//Taj Mahal – July 2019
Picture the WorldJuly 31, 2019

Taj Mahal – July 2019

I suppose we could have named this post New Delhi and Agra, since they are the cities through which we passed, but our sole purpose for our sojourn was to revisit the Taj Mahal.
We flew Aeroflot from Paris to New Delhi, thinking the experience might provide some adventure in itself.
We had a few hours stopover in Moscow, but not long enough to leave the terminal.
And as it turned out, the only adventure was the meals, like this business class breakfast after a short redeye.
In New Delhi, we stayed at the Andaz near the airport, both coming and going. Unfortunately, their’s was the only Hindustan Motors Ambassador we saw. One of my all-time favorite cars. 1 1/4 tons of plate steel wrapped around a 35 HP motor, which combined makes it just about the safest car on an Indian road: you can’t go fast enough to hurt yourself when you (inevitably) hit something, and it’s strong enough to bounce off them when you do.
When we arrived, it was monsooning. Our only real excursion in Delhi was to acquire a SIM card.
After copies of passport, a photo against a blank wall, and watching a guy wrestle with his mobile for 45 minutes, we plopped down 448 rupees (less than $7) and walked away with 84 days of unlimited SMSs and domestic calls, plus 1.5Gb of data per day. Best SIM deal so far this year.
The next morning we were at the Hazrat Nizamuddin train station for the 8:10am Gatimaan Express to Agra.
First class tickets are about $23 per person each way on the new high speed Gatimaan Express trains, which now take only 90 minutes to get to Agra. The best improvement since our last trip, though, is the toilet isn’t just a hole in the floor onto the tracks. Progress!
But the “veg” meals provided served more as a distraction than an actual meal.
We were met at the station by Jetender, the same driver who took care of us almost 13 years ago, and drove us all the way to Jaipur. His kids are grown now, one working in accounting at the Oberoi hotel and the other getting his computer engineering degree.
The new train is fast enough now to enable trips to the Taj Mahal from Delhi without an overnight stay. But not spending a night at the Oberoi Amarvilas (above and below) is unthinkable. And who wants to miss the Taj Mahal at sunrise?
 
Among (many) other things, the Oberoi provides electric golf cart transfers to the east gate (internal combustion engines aren’t allowed too close). What was dirt roads and nothing 12 years ago is now brick-paved street. More changes. Less romantic.
What hasn’t changed is the wonder you experience when you catch your first glimpse of the Taj through the Great Gate.
And then step through to the inner gardens and see it in front of you.
The impact of the size of the Taj is hard to convey. Here Michele stands on the far right, looking up at one face of the mausoleum (don’t tell her I took this picture).
Looking back at the Great Gate from the terrace, without the Taj Mahal overshadowing it, you can appreciate its architectural elegance. It would be a monument worth visiting in its own right, as would the mosque that flanks the mausoleum to the west (below), and it’s identical twin to the east, built simply to maintain the symmetry of the whole.
  
Then, on the far side of the mausoleum flows the Yamuna River.
The immensity of the buildings can easily let you overlook the fineness of the details on every surface, from bas-relief carved marble (above) to semi-precious stone pietra-dura (below).
  
As we were preparing to leave, a monsoon thunderstorm rolled in. We had to pause under our umbrella to take in the gauze-like veil the rain laid over all.
Back in our room, the rain having moved on, we still got to enjoy the Taj.
At dinner that night, we listened to a very accomplished santoor player.
And ate too much.
And then got welcome-back cake.
Our being return guests, having stayed all of one night over 12 years ago, the hotel went a little over the top. They put us in a suite and gave us gifts at every meal, not counting cake. Too much.
The next day, we were back in traffic…
And back at the train station…
And headed back to New Delhi through monsoon rice patties, for a part of India new to us: Kerala.

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