Taj Mahal (Agra)

Finally after travelling and living in India for three months I can say that I have seen the Taj Mahal! I do not usually get very excited about buildings but the Taj Mahal is obviously something that you have to see when coming to India.

The Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan as a memorial for his second wife who died giving birth to their 14^th child. Not long after the Taj Mahal was completed, Shah Jahan was overthrown by his son Aurandzeb and imprisoned in Agra Fort where for the rest of his days he could only gaze out at his creation through a window. Following his death, Shah Jahan was buried at the Taj Mahal alongside his second wife.

We arrived in Agra (the city of the Taj Mahal) in the evening and were really excited to see the Taj Mahal right away even though we were going in the morning. In the area surrounding the Taj Mahal, called the Taj Gang there are numerous restaurants claiming to have the best rooftop view of the Taj Mahal and we chose one that had been recommended in a guidebook. By the time that we got to the restaurant it was about 8:00 pm so it was dark out and we did not have the best view of the city skyline. We thought that we could make out the silhouette of the Taj Mahal from the rooftop and were a little disappointed although none of us would admit it until the next day. When we went back to that same restaurant for breakfast the next morning we realized that we mistook another building for the Taj Mahal. In the daylight, this restaurant did have the best view of the Taj Mahal.

The Taj Mahal is very touristy although I embarrassed it and enjoyed myself. The ticket for admission is the highest that I have paid anywhere so far. The foreigner price was 750 rupees and the Indian price was about 150 rupees and this allows you a one day, one time entry. I was a little disappointed that I could not come back and see the Taj at different times in the day so I made sure to take lots of pictures.

In order to avoid the crowds and heat, we got to the Taj Mahal at 6:30am. This time was perfect because it was quiet and peaceful and the lighting on the building was great. The garden walkway leading up to the Taj Mahal has of Indian and foreign tourists trying to get the best picture of themselves in front of the Taj. This is very funny to watch although I can not deny that I did the same.

My friend Kat had a really good line that she used when people asked her to take their photo. She would say, “so... do you want the building in the back or not?”.

I was surprised by how big the Taj Mahal actually is. I think that no picture can do justice to the Taj Mahal. The inside was not as impressive as the outside although it was very beautiful and elaborate- all marble. Apparently the Taj Mahal underwent a huge restoration project in the early 20^th century and it looks as immaculate now as it did when it was constructed.

On the way out, I kept turning back to take one last look at the Taj many times. I felt very grateful to have been able to see the it and I found myself wondering if I would ever in my life be back. I hope that some day I will be.  

Udaipur

Udaipur is considered the most romantic city in India and along the water I can understand how the city got this description. The old city is situated around Lake Pichola, which rivals Varanasi in terms of aesthetic appeal because Lake Pichola is much cleaner than the Ganges and along the water is very well maintained. The area is famous from one of the older James Bond films called Octopussy in which the lake and palace were used and many restaurants show this film each night at 7:00 pm.

The old city is framed by the Aravalli hills and the outstanding sights are The City Palace and the Lake Palace, which are located in the middle of the lake. It seemed as though every restaurant that we went to in Udaipur was a rooftop and they all had incredible views of the old city and lake.

My time in Udaipur was especially memorable because we happened to be in the city during Holi. Holi is a Hindu festival of colours in which people in the streets will throw coloured dye on each other. It is meant to be a light, happy celebration. My Indian host family told me that there was no significant spiritual meaning to the festival, it is purely meant for enjoyment. Some people celebrate Holi for more than one day, however, the celebration with throwing dye is only one day. During Holi, businesses are closed during the celebration and social norms are relaxed. A common greeting during this time is “Happy Holi”, just like we would say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy New Year”.

One major problem with Holi is to do with the quality of the dye. There are natural and chemical dyes, although the natural dyes are more expensive. During Holy, people go for quantity rather than quality of dye. There are serious health affects associated with the chemical dyes, such as skin cancer and respiratory disorders. Also, foreign women can face the threat of inappropriately behaviour from some men who are drinking or are too caught up in the excitement of the festival. For these reasons, I did not participate in Holi but I was able to see some of the celebrations before and see the aftermath. I think that I would have had the best time participating in Holi if I was a young Indian boy.

After leaving a restaurant on the night before Holi we found ourselves among the Holi celebrations on the street. In the afternoon, huge piles of wood had been set up in the streets in teepees and these were lit on fire and burning all around. There were also fireworks being lit off around these fires. Families, groups of women, and groups of young men were on the streets enjoying the social celebration. Some people had brought huge speakers and were playing Bollywood as well as North American top 40 songs. The streets were not officially closed off but traffic was significantly affected.

On the day of Holi, the dye throwing ended around 3:00 pm and by about 5:00 we felt that we were safe to go check out the old city. The auto-rickshaw drive that we took to get to the old city was one of the strangest that I have taken in India. The streets of Udiapur were eerily quiet, which is very rare of any Indian city because of the large population of the country. There was evidence of the dye all over the streets, on scooters, auto-rickshaws and motorcycles, and on the cows roaming the streets. Some shop owners were starting to clean up the front of their shop in order to open for the afternoon and the last of the people who participated in the dye throwing festivities were slowing filing home to clean up. It seemed as though the young boys and men were the most covered in colour although I think that they were also the one throwing the most dye at others. Some older people were also covered in dye, although not as much as younger people.

During the days following Holi I was able to know who had participated in the festivities because some of the dye was still on their skin. I was told by a shop owner that many people will but oil on their skin before Holy. This way the dye will not stay on their skin and if they are caught by someone with dye then they can slip away. I saw many young boys with water guns during the days leading up to Holy. I learned that dye sinks into the skin better with the water than without.  

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer is called the Golden City because the old city is constructed of the same golden honey sandstone. The fort is the main attraction of the city and it looks like a massive sandcastle in the middle of the desert. The inside of the fort is made up of narrow streets with shops, Jain temples, a maharaja's palace, and a museum. Jaisalmer Fort is a living fort, meaning that there are many people who live in it. On the first day when we were looking out over the city a man on the next rooftop invited us up onto his roof where there was an even better view of the city.

The streets that lead to the entrance of the fort are lined with shops that capitalize on the tourists coming through. You can buy leather good, handwoven table runners and wall hangings, pashminas, bedding, and various other ragasthani crafts. The shop owners are good sales people but hard bargainers – you have to be very persistent if you want to pay a fair price.

Among the shops on the streets leading to the fort we found one man's photography shop where he sold old prints of pictures taken in India. His family had been in the photography business for three generations on the same street in Jaisalmer. He showed us the old fashioned camera that his grandfather used to take pictures and said that all of the prints that he had for sale were pictures taken from this camera. For each picture there was a short story that the man could tell you about it. I chose a picture of two women dancers taken in 1911. These women were covered in jewelry- 10 bangles on each arm, about the same amount of anklets on each leg, and huge flower nose rings.

On the afternoon of the second day in Jaisalmer we took an hour bus ride out of the city and into the dessert where we spent the night. We were dropped off on the side of the road and were taken by camel to our tents. We were two to a camel and each camel was led by a little boy who helped us get on and off and kept checking that we were alright with their limited English vocabulary. We stopped part way to the tents to get off the camels and watch the sunrise on the sand dunes and the boys who guided our camels gave us the opportunity to ``race`` with them. I thought that I would give it a try and although a little scary it was really fun. My impression of camels from what I have seen of them here in India is that they are lazy animals that will do what you want them to, although not at a fast pace. I climbed on the front of the camel and the 10 year old boy who guided our camel went on the back, holding the reins like a horse. The little boy got the camel going so fast that I was literally bouncing in the air off the seat. When I started bouncing off to one side the little boy in the back had to hold my shoulders down so that I didn’t fall (although I think that if I was going down, he would not be strong enough to catch me).

During our camel ride to the tents and for the rest of the night the wind was very strong and was picking up sand with it. With a strong gust of wind, any body part that was not covered would be blasted by sand and it could actually be a bit painful (It was a little less graceful and glamourous than the girls in the latest Sex and the City movie). It reminded me of the feeling that you get when going skiing in the winter. We tried our best to cover our faces with scarves and sunglasses. I had the most trouble with getting sand in my eyes. I finally started to realize the practicality of a full burka in the dessert (here I was thinking that the women were oppressed and uncomfortable).

In the evening we were entertained by a ragisthani cultural music and dance show. It was shown on a circular raised stage outside and we were seated on cushions and pillows. After the performance we were had a ragisthani feast in the dinning hall and slept in our tents.