 of a mile from the Taj Mahal.  Again, we had a wonderfully informative guided tour of the complex with lots of information about the Mughal dynasty that was instrumental in building both complexes.  Both sites were very crowded because it was a Sunday and people from all over India travel to see these 2 World Heritage sites.

Bob returned to the hotel to work out and Bette joined the shopping tour.  First stop was a marble factory.  We were shown how the very intricate pieces of plates and table tops and other items were made.  After that it was on to the tapestry and jewelry stores.  We saw some amazing, museum quality embroidered pieces.  Some had taken over 30 years to complete.  We were treated to seeing some extraordinary jewelry made from emeralds in the crown Mamtez Mahal wore.  

On returning to the hotel, and after my third shower of the day we had a lecture by Terry Garcia, head of scientific exploration for National Geographic.  He told us about some of the projects they are funding around the world.  It was very interesting.

Then it was cocktails on the pool terrace with singers and dancers for entertainment and henna painters. A quiet dinner and then early to bed, our small bags were due at 6:30 AM and our departure was for 7:15.

India is quite a land of contrasts.  We were at an Oberoi hotel which was over the top in luxury, but along the streets were people selling all sorts of goods, road side barbers, water buffalo, 3 or 4 people on one scooter.  

Fitbit – 9276 steps, 4.04 miles, 32 floors