The Taj and Varanasi

On Monday February 4th, 2008, I took the 6:10 am Jaipur Gwailor express train to Agra Fort (10:52 scheduled arrival, actual 12pm) so that I could visit the famous Taj Mahal.


My Taj verdict: weak to okay. Certainly from the back, the site is very nice: wide bend in the river, green forest area on the other side. But, the scale of the structure was not impressive (as it seems in photos), the marble pieces not so well chosen, and the reflecting pools lacked sparkle. It's a check mark on the preverbial to-do list. But, I would say that the real reward of a visit here is found through observation of the Indian families in their finest dress posing in front of their national shrine. It is known for being a symbol of Love, and because so many people come here with Love on their mind, the place does have a special feeling.
This might help to put its size in perspective: it is about 186 ft tall, St. Peter's Basilica is 452 ft., and Chartres Cathedral is over 350 ft. high. In layman (prole) terms: if they build a Taj in Las Vegas, it would be the only copy there that is bigger than the original. Yes, I know, it is really hard to believe there isn't a Vegas Taj already (with Russell Peters performing nightly).
The bottom line: The Taj Mahal attracts from 2 to 4 million visitors annually, with more than 200,000 from overseas. Entry Fee for Foreign Nationals : 750 Rs., Entry Fee For Indian Tourists : 20 Rs. I did the math: each year this place takes in 150 million rupees from foreigners, and 80 million rupees from Indians.


Milling about the site are many photographers there to capture the moment for you (on film, no less and get you the prints in less than an hour). This was the only time in India hawkers avoided me (and the other camera ladened foreigners), and focussed on the natives. This isn't completely true, because there are plenty of men wandering about the site about who try and become your personal "guide", which includes showing you where to stand to take pictures so that your own picture will look just like the one you've seen a hundred times before.


"Look, I am holding the dome up with my fingers!"
(It may be silly, but least my hair isn't orange)


Here are some notes I made while on site (notes in brackets added today for this blog):
I am sitting outside the south portal of the monument. I was not prepared for the smell of stinky feet that IS the interior and also the exterior area of the interior entrance! Unreal. My advice: dab (Vick's) vapour rub under your nose before going inside the Taj! My photo was just taken by an Indian couple (they actually asked this time). Title: "Whitey at the Taj". Must get out of the sun and away from wafting dirty feet smell. Unreal!


A couple of cows at the edge of the Ganges River in Varanasi

If you thought my words on the Taj were harsh, then you may not want to know what I think about Varanasi, or as my friend David Packer so cleverly calls it: Very Nasty.
This is one of the holiest cities for the Hindi. And, because of this, I am not going to say much. (perhaps at a later date on harshmagazine.com)




On my way to Agra Fort train station my bicycle rickshaw was caught up in traffic due to this wedding procession. The lights are powered by a small diesel engine that moves along with the procession.




Because I had given myself ample time to get to the station, I was able to sit back and enjoy the passing festivites. Varanasi is a city of weddings, prayers and cremations; and in the week I spent there one day, I had seen them all.