This one was more than an excursion, it was an adventure. Unlike most of the places we’ve visited on our round-the-world cruise, the Taj Mahal is inland, way inland, so getting to it requires some doing. It’s definitely worth the effort, and depending on how you choose to reach Agra, the getting there can be as memorable as visiting the Taj Mahal itself. It certainly was for us.
We docked in Cochin (now Kochi—India changed the names of many cities and landmarks in 1995, though many locals prefer and still use the old names) on May 1st, and the plan was to disembark at 2:00 pm, bus to the airport, and take a 5:15 charter flight to the capital, New Delhi. Upon arrival we would bus to our hotel, where we would be served a 9:45 dinner before checking in. However, a long string of delays, including immigration departing the ship, traffic to the airport, airport security, and sitting on the tarmac in New Delhi waiting for a gate to open up, threw that schedule completely out the window, and our dinner at the hotel felt more like an early breakfast. Not for the last time, we found ourselves saying, “this is India,” meaning that when you’re here you just have to chill and roll with whatever affects your best laid plans.
At any rate, our luxury hotel, the ITC Maurya in New Delhi, was fantastic, and the dinner, a buffet of traditional Indian foods, was amazing. We finally got to bed a little after 1:00 am, which doesn’t sound too bad until you consider that day two of our Taj Mahal trip started at 5:30 am with luggage drop off at the bus, breakfast at 6:00, and a 7:00 departure for the train station. You see, we were only in New Delhi (the world’s second largest city, with a population of 34 million), and leg two of our journey was to be a 9:00 am train ride that would take us to Agra, where the Taj Mahal is, by 11:15. We would then make a quick stop at Fort Agra, an old fort that predates the Taj Mahal, have lunch and check into our hotel, and then go over to the Taj Mahal at sunset, which is the peak viewing time.
Ah, but as I said, this is India. We actually had a private chartered train, but it wasn’t at the station yet when we arrived, so we had to wait for it for a while. Happily it wasn’t that late, and when we boarded without incident I was excited about spending the next couple hours taking in the Indian countryside. Well, I got to take it in all right, for the next six hours. We would go a little and then stop, go a little and then stop, over and over, all without any apparent problems and with no explanation, other than, “this is India.” The countryside was indeed interesting, with a lot of flat farmland, and we had plenty of water and energy bars in our carry ons, so there was no hardship involved. All I’ll say is that it was probably good that the train had no bar car.
By the time we reached Agra there was no time to see the fort, which was fine with me, so we went straight to our hotel, another ITC luxury affair, checked in, and enjoyed a delightful, if very late lunch. Then, imagine this, we were back on schedule for our sunset visit to the Taj Mahal. We arrived around 4:45, and the next two-plus hours were magical, starting with what we saw before we even laid eyes on the Taj itself.
Everyone has seen photos of the Taj Mahal, and it is one of the world’s most recognizable buildings. What most people, myself included, have never seen, is photos of the rest of the complex. The Taj Mahal sits with its back to the Yamuna River, and is walled in on the other three sides, with a gate on each of those three sides. The west gate, where we and almost all other people entered, is actually a spectacular red sandstone building that is worthy of admiration in its own right. There are similar buildings to the left and right of the Taj Mahal on the riverbank, one of which is a mosque, and together serving as anchors for the wall protecting the Taj. What I’m saying is that even without the Taj Mahal the complex is impressive.
And then there’s the Taj. Thousands of words have been written describing its beauty, but none can, or ever will, do it justice. It’s that beautiful. It took 20,000 men 22 years to construct, and the closer you get to it the more you can appreciate that effort. The carvings are exquisite, and none of the intricate designs and patterns on and inside the building are painted. It’s all inlaid, every bit of it, which is just mind boggling. I’ll share some photos below, though they won’t do the craftsmanship justice.
The Taj Mahal is actually a mausoleum, which most people know, and you can go inside and view the cenotaphs of Shah Jahan and his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, though no photos are allowed inside the building. Oh yeah, I should explain about cenotaphs, a word that was new to me. A cenotaph is an empty tomb or monument honoring a person who is buried elsewhere. In this case the Shah and his wife are buried below in virtually identical caskets, off limits to all, though photos can be found online.
Back outside, it was time to soak in those incredible sunset views of the Taj. Sunset is when the building truly glows, and trust me when I say that if you’re going to travel all the way to Agra to see the Taj Mahal, you need to be there at sunset. It was truly a “pinch me” experience, and I’m not sure it has sunk in yet that I was standing there admiring one of man’s most inspirational creations. As many times as we’d said “this is India,” to explain things that didn’t go according to plan, the Taj Mahal is also India, and it is breathtakingly beautiful.
Alas, shortly before 7:00 pm, with the sun dropping below the horizon, the guard at the west gate blew his whistle, and we joined the throngs making our way out and back to the bus for a return to the hotel, where a lavish dinner awaited. It was a wonderful end to a long and memorable day, and we went to bed late, but happy.
Of course there was still the little matter of getting from Agra back to the ship, which had sailed from Cochin to Goa in our absence, and one more even earlier start awaited us. A 3:45 wake-up alarm gave us enough time to gather up our belongings and, boxed breakfasts in hand, board our bus at 4:30 for the four hour drive back to New Delhi, where a charter flight awaited to whisk us off to Goa. Exhausted but exhilarated, we arrived back at the ship a little after 3:00 pm, having seen Cochin, New Delhi, Agra, Goa, and a lot of the countryside in between in three long days. As we passengers often say to each other, we signed up for an adventure, not a cruise, and we certainly are having one.
And we’re not done with India, as we still have two days in Mumbai (Bombay) ahead of us. India is a big, wonderful, complicated country, and I’m glad we’ll have spent a full week here before we move on. I’ll be sure to fill you in on our visit to India’s version of New York City, so stay tuned.
By the way, Goa is worthy of a post of its own, and if you’re a history buff you might enjoy digging into it. I’d like to do a post, but just don’t have time. Ciao.
And we’re off like a herd of turtles for the Cochin airport. Destination, New Delhi, the capital of India. Looks like we’ll be a little late getting to the airport.
We were indeed quite late in taking off, but we were treated to a beautiful sunset.
The ITC Maurya Hotel in New Delhi is very upscale. The rooms are nice, the food was excellent, and the service was impeccable. We stayed at an ITC hotel in Agra too, which was even better. ITC is a chain with hotels across India. I recommend them highly.
Day two of the trip. At the New Delhi train station preparing to board our chartered train for the two hour, fifteen minute trip to Agra. Little did we know…
On the train for what turned out to be a six hour trip. No explanation for the delays was ever given. I thought everyone handled it remarkably well, and we all started saying, “this is India,” as an explanation for the regular delays that seemed to hound us. I will say this about the train trip—it was probably a good thing that there was no bar car on the train.
This building is just the gate to the Taj Mahal. I thought it was absolutely wonderful, and undoubtedly the fanciest gate I’ve ever seen. You can just see the dome of the Taj Mahal in the background. Note the walls, which border the Taj Mahal on three sides, with the river on the fourth.
Entering through the gate. I like this photo, because you can see the Taj Mahal through the far door.
And there it is. I have no words, except to say that yes, I really did take this photo. 😀
A closer view.
And closer yet.
Close up of some of the decor. Everything is inlaid, none of it is painted on.
More inlay. The closer you get the more remarkable it is, and you can understand why it took 20,000 craftsmen 22 years to build it.
Close up of one of the minarets. The carving is also exquisite.
Sunset is by far the best time to visit. If you’re going to come all this way, you might as well come at the best time of day.
Me spoiling the view. Note the booties, which you have to wear to enter the building.
View of the west gate from the Taj.
The gate up close. I loved it.
One of the minarets.
Minaret at sunset, with the mosque that anchors the northeast corner of the wall and the river in the background.
Day three, on the bus from Agra to New Delhi to get the plane to take us back to the ship in Goa. Saw a lot of these along the way as we passed through farm country. These thatched huts are used to store cow patties, which they burn as fuel.
Another cow pattie hut. Our guide said they burn the patties as fuel for cooking. Hard to imagine.
Can’t finish this post with cow patties. Here’s one final look at the Taj Mahal as we were leaving. What an amazing sight.
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