Oh Taj Sublime

After leaving Agra Fort we had lunch at a restaurant in a hotel with which Rao Travel has an arrangement. The food and service were quite good. Simar and I shared our table with a gal from Iran and a guy from South Africa, each traveling solo. Regrettably I didn't write their names down on a napkin and have forgotten them.

The bus dropped us about 200 yards from the entrance to the Taj Mahal, the rest of the trek was accomplished by camel or horse buggy. We jumped on a horse buggy. It was so tipsy I thought I would slide out the back right onto the road. The camels fascinated me - never have I seen one outside a zoo. In fact I can say that about India in general...never have I seen so many zoo animals out in the streets among the humans...cows and sheep and goats, of course, and monkeys and kingfisher and cobras and now camels. Where is the wise elephant of my dreams...perhaps around the next corner...

Admission for Indians into the Taj Mahal is a whopping 30 rupies (about 6 cents). For me, the non-Indian it is a shocking 750 rupees or $16! (The Empire State Building costs the same.) The queue for nationals was endless yet there was no line for foreigners. I approached, received a warm greeting and was welcomed inside. The guards stopped Simar in her tracks. She's got a look that can pass for many nationalities and has said she's often asked if she's Israeli. The guards refused her entry in my queue and she obediently headed to the long line of Indians. Seeing her go, a deep voice rose up in my belly and I surprisingly blurted: "Wait! She's with me. She's mine." The guards turned to me equally surprised. I reiterated calmly and firmly: "She's with me. Come Simar. Come." They let her pass. As we walked together, I shot her a glance and a smirk. "I feel like an imperious white woman during the height of colonialism."

We arrived at the Taj at the peak of day. It was a scorcher and there were many people there. I had to wet my scarf and wear it on my head for air conditioning. And I vowed that the next time I visit the Taj I will leave Delhi at 3am and arrive at dawn, or wait until dusk when the shadowplay is grandest. Ashwin told me the Taj is at its ethereal best on the night of a full moon. The grounds are amazing, all the buildings so beautiful - the stone, the carvings, the details...

No matter where we've all grown up in the West, we've heard of the Taj Mahal, seen an image of this great wonder of the world, a tomb erected in the name of true love. But until we lay our eyes upon it we cannot fully fathom its incredible beauty and majesty. It is something from dreamworld and completely breathtaking.

So Simar and I spent an hour there, strolling under shade trees and slowly making our way inside.

I let a song go out of my heart (albeit sideways):

And someone answered:

The view to the north, west and east.

Auf Wiedersehen Taj!