Agra needs no introduction - it is the city home to the world-famous Taj Mahal. The city itself is just like any other 3rd-tier Indian city, with crammed lanes and small buildings.
We arrived at the mouth of a place leading to the Taj Mahal. Yes, we have to walk/travel a considerable amount before getting even a glimpse of the mausoleum itself. Contrary to popular belief, travelling till the ticket office before entering the Taj Mahal complex cannot be done using camels. That has been banned. You can use horse carts or normal auto-rickshaws though. Beware of autowalas who will keep following you, asking you to be their passengers in their auto-rickshaws; they will loot you. Just pick any auto-rickshaw whose driver had been minding his own business until he was flagged down by you.
Next, at the ticketing office itself, there is a separate counter for foreign nationals. The ticket price is obviously more. If you're an Indian citizen, there are lots of separate counters. Now, here was when the drama started. The officers at the counter started demanding us to show our Aadhar cards, which, for your information, I am yet to register for. We tried arguing that we are Indian citizens and showed them our PAN cards, but they wouldn't accept. That was ridiculous, because the Government has not yet made the use of Aadhar cards compulsory in all places, yet the ticketing officers still asked for it. We could go to the foreign nationals' counter, but there was no way we could bust so much money when we could buy the ticket for a considerably low price. After a lot of haggling and convincing, they finally gave in and gave us the low-priced tickets for Indian citizens. Hence, word of advice to Indian citizens: bring along your Aadhar cards, or apply for one and get it, if you want to see the Taj Mahal.
Finally we were let through. This was the entrance of the Taj Mahal complex:
We arrived at the mouth of a place leading to the Taj Mahal. Yes, we have to walk/travel a considerable amount before getting even a glimpse of the mausoleum itself. Contrary to popular belief, travelling till the ticket office before entering the Taj Mahal complex cannot be done using camels. That has been banned. You can use horse carts or normal auto-rickshaws though. Beware of autowalas who will keep following you, asking you to be their passengers in their auto-rickshaws; they will loot you. Just pick any auto-rickshaw whose driver had been minding his own business until he was flagged down by you.
Next, at the ticketing office itself, there is a separate counter for foreign nationals. The ticket price is obviously more. If you're an Indian citizen, there are lots of separate counters. Now, here was when the drama started. The officers at the counter started demanding us to show our Aadhar cards, which, for your information, I am yet to register for. We tried arguing that we are Indian citizens and showed them our PAN cards, but they wouldn't accept. That was ridiculous, because the Government has not yet made the use of Aadhar cards compulsory in all places, yet the ticketing officers still asked for it. We could go to the foreign nationals' counter, but there was no way we could bust so much money when we could buy the ticket for a considerably low price. After a lot of haggling and convincing, they finally gave in and gave us the low-priced tickets for Indian citizens. Hence, word of advice to Indian citizens: bring along your Aadhar cards, or apply for one and get it, if you want to see the Taj Mahal.
Finally we were let through. This was the entrance of the Taj Mahal complex:
Once we passed through these buildings, we finally saw this:
It was a long walk till we reached the Taj Mahal itself. You'll have to buy some shoe covers there - don't worry, the sellers will automatically come to you - so that the marble of the tomb is not tarnished by shoe prints. It was very hot, so caps or hats will help. There are several historic buildings in and around this famous white-marble tomb we all are so familiar with, and if you want to know about them, you'll have to hire a guide there and then. There will be many and they'll approach you. Note, lots of photographers will approach you and ask if you want a photograph of yourself taken with the Taj Mahal. If you want, then go for it. Now, I learned something very unique about the Taj Mahal. It is constructed in such a manner that one can perform tonnes of photographic tricks by taking advantage of the building's architecture and camera angle. This yields a fascinating variety of photographs. Any photographer there will show you how that's done. The Taj Mahal building itself is very huge and squarish; you'll have to walk all around it in order to reach the gate leading to the inside of the building. You'll spot the Yamuna while you're walking around.
We finally reached the inside of the Taj Mahal. There is a main, circular dark room around which you can walk. You'll spot the coffins of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz there if you peer down the large recess built into the marble floor. I don't have much to say about that, but if you are a traveller like me you'll love to experience all varieties of exploration.
We walked back the way we came, but this time through a sheltered path. I got this lovely shot of the Taj Mahal:
We finally reached the inside of the Taj Mahal. There is a main, circular dark room around which you can walk. You'll spot the coffins of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz there if you peer down the large recess built into the marble floor. I don't have much to say about that, but if you are a traveller like me you'll love to experience all varieties of exploration.
We walked back the way we came, but this time through a sheltered path. I got this lovely shot of the Taj Mahal:
That's about it for the Taj Mahal itself!
We went through the arduous walk again till we reached the entrance with autowalas and brought some souvenirs there. We asked the stall-keeper if he knew of any place that sold Sattvik food, and he mentioned some place called Ram Babu Paratha Wala. The name didn't sound very promising, but we decided to go there anyway. Only halfway through our taxi ride there, we realised that there are no proper fine-dining restaurants as such in Agra; most eateries are simple stalls or shacks only. Ram babu's paratha outlet was going to be no different. Yes, most 5-star hotel companies have their hotels in Agra, and if you want to have a 5-star lunch or high tea, you could go there. We skipped lunch and travelled back to our lodging in Vrindavan.
Agra, all in all, was a marvellous experience.
We went through the arduous walk again till we reached the entrance with autowalas and brought some souvenirs there. We asked the stall-keeper if he knew of any place that sold Sattvik food, and he mentioned some place called Ram Babu Paratha Wala. The name didn't sound very promising, but we decided to go there anyway. Only halfway through our taxi ride there, we realised that there are no proper fine-dining restaurants as such in Agra; most eateries are simple stalls or shacks only. Ram babu's paratha outlet was going to be no different. Yes, most 5-star hotel companies have their hotels in Agra, and if you want to have a 5-star lunch or high tea, you could go there. We skipped lunch and travelled back to our lodging in Vrindavan.
Agra, all in all, was a marvellous experience.
April 2017