18/Mar/2007 Wah Taj!

What better way of chugging from Delhi towards "the Taj" than the Taj Express! Well, actually there is a certain Shatabdi Express that covers the distance shorter while, but this train was completely booked by the time Ramya, Imran and I decided do "the Taj". At under 200 rupees for a three hour journey in first class of Taj Express, I would any day vote this as a better option than taking a bus or hiring a taxi. We reached Agra at 10:10. Right outside the train station, there is a government run counter for pre-paid tourist taxi. We got a spacious trusted Ambassador for the whole day at 950 rupees. On the itinerary was the palace in Fatehpur Sikri, the Red Fort and of course the Taj. (A possibility is to include Mathura - the birth place of Lord Krishna - and Brindavan on the itinerary, but then this requires a two day trip. Plus for those who are not very interested in worshiping at temples, I would say that if you give these two cities a slip, you would not be missing anything).

Fatehpur Sikri, the Mughal Capital of India, is around 45 kms from Agra station, around 1 hour drive. It has a beautiful and very well preserved fort built using red stones in the 16th century and a sprawling mosque complex that houses "Jama Masjid". Legend has it that the great Mughal king Akbar had come to this place to seek the blessings of Salim Chisti since Akbar was without a heir since a long while. When blessed with a son Salim - later to known as Jehagir or Sharjahan - Akbar built this new capital as a mark of his gratitude. The famous "Buland Darwaza" (see photo) located in the mosque campus was built in 1573 to mark the victory of Akbar over the king of Khandesh. (Gujarat).

On reaching this historical site, the first thing I did was to fight with a rest room attendent who was asking for 2 rupees for using the toilets. All I asked him was where were the charges displayed - one argument led to another and the whole thing ended up in a little shouting match. I sure felt very refreshed which surely helps if you have had to get up at 4:30 am. I did on reaching the place was There are quite a few guides who tried to stop the taxi on its way to the fort, but we initially decided not to opt for one guide. For the record, the guides are very affordable, around 100 rupees to show you around the fort and another 20 rupees for a guide who would show you the mosque.

Next stop - the Red Fort at Agra, which is just 2.5 kms from the Taj. This fort is huge, much bigger than the Red Fort in Delhi. In fact, the Mughals referred to the Red Fort in Delhi as "Laal Haveli", meaning the red bungalow. Again we did not take a guide, but I think that this fort definitely calls for a guided tour. Ah! Did I mention that we spotted the world famous Indian graffiti on one of the doors of this fort (see photo). Other than this, the fort was spotless - very clean and very well maintained.

A major photo op is the courtyard of the fort which offers a clear sight of the Taj. In fact, it is said that when Sharjahan was building the Taj, he monitored the progress of the monument from this very spot. In more contemporary times though, you are likely to see me at this courtyard (evidence: inset photo - with the black arrow pointing to the Taj) .

We could have spent much more time at the Red Fort, but then the great Taj was beckoning us. So we grudgingly bade our good byes to the Red Fort and made our way to the Taj. The Taj holds the "kabar" or the burial site of Mumtaz, the deeply loved wife of Sharjahan. One thing I must say - however awesome Fatehpur Sikhri and the Red Fort were, you just couldn't be prepared enough for the magnificence of the Taj. This is where I must stop writing, because the Taj is something that neither its builder, nor any poet, nor a scholar can describe. It is something that can only be felt. And poorly captured in a few pictures: