As expected it was another stinking hot day - it felt good for about 2 minutes after the too cold 3 hour AC chair car train ride. In spite of the weather there were lots of people visiting the monument. We took lots of pictures, even managing to get some inside the mausoleum where you are not supposed to take pictures. Phil's camera was sensitive enough to capture images in spite of the darkness inside. (The Taj Mahal site is also open each month on the night of the full moon and the 2 nights before and after. That would be an awesome sight to see!) We eventually had taken enough pictures and endured enough heat so made our way back to the rickshaw, asking our driver to take us somewhere with GOOD air conditioning and good food. The air conditioning wasn't the greatest but the food was great!
Randy's view of Merv, James and me, walking upto the West Gate, the most used entrance to the Taj.
My view of the gate.
Here we had just walked through the gate, pretty amazed at how big and clean the grounds were and wondering where the main event was hiding.
Grounds keepers doing their thing in 43C heat. (110F)
It's a green mower but I don't see a "John Deere" logo anywhere.
It was beautiful here but we're still looking for "it".
Almost there.... Here we are looking at the inside of either the North or South gate.
Finally we arrive at the main entrance and can see some white marble in the distance.
My first look at her through the camera.
I zoom in as much as I can... .. and James is first to venture in.
Looking at her from inside the main entrance.
Merv and Randy come on through.
Finally, we were there. It had taken me 44 years, 16 of which I had lived in India. How could it be that I had never been here? The Taj was beautiful! My family had taken us on countless trips all over India when we were kids, just never to Agra, never to the Taj Mahal. I wondered what I would have thought of her as a kid. It would probably have been no big deal to me back then, perhaps just another vacation? At least now I appreciated what I was looking at. One of the ancient wonders of the world. It was pretty amazing!