that time of day voice on the phone. When we got off the bus and
walked towards the station I saw that India was much more alive at 5
am than I'd expected.
When we got on the train I was not at all surprised by
the conditions of the train. In-fact, with everything in this country,
I went in with hardly any expectations regarding the quality of trains
and such. This was a good tactic because no matter where I went I was
pleasantly surprised. Now, having time to look back and reflect, I
realize that the train we were one was definitely one of the single
most dirty forms of transport I have ever been on. I was immediately
introduced to this when I sat down in my seat, put my feet down and
felt baby formula on my feet. I quickly accepted it and got ready for
a two hour nap. Two hours later, I hadn't slept at all but instead had
been in an interesting conversation with a friend named David and a
professor on the ship that was also on our trip named Molly.
That day in Agra we went to a few different forts and
sites. They all looked so unique and interesting. I walked around each
and he thing that I found most interesting was that there were just as
many Indian tourists as there were foreign tourists. I'm not that much
of a history person and always jump at any opportunity to meet people,
so I spent much of my day hanging out with Indian tourists, and
agreeing to take pictures with them.
Indian women were complimenting my outfit left and right.
And, While hagglers and street sellers would still approach me, as
soon as I shook my head they would leave me alone. So, I think Bobby
was right and I am glad that I chose to wear my traditional Indian
outfit that day.
After a long day of seeing pretty and historical sights,
we got on the bus and headed for our final and definitely most
anticipated sight of the day- The Taj Mahal. When we got to the
entrance of the Taj there was a long line to get in filled with any
and every ethnicity you could think of. There were also lots of
Indian's from other parts of the country that had come to see it as
well. We got our tickets and waiting in line. After we got through the
line, we walked through a large entrance way, and through that
entrance, I could see the actual Taj Mahal in the distance. I have to
say, it was an overwhelming experience walking up to something that
well known and recognized throughout the world. You see these things
hundreds of times in photographs and on television, but seeing it with
my own eyes made me feel as if I'd never seen a picture or TV show
before in my life. It was a whole different experience. The pictures
you've seen mainly focus on the actual white marble building itself.
What blew me away was all of the other stuff that you don't see in the
pictures. There is so much more intricate decoration as well as other
whole buildings that surround the one. The Taj was built by Mughal
emperor Shah Jahan for one of his wives…well it's clear he loved this
one the most, and he must have loved her a LOT because this place was
like no other place I've ever seen.
We spent about 2 hours just walking around the area. I
paid close attention to the amount of Indian tourists there were
there. Sometimes, going to "touristy" places gets really annoying and
almost isn't even worth it to me. Well, just looking around and seeing
how many people there were on a random Wednesday proved to me just how
worth it this one site was. When I got up close to the building which
acts as a tomb, I looked to the left and over the marble walls I saw
fields with men working hard. Could you imagine making a living
through hard labor with such a beautiful, historical landmark to your
left? In one of my first blogs I talked about how the schools in
Dominica had the most beautiful views of the ocean and the mountains,
and how the kids there don't necessarily take the views for granted,
it just isn't important or unique to them like it is to us. I found
myself having these thoughts again as I put myself in the position of
the Indian man plowing a field right next to the Taj Mahal. We watched
the color of the Taj change with the sunset and we were on our way.
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