Agra (Uttar Pradesh) - March 9th, 2007

Agra is known mainly for its Taj Mahal, India's most famous building by the bank of the Yamuna River. This river separates the Agra Fort from the Taj Mahal. The Taj is considered the most extravagant monument ever built for love. Nos is India's tourist emblem. It was built by emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his second wife Mumtaz Mahal who died after giving birth to their 14th child in 1631. He was so heartbroken that built the Taj. The construction would be over US$70 million today.
On Friday it's closed and only muslins are allowed there for praying at the mosk. The Taj Ganj which is the area around the Taj is very old, with very narrow streets winding around and little shops all attached to each other. Tourists are being targeted constantly for sellings and for rides.
I took a long walk by the Agra Fort. Here the emperor Shah Jahan was held prisioner for 8 years by his son, so he would look at the windows and could see over the river the Taj Mahal at the distance, and remember his deceased wife.
This morning I was at the roof top of a restaurant having breakfast and enjoying the views of the Taj Mahal at the 8:00am morning light. It looked all white against the sky, very impressive!