So, of course, the Taj is the "must see" sight in all of India -- and we had both came down with food poisoning. It didn't start out too bad -- just a few stomach cramps. We weren't too worried, and left the bird park by jeep, driving to (yet another) fort -- this was in virtually pristine condition. It had been built by a maharaja in the 1500s, its location ordained by a priest. Well, he forgot one thing - there was no water anywhere near this palace in the desert. They stuck it out for 15 years, and its been abandoned ever since. Kathy felt increasingly unwell, and as we exited the fort for the drive to Agra, she realized her breakfast wasn't going to stay down. Fortunately, as with just about everywhere in India, there was an open sewer running nearby, which she quickly moved to take advantage of.
We'll spare you the details of the rest of the day - let's just say we became well acquainted with the porcelain goddess in our room. Kathy was quite sure that she was going to have to miss visiting the Taj the next morning - but miraculously, she felt better enough to head out at dawn, to catch the Taj as the sun rose. Scott, who never seems to get as sick as Kathy, was feeling quite chipper.
Unlike any of the other palaces and historical sites we'd visited, there was impressive security at the Taj. You were allowed to bring nothing in except cameras, and had to twice go through metals detectors and body searches. (Apparently there had been terrorist threats against the Taj). There were probably a hundred or so people who arrived at dawn - it wasn't crowded at all.
Entering the grounds, there was a light fog and the sun had yet to rise. The light was gray, the fog was gray, the Taj was gray. It was magical and unearthly. The pictures don't come close to the reality -- it is absolutely stunning. We spent a couple of hours, watching the the Taj turn pink as it reflected the rising sun. We were awestruck (and Scott has seen it before).
We headed back to the hotel mid-morning. Kathy was exhausted (having not eaten for almost two days) and neither of were in top form. We slept through the afternoon, then headed off to catch the train back to Delhi. As we waited for the train to arrive, we were entertained by several urchins who apparently live at the train station. Keeping a close eye on our belongings, we blew up balloons for them to play with - they were enthralled.
This site created and maintained (sometimes) by Scott Blessley. Copyright ©1999-2016. Permission granted to copy material, provided that the source is attributed. Links to our site from yours are much appreciated.Thanks, More recent material at http://blog.blessley.net